Cheap D2 roof racks

[brougham]

Anyone bought / used these type of roof racks? Only $500 which is a lot cheaper than the tracklander options, etc.

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/300717648972'ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649#ht_11744wt_887

[Dazza67]

Been looking at one for a while, over Xmas the nephew got one and we put it together and fitted to his patrol. Seemed pretty sturdy and finished quite well. Both of us standing on it mounted didnt budge.

His is the 3/4 and weighed 38kg, only thing I noticed the paint was thin on a couple of spots which we sprayed there and then. A definite 3 peson job lifting and aligning it on the roof.

He is happy with it just gota talk the wifey into one for me now.

Dazza

[brougham]

Crappy thing is the $300-odd freight to Perth. But still all up $800 which is pretty good.

[dfendr]

My neighbour had an input in the design of those racks
He is a perfectionist.
But they are made in china:):)

[stallie]

Look high...

[brougham]

They seem (off measurements) to be almost identical to tracklander sizes. They're high to clear roof rails.

Not sure if they're high enuf to clear my HSE sunroofs (top one ) though.

[turps]

I have been looking at these also. As I am after something to put my roof topper on. Pretty sure I seen they had a rack with half cage and half flat.

[elshano]

Brougham, did you bite the bullet?
Also looking into racks at the moment.. hmm Perth group buy?? :D

[Shakey]

I got one of the tigerz11 one Roof Top Tent Rack Universal (steel) - Steel Roof Racks - Roof Racks - PRODUCT RANGE (http://www.tigerz11.com.au/product-category/roof-racks/steel-roof-racks/roof-top-tent-rack-80-series.html) and the shipping was pretty good.

Sits a little high and you need to make sure they send you the longer legs (no extra charge) - but it means my spade/etc. fit underneath with the roof tent on top. I'm really pleased with mine.

[Thingy]

I bought one of those racks. They sit about 25 to 30 mm above the highest part of the roof rails. The rack itself seems ok ( welds etc ). The paint had 1 or 2 runs. It seems quite wide although it doesn't overhang the sides but finishes level with the roof gutters. I paid $460 for it about a month ago.

[PhilipA]

I know I am biased , as I work for BajaRack Australia, but to me those racks look really really bad.

What will they do to your fuel consumption? The only careful design that has gone into them is to fit long legs on a standard flat roof rack.

A rack designed for a D2 will have openings to accept the roof rails like a Bajarack and a step down and front deflector .

They are obviously functional but you get what you pay for.
Regards Philip A

[Shakey]

Agreed there are more aerodynamic designs but when they are 3 times the price and you're on a budget sometimes you have to weigh that up vs the fact that $1,000+ is a lot of extra fuel.

Combined with the fact that I've then put a roof tent on top of mine would mean that the additional aero dynamic features at the front might be marginal - although admittedly a lower overall profile would be better for consumption and would not increase the centre of gravity quite so much.

[Tombie]

Ahh look...

Another sub quality knock off of an Aussie designed and made product.

[Shakey]

Not sub quality at all - exactly the same quality as all the other "Australian made gear", just cheaper, and to be fair there are only so many designs for a generic rooftent rack.

You can't compare the tigerz11 rack with the Baja one because they aren't meant to be the same - compare them with the other generic Australian roof tent racks such as ARB.

Personally I think the Baja rack is a better design for a disco but the quality of the workmanship is no worse than on a Bajarack and it's not trying to be a knock off of the Baja one rather a simiilar copy of the ARB ones (I'm not commenting on copying of designs, but the original comment was based on quality).

As soon as Australia realises that there is a global economy and people can order online the better - you might not agree with manufacturing being done in China but the quality is as good as any Australian stuff when it comes to racks, the raw materials even come from here. And where do you think a lot of the big brand stuff is made anyway.

I think it is ridiculous that I can order OE parts from the UK and have it shipped and arrive in Australia in under a week for considerable less than buying it locally or 'mail order' in Australia.

Anyway, rant over about rip-off Landrover/car stuff in Australia - I also live in WA so my frustration is compounded by a rubbish postal system and rip off postage within Australia too!

[Tombie]

ARB has a definitive profile and mount system.

Directly ripped off by Chinese copy.

Material argument is irrelevant as raw ore can be made into anything!

Aww heck! Who cares... Don't really know why I even bothered posting to be honest.

[Shakey]

I agree Tombie - IP/design rip off is wrong, just had a similar thing with SWMBO's jewellery business - I was just commenting on quality.

