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Durable nylon legs with built-in locks help mount Vortex Aero crossbars to your vehicle's naked roof or fixed mounting points. Leg bases pivot to level bars on your roof. Pair with 2 crossbars and fit kit to create complete roof rack.
Features:
Specs:
Videos are provided as a guide only. Refer to manufacturer installation instructions and specs for complete information.
How's it going everybody, it's Ethan here at etrailer. Today we're gonna be taking a look at and showing you how to install the Rhino-Rack Vortex Aero Roof Rack System on our 2021 Ford F-150. So with the F-150, obviously we have a good amount of bed space, but if you wanna get something longer or larger up there and maybe couple this with like a ladder rack to give some longer loads like a ladder or a lumber or on the sports and rec side, maybe you have a larger kayak you wanna get where you need it to go, a roof rack system like this one is gonna be a great solution for you. So let's take a closer look. The roof rack is going to have a weight capacity of 165 pounds. It's going to fit on our roof with the fit kit that we'll show you in the installed portion.
But 165 is gonna be a pretty solid or pretty common number that you see with roof racks like this, which is gonna be fine for most of the things you wanna get up there. You just wanna double check and make sure that your roof weight rating is in that same ballpark. Make sure you know what each of those are and go by the lowest ready component just to be safe. The crossbars we have on our system right now are gonna be 59", which is a solid length. We stay pretty much well within the width of our vehicle overall.
They're going to be elliptical so they taper on both ends to cut down on some of that wind noise and drag. But anytime you put something up on the roof, you're gonna deal with that. Luckily, we also do have a vortex strip on the top which is how the bars get their name. So that's going to help again cut down on some of that wind noise, otherwise we just have that open channel up here. Speaking of that channel though, that's gonna be great for your T-track accessories.
If you have those, you can slide those in. But with the strip you are going to have to trim it up if you wanna leave this strip in with those accessories on. So it's not a horrible idea to just grab another strip if you want to, in the event that you do end up doing some trimming. On our end cap here, we do have a plastic lock which we can use to unlock or lock our end cap but you can upgrade those to metal if you'd like. On the underside, you do have the option to use a measurement strip that you are gonna trim up and put wherever your towers are not.
In our case, this is just for demonstration and we'll talk a little bit more about that in the install portion as well, but that'll cut down on that whistling noise underneath as well. And using the provided key, we can take our end cap off and just show you how that works. So it's just a metal lock core there that will expose our fit kit hardware. So as long as our end cap is on and it's also locked up, no one is going to be able to access your fit kit hardware and remove the rack from your roof. From here I'm just gonna get a quick measurement to give you an idea of how much height you're going to be adding to your roof with the system. So from here in the middle, you're going to be looking at adding about 4-1/4" from the highest point. So if you're thinking about storing this in your garage, especially if you have something on there, add about 4-1/4" to whatever that's gonna be to find out whether or not it will fit in your garage or if you'll go anywhere where there might be some clearance issues. The roof rack system is gonna be made out of an anodized aluminum so it's gonna be really lightweight, easy to work with, but also very durable and rustproof at that point. It's got a nice matte black finish so it looks good. I think it fits the aesthetic of our F-150 really well. Overall, the install portion isn't too terribly difficult. It can be a little bit tricky, but you just need to be patient. Use the measurements that the instructions give you and make sure that you know where everything is gonna go. But if you need a little bit of help with that process, we'll walk you through it right now. To get started, the first thing we'd like to do is to slay everything out so that we know where and what it is. So we have our crossbars, we have towers, our fit kit, the clamps, and the hardware. We've got the pads and the bases for our towers. We have the tools and I would recommend picking up some kind of fabric tape measure as well as a regular tape measure. And then we have this measurement strip that comes included that we'll have to trim up according to our needs and definitely keep the instructions close by 'cause we will have to reference those often. But we'll begin by removing the end caps on our crossbars. We are going to use this plastic key to fit into the end cap. Just turn it and pull it out as long as we have it rotated fully, and we need to remove that in order to get our towers on. So we're going to line up this metal plate here with the underside, with the channel underneath our crossbars and just slide those on. And now is when you're gonna use that measurement strip. So for our case, ours has already been trimmed up so we can't