A great rack in theory

By kgmcmurtry444504 Ranked #520 - Car Racks April 1, 2009

I really wanted to love this rack. The ability to slide your skis/boards to the side for easy access is a terrific feature, especially for tall vehicles like SUVs or trucks. Unfortunately, Thule's execution of that clever idea leaves a few things to be desired. First, it's surprisingly difficult to slide the rack with skis aboard. The friction on the slide mechanism is simply too high while under load. Some kind of dampened roller or bearing system comes to mind as a fix, but that may be too costly to implement. Perhaps they just need a better slide design with less friction. The second and most annoying problem was noted in the other reviews here. The rack can't be shut while it's slid to the side. To my mind, that design oversight nearly ruins the central feature of the rack. You're forced to slide the rack over the vehicle before latching down the cargo. It's awkward at best, and perhaps impossible for shorter people. Finally, Thule doesn't offer a way to lock the ski rack to the crossbar, a problem not unique to this particular Thule model. You can lock the crossbar to your vehicle. You can lock down the clamp over your skis/boards. But there's nothing to prevent thieves from using either a Thule torx key or some other torx fitting/screwdiver/whatever to remove the entire rack from the crossbar, along with your skis/boards. Thule claims that their torx bolts are proprietary and therefore tamper-proof, but that's a cop-out. A six-year-old could remove this rack in minutes with a decent tool kit. Thule should take a page from Yakima's design, where the closing of the rack itself covers the mounting bolts. Of course, that would require rethinking the mounting system, but this potentially terrific rack needs another iteration anyway. That said, Version 2.0 could be a real winner if Thule makes a few crucial changes.

View Details: Thule Universal Pull Top 6 w/Locks

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