Roof bars can be bought individually or in sets of 2, 3, 4 or even 5 bars.  In the main, individual roof bars are used to fix beacon brackets, wind deflectors or light panels.  And it would seem that typically, 2 roof bars are used by professional tradesmen at the front and rear of the van to carry standard sized ladders materials or tubes. 2 or 3 individual bars can also be useful if you are driving a smaller van.

 

As the number of roof bars and mounting points increases, so does the versatility in terms of the load you can carry. But keep an eye on the spacing between the mounting points of your vehicle.  To explain, the fixing points on a Vivaro are not equally spaced. So, you can fit 3 individual roof bars to the van but the gaps between the bars will vary. This could therefore restrict the carriage of shorter lengths of material where it slips between the bars.

 

A roof rack is defined as a set of bars - usually 3, 4 or 5 bars - connected together by a side rail or side channel.  The bars are spread equally and they allow you to use the whole roof, not just the front and back. With a roof rack, you can support a variety of loads including smaller step ladders or a mix of ladders, boxes or larger sheets.  Or, if you choose an extended roof rack, you can carry an 8’ x 4’ sheet within the roof rack itself.  A roof rack therefore gives you greater capacity and allows you to spread the load evenly across the vehicle.

 

The Maxrack is our top of the range product.  Available between 5 and up to 12 bars, it comes with a wind deflector, side rails and full rear roller as standard. Continuing the theme, more lateral bars means there is more room for different products.

 

Our roof systems are designed to fit the existing mounting points of the vehicle.  It is therefore important that you always select your van make & model whether looking for roof bars or roof racks - especially when searching online.  It certainly is not the case that one size will fit all.

 

Do you have any further advice to offer on when to choose roof bars or a roof rack?  Please add your comments below.

 

 

Above: Van Guard 4 bar roof rack (VG182/SWB/4) on a Vauxhall Vivaro.