Clearance Between Vehicle Sunroof and Roof Rack Crossbars of Inno Square Bar Roof Rack

Question:

I own a 2017 Subaru Forester that come with factory rail, but I do have a sun roof which is huge... and would love to know how much room there is between the bottom of the crossbar to the sunroof, so the sun roof can work once I put my roof rack on thanks

asked by: Bobby

Expert Reply:

Roof rack makers generally do not recommend operating a vehicle's sunroof when an aftermarket roof rack is installed. Even if there is no clearance issue between the bottom of the crossbars and the top of the sunroof there would be a lot of noise from wind turbulence at the bars that would likely make you want to keep the sunroof closed anyway.

Also note that any roof-rack-mount accessory item you might install on the crossbars - say a bike rack or cargo carrier - will use some type of hardware that will reduce the clearance under the bars. This will vary depending on the roof rack you choose and the specific accessory item. Again, the items you mount on the rack will themselves generate wind noise too. In our experience customers with roof racks and rack-mount accessories prefer to keep their sunroofs closed for reduced noise in the cabin.

For the Inno rack system you referenced, parts # INB117 and # INFR, we have not yet had a customer bring in a 2017 Subaru Forester for installation, but the linked video shows this same rack installed on another vehicle with raised side rails and a glass roof.

expert reply by: Adam R