Off-Road Roof Rack Recommendation for 2019 Jeep Compass

Question:

I am coverting my 2019 Jeep Compass for more off-road and camping use. I have raised with no opening that do have a place to screw mount. I will he carrying 150 pounds on bumpy terrain. This includes a homemade carton carrier for my generator and 2 bikes. What Yakima or other cross bar support would you recommend?

asked by: Dare

Expert Reply:

Basically all of the roof racks aside from the ones offered by Thule have been rated for 165 lbs for your 2019 Jeep Compass. Since you'll be going off-road I recommend going with the Yakima roof rack system that utilizes HD bars:

Yakima 55" HD Crossbars - # Y01156
SkyLine Towers - # Y53TR
HD Bar SL Adapter - # Y03541
Landing Pad 19 - # Y00245 (these mount to the sides of your raised rails as opposed to inside an opening like what you mentioned)

This roof rack is on the higher-end when it comes to price-point but there are a few things that you'll get out of this crossbar setup that you won't get with the other options. The first is that these HD bars are compatible with most rooftop accessories whether they mount around the 3" wide x 1-1/2" tall crossbars or inside the industry-standard T-Slot opening. The second is that the endcaps on these crossbars have tie-down points that you can use to further secure your gear. The third thing is that you can actually utilize the undersize of these bars as well (depending on how much room you have to your roof). For example, the 2-1/8" tall Eyelets # Y01162 could potentially be installed upside-down for additional tie-down locations.

If you want something more economic then you can go with the Rhino-Rack roof rack which is also rated for 165 lbs.

Vortex 49" Crossbars - # RRVA126B-2
RCL Legs - # RRRCL4
Fit Kit - # RRRCP64-BK