Please clear up question about gutter rail strength.

[beastpath]

Hi all,

I have been on this forum a while but generally have posted in the Nissan section as I currently have a 91 Pathfinder.

Later this year however my dad is going to gift me his 2001 Discovery (finally!).

While I am excited to be driving the best 4x4xfar, doing some research on how I want to set the vehicle up has confused me a little bit.

I was planning on adding a baja-rack/roof top tent/extra fuel cans/gear etc. but reading online, some people have suggested that the gutter rails are in fact not rated for that kind of load. I have googled, and searched various forums, read the manual, the RAVE, and have not found a verified source for this information.
(I know of course that the stock roof rails are rated for ~60kgs)

Of course there are tons of LR's out there with roof racks that have no problems, I just want to make sure before I do anything potentially hazardous. Is there a gutter rail rating that I have missed somewhere?

Thanks all!

 

[fishEH]

I've never seen a rating for the gutters. They're plenty strong though.

 

[Ray_G]

The rating is out there somewhere but you can overload if desired (the why would you do that question is more germane). Just don't use it as a recovery point, as it isn't tied into the internal roll cage like the CT trucks!
R-
Ray

 

[ZG]

I've had around 450lbs up on top, and also hammocks off of a few of the legs at the same time.

 

[SteveMfr]

I am not sure what the exact numbers are on the D2, but generally the maximum safe load on a roof rack is somewhere around 100kg or 220lbs. And you really do not want more up that high because you are drastically reducing your vehicle's stability by raising the CG.

You do have to differentiate between a load in a static situation or a dynamic situation. With a good rack (evenly spread load) you can probably have a party on the roof with as many people as you can fit w/o doing any damage to the vehicle. Where you do damage is when you have 200lbs on the roof and drive over obstacles or potholes or similar. While the vehicle is already on its way back up the load is still moving down and vica versa. And imagine driving a heavily corrugated piste for hours on end. That is where the load ratings come from.

All that said - and despite the fact that I often have 2 RTTs on my RR and am at 70+kg easily - you don't want to think of your roof rack as your mobile storage shed or garage. You want as little weight as possible up that high both on and off road and you have to adjust your driving to suit that weight and the raised CG.

 

[ZG]

Disclaimer - My input was based on non-moving situations, I never drive with anything on my roof unless completely necessary.

 

[fishEH]

Disclaimer - My input was based on non-moving situations, I never drive with anything on my roof unless completely necessary.

I always load up the Jerry cans for my trips to the mall.
I would believe that a rack with 8 feet could hold well over 220lbs.
My rack doesn't have numerous feet, but one continuous "track" that sits in the rain gutter on each side. This distributes the weight very well. I've had my entire truck leaning into an eroded bank and the rack and gutter were supporting a good portion of the trucks weight.
So IMO the gutter itself is up to the task of supporting weight. How that weight is distributed plays the biggest role.

You can see in this pic that the rack saved my roof but couldn't help my window. There is mud and grass in the rack from the bank, but the rain gutter was unharmed.

 

[TeriAnn]

I've never seen a rating for the gutters. They're plenty strong though.

It is called the carrying specification for the roof. This is something the factory specifies for its roof racks.

LR4: for the sports box option, 124 lbs
for their roof rack 119 lbs

Range Rover Sport: with roof rails 220 lbs
With roof rack or their "sports box" 165 lbs.

The place to search is the factory roof rack options.

But be very cautious about adding weight to the roof and raising the centre of gravity. The dynamic centre of gravity can knock your truck over if you are not careful. This means the taller your truck stands the lower the roof rack load should be. Yes it is possible to put a lot of stuff on a roof rack and not have problems. It is also possible to win at Russian roulette too.

Roof racks are for the light weight stuff that does not fit inside. Heavy stuff should be loaded as low as possible on the vehicle. Roof top tents work best on the top of trailers.

 

[EricTyrrell]

LR4: for the sports box option, 124 lbs
for their roof rack 119 lbs

That's all? A guy couldn't even stand on it.

I've had 300+ lb of persons walking around on my D1 front runner rack (660 lb rating) with zero issue.

 

[454]

In my opinion, running trails with 300 lbs on your roof rack is just asking for trouble. It's fine until it's not.

Keep the heavy stuff inside and lashed down. Pack the light stuff on the roof.

 

[ZG]

That's all? A guy couldn't even stand on it.

I've had 300+ lb of persons walking around on my D1 front runner rack (660 lb rating) with zero issue.

I'm guessing it's a load limit for driving, which is generally a lot lower than full capacity....for liability reasons.

 

[A.J.M]

The LR ones will be marked down to avoid legal claims if someone pushed it too far with either a load or aggressive cornering and puts it shiny side down.

I'll have one on my D3 one day. For the looks and a place to fit spot lights on.

 

[java]

It is called the carrying specification for the roof. This is something the factory specifies for its roof racks.

LR4: for the sports box option, 124 lbs
for their roof rack 119 lbs

Range Rover Sport: with roof rails 220 lbs
With roof rack or their "sports box" 165 lbs.

The place to search is the factory roof rack options.

But be very cautious about adding weight to the roof and raising the centre of gravity. The dynamic centre of gravity can knock your truck over if you are not careful. This means the taller your truck stands the lower the roof rack load should be. Yes it is possible to put a lot of stuff on a roof rack and not have problems. It is also possible to win at Russian roulette too.

Roof racks are for the light weight stuff that does not fit inside. Heavy stuff should be loaded as low as possible on the vehicle. Roof top tents work best on the top of trailers.

Those are the dynamic load ratings from the factory I would think. Thats not far off from what I have seen for most trucks.

 

[sedat]

RRCs would crack at the top of the pillars with overloading. I've yet to see a discovery have the same failure.

(remember, RRCs have bolt on roofs, discos are welded on)

most I've ever put on a aftermarket rack is around 300lb.
I personally don't use aftermarket racks enough to justify having 100lb of jungle gym on my roof making the thing sway like a party barge.

 

[beastpath]

Thanks everyone!

Yeah, I understand it is not a great idea to raise the center of gravity, and the roof should be mostly for light things. However, on the Disco 1 and 2 where do you put extra fuel cans if not on a roof? I have not found any bumper mounts, and from what I have read if you attach a jerry can to the tire it will rip the mount off.