Thule Xsporter
- Thread starter grangr
- Start date
I bought one and sent it back. The attractive thing for me was the ability to adjust the height of the bars depending on what I was carrying. Rooftop Tent, lower it down to keep the tent from being a huge brick above the truck. Canoes, kayaks, ladders, lumber, raise it up above cab height to carry longer items. Upon installing, I discovered that the shape of a '13 Tacoma's bed severely limits your adjustment. The bottom of the vertical pillars hit the sides of the bed long before they hit the bottom of the bed. This limited me to about 6" of adjustment and at the lowest point, the bars were nearly even with the top of the roof which was too high for me. I ended up with an All-Pro Pack Rack cut down and welded together to put the RTT just below cab height.
I had no issues with the fit or finish of the xSporter rack, typical Thule. Well made, nicely finished, and attached securely (with the Tacoma "Fit Kit") to the factory rails inside the bed. It appeared to be plenty strong to support a RTT and occupants. I'm sure there would be a little movement when people were in the tent based on the tolerances in the mounts that allows them to adjust up and down. Hard to say what the effect of that would be long term.
I had no issues with the fit or finish of the xSporter rack, typical Thule. Well made, nicely finished, and attached securely (with the Tacoma "Fit Kit") to the factory rails inside the bed. It appeared to be plenty strong to support a RTT and occupants. I'm sure there would be a little movement when people were in the tent based on the tolerances in the mounts that allows them to adjust up and down. Hard to say what the effect of that would be long term.
I have them on my M101 as stated above if they are mounted close together for a tent you will most likely run into issues with the wheel wells. I can only go down 4" from where they are in the picture but could go up another 8". I bought them used and cheap. Very solid and work well for me but I don't ever change the height. I originally planned to add hydrologic lift struts but have scrapped that idea.
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Chris Sandstorm Fj
Observer
I just bought the Thule Xsporter and I am also finding the limitations of the key feature I wanted which was adjust-ability for a RTT.
I have a 2016 Tacoma TRD Off Road 4dr short bed.
However, I am going to keep mine. I need it for 2 purposes, RTT mounting and Paddle board mount. I am considering buying 4 additional pillars and cutting them down. Would make it a bit of a pita to change out but really, I only use the RTT occasionally anyway.
It was not hard to install but takes time the first time to set up. Very heavy duty. I think will easily handle the RTT, with minimal movement if any at all when off road. I am also going to mount my sand ladders on the side somehow and my high lift jack, so the height restriction may actually allow for more add-ons to be attached on the side.
I also did not want a permanent rack, as I like have the Tonneau cover in the winter for skis, hockey bag storage.
I am going to try to talk my mother-in-law into sewing me some kind of cover I can velcro to keep my stuff dry and out of sight.
Will post up some pics tomorrow
I have a 2016 Tacoma TRD Off Road 4dr short bed.
However, I am going to keep mine. I need it for 2 purposes, RTT mounting and Paddle board mount. I am considering buying 4 additional pillars and cutting them down. Would make it a bit of a pita to change out but really, I only use the RTT occasionally anyway.
It was not hard to install but takes time the first time to set up. Very heavy duty. I think will easily handle the RTT, with minimal movement if any at all when off road. I am also going to mount my sand ladders on the side somehow and my high lift jack, so the height restriction may actually allow for more add-ons to be attached on the side.
I also did not want a permanent rack, as I like have the Tonneau cover in the winter for skis, hockey bag storage.
I am going to try to talk my mother-in-law into sewing me some kind of cover I can velcro to keep my stuff dry and out of sight.
Will post up some pics tomorrow
Theoretician
Adventurer
Love the idea, but the max load capacity is quoted at 450lb. Assuming that is the static load capacity, you would divide it by 4 to find the dynamic load capacity, which means you can only put the lightest of tents on there at less than 110lb, and you'll be maxing out or exceeding the load capacity with two people in the tent.
dman93
Adventurer
I'm not sure this is correct, though I have no specific knowledge of Thule's rating policy. But racks go on vehicles that are driven so by definition (or at least logic) the stated load capacity would in fact be the dynamic load capacity. Also, when I went to engineering school, before the prevalence of finite-element analysis and other computer-aided methodologies (i.e. just at the end of the slide rule era) the typical factor of safety applied if you didn't want to do a detailed dynamic load and fatigue analysis was 3 (not 4). So I'd be very confident to load this rack up to 1350 lbs static load. Anecdotally, I've seen quite a few of these with RTTs and other heavy loads.
Chris Sandstorm Fj
Observer
Yep, box says 450lbs but I am not seating that really at all.
My Rtt prolly weighs 80lbs, wife 140, kids 120 combined. I am 170 but don't usually climb up there with the entire gang. So I am either gonna have 340 up there or 400 or less. Worst case 520 in a bad storm and I am comfortable with the beefiness of the system to hold that no worries.
I am going to see if Thule makes a shorter pillar set or just cut these down to what I need.
My Rtt prolly weighs 80lbs, wife 140, kids 120 combined. I am 170 but don't usually climb up there with the entire gang. So I am either gonna have 340 up there or 400 or less. Worst case 520 in a bad storm and I am comfortable with the beefiness of the system to hold that no worries.
I am going to see if Thule makes a shorter pillar set or just cut these down to what I need.
Box Rocket
Well-known member
Typically the manufacturer load ratings are for Dynamic loads. I would expect this is no different, so a 450lb Dynamic load which is quite a lot. I know several people using these for roof top tents and between the tent and occupants are without question exceeding 450lb with no issue at all.
