Roof rack or hitch cargo rack

[schmugboy]

So I am trying to decide if I want to mount a roof rack in my hard top or manage with a hitch mounted cargo rack. Worried about off roading with heavy stuff mounted on my hitch. Or maybe I just need to pack more effiecntly. Any ideas on packing a family of four with dog for a week.

 

[RangeBrover]

It really depends on what you want to do. If you plan on going down mild trails, then the hitch mounted cargo rack will be just fine. They are nice because you can take them off when you're not using them, and they don't limit your overhead clearance when going through parking garages, etc. Now the downside to these is that it will limit your approach and departure angles. Just think about having an extra 2 feet sticking out behind you when you try to climb a good hill, or are coming down a steep one. There are probably a few guys here that have pictures of their hitch mounted cargo rack hitting the ground or getting beaten up pretty good.

The roof rack is good, the only downside is that they are going to cost more, will add to the height of the vehicle, and you will probably see a drop of 1 mpg. The benefit is that you always have it on your rig, you'll have a lot more space to distribute your gear, and you can also mount lights, a hi-lift, shovel, or whatever else you can think of.

 

[BobA]

I have a Garvin rack and it's the best invesment yet for my jeep.

 

[kai38]

I would go with a roof rack, the rear hitch racks you will bump your shin a dozen times then go buy a roof rack any way.
Also ever thing on the rear rack gets filthy dirty in a rain storm and dusty on the trail.

 

[jeep-N-montero]

My hitch mounted rack is almost 3 feet off the ground when I use it, far above my shins. They also make a cargo duffel bag that is fitted for the cargo rack that keeps everything clean and dry, I use a huge medical sales duffel that fits nicely on mine that paid $3 for at the thrift store.

 

[Jakes01234]

i would go for the roof rack... so you can load the vehicle evenly and you dont get some crazy sag in the rear when you realize the little rack on the back just isnt big enough and you stack it three feet high with stuff.. :ylsmoke:

 

[JPK]

I had a Garvin Expedition rack on my LJ (~3" of lift and 33's) and loved it. I mounted a couple of aluminum ATV tool boxes on top and they worked great, held a ton of gear and kept it out of the Jeep.

I have a smaller Garvin rack on my JKU (4.5" of lift and 37's) and almost never use it because the Jeep is tall enough to make using the roof rack a pita. So, don't overlook the height of your Jeep when your making your final decision...

I used front and/or rear hitch haulers on my LJ from time to time and frequently on my JKU. I'm happy so far with aluminum UWS haulers with straight square tube into the reciever, light weight and 500lb capacity, 26" off the ground, which is sufficient for a whole lot of trails, but not the more technical trails or rock crawling. There are racks with as much as 8" of rise available. With 8" the rack would be 34" off the ground on my Jeep, and that isn't going to be a lot of burden on anything but the more technical trails.

I find a front mounted hauler to be better than a rear mounted hauler most of the time. Easier to keep clear of obstacles, doesn't nterfere with the tailgate. BTW, on JK's up to about 6" of cargo can go on a straight cargo carrier and the tailgate will still clear.

Here are a couple of photos of both Jeeps.
LJ

JKU, no photos of the JKU with a rear carrier being used, but a couple for the front.

Hope this helps,

JPK

 

[Jwood]

I've never used a roof rack on my TJ but I had one on my XJ and it worked out pretty well. It was a pain pulling into parking decks on days I drove it to work but great on the trail. I currently use a rear receiver basket now and really can't complain about that either.

You could always go the cheaper route and get the receiver cargo basket to try it out and if doesn't work sell it and get the roof rack.

 

[Overlandexpeditionspecial]

Ultimately you probably will use both, so the hitch rack would make a good first addition. They are useful for small items (or heavy items) that you really don't want to climb on the roof to mount, and it is handy to move from vehicle to vehicle or even loan to friends (almost like a little trailer).

The roof rack, Garvin, Kargo Master or a custom model, make a great addition for long travels with lots of gear, or for hardware runs.

On the JK we use both during the winter to haul ladders and then shovels on the back, or with a couple of brackets a quadruple snowboard rack can be made on the hitch rack, which beats climbing on top of a slick Jeep to store boards.

