Safari roof rack for an SUV?

[Farmer17]

I own a construction company and have driven nothing but a pickup truck for over 20 years and my accountant told me I am spending about $10,000/year on fuel. I hardly ever haul anything in it, I just drive a lot of miles to various jobsites supervising, and have to grab a few sheets of plywood or some lumber occasionally when we run short. My old Titan crew cab averages about 16 miles per gallon combined city and highway, and I am thinking about getting a Ford Escape turbo that gets about double that. I would probably regret not having a truck but the fuel savings alone would pay for a nice used Escape in just a few years, and if I didn't like it I could give it to my daughter who would be turning 16. The problem is the luggage rack looks too flimsy to haul any materials, does anyone know about a Safari type rack that would be good for construction materials.

 

[Herknav]

I don't want to be "that guy" that suggests a Colt when the question is "Glock or M&P", but what about a trailer? I'm guessing your lead time isn't long enough, though.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

Have owned several SUVs and occasionally hauled material to houses we were remodeling. It's a pain. Usually takes longer to load , tie down and then unload than it does to drive across town.
Have also used a trailer. Much easier. If you are only going to haul a small amount of material, you don't need a really heavy duty trailer. Probably limited to towing lighter trailers with the Escape anyway.
Now driving a Xterra, but out of the house business!

 

[diamonback68]

I just bought a 2014 Escape, love it, but you can haul maybe 15 bags of mulch in the back with the seat down but it's too short for lumber and not wide enough for plywood. I would guess the trailer would be the ticket.

 

[Herknav]

I just can't imagine trying to "rassle" plywood singlehandedly onto the top of an SUV in an average Oklahoma wind without something bad happening.

 

[J. R. WEEMS]

My guess would be, most modern vehicles could not hold enough weight to be all that useful-- maybe not. ??

 

[Comrad]

2014 Ram 1500 2WD Diesel
23 MPG Combined
20 City
28 Highway

 

[NYlakesider]

As a pipefitter/welder I have made up or helped make up ladder/pipe racks (also holds lumber products at times) for all sorts of vehicles. Been doing that since the early 1970s, up till about 10 years ago you wanted a rack you built it yourself or had it custom built.

Built them mostly for P.U trucks, but we have built them for CJ and other sized Jeeps. Broncos& Blazers(both the older big ones and the more modern smaller ones) they were totally custom and we had to go to the frames or solid parts where we could find them, no way could we utilize the roofs

 

[tork'd]

are all the smaller pick ups to small for your proposed usage?
thinking S10 or similar?

 

[Farmer17]

are all the smaller pick ups to small for your proposed usage?
thinking S10 or similar?

The small trucks seem pretty unrefined compared to the big trucks and they don't seem to get much better gas mileage. My next door neighbor's Toyota Tacoma looks like a pretty high quality vehicle but his combined gas mileage is still under 20 MPG.

 

[Herknav]

It doesn't sound like you're in the market for a Colorado, but I'll tell you to not even think about it'. A pickup it is not.

 

[Squarebutt]

Check out Yakima roof racks. They make fit kits for each car, and they're very sturdy. I had one on a Pathfinder and hauled everything from ladders, canoes and lumber to a good-sized gangbox 150 miles over the interstate. The canoe holders work well for lumber, or you can make up your own attachments and hold-downs.

 

[Big Shrek]

I love roof racks, but I've also noticed that they are practically useless for folks shorter than 6' tall...
I utilized the heck outta mine a few months ago, but NOBODY could help me load it...or unload it...
put everything up by myself, and pulled everything down...

Get a trailer...preferably enclosed so you can put a few boxes inside fulla gear.
used to have a 24' box truck that was used only for delivery runs...
then turned it into a FD Recovery Vehicle, then when I retired from Firefighting,
sold it to the unit...kinda wish I had another FedEx truck now to hold my woodworking gear...
but a decent-sized trailer works just as well...without having to have full-time insurance...


Or get a new Dodge truck...lovely fuelsaver engines they have now

Come to think of it, my old Ford Courier minitruck used to get 28 MPG
after monkeying with the carb a bit...ran it lean...2.3l eng & 5-spd stick...
rascal could still manage to pull a small Uhaul box truck out of beach sand...