To see if this custom-fit item will work for you please tell us what vehicle you'll use it with.
This heavy-duty, versatile Yakima roof rack comes with strong, aluminum crossbars. It works with channel-mount and clamp-on accessories, plus each bar has tie-down points on the endcaps. Installs on your vehicle's naked roof.
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Alternate Instructions
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Videos are provided as a guide only. Refer to manufacturer installation instructions and specs for complete information.
Hey everyone, it's Angeline here at etrailer and today we'll be talking about the Yakima Roof Rack system for the 2021 Volkswagen Jetta. This has the Yakima 50-inch long jet stream crossbars the baseline powers as well as your custom fit kit. So if you're looking for a roof rack system because you wanna carry around the fun accessories like a roof box or a roof basket or even kayaks, what you then need is a roof rack just like this. So this is a Yakima system. It's gonna be a bit more streamlined but also a lot more adjustable. So if you're worried about, let's say crossbar spread, this will give you the most crossbar spread but also the most level roof rack.
So these are the 50-inch long crossbars as recommended by Yakima. You can actually get longer crossbars if needed. But the thing is with sedans like this, if you have too long of a crossbar, you're also more likely to hit your head on the bar as you get into your vehicle. So this will be around the just right good balance of overhang, but not too much. So for our overhang, for our front crossbar it's gonna be about two inches.
The overhang on the rear crossbar is about two and a quarter inches. So these are the jet stream crossbars. Very sleek and a lot more aerodynamic than the traditional round and square crossbars. So this allows the air to flow through them. But you also have some other features here like a heavy duty wake capacity of about 165 pounds as well as a T-track.
Now when you do have accessories on here you are gonna have to think about roof clearances. So one is the height from the top of car to bottom of cross bar. I have it at about two and three quarter inches. This is the clearance for things like clamps. If you have U bolts with wing nuts, this is on the shorter side, so you are gonna have be conscious of that.
The next clearance is the height added to top of the roof. So top of the roof, to top of crossbar that's gonna be about three and three quarter or four inches depending where you're measuring. So here, this is gonna be where your cargo sits. If you have skis with extra tall bindings you would make sure you don't hit your roof. And if you don't have enough clearance, that's when you can take a look at some of our accessories that give you that extra height. So the baseline powers that this uses and it might look a little different from yours just because the door can be matte or glossy, depending on which one you get. But they're gonna work the same way. So they can adjust to the angle of your roof giving you more crossbar spread compared to some other brands. So from one crossbar to the other, we have a 32-inch spread. So take a look at your accessories and see what they require. As much as I like the design of the towers with how sleek they look as well as how it's easy to access the insides, these can be locked, but the locks are sold separately. So if you have other Yakima accessories you can get an entire pack of those lock cords so that everything is keyed alike. If this is gonna be your only option though, or your only accessory, you can just get a four packing. Call it good. Now here we have the included tool. This has its torque spec so you don't over tighten your bolts, and everything else is included to install it. Although I do recommend grabbing your tape measure, or if you do have a soft tape measure, that works even better so you can make sure everything is lined up right. Now let's take a look at that process. So the install process might be a little confusing at first but that's just because there's a lot of different touch points and different settings and adjustments you need to make. So that's what this video is for. I'm gonna guide you through that process and get our crossbar together. So we're gonna do the front crossbar together. We have our towers, our different foot pads our different hook numbers. So we're gonna start by getting the towers onto the bar. You first need to install the plate. So to do so, pull this door out, and then that gives you access to the inside where you can start by getting that plate loosely threaded onto your tower. Once that's loosely threaded you can then slide it into the crossbar. Now on your crossbar, you're gonna have these numbers. So go follow the M1 and M2 numbers and slide the end of your tower to where it's supposed to sit. So right where you are, where the arrow is facing away from you you're then going to set the pitch of your tower. So see where that bolt is. For example, set it to pitch A and hold that down as you tighten it. Next you adjust the toe setting. So you just twist and to go one, two, or three we're gonna go to two, which is right in the middle. Finally, get those rubber pads and pop those on to the feet plates. Now you need to measure where your front crossbar is going to sit. So we measure from the top of the windshield out. So once you found your spot, you're then going to make a little mark. You do have included stickers, if you need to mark your place. Now that you know where to put it, you can then gently, very gently put the tower onto the roof. Since you have those rubber pads on the bottom that should help you as you move it around. Next, insert your hook. So this should just slide right in, clip into place and then you're gonna lower it as you tighten down that bolt. Now go put the other one on so you can tighten it down evenly. So you're included Yakima tool actually has a torque spec at the end. So as you're tightening down your hooks, listen for that click, and that's how you know you have enough torque and it won't over-tighten. Now pop everything back into place. That includes this door, the end caps for your crossbars the door for your hook, as well as the end cap for your tower. So this is a time that if you do have the Yakima same key system lock course, you switch out those plastic ones for those metal ones. But other than that, now everything is tightened down. You are done with the install and you're ready to hit the road. So my personal thoughts about our roof rack system here is I do like how the Yakima system is sleek, but also works with other Yakima accessories. With how this adjusts to the roof, you do get more crossbar spread compared to others and just a nice more custom fit, I'd like to say. The downside to this is it makes it a lot more difficult to install. If you get confused with like where to tighten things down or how the hitch works, you might want something more simple like the Rhino Rack roof rack system instead. But for this video, hopefully I was able to guide you through the process with getting it installed and then you are able to see if this is the right fit for you and your different accessories or not. And that right there was a look at the Yakima roof rack system for your 2021 Volkswagen Jetta..
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