Roof bars open thousands of possibilities for carrying your cargo. Bikes, skis, kayaks - you name it!
But picking the right one for your car can sometimes be tricky. Luckily, we have the perfect guide for you and your Dodge Durango, so stay with us while we explain what’s so great about them!
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| Power | 140 - 281 bhp |
| 0 - 60 mph | 6.2 - 11.1 secs |
| Fuel Economy | 23 - 45 mpg |
| Insurance Group | 27 - 42 |
| Road Tax | £210 - £600 |
| Speed With Cargobox | 23 |
| Speed with Empty Cargobox | 34 |
| MPG with Cargobox | 34 |
| MPG with empty Cargobox | 44 |
| Wheelbase (inches) | 234 |
| Length (inches) | 234 |
| Height (inches) | 34 |
| Front Track Width (inches) | 55 |
| Rear Track Width (inches) | 56 |
| Rear Door Opening Height (inches) | 45 |
| Rear Door Opening Width (inches) | 345 |
| Liftover Height (inches) | 345 |
| EPA Fuel | 345 |
| Full Cargobox Fuel | 3455 |
| Empty Cargobox Fuel | 53 |
Note: All cargo-boxes are tightened down properly, and are well fitted to the car. These cargo-boxes will be slightly different as there are several different ones avaiableÂ
Roof bars are the core of any load carrying system - everything else is mounted on them. Even cars with front to back roof rails require a roof bar system.
A roof bar system comprises two principal parts: the tower with its hardware and the crossbars.
On a 2020 Dodge Durango, you usually get the crossbars stored inside the side rails (if you are opt-in for the side rails model) with bending support pads at each end. They’re extremely easy to use.
The tower entirely depends on your car. You need to know:
in order to properly fit the rack.
There are different types of roofs:
Naked roofs are common in smaller vehicles, some SUVs, and truck cabs.
They require a clip system with towers. The clips are clamped directly onto the vehicle’s surface, and the towers are mounted on top of them.
Here’s our best choice for a Dodge Durango: Rhino Rack Vortex ROC25
This type is really easy to spot. They run the length of the vehicle, and you’re able to put your hand between the rail and the roof. Mounting your bars on this roof is fairly easy. The towers are positioned on the side rails, and there’s no associated mounting hardware.
Here’s the best roof rack choice for a Raised Side Rails roof: CURT 18118 UNIVERSAL
These are like the raised side rails, they run the length of your vehicle, but you can’t put your hand between them and the roof. There are two possibilities for mounting them on your vehicle:
In the case of the clip, they are clamped onto the side rail, and then the tower is put on top. With landing pads, they are bolted directly into the side rail. The choice depends on your vehicle. You can call the retailer to see what fits your make and model or search the web.
This type is hardest to spot by just looking at it; it’s pretty similar to the naked roof. However, it has some sort of attachment point (typically underneath a window) that you need to pry open. It can also have a pre-drilled hole that’s connected down with the frame of the vehicle. A fixed point roof is a really strong mounting system, thus hard to identify.
Tracks are pretty flush to the roofline, and it’s pretty easy mounting your roof rack system onto them. They usually use a tower mounted on top of landing pads. The unique thing is that not a lot of vehicles come pre-installed with them. Most of the time, you must mount them too.
Tracks can be used when you want to achieve a custom fit on your vehicle, or you have a travel trailer or some other piece of equipment that you want to mount racks too. They are a starting point to your roof bar system and can easily be drilled in on any surface.
Few vehicles come with pre-mounted rain gutters. Luckily, on the market, there are some towers that are made just for this roof type. They only fit certain types of bars but are easy to use and are great for freshening up the look of your old mini-van.
Well, it all depends on what you are intending to use it for. If you are carrying a bike on your racks, then choose a narrow box to leave some space for it. If you are planning to pack skis or boards, pick a long roof box. It all boils down to pure logic.
We know that price is a major factor for deciding which roof box to buy, but the box should be sturdy and reliable, as it will serve you and your family or friends for many holidays and years to come. You won’t find any extremely cheap boxes here because we value quality, and those are unreliable both in safety and quality aspects.
For deciding in terms of size, remember if you carry bikes, kayaks, or windsurfers (or any other things besides the box), pick a narrow or medium width roof box in order to leave space for them. If you want to carry long things, such as adult skis, which are over 2 meters in length, opt-in for the long roof box.
Even if you currently don’t have any long things to carry on your trip, the long roof box seems like the best investment, because you never know how many people will go on a trip with you and how many things you must carry.
Remember, most boxes can be mounted on any car, but there’s always an exception, so prior to buying the box, check out if it’s compatible with your make and model.