My issue is I'd love to be able to buy in Aus/local, but working for a UK company on a UK wage in Perth makes it difficult to justify the added expense sometimes.

Anyway I've probably started us on the slippery slope that is Godwins Law - Godwin's law - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin's_law) for which I apologise.

[Ollie]

Tombie keep posting!

It is OK to ask for a better price from local suppliers I tell people that I want to purchase their products but the price is too high. Give local suppliers the chance. I purchased a Deep Cycle Battery recently after Searching for the best price in the city I ask a local supplier who matched the price less 17%. Did not intend a high jack of this thread
Regards Ollie

[brougham]

I'm on a very tight budget as I have a wife and two kids. I can't afford a Baja or Tracklander as, to be honest, they are both over-priced for what they are.

Some people pay for the badge and the possibility (not guaranteed) of it lasting longer, being 'slightly' better designed or engineered.

But when you're on a tight budget the $1000-1200 difference is too large to even look at.

I'm not saying they are better or worse than each other. I'm saying there are budgets and products to suit differing budgets and companies like Baja and Tracklander can't expect everyone to pay the huge premium for their product and then complain when cheaper products drop their sales.

Each to their own.

[Tombie]

Overpriced for what they are?!

So "they" spend the time, energy, expense of development and testing (R&D) and then some mob who can "copy stuff" just wander on in a make an exact duplicate with no development costs or overheads and you have no issue with that?

Well I wish you all the best. And I hope there are jobs for your kids (and mine) when they are old enough to look back at how their parents generation screwed it all up.

[brougham]

I think you assume a lot.

I'm a director of a company in Perth that has come up with some innovative products and services and had other companies 'copy' then and offer them cheaper. Am I unhappy? Yes but there's nothing I can do. So we drop pricing to compete. The initial run of orders and sales at the higher, uncompeted price pays for the R&D and investment. After that, simply sitting back and saying 'well we developed it so we're better and we're not going to compete on price' is not a great attitude in the current market IMO.

As I said, each to their own opinion.

BTW - reverse engineering and copying a product does have development costs. It's not a free run.

I've personally gone down the roof rack & rhino tray route for my D2a, instead of the racks I posted in my OP.

[Shakey]

OK then - hey Philip I can get a full length roof rack from an Aussie company delivered to Perth for under $550. Can you match it for a D2a that will take a roof tent please?

[Shakey]

Just to clarify my original comment was to do with the comment about quality and not copying.

And yes if Aussies don't learn to compete there will be a job shortage - look at what happened in the UK with manufacturing. And what's happening with out sourcing of services now.

We get greedy and forget the Chinese et al are just as capable as the rest of us as doing R&D.

[Thingy]

Obviously we should have all bought Holdens.

[schuy1]

While we have govt policy(Any flavor) that actively discriminates against home manufacturing in favor of "Raw material production " and the "let the other fella make it and sell it back to us" We will be going backwards. How can any1 produce items with all the restrictions, labour laws, requirements of 'enviromental' taxes, over the top 'safety' laws, when the overseas producers have few if any of the same? It just aint possible

[PhilipA]

OK then - hey Philip I can get a full length roof rack from an Aussie company delivered to Perth for under $550. Can you match it for a D2a that will take a roof tent pleaseLets get this clear, you think the cheap racks are made in Australia?

I recall having a welder in Wollongong ordering a Bajarack for a friend, because he couldn't make one for the money we charge.

It costs about $720 just to get a rack from Sydney to Perth for door to door delivery. This is because the Bajarack is fully welded with the legs on for maximum strength rather than bolts which can undo in the darndest places like the middle of the Tanami Track. So it is enormous in volume.

The rack costs $1548 retail and we make very little on them because of the transport costs of such a large volume even from USA to Australia.

But there is a market for our racks just as there is for the $500 ones. D1s and D2s are now becoming cult cars and recognised as some of the best touring cars that are still relatively simple to work on. Many people want to have looks and reduced noise and reduced frontal area as well as function.
Regards Philip A

[brougham]

there is a market for our racks just as there is for the $500 ones.

And that's exactly the point I've been making all thread.

BTW your freight costs are ripped. I know several people that have shipped 2nd hand Baja and Tracklander racks from Sydney or Melb to Perth for only $350-450 via TNT. Fully assembled and in boxes.

