Hi there - I just bought a 1997 SR5 4Runner yesterday - lovin' it!

I'd like to pick up a bike rack (Thule or Yakima) and mount it on the Toyota factory rack but I'm wondering if the bike rack will mount directly to the factory rack or if I have to buy stupid load bars and then attach the bike racks to those.

Anyone know?

Thanks!

G

 

i know thule fat mouth clamps fit the factory racks

 

welcome to the forum... your wallet will never be the same again.

 

yakima also makes clamps for mounting accessories (spelling?) to your factory rack, called the "MightyMount". either brand is good, thule might be a little more money as it seems to be a little more "trendy", at least where i am.

 

Keep in mind that the load bars are stronger and uncurved, providing more strength and flexibility regarding accessories (other than bike trays). It will definitely be more expensive, so I don't blame you if you go with just the wide mouth mounts to the factory crossbars. I was able to get my Thule crossbars with TKII foot pack to mount in addition to my factory crossbars. And no, it doesn't look bad. I just pull the Thule rack when I am done and it goes right back to the stock look. Pulling the rack consists of simply unlocking and pushing in the button, thanks to the TKII foot pack.

So, what you could do is watch ebay for a used rack and foot pack, then get some RockyMount bike trays (I did a review on these trays, try a search). With that combo alone, you could be under $250 if you find the right deal on the rack. The RockyMounts trays are $130 shipped per pair (including lock cores).

This is the best picture I have of my combo right now, sorry it's so far away.

 

You can modify your exiting Q towers to fit in the factory rack.

My Yak rack came off my Jeep Cherokee I used to have. It used the Q towers that clipped onto the rain gutters above the doors. When I put it on the 4Runner, I modified the brackets on the Q towers to fit into the factory roof rack rails. If I didn't do this, I would have to get the locking rail riders you mentioned. I like the way mine turned out since the rack isn't as close to the roof as it would have been with the rail riders.





More pics on my site