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Thread: Front Runner Racks - Will length affect noise?

  1. 1st November 2013, 03:39 PM #1
    Ecesis74 Guest

    Front Runner Racks - Will length affect noise?

    Hey everyone,

    I'm looking at getting a Front Runner Slimline 2 rack from my Freelander 2 and seeking some advice on whether full length racks are significantly noisier than half or three-qtr length racks.

    Has anyone had experience in this area?

    I've see plenty of Disco 3s with 1/2 or 3/4 racks. If I'm going to get significantly lower wind noise from a shorter Front Runner rack (i.e. 1560 mm or 1358 mm), then I'll explore the option further.

    Front Runner only offer one kit for the FL2 and the rack is full size - 1255(W) x 1762(L) - which pretty much covers the entire roof area and is within 250 mm of the top of the windscreen (so I'm worried this might cause quite a bit of noise - and if so, a shorter rack would reduce this - or at least move the turbulance noise further away from my head)

    Also, the FL2 kit only provides tracks for the two rear feet, and the front four feet are bolted into the roof fixing points (NB. I don't have the optional LR roof rails on my FL2). So I'm contemplating developing my own kit with tracks for all feet (as the Front Runner system is modular) following the lead of INSIDER who installed a custom track system in 2010; and the components I need to order will be determined by what length rack I choose. So it all comes back to noise.

    Any sage advice out there (besides me selling the FL2 early and replacing it with a Disco or Defender)?

    Best

    Ecesis
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  2. 1st November 2013, 03:46 PM #2
    weeds's Avatar
    weeds
    weeds is offline Swaggie
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    i have a full length on my defender.....i chose not to fit the wind deflector and it gets a big vibration up.....with the awning fitted (or anything on the rack) its as quite as

    i'm not sure how many members would have tried different lengths to compare
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  3. 1st November 2013, 08:10 PM #3
    inside's Avatar
    inside
    inside is offline Wizard Subscriber
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    If you get the Frontrunner FL2 kit it comes with tracks that are as long as the roof. You bolt the track to the roof then the rack legs slide into the track. It's all a rather neat fit. The FL2 has captive nuts underneath the black cover strip you can't see. The bolts in the kit screw into these so you will have to drill through this cover plate. As for noise been a while since I had mine on but don't remember it adding any noise. As for fuel consumption add 0.5L/100km for a rack and another 0.5L/100km for AT tyres. You will need the wind deflector on as doing 100km/h will proceed to shake the vehicle to bits.
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  4. 2nd November 2013, 01:52 PM #4
    Fred Nerk's Avatar
    Fred Nerk
    Fred Nerk is offline Master
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    I have a FrontRunner rack on my D4. The wind noise is intolerable without the deflector and there is no noise with it installed. It is a miracle.

    As far as the length of the rack, I went with the short one. It is easy to reach the 80kg limit (which includes the rack) so a bigger rack would be a waste of weight and money.
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  5. 4th November 2013, 03:57 PM #5
    Ecesis74 Guest
    Thanks everyone. I appreciate all your advice.

    As it seems noise is not an issue for the full size rack (providing I install the deflector) and given the limited internal storage in the FL2, I think a full size (1.7m) rack is the best way for me to go. It will also allow me to spread all my gear out flat to reduce wind-drag and should help me keep a low Centre of Gravity.

    Time to go shopping.

    Thanks again,

    Ecesis
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