Theoretician
Adventurer
Thule doesn't specify whether it's a static or dynamic load rating, at least not in their user manual, so I assume it would be the highest number that they could quote - the static/highway capacity. Any proper dynamic load failures could be explained away as due to off-camber situations off road or extreme accelerations in a crash. You could be right, Box Rocket, in that they are being conservative but my own engineering experience makes me pessimistic about manufacturer claims.
The standard safety factors for a lot of design are around 3, but dynamic load factors can go from 2 to 4 depending on what shape you assume the input impulse takes.
Leitner (sp?) designs their aluminum racks for a factor of 4 reduction between static and dynamic load capacities:
250 lbs. offroad weight capacity
500 lbs. onroad weight capacity
1000 lbs. static weight capacity
Then again, the m35 truck specifies only a factor of 2 reduction in payload for off-road vs highway. I'd wager that a factor of 4 is a bit over-conservative statistically, but whether it is over-conservative for any specific person depends upon their tolerance for risk.
The standard safety factors for a lot of design are around 3, but dynamic load factors can go from 2 to 4 depending on what shape you assume the input impulse takes.
Leitner (sp?) designs their aluminum racks for a factor of 4 reduction between static and dynamic load capacities:
250 lbs. offroad weight capacity
500 lbs. onroad weight capacity
1000 lbs. static weight capacity
Then again, the m35 truck specifies only a factor of 2 reduction in payload for off-road vs highway. I'd wager that a factor of 4 is a bit over-conservative statistically, but whether it is over-conservative for any specific person depends upon their tolerance for risk.
Kevin Braun
Mountain Biker
We used the same setup on our offroad trailer [M100] and my wife and I and the small dog sleep in it with no issues. Vestuble and high winds and a metric ton of rain and snow, no issues....
I have driven across the US a couple months ago for a 3 week trip, and we used it every night for 20 nights.
We have a CVT Mt Shasta.
Ample use offroad at high and low speeds, and plenty of jarring and off camber angles. Had a screw come out of the RTT but ZERO issues with the Thule rack.
We have the previous generation one. Sometimes all the way up for multiple nights, most times we leave it at its lowest position to tuck nicely behind the Tacoma
BUT, if you try and lift the thing by yourself it'll bind like crazy, so I used some dry bike lube to help with lifting.
It's heavy, yes, but works.
I have driven across the US a couple months ago for a 3 week trip, and we used it every night for 20 nights.
We have a CVT Mt Shasta.
Ample use offroad at high and low speeds, and plenty of jarring and off camber angles. Had a screw come out of the RTT but ZERO issues with the Thule rack.
We have the previous generation one. Sometimes all the way up for multiple nights, most times we leave it at its lowest position to tuck nicely behind the Tacoma
BUT, if you try and lift the thing by yourself it'll bind like crazy, so I used some dry bike lube to help with lifting.
It's heavy, yes, but works.
Ghost65
Allergic to Pavement
While searching for Thule Xsporter Pro Off Road I discovered this thread...and thought I would add my experience.
The standard cross bars that the Xsporter is equipped with are much thicker than standard rack bars, and you will need to update/upgrade your RTT mounting hardware accordingly. For Yakima Skyrise owners (like myself) you will not be able to use the standard clamps that make the Skyrise easier to mount/remove...the jaws are about 1/4" too short to accommodate the Xsporter bars.
As others have noted, with the Tacoma DCSB, your front uprights will not be adjustable, as they come down and hit the incorporated fender well that meets the front of the truck bed. This was a major disappointment as one of the features I was hoping for was the ability to lower the tent while driving around town, although after reading some posts here in this thread that might have been easier said than done.
Nonetheless, I found this to be a very solid platform for our RTT, and have experienced zero rattles or shaken loose hardware after about 500 miles of standard city driving. The next big test will be a 6 day jaunt through Death Valley, where the "washboard test" will truly amplify any potential weak points. Photos will be posted after our trip the first week of November...
The standard cross bars that the Xsporter is equipped with are much thicker than standard rack bars, and you will need to update/upgrade your RTT mounting hardware accordingly. For Yakima Skyrise owners (like myself) you will not be able to use the standard clamps that make the Skyrise easier to mount/remove...the jaws are about 1/4" too short to accommodate the Xsporter bars.
As others have noted, with the Tacoma DCSB, your front uprights will not be adjustable, as they come down and hit the incorporated fender well that meets the front of the truck bed. This was a major disappointment as one of the features I was hoping for was the ability to lower the tent while driving around town, although after reading some posts here in this thread that might have been easier said than done.
Nonetheless, I found this to be a very solid platform for our RTT, and have experienced zero rattles or shaken loose hardware after about 500 miles of standard city driving. The next big test will be a 6 day jaunt through Death Valley, where the "washboard test" will truly amplify any potential weak points. Photos will be posted after our trip the first week of November...
Heyfish
New member
I've had a Tepui on mine for 6 months now including a 2,500 mile road trip. No issues and it feels really stable even with the family up there. I would recommend checking the bolts where it attaches to the truck bed on a semi regular basis. I have an F-150 with the plastic rail cover and I have tightened the clamps down a few times. They are little C-type clamps with a screw on the bottom to clamp to the bed rail. I have found that if you can wiggle them back and forth at all, they should be tightened down a bit.
