Hi folks,

I bought a Thule rack system recently and installed it this morning - i have the 400xt feet, 50in bars and the 2077 fit kit. 3/4ths of the install took about 15min, the remaining 1/4th took an hour and still is not right
The problem is on the right front corner of the roof, the fit kit piece touches the top of the door edge and I think if I open and close the door 5-6 times, it will damage the paint on the door. All other corners don't have this issue and they have about 1mm clearance b/n the door edges and the fit kit parts.
I replace the foot, and then tried one of the other 3 fit kit pieces, all to no avail. I re-installed the foot about a dozen times, moving it further/closer to the edge, a bit forward/backwards, and each time there is the same issue at this corner, while the rest have no issue. I had to run to work so I will revisit in the evening.
Is there any trick that I am missing? Has anyone had that issue?

Thanks,

 

hi, i have a thule rack: "weekender" . no problems similar to what you are describing. interesting that this only occurs on the right front corner; no trick to it, all the mountings should install in the same manner. is it possible that something is "warped" / bent on the right corner, i.e.: the rack it self, maybe the roof/door...?

good luck.

 

Well, I thought about warped/bent scenario, but this probably not the case - I have rotated the the rack corner and the car was aligned a few months back and visibly appears straight in that corner.
I think I will look if I can put some black or clear tape on the door edge to protect the paint while i find a permanent fix. Should i try to bend the fit kit bracket a bit?
Thanks,

 

don't bend the bracket.

you may need to adjust position of the entire foot on the crossbar (e.g. slide it slightly toward the center of the car)

I wouldn't worry about it rubbing a bit though. After a while the paint on mine was starting to scuff on the inside of the door a bit. It's not a big deal and if it's on the passenger side it's not like you use that door as much anyhow. .....The rack latches are rubber-coated so they won't rub off the paint most likely

 

Thanks Irish!
I will play with it some more in the morning, hopefully I can make it work. Yeah, scrubbing the paint is not that big of a deal, just being the perfectionist that I am, I would like to get it right if I can
Thanks,

 

Phew, I finally got a tiny clearance b/n the door and the bracket.
It stroke me as I was rotating the feet and bracket for the n-th time - the only piece that is always on the same corner is the rubber piece that goes below the foot. It is side specific on the front. I put 4 business cards b/n the rubber and the foot, on one side, and then when I put the foot on the edge of the roof I managed to get it right.
Thanks for the help guys!