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These crossbars are built tough for real use. The galvanized steel construction can handle up to 220 lbs, so you can load up kayaks, canoes, or a fully packed cargo box without worry. The polymer coating adds grip and helps protect both your gear and the bars from corrosion, keeping everything secure and stable when you’re on the move.
This setup is designed specifically for vehicles without factory rails. The included Evo Clamp feet and custom fit kit create a solid connection point on the roof. Once mounted, the rack feels sturdy and balanced—ready for road trips, camping weekends, or hauling paddleboards to the water.
When you’re parked at a trailhead or hotel, you can add Thule One-Key System locks (sold separately) to help deter theft. Having a lockable system gives extra peace of mind so you can leave your vehicle knowing your roof rack is protected.
The polymer coating on these bars isn’t just for looks—it adds a layer of grip that helps keep your cargo steady. Whether it’s a kayak cradle clamped on or a cargo carrier strapped down, the surface helps prevent slipping and movement during travel. It’s simple but effective protection for your gear.
Each bar measures 53" long x 1-1/4" wide x 7/8" tall, giving you plenty of usable space for accessories that clamp around square bars. The steel build and protective coating mean you’re investing in a rack that’s ready for years of adventures, backed by Thule’s limited lifetime warranty.
Alternate Instructions
Videos are provided as a guide only. Refer to manufacturer installation instructions and specs for complete information.
If you are looking for a roof rack for your 2020 Honda CR-V, well, this Thule roof rack is probably one of the most popular options for this vehicle. We're going to go over why it's very popular, but we'll also go over some of my tips and tricks so that you can get the most out of this roof rack. That way, if you want to carry around kayaks, standup paddle boards, if you need extra cargo space and you want to get a roof box on your CR-V, we can help you find the best fit for a roof rack system to help you get there. Thule did design this roof rack for the most versatility for carrying items, meaning, where they have this set up, this is going to be ideal if you have longer kayaks, canoes, long ladders. The crossbar spread is measured from the front bar to the rear bar, and for us, that's going to be 27-1/2 inches apart, which is very helpful for most types of accessories, whether you have a roof box, roof basket, ski and snowboard carrier, 27-1/2 is right on the money for that good range. Another thing I like to measure for is height and clearance.
So the first thing there is how much space do you have underneath the bar Well, if I measure from the top of the roof to the top of the crossbar here in the back, I have it a little closer to 2-1/2 inches. And then up front, it's just going to be a little closer to 2-3/4 inches, which is on the smallest side. So be mindful if your accessories have those large U-bolts and tools to tighten down, you may or may not have clearance. If it just has a low-profile clamp or strap, though, you are set. Now, with that, the second measurement I like to get is how much height this is now at the top of the roof.
So let's measure from the top of our sunroof to the top of the bar. I have it at around closer to 4 inches, maybe 3-3/4 inches, depending on where I measure. And that means that your cargo is also low to the roof. So, if you have skis with tall bindings, make sure to look into accessories that might give you that extra height and those extra clears. We have ski and snowboard carriers like that here at etrailer.
Same thing applies to all the other accessories. We have our square bars, we have our Thule Evo towers, but finally, we have our custom pad and hook on this car. So, all these are kitted together for your CR-V. I do like how Thule has that very robust pad, and then their hook is probably one of the most low-profile fits I've seen for this car. It's really important to make sure you get the right kit for your vehicle.
Something I recommend you doing is go to our site, use our fit guide. Here at etrailer, if you put your year, make, and model at the top of the page, and then you select roof rack, you can then find all the different fits for your specific CR-V. The CR-V has either a naked roof or a raised rail, so double-check the top of your car to make sure you have the right one for the right type of roof. And if you have any questions at any point, please feel free to reach out to us. Now, the reason I know that the square bar kit is very popular is because I've heard stories and reviews from plenty of people that are looking for something simple that has a really high weight capacity because, oftentimes, I hear they're moving from one place to another. So they need to carry a lot of stuff, and that's totally understandable. But I also recommend looking into what other things you might be carrying to make sure you get the best fit for you, your accessories, your cargo, and your journeys. Now, if you're curious about how I got this installed on the CR-V, well, stick around. Getting this roof rack installed might be a little overwhelming at first because you have different hook numbers, pad numbers, kits, and parts, but it's pretty straightforward once you know what you're doing. Now, I already mostly installed the rear crossbar, so we get to install the front crossbar together. The very first thing is unpacking your square bar from its box. When you flip it over, you might notice that stored inside are the end caps. So we're just going to slide those out of our bar. And then we can see that underneath, we have this channel. So this channel is where you would install your towers. So look at your towers, unpack those. Notice that when you press this lever, the top part of the tower lifts up. So press that lever, have that pinched, as you slide the entire tower through that bottom channel, and then let go on the right spot. Where's the right spot, you might ask Well, if you look underneath the bar, you'll see these numbers here, and those make it a little easier to slide it up to the measurement you may see in your fit kit. For the case of the square bar Evo, I see 47-1/2. Once you have both towers on, that's when you'll be able to see which one is going to