[PhilipA]

I know several people that have shipped 2nd hand Baja and Tracklander racks from Sydney or Melb to Perth for only $350-450 via TNT. That is correct for any rack but a D1, D2 and Defender because they are the only ones we make with gutter mounts and so are vastly bigger than other racks.
We also have a contract with TNT where we are supposed to get a 40% discount.
The other factor is that TNT home deliver, whereas most cheaper quotes are Business to Business. In fact we spend a lot of time trying to minimise freight , and even Wridgeways are $600 for a B to B carry with a long delivery time for D1 D2 .
Regards Philip A
Also for Perth customers we usually/always "share the pain" just to try and help those who want to buy . Do not even ask about Karratha while not sitting down.

[brougham]

Cheers for that.

[Shakey]

Lets get this clear, you think the cheap racks are made in Australia?

I recall having a welder in Wollongong ordering a Bajarack for a friend, because he couldn't make one for the money we charge.

It costs about $720 just to get a rack from Sydney to Perth for door to door delivery. This is because the Bajarack is fully welded with the legs on for maximum strength rather than bolts which can undo in the darndest places like the middle of the Tanami Track. So it is enormous in volume.

The rack costs $1548 retail and we make very little on them because of the transport costs of such a large volume even from USA to Australia.

But there is a market for our racks just as there is for the $500 ones. D1s and D2s are now becoming cult cars and recognised as some of the best touring cars that are still relatively simple to work on. Many people want to have looks and reduced noise and reduced frontal area as well as function.
Regards Philip A

I don't care it was made in china but I got a roof rack shipped from Melbourne for under $200. Same with roof tent. So total for me was about $650 including shipping from Melbourne to Sydney.

Putting aside the cost of the rack it's the shipping that is crazy, yes I had to screw the legs on but your shipping is not that different to what we paid to ship an entire car from the UK to Australia. And almost 4 times the cost of my roof rack coming by rail from Melbourne.

[Shakey]

And that's exactly the point I've been making all thread.

BTW your freight costs are ripped. I know several people that have shipped 2nd hand Baja and Tracklander racks from Sydney or Melb to Perth for only $350-450 via TNT. Fully assembled and in boxes.

+1 I'd love a D2 specific rack but the wife says no so I have to go with what I can get approved!

[brougham]

Any chance of you posting a photo of your tigerz rack fitted? I'd love to see how high it sits, especially above the rails.

[Shakey]

Check out http://www.flickr.com/photos/jstride/sets/72157632985932956/ there are a few examples there. I'm over East at the moment :( but will take some more on Friday.

I have a spade underneath at the back and my led light bar sits nicely under the front. Thinking of max trax and hilift under the front.

[PhilipA]

Putting aside the cost of the rack it's the shipping that is crazy, yes I had
to screw the legs on but your shipping is not that different to what we paid to
ship an entire car from the UK to Australia. And almost 4 times the cost of my
roof rack coming by rail from Melbourne.

I know I know. But there is this thing in WA called a mining boom. We were even thinking of buying an old van , filling it with roof racks and sending it to Perth as it is only $1400, but then we would have to get it back and the transport companies will not let you put anything in it.
All the courier companies HATE anything over 50Kg or bigger in length than 2 metres.
Even with the Kings Ransom we pay them they regularly stuff up and often call saying we don't want your business.
They somehow destroyed 2 racks recently in Melbourne then the TNT Insurance guy told us they didn't want our big stuff. I pointed out that the ones they broke were the smallest ones and well within their guidelines.
Sheeeesh.( maybe I am ****ty because they lost one today)
Regards Philip A

[brougham]

wow, it does sit quite high doesnt it.

can the legs be cut down shorter?

[Shakey]

I know I know. But there is this thing in WA called a mining boom. We were even thinking of buying an old van , filling it with roof racks and sending it to Perth as it is only $1400, but then we would have to get it back and the transport companies will not let you put anything in it.
All the courier companies HATE anything over 50Kg or bigger in length than 2 metres.
Even with the Kings Ransom we pay them they regularly stuff up and often call saying we don't want your business.
They somehow destroyed 2 racks recently in Melbourne then the TNT Insurance guy told us they didn't want our big stuff. I pointed out that the ones they broke were the smallest ones and well within their guidelines.
Sheeeesh.( maybe I am ****ty because they lost one today)
Regards Philip A

No I totally agree - shipping over here is the killer. Remember not all of us in WA benefit from the mining boom!

[Shakey]

wow, it does sit quite high doesnt it.

can the legs be cut down shorter?

They are L shaped with a support strut in the back so you'd need somebody who can weld some new lugs on for the bolts. A better option might be to extend the shorter legs you get with them. It's on my to do list to investigate other options for them but I'll post some better pics on Friday and perhaps some ideas will pop up on the forum!

