Hi. I own a 2002 Dodge Grand Caravan with a factory roof rack, and I also have a used (I'm not sure how old it is, but some years at least) Yakima Space Case roof carrier.

My problem is that the carrier is supposed to attach to the rack by means of four U-shaped brackets that fit around the crossbars and then fit into screwholes in the bottom of the carrier. But the crossbars of the Dodge factory rack are so wide that the U-shaped brackets will not fit around them!

I can see several possible solutions, but all of them worry me for one reason or another, and I would greatly appreciate anyone who has experience with this problem. The possible solutions I have thought of include:
1. Buy crossbars from Yakima. They will sell me a pair of crossbars and brackets to attach the crossbars to the rails of my factory rack. Obviously, these are sure to be compatible with my Yakima container. But this seems a perversely large amount of money when all I need is to attach a used container to a used car that already has a factory rack!
2. Buy crossbars from someone else. A company called Rage makes "universal roof rack crossbars, for the reasonable price. However, I do not know whether these are reliable, nor do I know whether they will be compatible with my Yakima container, nor do I know whether they will fit properly on a Dodge factory rack.
3. Find a Dodge crossbar with a smaller diameter. I called my local Dodge dealer and was told that there is only one kind of rack, but it's possible that there may have been some miscommunication.
4. Find some kind of adapted bracket that will fit around my existing crossbars and will fit into the container's screwholes. Currently I do not know where I might find such a thing.

I would be very grateful if anyone can help me with these questions. Also, if there is a better place for me to post this message, I'd appreciate help with that also. Thanks, -Matt

 

I will move your post to the minivan section.

 

Boy I hope that doesn't mean trouble for me too! I got a 2005 SXT and a Yakima Skybox 21 Pro... I haven't tried to fit it yet. Hopefully it works or else I will have to Craigslist the Yakima!

 

Drill holes into the crossbar. Free if you have a drill and a drill bit.

 

Hey, I took off one of the mounts on my Yakima Skybox 21 Pro, then I went to my 2005 SXT which has factory crossbars, I tested the fit of the mount and it worked!

Maybe your Yakima box is an OLD model that won't work with the factory Dodge crossbars... Time to sell it on Craigslist and get a new Yakima box... But you just missed out on the Yakima Sale on etrailer.com - I'm supposed to get a $125 rebates so my total cost should be $595 for my Skybox 21 Pro.

 

Unless the factory racks on minivans are different in this way than the factory racks on other Dodge vehicles, I would have thought that this question was not unique to minivans and that owners of other vehicles might also have helpful responses. But thanks anyway. -Matt

 

Interesting idea, and might work. Does anyone know what the crossbars are made of? Will a standard drill bit go through them? -Matt

 

The Yakima U-shaped brackets are 2 inches wide, while my factory rack crossbars are 2-1/2 inches wide. Which of those is not true for you?

The Yakima box is borrowed, so selling and buying new is not really an option. Besides that, there's not enough time. Just going without is an option, but it would be great if we could get it to work with current materials. Thanks, -Matt

 

This is how the Yakima mount looks on my Skybox: http://www.etrailer.com/Accessories-...ma/Y90135.html

It works on my 2.5" crossbars too.

 

Thank you very much for this tip. It stimulated me to find a set that Yakima has made to adapt pre-2004 boxes for wider crossbars (http://www.etrailer.com/Accessories-.../Y8770018.html). If my local Yakima dealer had directed me to this when I first asked, I might have had it in time for my trip. As it is, I found a local auto parts guy who had some U-bolts that were big enough, and with some metal plates and nuts from Home Depot (and after drilling some new holes in the bottom of my box), I have something that I think will work. -Matt