use it effectively but you're gonna basically line it up with your tower, find the measurement on your instructions. In our case, we're looking for 169, so I'll get that roughly to where it needs to be. In your case, you could actually use the full measurement strip and trim it up if you need to. We repeated that process on the other side. We just slid our tower under this channel here and line it up according to the measurement, removed our end caps and now we just need to replace those real quick. Again, just put 'em on and tighten 'em down with the key. From here, since we're doing our front crossbar, just be sure to reference the instructions but we're going to attach one of our base pads to the rest of the base, and we wanna make sure you can see this arrow on here. We wanna make sure that ends up facing forward, so in our case, we're going to get these on and then we'll line it up with the tower. With the pad connected to the base, you can see where these openings are, and where they'll fit on our towers. So from here, again, we just wanna make sure that that arrow is facing forward, and we can snap this on into place. And then we're gonna repeat this process again on the other side. Once our towers are roughly in place, we're going to get a measurement. In your case, you could use the measurement strip. In our case, we would've to trim that up, and this is just for demonstration, so I'm gonna use our fabric tape measure to find that 169 millimeter mark in our case. And now I'm going to use the Allen key provided to tighten this down. As we tighten down, something important to note is that this tool does have a built-in torque spec, so just the way it's designed. Once we start turning, as soon as we see that line straightened out, that's about as tight as we want to go. Once we have our towers all set up, our measurements where we need 'em to be and both bases in place, now we can place our crossbars roughly on our roof, whereabout we think they're going to go. Just a matter of getting them roughly in place for now. And then we're gonna come back and get the measurement to make sure that they're in the right place. From here, again, since this is the front crossbar, I'm going to be using the measurement A in our case, which is 280 millimeters or 28 centimeters from the center of our door jam to the center of the tower. So in our case, I need to slide forward quite a bit. It's gonna be kind of hard to tell for now until I move the other one forward as well. So I'm gonna go to the other side and get that measurement now. Once we have everything in place and all our measurements are good, if your end caps are on, make sure we get those out of the way. If they're locked, go ahead and just use the provided key to unlock it. But now we're going to fit the bolt through this hole here on our clamp and make sure that it threads into that opening there inside our tower. Once you get the bolt here to start threading, it's probably gonna be easier just to use the tool to get it most of the way in. In our case, I'm gonna go to about 70, 75% here. I'm not gonna tighten it down all the way 'cause it might start pulling the whole system towards me, rather I'm gonna tighten this one down, and then I'm gonna go back to the other side, tighten that one down, come back and finish this one up, and then finish the other side up as well just to make sure everything's even as possible. Now that we've gone back to the other side and tighten that one down, I'm gonna finish tightening this bolt here. Again, just using this tool. Once it gets to the point where it straightens out, that's how you know we're at the desired torque. So I'm right about there now. All that's left to do is to replace our end caps and lock those up. So overall, if you're looking for a really effective way to extend your load space, whether that's getting some larger or longer items up on your roof, the Rhino-Rack Vortex Aero Roof Rack System is gonna be a great option for you. We just took a look at how to install it and how it fits on our 2021 Ford F-150.
Average Customer Rating: 4.7 out of 5 stars (8625 Customer Reviews)
Durable nylon legs with built-in locks help mount Vortex Aero crossbars to your vehicle's naked roof or fixed mounting points. Leg bases pivot to level bars on your roof. Pair with 2 crossbars and fit kit to create complete roof rack.I am very happy with my purchase of the 2500 Series Rhino Roof Rack system from etrailer. I wanted to transport a Mohawk Intrepid 16’ canoe from Pagosa Springs to my home in Albuquerque that my good friend left me when he passed. We used to run the Chama River from El Vado Dam to just short of Big Eddy, a great overnight trip of 22 miles. I didn’t know what I needed in a roof rack for my Toyota Tacoma full cab but Alyssa at etrailer was very helpful and so pleasant. The delivery was quick and the installation was pretty easy (the videos on etrailer’s website were a big help). The day I drove from Pagosa to ABQ, Feb 26, 2023, it was very windy, 40 mph gusting to 60 mph! Not an ideal day to be carrying a canoe on the roof! But the Rhino Rack was rock solid and the canoe didn’t budge, even though my truck was getting getting pushed around. I’ve left the rack on because I like the way it looks! (PS. I added another strap to the back rack after I took the photo) Highly recommend etrailer to anyone considering purchasing a roof rack!