[CJT]

Any chance of you posting a photo of your tigerz rack fitted? I'd love to see how high it sits, especially above the rails.

Here is another option if looking at racks from Tigerz11, although the quality of the rack is pretty ordinary.

I fitted their roof rail rack with rail mounts I modified to suit.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/03/680.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/06/1052.jpg

[Shakey]

That's a good idea. I'm going to check the shorter legs when I get back and see if I could use spacers.

[brougham]

Anyone know how long it takes Tigerz to reply to emails? Asked for shipping price on combo deals. Nothing.

[Shakey]

Just call them, answered straight away when I did. They don't haves skim legs anymore its just the long ones I have.

[brougham]

Skim legs?

[Shakey]

Sorry, iPhone auto-correct - medium legs (i.e. they do really short ones - no good for D2, or the longer ones I have. They used to do some in between that were better for a D2).

I think I may get the extended legs for the factory rails and re-mount it to that.

[brougham]

Hmmm. They just seem to sit a LOT higher than an other option. Even the cheap ones off eBay in the OP look like they sit lower than the Tigerz11 rack in your photos.

[Shakey]

Yeah it does - I just had to get it on for a trip we had and I didn't spend much time with the other legs. I'm going to have a look tonight and see if they would be better with spacers.

[brougham]

If you could throw a tape on it and let me know how much it sits from top of roof rails to underside of rack, would be greatly appreciated.

Also overall width? I have a set of 6 Rola Rack 230mm legs that just clear the roof rails. Wondering if I could go the rack directly to the Rola legs?

[PhilipA]

BTW did you notice the weight of the rack in the original post?



Size: 2200mm(Length) x1464 mm (Width) x 160mm (Height)
Basket Size: 2060(Length) x 1400mm (Width) x 110mm (Height)
Weight=64 kg Approximate


And I thought our Bajaracks are heavy at 50Kg. Lots of value in the steel I suppose.
Regards Philip A

[Shakey]

I think mine is around 45-50kg!

[brougham]

Yeah I think they're a touch heavy. The tigerz steel racks are 50kg abd the aluminium racks look eveb better at 25kg.

I might look at the aluminum one if I can get it to the Rola legs.

[Shakey]

Attached are a few pics of the fittings if that helps. You probably could use other legs but the rack isn't as wide as the roof so they need to have some extension over.

Other option would be to clamp it to the bars with your rola legs.

57881578825788357884

[brougham]

Cheers. Yeah the Rola legs do bend over a bit. Is the rack much less than the roof width?

[Shakey]

Cheers. Yeah the Rola legs do bend over a bit. Is the rack much less than the roof width?

It sits about 12cm in from the gutter.

[brougham]

So my rack arrived yesterday. Despite 3 or 4 verbal and written confirmations that I had a D2 and needed high legs, I received the standard short ones

If it takes as long to get replacement legs from tigerz11 as the actual rack, ill be having to look at other ways of fitting it before I go!!

Are they good/bad at sorting out this kind of stuff up?

[Disco Muppet]

Are they good/bad at sorting out this kind of stuff up?

You and the rest of the world :D
Good in that they will do it.
Bad in that it's Tigerz service so slow and unprofessional is the most likely descriptions to be used...

[Toppa]

So my rack arrived yesterday. Despite 3 or 4 verbal and written confirmations that I had a D2 and needed high legs, I received the standard short ones

If it takes as long to get replacement legs from tigerz11 as the actual rack, ill be having to look at other ways of fitting it before I go!!

Are they good/bad at sorting out this kind of stuff up?

They did the same to me, despite written instructions on the order to supply the high mounts. Took them a bit over a week to supply replacements. Oh and you have to return the low mounts at your cost. If I couldn't post free from work, I would have argued this point.

Sent from my GT-I9100T using Tapatalk 2

[brougham]

Pfft. I ain't paying to send them back. Not a chance.

[greg smith]

I have the aluminium rack which I had to "beef-up" a little. My problem is that I had a shed clean up and now do not have the gutter clamps for my rack....!!!!! Try to buy these from a supplier---NO SHOW---anyone got any spare????:D

[brougham]

and they can go die in a fire now.

when i ordered i explictly made them check the high mounts were in stock and to check heights. all good.

now they're saying they've been out of stock since Jan, never come back into stock, and no ETA on new arrivals. they also now say that they measured the standard mounts (funny since they gave me a measurement of 230mm).

this is going to be fun (NOT).

[Disco Muppet]

Lol.
Perhaps look into either fabbing your own mounts, or maybe modifying some of the Discovery legs for the ARB racks?
Either that or mount it to some Rola type cross bars?

