Suburban roof rack questions.

[wirenut]

I've got a 2009 2500 Suburban that I beleive was originally a border patrol vehicle. It has no roof rack but I'd like to ad one. It appears to have threaded inserts on the roof where one would attach. Maybe they all came with the inserts, maybe my rack was removed by a previous owner. I assume a factory GM will be the simplest. I need the long rails that go along the side and the cross pieces that go from rail to rail. Can anybody tell me exactly what these pieces are called? What years will fit? I must assume a 1500 and 2500 Suburban body are the same. Does anybody know of any differences related to the roof?
I know I could got poking around a junk yard and try to take some off but my preference would be to look around on ebay or craigslist or something first. Or, does anybody here have a roof rack they want to sell?
Or, what aftermarket roof racks are people using and could recommend. It would be used more for work than recreation; I need to able to haul ladders and conduit mostly. However, I could see bikes or kayaks going up there too.
Thanks,

 

[zachammer85]

Rock auto might have them available or at least be able to tell you what they're called.


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[hg1027]

I know everything will eventually hit craigslist and ebay, but I can't imagine many people are taking off the rails bolted to the roof. Aftermarket stuff mostly attaches to the crossbars (I found your thread looking for clamps to the rails, for light mounts), so no one is taking the rails or crossbars off to replace with aftermarket.

Junk yard or full custom is probably your best bet.

 

[ejwebb]

If your really going to use a roof rack you need to make or have made custom brackets to run either a Rhino rack or Frontrunner rack. Trying to bolt anything beside a cargo box to a factory rack is not worth the time or effort. Its nice that you have a blank canvas to start with so the sky's the limit. When trying to bolt a aftermarket rack to the factory rack it will sit to high and wobble around. The suburban is nice that the roof is more flat so making brackets will be a little more easier.

 

[CrazyDrei]

Standby while I look for what I did with my 2011 former BP 2500 Suburban and the roof rack.

 

[CrazyDrei]

Found it!

Here is link to my roof rack install. GMT800 and GMT900 share exactly the same roof rack hole pattern, so you can run a 2000-2006 Z71 roof rack to really turn some heads.

Last 2500 Suburban

I like the double screen layout :) I've been wanting to put another ceiling screen in my Sub, the original vehicle TV system / under-seat deck was dead when I got it and I pulled everything out and the ignition interlock whose security key / card was busted off in the slot under the dash, Im...

expeditionportal.com

Hope this helps.

Good luck

 

[CrazyDrei]

If your really going to use a roof rack you need to make or have made custom brackets to run either a Rhino rack or Frontrunner rack. Trying to bolt anything beside a cargo box to a factory rack is not worth the time or effort. Its nice that you have a blank canvas to start with so the sky's the limit. When trying to bolt a aftermarket rack to the factory rack it will sit to high and wobble around. The suburban is nice that the roof is more flat so making brackets will be a little more easier.

ejwebb,

I beg to differ, factory non Z71 rack is just fine for just about any load you will ever want to put on the roof of your Suburban if you put it together correctly.

My current setup, 6 years and still going strong. Regularly load it with 600-800lbs on top of the 150lbs of the ski box, cargo basket and cross bars.

Already been to Alaska two times with over 600lbs on the roof both times and no issues whats so ever.

I run 4 sets of Yakima cross bars attached to Yakima RailGrabs to keep the profile low.

Doesn't really matter if you go with factory GM or with overpriced aftermarket roof rack, the most important point is where the roof rack feet attach the to body of the truck and that point is exactly the same in both cases. I paid $20 for the factory roof rack for my 2011 Suburban, the rack pictured above uses the exactly the same mounting locations and exactly the same roof rack rails but setup for more weight than any after market rack out there.

Do what is more fun for your application no matter if it's buying a pre-made rack and bolting it on, putting together a frankenstein like I did or completely making one from scratch. Most important questions will be: does it do what you want/need it to do and di you have fun doing it?

Good luck

 

[wagoneerguy]

Regularly load it with 600-800lbs on top of the 150lbs of the ski box, cargo basket and cross bars.

So I had heard, or maybe misunderstood, a good guideline is to keep weight on the roof at 200lbs or less. Can't say where I learned that it's just something I've had in my head so this surprised me when you said 600-800lbs. Do you feel the handling or anything is changed much by having that much weight up high?

