Rob G and all, Seems that something forgotten or just not mentioned on this thread of roof top hauling is that many vehicles are not designed with the forethought of strapping bulk and mass on the roof. After all, the more aerodynamic and lighter a vehicle usually leads to a cheaper production cost and better operation economy which seems to sell more units these days. Just adding beef to the anchor points, securing into structural cross supports, or redesigning the geometry of attachments helps but ignores overall unit strength limits. So are we surprised that there are reports of structural failures and poorer than advertised performance and economy stats? Maybe so in the report from Geoff and his explorer's damaged roof! The main message should be that just because it is a truck or suv in category, it's significant to understand the structural strengths and limits. And that manufactures might overstate the toughness and utility. Those factory roof racks might be more cosmetic than function. Better to error on the overbuild side. Steve *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************Received on Fri Feb 06 2004 - 10:49:34 PST
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