Anyone put on a roof top box on their factory Durango rack? I'd like to see hoe it fits. I have an old Yakima but its at my brothers in another state. Yakimas website said the new one will fit but I didn't see anything for the old one.

I'm trying to decide if I can use my old one or getting a new one.

I did notice the weight limit is 150lbs so that isn't very much room for a lot of things other than sleeping bags or blankets.

 

I have this one from Sears: http://www.sears.com/x-cargo-sport-20-car-top-carrier/p-02872020000P?prdNo=1&blockNo=1&blockType=G1 .
I used it driving back to Rapid City, SD from WV; it’s just about a perfect fit if you use the forward holes, the windshield angle lines up with the angle of the carrier and is about an inch from the antenna at the rear.
I’m pretty sure I stuffed it well over its rated weight but it did fine with no issues even at 80+mph.
Mileage was about 21 overall there without the carrier and about 19 overall back with carrier and 350lbs or so total extra weight. (150-175lbs in the carrier)
Sorry I didn’t take any pics, it’s hanging from my garage ceiling.

 

Yakima has special clips that will fit over the factory bars, and then into the Yakima box.

 

I'm not sure I know what you're referring to, I Googled Yakima special clips, but I didn't see anything. My concern is the Durango factory rack cross rails are static in one position. The Box is adjustable but I don't know if it'll make the box too far forward or backwards or not even fit at their largest positions. I'll see if I can find the specs, I know now that its a Blacktop 21.

 

Talk to a Yakima dealer. I'm almost sure they have a solution for you. I've seen the clips, and they are shapped like the factory bars (sort of oblongs). As for the placement of the box, I would be surprised if it didn't fit on the spread of the factor bars, but it should be a quick and easy measurement. I wouldn't even worry much about fore/aft placement. It will be secure regardless.

 

I got a repy from Yakimas website.

They said it will fit but they don't test the clearance of the rear door, go figure!

 

I bought a Yakima Skybox 18 for my 2011 Crew, the static positioning of the stowable factory bars does pose an issue. When the rear clamps are pushed as far back as possible to keep the tail of the box from bending the antenna/crashing into the hatch, the front clamps cannot come any closer than approx 31". The spread on the factory bars is 25" so it won't work as is. I could dremel out the slot for the front clamps to move farther back and work, however, that would void the lifetime warranty from Yakima (one of the reasons I bought it) along with the fact that it was probably engineered with the slots min/max for a reason (i.e. making more of a wind trap/too much stress on the clamps) I opted not to modify it and am sending it back.

Still looking for a viable option as I'm heading on a family vaca in less than 2 weeks... Hitch mounted cargo carriers seem nice, but they block the rear camera. If you have this vehicle, you know the visibility is limited and the rear camera is a godsend. Going without is not an option for me. Nothing on the Yakima site or Thule site state that any will fit outside of their tiny rooftop boxes. Bummer... wish Dodge would have thought about this before implementing the stowable racks, posing more problems rather than benefits imo. Good luck with your seach!

 

Your antenna can be removed easily no?

I thought the Yakima Boxes had adjustable feet, was this not the case with yours?

I actually got an e-mail back from Yakima and they said it should fit but they would not guarantee the rear hatch fitment which I found Odd. I think mine is the Blacktop 21 which is a very old model.

 

You can get a very large roof top box from Sears that is not very long and may not present the same issues as the Yakima box. It's not as nice looking, nor does it fit as cleanly, but you may not have any of the interference issues. It might be worth a try, and it's relatively inexpensive.

 

I guess I could remove the antenna but why would I want to? 13 hours in a car with my wife, kids and mother-in-law has me leaning towards the desire of listening to the radio. Unless the rear antenna isn't for the radio or tv?

As for the feet, I presume you meant clamps? Only feet I know of are those on aftermarket rooftop racks which is what the crossbars mount to which is what the clamps from the cargo box clamp on to. If you did mean this, yes, they are re-positionable, however, read my post again. In order to mount the box so it doesn't damage my antenna or rear door the feet/clamps whatever needs to be all the way towards the rear of the box (maybe 1" in from the very end of the slot). When you move the front feet/clamps as far towards the rear of the box as possible, the slot it moves on, doesn't extend far enough to reach the front crossbars on the Durango. I did call Yakima customer service and they were nice enough to go measure this in their demo room with me on the phone, they confirmed the gap spread between their clamps/feet, when positioned this way, and said the closest they could get is over 30" (25" max spread on the Durango - so this won't work). The only suggestion they had was to rend the antenna, its a rubberized stubby antenna, I shouldn't bend it. Oh, also added was the possibility of the read hatch crashing into the box when opened. :'(. I just want to haul some gear on my roof without scraping/scratching/bending/breaking/marking/indenting and most importantly, any type of crashing, the roof or antenna or hatch of my Durango.

I will check Sears out, thank you for the suggestion. Functionality pwns looks when it comes to "damaging" a vehicle, without question. I was more concerned about wind noise and drag resistance. The design on these Yakima and Thule boxes along with the reviews are impressive. Off to sears.com I go!