Classic Range Rover

A wide selection of roof racks is nowadays available for the Classic Range Rover. The Thule and Yakima "erector set" lightweight aluminum racks are one choice, with the benefits of relatively low cost, light weight, and a large number of optional extras like luggage baskets, ski clamps, and streamlined plastic "rocket boxes" for stowing and securing your gear. A Thule rack emblazoned with the RANGE ROVER logo was offered in the early 1990's as an official dealer accessory.

The other dealer option was a heavy-duty but streamlined-looking steel expedition-style rack made in Germany (see photo above right). This is now available through other suppliers such as Rovers North for about $600-$700. Weighing about 50 lbs, it has a luggage carrying section at the rear and a bar across the forward section, calculated to leave room for the sunroof to open. A nice feature is its very large non-damaging mounting point design, spreading the load over a substantial area. A bigger picture of this rack appears in the page on Buying a Used Range Rover.

Larger expedition-style racks are available from other sources. Rovers North has its own custom full-length rack of stainless steel, with optional brackets for jerry cans, shovel and axe. (Photo Above: Rovers North Full Length Expedition Rack on Gordon Kallio's Range Rover).  D.A.P. Enterprises has a full length steel rack with a plywood floor and a folding access ladder mounted on the side. Atlantic British Ltd offers a lighter weight aluminum version of this style in half and full length forms. Garvin Industries makes an expedition rack and attachments for shovels, spare tire, etc. The British-made Brownchurch racks are also now available in the US in sizes to fit Classic Range Rovers.  British Pacific also now supplies a custom rack for the Classic with optional mounts for shovels etc (See photo at right by Alexander Cooper: British Pacific rack on Granville Pool's Range Rover). Another new entry in the market is Yakima's Road Warrior rack, a 44"x 39"x 6.5" basket designed to fit on standard Yakima or Thule bars.

Other options include racks from Garvin Industries, and more lightweight versions from various makers designed to mount to standard Thule crossbars. Of course, you can always make your own; a superb custom rack for a Range Rover Classic was fabricated by Michael Slade and can be seen at this location.

Range Rover 4.0/4.6

The new Range Rover has built-in channels for rack support in the roof. A heavy duty full-length expedition rack, featured on the 4.6HSEs in the 1997 Land Rover Trek,  includes a nifty rear ladder and bumper step (see photo here and at the top of this page). It is now available from Land Rover dealers and parts suppliers in the US, or from the manufacturer, Safety Devices. Cost in the US is about $1300. (Photo Courtesy of Gordon Kallio)

I purchased my copy of this excellent rack from The Rover Connection, in Salt Lake City, who supply the full range of Land Rover Genuine Accessories. After installing the rack, I found it produced a large amount of wind noise. I fabricated an air  deflector from sheet aluminum which I then painted black. Mounted between the driving lights on the front of the rack, this drastically reduces the noise to a barely noticeable level. Like most expedition style racks, the floor bars are very sturdy but spaced too far apart to hold small objects. I therefore made a floor of heavy welded steel mesh (approx 0.160 inch gauge, 2 inch spacing) for the rear 3 feet of the rack behind my CB antenna and sunroof opening. This is easily strong enough to stand on. I mounted my shovel and axe permanently on the rack, kust inside the outer rails; they are barely visible from the outside.

The Rover Connection also supplied the rear ladder for my rack. They were most helpful in trying to obtain mounting instructions from LRNA, but apparently there are none. You just put the ladder on where the curvature of its mounting points best fits the upper tailgate. It does require drilling through the sheet metal of the upper tailgate, which in turn requires removing the trim panels from the tailgate interior.  To finish the job, I mounted a strip of non-skid surface on the rear bumper beneath the ladder, to act as the lower step. (I obtained this from a marine supply store).

The net result is a very strong and practical setup, with a safe way of accessing whatever you stow on the roof. For additional photos of this setup see the page on carrying vehicle recovery equipment and the CB Radio page.

Land Rover also offers several stylish light duty options. One includes streamlined side rails with two cross pieces rated at a maximum load of 175 lbs and designed to accept the complete range of Thule accessories. A more basic system with Thule crossmembers is also available. This came with my 4.0 when I first got it, so I adapted it for my needs. The Thule crossmembers can be mounted in the front, center or rear of the roof, giving the option of half length or full length racks. When mounted in the middle and rear positions, I found the crossbars are just the right distance apart to enable a Yakima luggage basket to fit between them. This overcame the problem of many racks which do not have a proper floor, making the carrying of smaller or irregular shaped objects very difficult. The Yakima basket is designed to mount on top of the roof rack rails, but I wanted a lower profile so I  mounted the basket low, slung between the rails using standard Yakima and Thule adapters.

Permanently mounted and ready for emergencies were my  shovel, pick, axe and pry bar, with room left over for a shower or  a spare fuel tank when needed, and even a few bundles of firewood. (The photo looks toward the rear with the axe on the left, the pick straight ahead, and the shovel handle just visible to the right).  The system worked well. In later years, to accommodate occasional  needs for more storage area on the roof, I replaced this system with an expedition rack (see above).

Range Rover Mk III

In 2003 an expedition rack of almost identical design to that for the 4.0/4.6 was made for the new Range Rover model. This sturdy rack was used on the Range Rovers that participated in Land Rover's G4 Challenge, successor to the Camel Trophy. For a photo, see this link.