I wanted to share the items I used to be able to haul two Wilderness Systems Tsunami 145 kayaks on my 2006 Scion xB. This may help others who struggle with deciding what to use. I am pleased with my purchase and hope this helps. I originally thought I wanted the Thule Hull-A-Port Aero, but they discontinued making the fit kit for their roof rack systems and I ended up going with the Kuats. I am glad that they didn’t make the fit kit for approximately $[XX] and so they missed out on the rest of my business. Here are the items I used for anyone interested – pictures included. Custom DK Fit Kit for 4 Rhino-Rack 2500 Series Roof Rack Legs - Naked Roof #DK138, Kuat Class 4 V2 Kayak Carrier w/ Tie-Downs - J-Style - Folding - 1 Kayak - Black #KU53VR and these are really cool, Rhino-Rack 2500 Series Legs for Vortex Aero Crossbars - Naked Roofs or Fixed Mounting Points - Qty 4 #RRRLKVA, Rhino-Rack Vortex Aero Crossbars - Aluminum - Black - 54" Long - Qty 2 #RRVA137-B2. The 54” crossbars fit really well and the perfect length in my opinion and it doesn’t stick out like the longer ones would. Also purchased two sets of these Malone QuickLash T-Style Hood Loops for Bow and Stern Tie-Downs - Qty 2 #MPG308.
Hello, I am having a problem with a part of the legs for my crossbars. The Bolt and its rectangular metal plate that holds the leg onto the crossbar is stripped. I used this product last year during the summer. The crossbars were taken off during the winter and stored. I went to replace them on the car yesterday and found these parts to be stripped. I can't use the crossbar without an new piece. I need customer service to ship me out a new bolt and plate.
Jenny N.
5/16/2023
I will have Customer Service contact you to discuss the warranty on the foot.
I put 3 stars because its a useful functional non-harmful roof rack solution for my WRX sedan. This review lost 2 stars because the rubber top pieces get damaged upon any accessory removal or install like(bike, snowboard rails etc). Additionally, these accessories also look to be weathering quickly because of build quality. Hopefully this helps your decision! Thanks
The selection process that etrailer uses is top-notch. This really helped narrow down the choices for my 2019 RAM Quad cab. I bought this all kitted together. The assembly process is very straightforward and well-documented. I would highly recommend etrailer as a source for vehicle accessories. I have Yakima bike racks on our Subaru and this is as good if not better.
Look how nice my crossbars look? I ordered these and paid extra for expedited shipping so that I could have them to put a luggage carrier on my roof. The legs for the crossbars never showed up and the crossbars came late as well. I ran out and got a trailer hitch basket for extra storage. Tack on an extra $[XX] in addition to the extra $$ for fast shipping and I'm $[XX] into these crossbars that I couldn't use for their intended purpose. I called early enough that the company could have overnighted the legs but they just kept blaming UPS. Very disappointed.
Brooke M.
9/12/2022
Thank you for letting us know about this. I have already sent your information along to our customer service team to make sure they reach out to you about this.
Used my rhino rack traveling thousands of miles over the past year. They are a great product for the price, no need to buy the expensive big name products. Highly recommend these roof racks.
Today I installed roof Rack I take pictures send to you ,what is roof rack on the my car?good or bad let me know thanks you
Katrina B.
4/3/2023
Heck yeah!! I think it looks great!! We love pictures! Tell us more and give us more pictures!
Once installed the product is very sturdy and looks great. But the directions are hard to follow because of the separate components and would have been really tough without the video which was great. I have one problem, how can I eliminate the annoying wind sound when driving when nothing on the rack. I saw a video where wrapping a line around the crossbar can help. It has helped a lot but not completely. Is there another secret for this?
Katrina D.
5/15/2024
I usually suggest using a fairing like part # RRRF4. This should fit right onto your Rhino Rack roof rack, like part # RRVA137B-2.
I've been using my Rhino-Rack primarily for hauling up to two kayaks. It has performed very. On the particular trip we are on now we went thru some pretty high winds blowing from the side of our rig and the kayak stayed secured. I would highly recommend this for anything you want to carry on top of your vehicle.
I shopped online retailers namely Amazon and EBAY looking for the cross bar setup I would need for my 2012 Toyota Camry LE. My Camry has a naked roof. The whole experience was confusing. None of the needed components were combined together. I found each component listed separately but nothing to indicate they were the correct components for my car. Then ETRAILER.COM popped up in my search. I simply entered my car’s year, make, and model, and answered the question about the car roof (being naked with no factory installed cargo bars) and suddenly I had a list of the available cross bars for my vehicle with all the necessary components to install them. One or two clicks put the whole thing in my cart for purchase. ETRAILER .COM is your one stop shop. As a side note I purchased Yakima ski racks on sale to install on these cross bars. Another customer asked if these ski racks would fit his car and I explained yes they will with the appropriate cross bars. I sent him to “ETRAILER.COM” so he could get the correct setup. Pictures forthcoming.
