First Time Poster!

[4X3Lander]

The roof rack was basically following the instructions of a YouTuber who, like me, didn't want to spend over $1K for a roof rack. Like him, I spent $300 to make mine, not counting the FrontRunner wind fairing. It doesn't look sexy like company roof racks, but it is very functional and has been perfect for me. I kept my OEM roof rack rails to mount my roof rack to so I could use the channels to mount the rack. Then I ordered 8 extruded aluminum crossbars and had them tapped on the ends.

This is the past configuration of how I ran my roof rack. You can see the FrontRunner Wolfpacks on the roof. I would put 4 of them on the roof using the Yakima LocknLoad corner brackets and 2 bungie cords with carabiners. Now, I just put recovery gear on the roof rack, so the Wolfpacks go inside the 4Runner. Less climbing to the roof and no worries about a heavy roof / center of gravity.

 

[AndrewFRO]

@4x3Lander Dude that thing is awesome for a DIY rack! I work at Front Runner and have seen some pretty crazy contraptions people can come up with and this is easily amongst the most clean and secure looking. Nice job! The fairing looks perfect on it!

Looks like it does what you need and that's what matters.

Also, you got me drooling over that rig man. One of my dream vehicles for sure and I like your setup.

 

[4X3Lander]

@4x3Lander Dude that thing is awesome for a DIY rack! I work at Front Runner and have seen some pretty crazy contraptions people can come up with and this is easily amongst the most clean and secure looking. Nice job! The fairing looks perfect on it!

Looks like it does what you need and that's what matters.

Also, you got me drooling over that rig man. One of my dream vehicles for sure and I like your setup.

Thanks! I really appreciate your compliments. In so many ways, I got lucky how things worked out because I didn't go full on crazy with measurements or planning it out. I did some mocking up on the floor of the garage with the 8 crossbars and then put stuff on them to see how I wanted the roof configured. In the first setup and now the current one, the amount of crossbars and the placement worked so perfectly. This is amazing because unlike racks built by companies, I didn't make my crossbars adjustable. They are permanently mounted in the location they are. I truly got lucky with that. The second piece I lucked out on was placing those 8 crossbars to be level with the bottom of the side rails - which meant in the middle of the roof, a few crossbars laid perfectly on top of the roof. SO much luck lol.

Anyway, the picture below of a close up of the current setup:
- first square: these are adjustable "feet" that you would see on say a refrigerator. I didn't want to drill any holes or leave that part of the rack suspended, even though nothing is heavy up front.
- second and third square: these have 3 bolts because this is where the l-shaped brackets are attached to the factory OEM rails, using the OEM grommets that slide around in those rails
- first arrow: I utilized Sherpa Adapt Plate (mini x3) to attach my Rotopax. Again, those lined up perfectly and mounted perfectly, luckily. They were originally across the back, going from side to side and they fit perfectly there as well. SO MUCH LUCK!
- second arrow: just pointing out the rails used, which are extruded aluminum rails that I had tapped when I bought them and then just straight attached them to the side rails

Bought some round metal plates, used some nutserts and mounted the Rotopax onto the Sherpa Adapt plates because again, Rotopax are too expensive. Did almost the same with the traction boards, but no nutserts. Just made my own mounts.

The last picture is for your drooling :) The 4Runner has been my dream vehicle ever since I was a kid playing with a wired remote control 1st Gen 4Runner with waffle stomper foam tires on it, climbing over Lego obstacles :)

 

[4X3Lander]

AndrewFRO I forgot to mention...I convinced my neighbor to buy a 5th Gen 4Runner and once he got started down the road of changing things, convinced him to get a FrontRunner roof rack too :) He bought a Smittybuilt RTT to mount on it and loves the setup of it and the rack.

 

[offroadinclined]

Welcome to the community!

 

[Joey83]

Welcome to the forum and the community! :)

 

[picknpluck]

Welcome to OB and nice Subaru! My wife is eyeballing those and they'd make a great supplement to our 4Runner.

 

[Michael Golden]

Hey y'all. I'm new to the forum. Here for my own enjoyment and learning and also to meet some new people and hopefully have some meaningful discussions. I own a 2017 Subaru outback that I use as my adventure vehicle. I also proudly work at Front Runner Outfitters and would be happy to share some insight and answer questions should anyone have any!

Hope everyone is having fun out there!

Welcome to the overland bound community. Glad to have you join us.