Thread: Roof rack or Trailer?

In my TD5 Xtreme I found the roof rack caused an increase in fuel usage about the same as a 750kg camping trailer (approx 2 or 3L/100k). Admittedly this was usually driving at highway speed on out trip around Australia. The roof rack was the heavy steel Laura Croft type.

You have to decide which is the most convenient for you.

For some odd reason, I have found that if driving into a head wind for a long drive I get better economy by about 2 or 3 L/100kms with the rack on with the tent but the rest of the time it uses more so in general it is generally worse with the rack on.

Towing a trailer, 6x4 loaded with wood or rubbish doesnt make much of a difference but 8x5 loaded with bricks and concrete is shocking on fuel economy......as would be expected.

I have found that even an empty roofrack will add about 10% extra fuel consumption. Towing a trailer I find I get about the same increase too, except when hilly terrain is encountered. I also found that changing from road biased tyres to mud terrains made nearly a 10% increase too.

As for opinions, I don't use the roof rack as much as the trailer. My knees are far happier throwing cr** in the trailer than climbing on the roof carrying heavy gear. Also the roof rack adds a great deal of noise to the already noisy Defender.

The trailer and tyres look cool so I live with them

I was wondering why my consumption was still a little high even though my roof rack was removed. Must be those huge BFG Muds causing extra drag. I am glad I spotted this post because I was woorying about something wrong with my engine.

Cheers
James

Its not all about fuel consumption!

The Defender is not rated to carry much on a roof rack. Spot welds around the front of the roof can fracture, all a bit messy. Keep it light and it can be OK.

Trailers offer a lot of convenience and capability, and will faithfully follow you through lots of terrain, and will fit under low trees! They can be a handful in steep country, and do require maintenance.

Another thought - if you fall off a trailer it hurts a lot less than falling off a roof rack!

If you go for a trailer, make up some perspex covers for your rear windows, fit them on with self adhesive velcro. Stones will come off the front of any trailer, and can bust unprotected windows.

Good luck with your choice.

A lot of people overlook the internal space in the roof of a Defender.

It's amazing how much gear like bedding, tents, chairs etc can be carried out of the way yet easily accessible in an internal, hinged (at the front) roof rack.
It also gives you an extra level of loading so that you're not unloading stuff to get at something else.

See attached pics.

I have the roof rack on my Defender perminantly, as a carpenter, I need to carry lots of long lenghts of timber, and other items. One thing to consider is the extra noise with the roof rack. At highway speeds, the wind howles through my rack, to the point of wanting to insulate the roof. In my old Discovery, I would not notice I had a rack on, unless I had the windows down. If it is not loaded during a long trip, I would prefer to remove it, to make the trip more comfortable.

Cheers,
Ken

Roofracks are easier to store when not used, don't need tyres and wheel bearings, and are cheaper re insurance & rego. Trailers can be a pain to park & reverse at lookouts, shopping strips etc when touring.

Trailers on the other hand, are often the only legal way to avoid GVM problems. Defenders have the best load capacity, (850 kg? 1000 kg?) but you may not be insured if you're not legal.

Regards
Max P