 

[Overlandexpeditionspecial]

schmugboy,
Just saw you are in Albuquerque, I can build one of these setups for you, this prototype has 4 months and 8k miles of testing on roadtrips and Angel Fire's "roads". Next in line is to add custom rock sliders to distribute more of the weight load of the front mount. I designed it short of the T-tops to make them still functional, so it is shorter than Garvin but still has the the approximate capacity of a 2 door hardtop. Everything is frame mounted, and when I disassembled to paint I could unbolt and remove by myself in less than 20 minutes (two people would be less scary on the fiberglass though). The rear bumper and (eventually the sliders) are designed to accept the rack, but if you really love your current bumper we can probably do some other mounting arrangement. I do have a design to bring the rest of the mount to the windshield if you want something really trick:ylsmoke:

 

[JeepJK2011]

I have a rear hitch mounted cargo carrier, i like for the extra room, however, you can access the trunk space it is loaded with gear. learned that after I loaded it up and then went to add some more to the back area of the jeep. the front receiver option would be nice, also i am install a Garvin track rack this weekend if the weather stays nice.

 

[jscherb]

I've got an XJ Cherokee rack on my hardtop:

And usually when I need to carry stuff up there I throw a rack basket on the XJ rack:

This hardtop has brackets that tie the roof rack into the roll bars so it can support plenty of weight - none of the weight rests on the fiberglass. You need to be careful about how much weight you put on the factory hardtop, so that may be a consideration in a roof rack vs. receiver rack decision.

I wouldn't want to use a receiver rack because that would interfere with opening the tailgate.

 

[Brigitta]

There are a lot of things to consider. How often will you take a week long adventure with the whole family? How big is the dog? Can the dog ride in the 2nd row with the kids? How big is your tent? Do either of you tend to over pack? Do you have a camp kitchen with all the items you need or do you pack kitchen items from the house?

If the dog can ride in the 2nd row and you aren't over packers you may get by with just a "trail rack" mounted to your tailgate. Before making any purchase I'd make sure my camping gear was organized and packed as tightly as possible and try packing the JKU several times seeing how things fit. Our camping gear fits in precise places every time so we now how to make it fit every time. The JKU's have a lot of space under the 2nd row so utilize that to the fullest.

When traveling with the whole family, my self, husband, a 20 year old, 2-17 year olds, and an 80lb doberman, we use a roof rack. It weighs 150lbs dry so it only goes on when 4/5's or more of the family goes. When there are only 2-3 of us and a dog we just use the cavernous cargo area.

We also own more than 1 tent, one family sized, and 1 that will fit 2 people. We also have a myriad of coolers (cheap garage sale finds) that we can choose from depending on whose going and for how long.

I would avoid a hitch hauler if you'll be anywhere near rocks or ruts, they get hung up pretty easy. Trail racks keep coolers and such up and out of the way, full racks are handy but heavy and expensive.

Here's a few pic's from a fall camping trip, we opted for the full rack plus an interior rack that fits in the cargo area.

 

[steventexas]

Versatility is key

Here is the Garvin expedition roof rack and swing away G2 bumper and rack with axe, shovel and can mounts on the 06 LJ.
In the back is a Tuffy box with rough bed liner to help secure the fridge and kitchen box. The box is wired for power and holds the valuable cargo with confidence. A lot of cargo too.
It's a snap to mount the rod holders in place of axe and shovel and the can rack fits a tackle box like it was intended to go there.
Inland it's a fuel rack with tools but has also hauled large drift wood, large rocks, canoes and pretty much whatever we choose to bring to or from our random adventures.
I hope this helps you figure out your needs and remember it's is easy to take so much stuff it gets in the way and becomes a hassle.

 

[schmugboy]

Thanks for all of the advice & options, it does pain me that as a backpacker I've spent a lot of money buying lightweight stuff and going minimal, to now with family and not fitting everything in a 4dr. Probably going with a roof rack, but want to mount to hardtop instead of a gobi-like rack. But I run no top in the summer, so I'll have to reconsider. Brigitta, am I seeing your picture correctly that you have a rack with no top, how is that mounted.
Thanks again, and happy trails