 

[ejwebb]

ejwebb,

I beg to differ, factory non Z71 rack is just fine for just about any load you will ever want to put on the roof of your Suburban if you put it together correctly.

My current setup, 6 years and still going strong. Regularly load it with 600-800lbs on top of the 150lbs of the ski box, cargo basket and cross bars.

Already been to Alaska two times with over 600lbs on the roof both times and no issues whats so ever.

I run 4 sets of Yakima cross bars attached to Yakima RailGrabs to keep the profile low.

Doesn't really matter if you go with factory GM or with overpriced aftermarket roof rack, the most important point is where the roof rack feet attach the to body of the truck and that point is exactly the same in both cases. I paid $20 for the factory roof rack for my 2011 Suburban, the rack pictured above uses the exactly the same mounting locations and exactly the same roof rack rails but setup for more weight than any after market rack out there.

Do what is more fun for your application no matter if it's buying a pre-made rack and bolting it on, putting together a frankenstein like I did or completely making one from scratch. Most important questions will be: does it do what you want/need it to do and di you have fun doing it?

Good luck

You could be right, I have a Z71 with the taller side rails. When mounting some racks to the cross bars the rack is to tall off of the roof. I also wanted a spot to mount lights, I use my light bar under the rack almost every morning going work. The rack is more than just carrying some loose items. I run a large RTT for some trips and the tent will about wiggle the stock cross bars off the rack. It all depends on what you want to carry. I have recently bought a swag so to be lighter and be able to use more of my rack for other things like paddle boards.

 

[CrazyDrei]

So I had heard, or maybe misunderstood, a good guideline is to keep weight on the roof at 200lbs or less. Can't say where I learned that it's just something I've had in my head so this surprised me when you said 600-800lbs. Do you feel the handling or anything is changed much by having that much weight up high?

wagoneerguy,

GM reccomends 150 lbs or less on factory cross bars. So 200 or less sounds reasonable, but you would also have to take into account the weight of the vehicle. I would not want more than 200 pounds on the roof of my Liberty but comfortable with 800 pounds on the roof of Suburban.

I had 35 gallons of fuel 210#, 2 full size spares 150#, 2 trailer spares 80#, camping chairs and other supplies 50# and a whole bunch of clothes in the ski box 100#, on top of the cross rails, basket and ski box that weigh 150#. I drove like this to Alaska and back pulling a 2,500 trailer. I did not not push the limits of the handling of the truck and drove it conservatively. My miles per gallon decreased to right around 9mpg. I could tell that there was more weight up high but not overly noticeable.

I also carry 12 gallon low profile can and a second spare on extended off road trips and definitely do notice the extra 300lbs on the roof when driving technical trails.

Ultimately you have to get out and tinker with different configurations until you find what you like and what you are comfortable with.

Hope this helps

 

[CrazyDrei]

You could be right, I have a Z71 with the taller side rails. When mounting some racks to the cross bars the rack is to tall off of the roof. I also wanted a spot to mount lights, I use my light bar under the rack almost every morning going work. The rack is more than just carrying some loose items. I run a large RTT for some trips and the tent will about wiggle the stock cross bars off the rack. It all depends on what you want to carry. I have recently bought a swag so to be lighter and be able to use more of my rack for other things like paddle boards.

ejwebb,

I love the look of Z71 taller side rails but while they offer higher OEM load rating than the lower profile black rails they keep the load much higher. I would not attach an RTT or even an empty ski box for factory cross bars. They are too flimsy and as yo pointed out wiggle and wobble out of thei locked position with regular driving.

I chose Yakima RailGrabs because I had access to employee pricing when I built rack. My cargo basket floor actually sits below the top of the factory cross bars. I wanted to have the lowest profile I possibly could.

If you carry heavy items on the roof consistently consider beefier cross rails: Yakima, Thule, eBay with the lowest profile factory rail attachments. It will prevent the load from wiggling.

 

[mrpeterclark]

We offer an direct bolt on roof rack for these now. currently running a promotion on pre-release orders.

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The part is like a riv-nut. You need a riv-nut tool to install.

Genuine OEM Roof Rack Rail Side Rail Nuts Set of (4) 00-14 Trucks & SUVS 11518684 MPN: 11518684
You need a riv-nut tool to install.most tools on Amazon come with similar nuts but the GM nut is hex shaped and goes in a hex shaped hole they punched in the roof to keep it from spinning.