Roof rack or trailer?

[Dunnage Garage]

For the last 10yrs my TJ has been a perfect sized rig. I even loaded my 2 teenage daughters in it for a almost 4000 mile round trip from Nebraska, to Rubicon, to San Francisco, to Moab, to Pikes Peak, back to Nebraska trip.
Ive got a new trip planned, but my passengers have changed and increased. My new wife and two of her daughters are coming.
There is a Kargo Master safari rack on the local by sell trade. Or I could pick up a small trailer for the duffel bags. What are your thoughts?
I do have a cargo basket on my tire carrier for our cooler. Thanks

 

[Thelgord]

Both will cost you in fuel milage so that really isn’t much of factor.

What you need to answer is how often you will use either. How often will you have to climb up to the rack? Are you willing to get some needed item, or put stuff on the rack in bad weather? However a roof rack generally won’t affect your rigs trail capability the same way a trailer will. What if you need to back up on a narrow trail with a trailer?

Once you answer these questions you will have a better idea for what is right for you. While I currently have a roof rack I also plan to get a trailer at some point. With the rack, so far anyway, I haven’t needed a trailer badly enough to make it a priority.

 

[Dunnage Garage]

True that, I doubt either would get used thst much.
The roof rack would be empty most of the time, would make it impossible to pull the jeep in the garage for repairs, Ive read about tearing of the jeep tub at the mounting points due to vibrations. But it would hold the duffle bags, and its available .
The trailer would set in the back yard, until needed, and would require registration and far more maintenance.
Both would be functional. Both have issues on the trail, low clearance issues or backing issues.
Im thinking my overlanding, yes not true overlanding, will include hotels as base camp, and day trips on trails and exploring the sites. So the rack would be empty on the trails, and the trailer left at the hotel.

 

[Thelgord]

Of course, the rack is cool place to mount lights.

However, the trailer will only cost gas milage when it is attached.

 

[Haminacan]

I built a trailer last spring, because I was tired of dragging around our small camper, but even with the offroad worthy trailer there is much more added stress to the driving experience. Bouncing around on poorly maintained busy interstates through Chicago, or finding a deadend trail and having to get out. I went back to the roof rack this spring and all I have to do is make sure everything is tied down well. Our trips to explore are meant to reduce stress and have fun, the roof rack is the best way for me as the driver to have a fun stress free experience. Ideally everything would just fit inside, but we have one kid left at home and 2 German Shepherds.

 

[vegasjeepguy]

Got a trailer I found on Craigslist about 9 years ago because the cargo limitations of my TJ became a problem. Bought a CDN M101 that tracks as well off-road as it does on. The initial cost for a trailer can be substantial but has been well worth it.

https://www.overlandbound.com/forums/threads/cdn-m101-in-vegas.1422/

 

[vegasjeepguy]

After rereading, I realize you are looking for a fairly quick solution. That said I think the roof rack is your best bet with a trailer being a long term solution to work towards.

 

[smritte]

I have an 04 TJ that's been on some long trips. As you pointed out, 4 people with gear eats up the cargo area fast. I normally pull a small trailer. Think modded 1941 military. When the trailer was stock, it weighed nothing. I mostly used it to haul our gear into the 4wd trail's I used to maintain. Years later I outfitted it as a camping trailer. I did this after a trip up to the Dusy trail, over to Rubicon and home. There were 4 of us in the Jeep, so you can imagine how creative I got with the cargo. If your going to do a trailer, you need to keep the weight down, have the tongue length set so it follows in your tracks and its nice to use same tire size for ground clearance.
Ive seen a number of racks for Jeeps and unless you have the time to set up a nice trailer, I would go with a rack. When im camping with my Jeep I take the trailer. My cruiser ill bring the trailer or if I'm alone just sleep in the back with my gear on the rack.

Cant seem to be able to post a pic of my trailer. Ill upload one when I can figure it out.

Scott

 

[smritte]

Got a trailer I found on Craigslist about 9 years ago because the cargo limitations of my TJ became a problem. Bought a CDN M101 that tracks as well off-road as it does on. The initial cost for a trailer can be substantial but has been well worth it.

This got posted while I was posting. I have same trailer base.

Scott

 

[Saints&Sailors]

Downside about the trailer is that you need to have someplace to store it. For those of us that live in suburbia, this may not be a consideration but for me, it would be a significant factor. I faced a similar decision and instead opted to reorganize how I store and transport things with our Jeep. I bought a hitch-mounted cargo rack which worked great although I've since sold it because it hung too low for any moderate off-roading. There are some ATV-style racks that are lifted up which wouldn't limit your departure angle too much and seem to be a great option if you just need a little more cargo capacity. I'll probably pick one of those up at some point in the next year or so.

