Best 2017 Ford Explorer Ski and Snowboard Racks

Great product at a great price. Fit an adult snowboard, two sets of adult skis (one set stacked, one set side by side because of how close the bindings were to the roof), and a set of youth skis. Fit snug. Only got up to about 73mph on the highway, but no issues. Some normal fluttering on the snowboard/skis. If you have a torque meter to tighten the bolts that's ideal but I didn't. I just got them snug enough to where I pulled back and forth on the rack and it didn't move.

Works awesome with the snowboards, easy to attach/detach, and durable. Locks and holds fine, initial ordering was confusing and hard to figure out since it’s not a package, and had to get individual components. Rhino rack could definitely improve that! Otherwise it would be 5 star.

So easy to install onto Thule AeroBlade. Quality materials and convenient design. No significant noise noticeable from wind resistance when driving. etrailer provided great shipment/notification support and was great resource for how-to videos, commentary.

Better than I expected. Only comes with four core locks so be aware of that if you want six like I did. Bought two more locks from Thule with the same key #. Mounted this carrier on my Rhino Rack. Perfect fit and looks great. Would highly recommend.

I have had a Rhino Rack on my Ford Explorer for a year and travel many miles as a ski racing official. The installation was quick and simple and durability has been impressive. I would definitely recommend these racks.

Decent rack for the money. The locks are a bit finicky due to the metal/composite combination. They definitely require graphite lubricant regularly. I've only used it with 2 pair of skis and it works well.

Love it!!!!!! Great ski rack replacement for older rack. The extended slide is incredible. The eTrailer support helped me pick the model that worked for my car and crossbars. Another wonderful purchase from my go to source for bike/ski or other related products!

Fits our 4 skis and 1 snowboard, 2 skis are for kids which makes it easier. Slide out is really helpful so we don't have to climb over the car to put things on the rack.

This rack easily fits 5 sets of skis for my family. It is FAIRLY easy to take on and off (could be faster if we didn't have to turn turn turn the dials). My biggest complaint is that as soon as my skis are out of it, I HAVE to remove it from my car (SUV). The noise of it empty on my roof is so loud when I am on the highway it is AWFUL! It's like it vibrates my whole car and is super loud. It only does it when there are no skis in it. It is frustrating since it would be way easier just to leave it on all winter taking my skis on and off when we need to, not the entire rack.

Just put this snowboard rack on my 2011 4runner mounted to Thule Aeroblade roof rack. Easy to install and use. Quality seems good. Like the look. No noise issues when driving. No complaints so far. Overall satisfied!

Very nice racks perfect for my fishing rods, I like buying from etrailer there are first class company.

Excellent customer service and tracking. From ordering to delivery, this is the best experience it have ever had with an actual n line order. Highly recommend Looking forward to ordering in the future

This rhino product was the perfect solution for me. With a roof rack nearing capacity, I still wanted an accessory for my fishing rods AND ski’s. This rhino product filled that need! Super easy to install in the T-track. Thanks agan!

Last year I purchased Rino ski racks from etrailer and they work great . The hardware fit my roof racks and all the fittings are tight. Ordering was easy. Shipping was fast and I even got a follow up personal email from George a year later asking how I liked them - which was impressive! I would definitely recommend etrailer as an honest and good outdoor gear company!

Product arrived quickly, good packaging and the product is well made. Can’t wait to try it out. Etrailer is an excellent company to purchase from. Thank you for the email communications and quick service

Just got my Yakima Fatcat EVO 6 ski carrier (black finish) and I am stoked. Note that this is different than the Fatcat 6 (non-EVO, previous generation) carrier. This is my first ski carrier, but I and/or my kids ski about once a week at Alta and Snowbird when the lifts are running, so I expect it to get lots of use. Etrailer shipping was fast and item was packed in a sturdy secondary box. PROS: 1. I love the sturdy build and quality finish of the carrier. 2. The design allows many micro-adjustments to fit to your vehicle and to fit the skis. For instance the spring-loaded hinge on one end and the lock on the other end can naturally accommodate different thickness skis. 3. Carrier has a usable width (i.e. width of skis side by side) of 32.75 inches (832 mm). For those that are not skiing on 75-mm-wide skis from 30 years ago, this carrier might actually allow you to fit 6 pairs! 4. Separate mounting brackets for aero or for square/circle cross bars. The aero brackets fit securely on my Acura/Honda OEM cross bars. The flat part of your skis will be about 3 inches (76 mm) above your cross bars. 5. A built-in lift bracket that lifts by an additional 3 inches (76 mm) the hinged end of the carrier, if you have really tall bindings (I don't think I'll need to use it). 6. The aero brackets use a rubber coated steel strap to wrap under your cross bars. This strap has a quick release cam on one end that can be operated when the carrier is not key-locked. This means you can remove or install the carrier without tools in about 4 minutes, once you've done the initial install-related tuning. While the carrier seems sturdy enough to leave on the vehicle all winter, I expect I'll only install it on ski days. This feature really sets this model apart and for me was its biggest selling point. 7. Yakima packages the carrier in a nice-looking sturdy cardboard box with a flap lid. I can fit the two parts of the carrier in the box, with the brackets/straps still installed, for convenient storage (see picture). CONS: None so far, though I haven't yet actually hauled skis up the mountain! After this ski season is over and eTrailer asks me for a follow-up review, I'll let you know. I'm also thinking about seeing if the ski carrier can be attached to my small hitch-mounted cargo carrier. That would make loading and unloading the skis easier than on the roof.

Looks great on the vehicle. Had a little struggle tightening onto the cross bars but adapted and overcame!