We all love to receive more bounce for our ounce, right? Here’s a list of the best cargo boxes for a Dodge Durango by shape, regarding their price to quality ratio:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07DMQQP8Q
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B009NN4ZDS
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B009NN4SBM
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079SB538Q
Atera - An excellent price/quality ratio. They are a bit less expensive than the more famous brands.
Calix - Made by Autoform in Sweden. Quite easy to mount, innovative, and come with a good price.
Hapro - One of Europe’s largest roof box manufacturers. Premium quality and quite innovative. Reasonable cost.
INNO - When you think of superior engineering and craftsmanship, one country comes to your mind - Japan. They excel in quality and sturdiness. A bit pricier, but definitely worth it.
KAMEI - Kamei boasts of a great variety, and their products come with a 6-year warranty. Fine quality and affordable price. They deservedly made our list for the best boxes.
Thule - We’re sure when someone mentions roof boxes that Thule is the first brand you think of. There’s a reason behind that. Not only are they the most known but also one of the best quality roof boxes. Thule is worth the hype and the increased price - there’s no doubt in that.
The volume and capacity are there in theory, but for packing your stuff, length and width are the most important. You should remember some boxes have over-pronounced lids, and you may not fit certain requisites on top of your soft bags.
If not stated otherwise, every box on the market should have a place for a set of golf clubs, a tent, or sleeping bags. Other types of sports equipment and clothing will ideally fit in your roof box. Hard suitcases and robust packages will find a better fit in your trunk.
Also, it’s essential to know that some manufacturers underestimate their capacity, while others do exactly the opposite.
Example: A Thule box with a volume of 480 liters will provide the same space as a Kamei with 330 liters.
So we advise you to mainly pay attention to the length and width.
Safety - The brands mentioned above all meet the ISO standards and are carefully crash tested. For those cheapies and unnamed brands, it’s best to ask the retailer at the store. With roof boxes, the common sense is the more expensive the box, the harder material is used. Since you’ll be using a roof box for several years, don’t be a cheapskate for 50 or 100 pounds, it might be the difference of protecting your load in unpredictable situations.
Security - Look for boxes with sturdy locking systems and pay attention if the hinges are too far from the front or rear end of the box.
Materials - A significant trait of the roof box’s quality is its sturdiness. That can be achieved by using quality materials. Premium boxes endure high speeds, any weather conditions, and will last you years.
Waterproofing- Waterproofing usually depends on the manufacturing quality, covers for the fixing points between the box and the bars, and the size of the overlap between the base and the lid.
Locking System - While central locking may sound like the best option for you, it usually requires more of a halt to close the box. Most central locking systems require two people to close the box, as the key needs to be turned, and both sides closed at the same time. Especially if there are bulky items in it, preventing the lid from closing.
The Atera Casar, INNO boxes, and Thule Motion XTs employ this system. Fortunately, some boxes do not require both ends to be closed at the same time. Kamei Husky and Delphin employ buttons - first, you push the one, then the other.
It really doesn’t make much of a difference. Both are good and relatively cheap if they need to be replaced. Gas struts have a more smooth motion and hold the lid very well. To some people, that may be fancier than the spring ones.
With all honesty, most boxes are quite similar when it comes to fitting them on your roof bars. It’s just that some brands tend to overexaggerate their ‘quick-fitting systems.’
The KAMEI Husky and Delphin boxes have unique grippers that hold their U bolts in place before the butterfly nuts are attached, so the U bolts don’t end up on your roof.
Hapro and Thule employ rubber-covered claw style grippers that fit the bars with ease. They can be tightened with a few twists and use a torque system in order to prevent over-tightening and achieve the optimal fit.
Most people leave their boxes permanently fixed to their roof bars, so in some cases, the fitting duration is impertinent. Also, does it really matter if you require a few extra minutes of mounting two or three times a year?
This feature can be quite important with wide boxes, as you can easily reach both sides of the box. However, with narrow boxes (which are usually placed on one side of the roof), this trait is not that significant, as you would need to stretch all the way from the other side in order to open it.
The best option would be the rear opening boxes, as they would add a third side from which you can access your load.
You should hear little to no noise in use with premium quality boxes. At high speeds, boxes mounted too close to the roof tend to create a whistling sound, and with the use of roof bars, they are lifted at least 10 cm above.
Parts of the roof bars which don’t have the box on top of them usually make the most noise. The good news is that with the new Aero technology, the noise is reduced to a minimum, so when you are picking out roof bars, look for those such as Atera aero-profile bars, CRUZ Airo bars, Thule WingBars or Yakima Whispbars.
While the gloss finish looks more classy and brand new at the beginning, after some time, it tends to show more signs of use than the matte finish, which is quite easy to clean.
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