[spirro]

Hi all

Looking for a low profile roof basket for my 2015 Jimny. If there is something that exists that mounts onto the factory roof rails that would be great. I don't necessarily need roof racks if the basket can mount onto the rails. If I need roof racks I'm looking for the lowest profile combo racks/basket.

Does anything exist? I've seen the Rola Vortex mount onto the factory rails directly but not sure if that's customised or whether it can do that out of the box.

Any other options?

Cheers guys.

[henno]

The Rola Vortex is definitely a custom job in order to mount it directly to the rails. I know this because I have one and am working out the most elegant way to do this myself, to do away with the lasagna stack of bit I have right now.

[spirro]

I had a feeling that was the case. So is there a roof rack and basket combination that is low profile? I know the whispbar roof rail bars are probably the lowest profile you can get.

[its u its me]

Rola roof basket on custom mounts to pick up the studs in the roof from the factory roof rails







Photos of same basket before the modifications on the factory rails and some cross bars

[spirro]

Thanks for that. That looks really good what you've done. I was hoping to have found something that already supports the factory rails but I guess it doesn't exist.

I noticed in your photos that the roof rack is quite high. Perhaps the whispbar rail bars would make it lower (http://www.whispbar.com.au/products/11/rail-bar)

[its u its me]

Absolutely. The racks I installed were only for the interim as I had them laying around.

The ones you have posted would give let the basket sit basically as low as the top of the side rails

[spirro]

So with my research it appears the Rola Vortex basket is the lowest profile basket I can find at 120mm high. Correct me if I'm wrong?

So with the roof racks to fit the basket above, I'm looking at the Rola RBXL or the Whispbar rail bar. Anyone know which would be the lower profile of the two? Can you even mount a Rola basket onto Whispbar racks?

Thanks in adavance

[pete_79]

The Rola Vortex is about the heaviest basket you can get.

The lowest profile racks are the Rola ones (finish almost flush with top if factory rails).
A normal wire basket is also about 120mm high, but more importantly for me they are the lightest and most useful basket.

[spirro]

pete_79 wrote:

The Rola Vortex is about the heaviest basket you can get.

The lowest profile racks are the Rola ones (finish almost flush with top if factory rails).
A normal wire basket is also about 120mm high, but more importantly for me they are the lightest and most useful basket.

Thanks. I was thinking the Rola Vortex as it's the lowest one I could find in that style. But yeah the weight concerns me as it is the heaviest.

How do you find the normal wire basket with wind noise and resistance?

[pete_79]

My half basket stays on all the time.
Don't notice anything in the wind, the "aero" Rhino racks on my other can are heaps noisy compared to the basket on the Jimny.
Daily driving fuel consumption is still sub 10l/100km with it on.

Rola racks.


Rhino half basket (that's 100mm PVC pipe on the side that also stays on permanently).

[spirro]

Looks good pete_79. Maybe that's the way to go. Something to think about

[spirro]

pete_79 is this the one you have?

http://www.rhinorack.com.au/products/ro ... -half_rlbh

It says the weight is 18.5kg which is even heavier than the Vortex, which is surprising considering it's a half basket.

[pete_79]

^ that's the one.

Mine was ex-demo (Rhino had used on one photo shoot for some promo), I paid $100 for it at the Rhino HQ in Rydalmere (Sydney).

They've closed that shop front now, so you'd have to be lucky to get the awesome deals they used to do out of there.


Surprised to hear they say it is 18kg.
Even with the PVC tube it's only a one hand job to carry around (on the very rear occasion that I take it off the roof).

I was a while ago that I picked it up, but I thought at the time the Vortex was like 22-25kg and the basket was like 12-15kg.
I could be totally wrong with those weights though. I just remember the weight of the Vortex (and it's ugly looks) had me searching for other options. The half basket came up cheap so I grabbed it.