be the right as well as the left, or what other people say, passenger side, driver side. Now, on your fit kit, you're going to have some different numbers there, depending on if it's passenger, driver side, or front, or back. So, for example, what we are setting up here today is going to be the pads. On the pads, there'll be a number. We're going to put 208 by the passenger side, and then 207 by the driver side. These will pop onto the bottom of the towers. Now, it might not be as straightforward of a pop, so you do have to go around the rubber pad, making sure all the edges fit into that plastic bracket. Once you finish all of that, we can put the end caps on. By the way, when you do the rear crossbars, this process is going to be the exact same, although you may have different numbers. So just keep referencing that as you install. Having those rubber pads properly secured is very crucial as you gently put your put-together system onto your roof. Now, the location of that is in the instructions for the first measurement. As for where you put it, well, for the front, you do have to measure from the top edge of your windshield. And ours is 11 inches and 3/8 of an inch, and that will be measured up to the front of the tower. Your goal is to get that rubber pad lip right there on the side. So you can see on the CR-V, how you have where that wind strip is. And in that tab, that's where your crossbar pad goes. With all the towers lined up, you're also going to make your management for your rear bars from your front bar. So get that lined up and then secured with your hooks. For your front crossbars, your hooks are going to have a number 154 stamped on the top. These hooks simply push in to your crossbar. See how that's secured right there And then we're going to leave it here as we go put the other hook on. Once the other side is hooked in, now is when I start tightening down. But I don't tighten down all the way, I actually like to tighten down till about 50% or when the hook starts to feel snug, and then I go over to the other side and do the same there. That way, I'm not pulling the whole system tight to one side while the other side is loose. The tool to tighten down is actually a torque tool, so to prevent over tightening, just continue turning this tool until it clicks. And I like to have it click twice, just like a gas cap. And then you'll make sure that all four towers click so you know that they are properly tightened. You can go ahead and close the door on your towers, and then fit that end cap on. And that's going to be it for the installation. This is going to be really easy to remove if needed, as well as to reinstall. My recommendation is to keep the tool that was included with this kit in your glove box or somewhere convenient if you do need to make those adjustments or remove the system. And hopefully, this video was helpful for you for seeing how this gets all installed. You just saw a look at the Thule roof rack system with the square bars right here on a 2020 Honda CR-V.
Ratings & Reviews
Classic square bar, but modern integration with the podium feet. Exactly what I was looking for.
Very happy with this non-permanent mounting solution. The addition of the bars + ski rack cut my Honda CRV's mileage significantly, so I was happy for the ease that this mounting system allowed for mounting/removing the platform. I would recommend this over a permanent rack.
I am very happy with the Thule racks purchased from etrailer for my Mazda CX-5. Everything was included, easy to fit together and the assembled racks feel very secure. To top it off, the sales help from etrailer was excellent - my original rack selection was backordered and they got in touch with me to offer one that was readily available.
I bought this rack to transport my recreational kayaks and it works great! With the addition of a Llama "v" rack I'm all set to transport my 21'5" tandem. Good fun. The Thule is the base and I couldn't be happier with it!
While the instructions were a bit difficult to follow the install videos from etrailer are a blessing to figure out what to expect even if not exact to the letter. Overall product is excellent, use it to haul kayaks and a 18 ft aluminum canoe to and from locations. Would recommend
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With camping and travel on everyone's list of to-do's at the moment, i couldn't find these Thule clamps anywhere for months until running across etrailer! They were in-stock, shipped almost immediately and at my door. The price is the same as Thule and REI but came with free shipping. Nice job and great customer service. I'll look here first for future needs!
Worked Perfect & Secured a very heavy load in extreme weather & off road conditions
The feet are very sturdy and nice to put a strap around. The instructions didn't match the picture of what I was buying because they had a 28in gap between the front and the back feet but I actually needed more like 4 ft. so you can see I used something more like what the picture of a Leaf setup was on the etrailer website. The instructions were a little bit unclear about how the ridge on the bottom of the feet are to sit in the channels on top of the car but on the back rail I had to set the feet way outside the channels anyway. Still seems to be pretty solid
Great product. Will was awesome. Knowledgeable and helpful. Ultra fast shipping. He under promised by saying it could be middle of this coming week to arrive but it got here in one day!
I've had the roof rack for a year now and we only use it sporadically in the winter to put the ski box ontop of the car but it works great. Very easy to install and remove and very sturdy. Previously I had the kind that bolted into the roof of my SUV and had a terrible experience with that (we lost the rack and kayaks on the freeway and it tore holes in my roof). The clamp style is the only kind we'll get from now on because they are much sturdier and no risk of losing them. Definitely recommend them.
I ordered them to replace some that rusted out but still work. I plan to put them in when I give the car to an 18 year old to use for college.
Car: 4 door Civic sedan
Bought this as a set along with a set of locks. They did not have the locks in stock, so when I went ahead of canceled that portion of the order, they were able to process and ship it out the next day. It took roughly 1 week for it to arrive.