Brooke M.
1/31/2024
That is awesome, Mike! Love to hear it! And thank you for telling your friend about us, too!
Good price. Came quickly. Although one of the cross bar boxes was open when delivered, everything was complete and undamaged. Be sure to check inside the cross bars for the rubber strips!!
Bought this rack to carry canoe, etc. while towing our camper. Installation is easy with one person so long as you take your time to get the original setup meticulously correct. If you're planning to put it on only occasionally when you're using it, it's 10 to 15 minutes for one person to install once the original setup is done and the clamp points marked with the little unobtrusive stickers they send with the kit. Originally planned to put it on only when using because we only really need it a couple times a year (we just throw the canoe in the back for local trips). Looks good enough we might leave it on all the time. Even thought I didn't know I needed it until I was already at the store, it certainly came in handy bringing home a 10 foot long 2x8 on a rainy day when I needed to keep the bed cover closed. etrailer's service was prompt and flawless as always.
Dan
3/11/2019
After a year, still works perfectly. No problems with clamp slippage or anything else over time.
etrailer.com's videos and additional customer support made the purchase of a Rhino Rack system from them for our 2010 Malibu a no brainer. The rack fit the car perfectly, and with the videos and clear instructions that came with the kit, I got it installed on the car with only one misstep. The instructions came the the measurements in centimeters and inches. I didn't have a metric tape measure, and ended up messing up converting fractions to decimal.
My Daughter is going to college 500 miles away and is moving into an unfurnished apartment and needed to pick up some small furniture that wouldn't fit in her Malibu. She purchased several items from Facebook Marketplace and was able to transport a twin bed and mattress, a medium sized desk and some dining room chairs (in several trips) with no problems.
The only thing I can think of to improve the installation would be to have the Inches measurements in decimal or to include an inexpensive metric tape.
Mark
8/20/2020
Still rock solid after a year. Very happy with the Rack. My daughter has used it from time to time over the past year when something wont fit in her car, and shes had no problems with it at all.
Excellent price and quick shipping. Excellent support for missing bar end cap. Rack was easy to put together and install and video was helpful. My only complaint is when trying to tie down kayak to cradle it is not easy to keep the loop over the top of the upright "U" shaped bar, it keeps siding down. We wrapped two pieces of foam around the bar to create a channel to hold the strap now it is easy.
James
8/24/2019
Excellent
The racks fit perfectly! They are a great fit to my car. They don’t interfere with the sunroof’s operation. I assembled it on my own with no difficulty. It was easy to assemble. The directions it provides to you are easy to follow. The only down side was getting the plastic pieces to lock on the ends of the bars. Other than that they are great and they look great on my car! I plan to use them to transport kayaks! They are very sturdy and very trust worthy for transporting a couple of kayaks. I recommend these racks to anyone who has a 2016 or 2017 Nissan Altima!
Colby P.
6/3/2019
This rack has been great! I have had no problems with it.
Not too hard of an install and it looks great! Highly recommend for a basic utility roof rack for your 23 Tacoma.
The rack was easy to install and after some adjustment, it holds well to the roof. It is well made and strong. It holds my light rack on very well at high speeds and hard cornering. Conclusion, its a great rack for a vehicle that doesn't have factory rack mounts. Installation will go easier with a friend to help.
This rack has not scratched my car which is very important to me. I have used this rack on Very bumpy dirt roads and my kayaks have been held on by the Rhino rack as expected.
The installed rack has done the job well and after installing and breaking down after one ski season and then reinstalling for the next season, no issues or problems to report. Everything has worked out great.
Great rack for a great price. I tried an Amazon knock off, and that was a piece of junk. The Rhino rack is relatively easy to install, is very secure, and has lots of accessories.
Works great with the rhino rack for hauling Kayaks.
These ar ok. The design is silly because you can get your hand under the door and easily rip it off plus one just fell off on the highway.
Jenny N.
5/24/2023
Goodness! Did the whole foot come off the rack or jut the end cap? I have heard of the end caps being lost however not typically the whole roof rack foot.
Really nice on my toyota tundra rhino rack look how cool is it thanks you so much
Got this for a 2015 Prius. High quality works great. Use their measurements included as a guide and measure everything out yourself before cutting the spacers and when installing. I had to make minor adjustments to make it perfect.
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Condition: Like New
Notes: May have damaged packaging or minor cosmetic blemishes.
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Peter
3/5/2024
Still 100 happy and satisfied with the Rhino Rack! In addition to the intended use, an added bonus is that it helps me find my truck in a crowded parking lot!