If I were in your boat, I wouldn't be terribly happy with a safari rack or a trailer (they both have drawbacks) but would probably go the roof rack route. Towing blows, particularly with a small wheelbase vehicle like a TJ. Keep in mind that you will probably exceed the safety specifications from the manufacturer when towing anything meaningful + passengers/gear. If you get in an accident, this can cost you dearly.

 

[Mixednuts59]

For the last 10yrs my TJ has been a perfect sized rig. I even loaded my 2 teenage daughters in it for a almost 4000 mile round trip from Nebraska, to Rubicon, to San Francisco, to Moab, to Pikes Peak, back to Nebraska trip.
Ive got a new trip planned, but my passengers have changed and increased. My new wife and two of her daughters are coming.
There is a Kargo Master safari rack on the local by sell trade. Or I could pick up a small trailer for the duffel bags. What are your thoughts?
I do have a cargo basket on my tire carrier for our cooler. Thanks

Get both my man. I went with a frontrunner rack and a off-road trailer with RTT. I thought it was over kill but hauling kayaks and gear it came in handy. My trailer and RTT is from Kakadu Camping in Delta, BC.
The tent is huge and has tons of room for the family. You can even add on a screened in bug room.

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Instagram @Mixednuts59

 

[phxdsrtrat]

For me it wasn't one or the other. As another poster mentioned, I ended up doing both, and then some. I bought a teardrop trailer and put a rack on it plus the rack on the truck. I can carry everything required to keep the better half happy. :)

-Curtiss

 

[FJBruiser]

Both!!!

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[Knitron]

Both!!!

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Trailer is the best option, for me at least. Keeps the center of gravity lower on the whole setup. It's pretty high as it is and adding more stuff to the top I didn't like. Plus with the trailer we can setup camp and leave still. We probably haul more gear than we actually need, but if it gives a couple comforts that makes it easier to get the family out more often totally worth it. Worst part is the effect on gas mileage, but same with the rack. It's a lot easier to haul an extra 10-15 gallons of fuel on a trailer than a roof rack though. To each his own, but I'm sure whatever you pick you will make work good for you.

OB# 3805

 

[MEB77]

Have you looked at a yakima/thule type rack that you can take off when you don't need it? I throw one on my bronco when I need the extra space but take it off when not in use as my bronco wont fit in my car port with it on and it helps a little not having it on gas wise.

 

[Biker Eagle]

Just got back from a 2k trip with the trailer. Solo I got 20mpg and with the trailer I got 20mpg. It tucks in real nice behind the FJ. Plenty of room for all the camping gear and still carry my RTT. All loaded down, trailer and cargo are about 500lbs. Before when I mounted my RTT on the cargo rack, mileage dropped to 16mpg. This little Lowes trailer is pretty inexpensive...$500 retail...$450 on sale. Changed the tires to 13" and did an axle over to get more clearance. The rig ain't very sexy but it does work well.

 

[Haminacan]

They are a good deal for the price and easy to upgrade. I would have made mine work if I was not able to build a rack for a good price also. I got cheap adapters to fit my stock jeep wheels on it and have 3 spares that also fit the jeep. All in it was about $700 for the trailer and about $600 for the rack. I may still use both. Thinking about James Bay road and tr as ns tiago highway next year.

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[Mixednuts59]

Just got back from a 2k trip with the trailer. Solo I got 20mpg and with the trailer I got 20mpg. It tucks in real nice behind the FJ. Plenty of room for all the camping gear and still carry my RTT. All loaded down, trailer and cargo are about 500lbs. Before when I mounted my RTT on the cargo rack, mileage dropped to 16mpg. This little Lowes trailer is pretty inexpensive...$500 retail...$450 on sale. Changed the tires to 13" and did an axle over to get more clearance. The rig ain't very sexy but it does work well.
View attachment 58220

Yeah I know How you feel. Pulling the off road trailer behind my rig in British Columbia I was averaging 22 kml (kilometres per litre). That’s works out to be 12 mpg. On most hills it shot up to 30.9 kml. I was averaging 450 kms a tank in my 4runner. But the experience was well worth it.


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Instagram @Mixednuts59

 

[MazeVX]

Both ! A roof rack for the light things you always need when you're out and a trailer for additional stuff for long or extremely remote trips.

 

[Dunnage Garage]

Thanks for the ideas. The roof rack I was considering fell through. So I have a little more time to decide what route to take.