[transtar]

I have 4 Rhino rack brackets spare and you can buy channel from aluminium reseller or from Solar Panel installer as they use same channel. Easy way to mount rack and strong. PM me for details.
Richard

[brougham]

I've already got 6 Rola legs, just new to get bars. It's just another cost and pain in the rear I shouldn't need to have to worry about.

I almost sold the Rola legs as I was getting the rack, glad I held off.

[Disco Muppet]

I've already got 6 Rola legs, just new to get bars. It's just another cost and pain in the rear I shouldn't need to have to worry about.

I almost sold the Rola legs as I was getting the rack, glad I held off.

I think have the cross bar arrangement is a much better solution.
Far more versatile, you can pull the basket off and just use the bars, or you can mount this that and the other to them.
But I'd agree, it's just another cost, and another thing to fiddle with.

[elshano]

I've got 2x rola cross bars that go across the factory rails as you can see here:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/07/381.jpg

i just need to carry a second spare tyre and 2x jerry cans, do you guys reckon one of the wire rack luggage trays would do the job or better off going to a heavier duty item like the alloy vortex?
ROLA Roof Racks (http://www.rola.com.au/cargo-carrying.aspx)

man, brougham, I'd be busting heads if I were you. Poor form from those guys

[Yorkie]

the factory rails are 50kg max (30kg max offroad).
to carry a tyre and jerrys you need something better able to handle the weight, likely mounted off the gutters. :)

[FISHGUTS]

I do recall reading somewhere else on the forum that the legal weight limit on a D2 roof mounted anything is around the 100kg mark, doesn't leave much room for extra's after the weight of the rack is deducted.

Cheers,

Peter,

[brougham]

So update.

Been back and forth with emails with Tigerz11 to no avail.
Yesterday I go out and buy 3 Rola rails to fit the legs I already had. $225.

Today I get an email from Tigerz11 saying they have a set of high mounts there and will be sending them to me asap as well as a $100 store credit.

Damn. I'm glad Tigerz11 came to the party, got me the mounts in time (havent got them yet) and even offered $100 for the inconvience. Decent customer service once you get to their CS Manager level.

However I'm now out the $225 I just spent! grrr....

[elshano]

Well that's a positive. What do you think of the rack, in the end?

I just want a 1/2 rack and as low profile as I can manage to get it.
Might just have to suck it up and Rhino or Rola rack it.

[brougham]

New mounts arrived yesterday so haven't mounted the rack yet. But assembled a mount and its 'just' above the factory rails, prob by 5mm or less. Very tight and low, what I wanted.

Problem is as the D2 gutter is quite wide, the brackets only bolt to the last slots in the rack and as a result need to pack the bracket out a bit with washers to level the bracket off. Just a bit annoying.

[greg smith]

Well I wonder if these suppliers ever do follow up surveys on their product lines and sales???? After being unable to buy the required spares[ half the time unable to even get a reply] I've given up. Seen another stepped style LR full rack on a sales site on the internet, will go over and buy this rack,secondhand but alloy construction, at around $500 easier and cheaper than trying to get one up from south or even getting replacement clamps made........they maybe cheaper BUT their customer service and backup aftersales is S-------[ie not very good]:D

[brougham]

yeah, their after sales support is pretty poor, although once it got to manager level it was okay (For me).

well, the rack is on now. Took quite a while to fit, i'd estimate about 4 hours work putting legs on, putting rack on and then adjusting legs to suit gutter. I had to get some washers to space out some of the legs as the welds under the bars interferred with the angle of the mount.

i also ended up only using 6 of the legs, not 8. the legs are that close to the roof line that they were touching the roof rails in one point. since i'm not planning to carry much weight (camping chairs, fishing gear, etc) i took them off. I can easily notch out the mount slightly later to ad them back in if i start carrying weight/tyres/up there.

i'm fairly happy with the rack itself, quite well built in my opinion. some paint runs, but i've seen that in $1-2000 racks, so not a major issue for me. doesnt creak or flex or rattle, took it off-road last night to check, so happy with that. just got to fit the awning today, need a drill bit to drill the bolts into the sides of the rack mounts.

all in all, it was a stress-fest dealing with tigerz11, but i'm happy with the result. $500+120 shipping for steel rack & awning. for the (currently) small amounts i'm off-road/travelling, it's good value to me.

i'm off up north in 3 weeks, so will report back after to see how it goes. will post some pics up later today hopefully too.

[brougham]

Some photos. Off my iPhone so crap quality!

59658596605966159657