Roof Rack strength
 

Has anyone had any issues with their Pacifica's roof rack? I just installed a set of Thule feet and crossbars and I'm concerned about how flimsy the factory side rails are. The OEM crossbars attach in a similar way to the Thule parts so I expect that if there is an issue folks would see it with the factory set up as well. In particular the rails seem to flex a lot at their front end, tightening all the screws that hold the rails to the roof helped a lot and eliminated the issue for the rear rail.

Anyone have any insight on this??

RE: Roof Rack strength
 

I'm pretty sure there are two different types. The standard ones won't hold too much weight but the sport ones, I believe, have a 150lbs limit.

RE: Roof Rack strength
 

I believe that the Mopar "standard" and "sport utility" rack options are just the crossbars. What i'm concerned about are the side rails that the crossbars attach to. The side rails run from the front of the car to the back and are recessed into the roof and are a fairly unique design on the Pacifica.

RE: Roof Rack strength
 

Made a trip last weekend over 1000 miles with two large kayaks on the Thule system with no mishaps. We experienced a lot of side to side twist when getting draft from big trucks in front or going by, kinda scarry at times. Even after the trip I'm still a little nervous about the amount of flex in the plastic side rails in the roof but all seemed to go OK.

Which Thule model did you use? I bought J-racks and tried installing them to my 2008 Pacifica's factory crossbars but the flex in the crossbar and the length of the J-rack's mounting screws made it impossible for these racks to work. There is not enough space between the factory crossbars and the metal top of the vehicle. I'm looking for new crossbars that will sit much higher off the roof of the car so that mounting screws and weight flex won't damage the top of my 2008 Pacifica.

The Pacifica roof racks are indeed rated by Chrysler for 150 lbs total load. But they feel pretty flimsy. I have used the hell out of my Pac rack, carrying some pretty big stuff. I simply use PLENTY of ratchet straps and rope (I always make a point of using plenty, then adding one more strap that is clearly not needed as a backup), Beverly Hillbilly style on many occasions strapping down to the front/rear bumper areas and rear fenders. Remove the leverage and the white knuckles go away.