It's a ski rack so its not all that exciting. I like that it is small for storage reasons when not using it. The fastening system to my Toyota Highlander factory rack is secure but a little cumbersome to apply and take off. I like to take it off when not using it to preserve my gas mileage. The boards and skis fit fine although they are stacked in order to get 4 peoples worth of equipment up there. A small price to pay for their compact size on the roof or in the garage.

It will, indeed fit six pair of skis back to back. It would be better if the lower bracket on each side could be opened wider to make it easier to slide the skis into position. But I've tried it with four different pairs of skis (kids skis, modern adult skis, and even early 2000s adult skis); they all fit fine. Mounting to a bike rack is pretty straightforward, and as long as the rack can hang four bikes, with adjustable hanger slot placement, the ski rack accessory should fit onto the bike rack just fine. I added an extra wrap of shock cord at each contact point just to lock it down better, but that shouldn't be necessary. It is quite sturdy. I do suggest always traveling with the upper brackets locked using the keys that come with the rack. If you want to add a little theft deterrent, hitch bike racks either have a slot for a bike chain, or have one built in. And of course use a locking receiver pin. For several years I've used a roof-top cargo box for skis, but on taller vehicles that would prevent entry into a garage, on taller cars. I got this because lately I've been using a much taller vehicle for skiing, and a roof rack or roof box just wouldn't have worked out for me. I already had a hitch bike rack, so this was the best solution.

Easy install.

Very well built. I like it so much I purchased the larger EVO 6 model too for when the this one isn't enough.

I actually ended up buying a second set so I can fit a total of 8 pairs of skis on my jeep. I love the quality and ease of installation. It’s an easy to use system and love that my skis are secured.

Game changer! I don’t have to climb on the car to put our skis on the rack or take them off. It’s also easy to put the rack on the car and take it off. I’m got sure you could get six pairs of skis on the rack, but I haven’t tried. It’s certainly no problem getting four pairs.

I am so thankful I spent the extra money and ordered the one that pulls out to easily load/unload skies. I’ve had several opportunities where I have had 6 pairs of skies to transport. I have had others approach me to see if I would trade.

etrailer ships fast and has great prices! While the rhino track is plastic and not fancy, I’m able to attach 2 snowboards and it works. You have to help it with the hand to get it aligned to lock (maybe due to new stuff rubbers?) but I’m pretty happy and took about 15 minutes to install. If you want something on the cheaper side, this is a great option and these guys will ship FAST

We bought these to go alongside a roof box and they work great, freeing up space in the roof box for all the other stuff you need for skiing. They are sturdy, don't wobble on our Thule bars, and the lock mechanism works well. They would fit 3 pair of x-country or narrow alpine skis; with wider alpine skis you only get 2 pair (there is about 300mm of room on the rack and while many skis are <100mm underfoot, they are 15-35mm wider at the widest part so you can only fit 2 pair).

These rack are great, I have them on both of my SUVs all winter. The etrailer seevice was excellent as well.

Rack works great. Slide out makes loading and unloading much easier. So far we only put five pairs of fat skis on. Might have room for one more pair if I closed the gap between pairs but we didn’t need six pairs for that trip. Only problem was the rack froze up after driving through fresh rain. We had no problems with freezing while driving through salted slush. So far we’ve used it on two longer ski trips to CO from AZ. It’s quiet and strong. We once had a cheaper rack release our top model, expensive, skis onto the highway at 65 mph. That’s why I bought a Kuat.

I love this ski rack and the service I got while making the purchase from etrailer! This rack securely holds up to 4 pair of skis and is super easy to put on and take off of the roof. I would highly recommend this rack to anyone. I would also highly recommend purchasing this product and any other rooftop rack needs from etrailer

We added two more racks to the two we already had on our Jeep. Easy to install and use

Work great with the Thule set up I purchased for my 2025 Audi A6 Allroad. Couldn't be happier

Thule makes excellent products no matter what you need.and always get them from etrailer they have the best customer service bar none.

Upgraded to these last year from a set of an old set of Thules that did it's job for over a decade mounted all-seasons. Fear of the old mounting plastic from cracking.. decided it was time for an upgrade. Found these online with great reviews. Do not regret! The mounting system is genius & product is very well made! Being able to load/unload from both sides of vehicle means less work for me.. LOL

Easy to install. Works fine with my 2017 CR-V factory crossbars even though they are only 20mm thick. Quick removal when not needed.

Kuat is a high quality product with great customer service. This product plus E-trailer equals a win-win! This carrier is easy to install, works great, and looks good as well.

Used it about a dozen times in the 23/24 season including a multi hundred mile trip to Vermont and it worked great. It is a solid product with seeming quality materials. The switch feature is perfect when not utilizing the rack to transport gear. Gear is kept secure. It is easy to install and un/load equipment.

Rivian R1T - easy install and great looks. Works fine with the Rivian crossbars. The slide out is a nice feature! etrailer - great, great customer service! I had issues with delivery and you were there. You answered my emails promptly and was able to resolve it quickly. Amazing!

This is a fantastic rack. Had it all last winter. Not only did it keep our skis secure, it looked great doing it - I got a lot of people asking about it when they saw me using it in the parking lot. The slide out feature is very handy once you get the hang of it. We did encounter issues with the slide out trays getting stuck with ice several times (I'm in the cold and wet NE) but I was able to work them free. We also had locks freeze up to the point where you couldn't get the key into the bolt to lock/unlock, which was annoying. Kuat support was great in sending new lock bolts when this happened though. I think the locks might need some weatherproofing to account for rain/snow getting in and freezing up the components, then allowing corrosion to set in and seize everything up. But no regrets! I have this and the Base rack for our bikes in the warmer months, so there's kuat on my vehicle all year round now.