WK2 Thule load bar assistance?

[OverlandZJ]

I'm heading out to Montana this May, have a house rented in Paradise Valley for 11 days.. family flies in/out while i drive from east coast. Once they depart Bozeman for return flight home i'll be taking 2 or 3 weeks to return.. i'll be spending time in Utah and Colorado.

Sold my offroad popup so towing that out is not an option. I still have a few ground tents and an Eezi-Awn RTT, but i dont want to use either. What i'm thinking is moving the ARB awning over to the WK2 (from my ZJ), and picking up a deluxe awning room with floor. This would give me a place to sit, eat, take in the sights if i get some inclement weather.. which is likely in late May.

Does anyone have the part numbers for a Thule fit kit for the older style square load bars to a WK2? I believe i can just move the bars and awning over from my older Grand Cherokee. Thule site is confusing to me.. are there differing style factory rails on a WK2?

Is my thoughts on using the ARB room for overnighting feasable? I'v never seen one being setup. Air mattress would be utilized with. My back has deteriorated and my camping days are numbered, i'm looking to scratch this trip off the bucket list while i still can and do so with comfort in mind.

Appreciate any input..

 

[zgfiredude]

We just recently bought a WK2. I'm also looking for a cross bar plan, but for me, I only want to haul inflatable paddleboards up there on occasion. That being said, here is what I have found/learned.......rack parts and bars and racks are stupid expensive! LOL......then, the WK2 side rails are "solid" meaning there are no openings through them to utilize for securing items. MY plan is to get two Thule Aeroblade bars and NO mounting feet. All of the mounting feet seem to raise the bars up SO high above the roofline that the look silly in my opinion. So, I'm going to locate the side rail mounting bolts, and drill through the Aeroblades vertically so I can use the side rail mounting points with longer bolts to hold the crossbars down directly on top of the side rails. I'll get bars that are maybe a few inches longer than the width of the side rails so that I can tie down on both sides of the side rails.

For you, and mounting the awning, you need to see how big that "package" is when up on the car, and how high you need it to be to walk under, etc. That will in turn dictate a bit of your cross bar solution. And, awnings are "heavier", so the cross bars and awning brackets will need to be a bit stronger to handle the weight and any potential movement in transport. The square load bars should be good for that......I'll go see if I can figure out the part number you are asking about.

Looks like Thule Rapid Podium # 460R......which looks to work on square bars and aeroblades. See the attachment below.

 

[kga1978]

Have you considered sleeping inside the car? My wife and I did that for many years before recently moving to a RTT - I'm 6ft. You'd need to extend the seatbacks a little, but you can easily do that with a simple platform e.g., behind the passenger seat you can remove.

 

[OverlandZJ]

Sleeping inside the Jeep is not an option, I'll be toting the family's baggage to and from. They'll be flying with just carry on.

Looking a big deeper I found this..

2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee Roof Rack - Complete System - Thule Traverse - CargoGear

We've put together this complete car roof rack for the 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Fits:2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Price: $419.85. Manufacturer's part numbers: 480, KIT1656, LB58.

www.cargogear.com

What I'm unsure of.. is there another tower/Fitkit that allows usage of the older square bars to the OEM roof rail. The above setup utilizes the door jambs and I'm unsure if they are tall enough to clear the OEM rails. They'll work if they do.

After the trip I only see this being used at the beach when wife wants the awning.