Following the instructions they provide you with was fairly simple, there was a QR code scan for a video that you can watch as well. I assembled this along with ski carriers that I had as well. I did struggle a little bit with the spacing I needed to fit my snowboard, but it wasn't too much of a hassle.
After assembling it, I was impressed with how it looked and also how stable and tight it was when I was trying to shake it around. As for the test drive, I was very impressed with how there was no wind whistle and they did not fall off (peaked at 70mph).
Overall, I would say it's definitely worth it to buy a good quality cross bar set. And more importantly it was worth it to purchase it from a retailer that does a good job processing and shipping your order without any issues!
Easy install great product
2018 GMC Sierra duramax
etrailer fantastic customer service!
Thanks Lori B!
I think Thule products are painfully pricey......however the rack I put on my Ram 2500 is flawless and a absolute perfect fit. I added the Thule rack for the roof of the truck. I have a truck bed utility custom rack and it wasnt enough. I carry a 16' heavy canoe and a 12' kayak so the additional crossbars make for a very sturdy and dependable way to carry since we also tow a trailer. Very happy to have it.
Customer Service at etrailer is par none, both before the sale and after. I had an unpleasant experience elsewhere buying and installing a roof rack for my old Prius. After a few days of frustrations, I sent it back to that old online store.
This time, I contacted etrailer to see what ALL I needed to install a rack on my new 2018 Honda CRV. They sent me the part numbers and a link to purchase. Viola! After they arrived, I had difficulty with one of the parts (at 69 yo my hands are not too strong or flexible) and contacted etrailer. They sent pictures and more thorough instructions on installing the rubber strip. Another VIOLA!
I'm so very happy with my total experience at etrailer. Customer Service, truly, is not better any where else I have made online or brick-n-mortar purchases.
Easy install, no issues with this roof rack in almost 1 year of using it
This review is about the cross bars, the towers, clamps and pads made by Thule from the etrailer site. The instructions were straightforward, and the parts were clearly identified and labelled. Installation was easy, primarily because of the availability of instructional videos etrailer provided on line. Seeing it done from start to finish made the installation quite easy and straightforward. Looking forward to using my new roof system to transport our kayak this summer! Am very satisfied.
Superb quality. Of course, it is from Thule and they are expensive for sure. But, you really get what you pay for!
And, just consider how expensive it would be if using something more affordable (cheap generic brand) and the racks/bars take off from the roof with the box on the highway!
These will not take off, super sturdy and fits the car perfectly.
Just be sure to get the right kit.
And follow the paper instructions coming along the parts.
Can recommend these, were for Nissan Leaf 2021.
And not to forget the etrailer company, they did their part as well with flying colors. All parts arrived in time and were correct!
I've owned this roof rack for a year now, and it has served my purposes (carrying my kayak around on my truck) quite well. It was fairly easy to assemble, largely because the entire instruction guide was in pictures.
I have had to retighten the rack a couple of times since putting it on the roof, so I tie the kayak down to the front and back of the truck as well as to the roof rack. I suspect the ocean kayak puts a bit of lift on the roof rack resulting in the loosening.
I bought the Thule Evo Roof Rack to transport my kayak on my Lexus 300H. Thule will advise you on their website that his particular rack is not right for a Lexus 300H (i.e., they don't make a roof rack for a Lexus 300H); it is really for a Camry, but etrailer told me that is worked, I trusted them and they were correct. After all, a Lexus sedan is really a fancy Camry, but Thule will not acknowledge this point. It works great. Thule makes a solid product.
Once we got it correctly installed it stayed firm. We only have occasion to use it once a year for an annual trip. Although I think it reduces gas mileage, it's too much trouble to take down and put back up. It works fine to hold extra baggage.
Great quality products! Easy installation with properly guided instructions. One of the best tracking information, from ordering to delivery. Would strongly recommend etrailer to anyone looking for roof or hitch bike racks.
About a year ago we purchased two Thule Hullavator Pro kayak racks along with a Thule SquareBar Roof Rack for mounting. The combination worked out very well and we headed from Colorado Springs to Duvall Washington outside of Seattle with three stops along the way to kayak. The trip went smoothly and we appreciated the Hullavator ease lifting the boats. We have two more trips planned in the near future. We did mount the boats with cockpits down to avoid filling with water when traveling without a problem.
I have a Corolla sedan SE 2024 and putting the proper tongue into the proper feet for that particular car and then adding the bar and placing it on the car a specific amount of the distance between etcetera warrants a small, very short video for that specific car--for every specific car, otherwise you wind up taking 2 hours to do a very simple job. Also one of the bars had a slight bow in. It was not exactly straight, which made the placement even more difficult.So all in all it was only average.
I’ll let you know after I get new crossbars to put them on.
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Shelly
5/20/2025
Continues to work out fine. We still only use it once a year. It was a lot of work to install properly, plus we have locks on it so we dont take it down.