2021 Toyota RAV4 Roof Rack and Cargo Carrying Recommendations

Question:

Hello! I am having trouble filtering through the wealth of information your site provides and am hoping you can help me. I have a new 2021 Toyota Rav4 with low profile fore to aft rails that I would like to purchase a crossbar system for. I have considered Thule because friends have reccomended it, but am open to others as well. I would like: better than average weight capacity the ability to open the moonroof while the crossbars are in place The roof rack will most frequently be used for: lumber and oversized items small boats: row boat, paddle board, kayak boat accessories, such as oars and paddles In the future, we might be interested in a cargo carrier of some sort so compatibility would be nice, but is not a priority. Do you have any specific reccomendations? Im mostly having trouble with figuring out which of the website-generated reccomendations are compatible with an open moonroof. Thank you so much

asked by: Astra H

Expert Reply:

It sounds like you have the flush rails on the roof of your 2021 Toyota RAV4. You can definitely use the Thule roof rack system (or any system for that matter) with your moonroof and you should be able to open it just fine - roof rack manufacturers just generally say not to so they don't have to worry about any kind of clearance issues. I will say that if you plan on opening the moonroof while driving it will change the aerodynamics and you'll likely hear the crossbars whistling. Here are the parts you need for the roof rack:

53" WingBar Evo Crossbars - Black # TH711420 or Silver # TH711400
Rapid Podium Feet - # TH460R
Fit Kit - # TH78RE
Lock Core Kit - # TH450400 (optional)

The crossbars have a weight rating of 220 lbs but the roof rack as a whole is only rated for up to 165 lbs, which is the highest you're going to find for any standard roof rack system. I've attached a review and installation video of this system on a 2020 RAV4 for you to check out.

The for the accessories that will help you with what you plan on transporting I recommend the following:

Yakima BigCatch - # Y04091 (for kayak and row boat up to 150 lbs)
Rhino-Rack SUP Pad - # RRRWP04 (for paddle board)
Yakima OffGrid - # Y07138 (cargo basket)