Thule ProRide XT Roof Bike Rack w/ MOS UpLift Lift Assist - Frame Mount

Video Transcript for Thule ProRide XT Roof Bike Rack with MOS UpLift Lift Assist In-Depth Review

Hey everyone, it's Evangeline right here at etrailer. Today we have this really tall thing which actually works really well. This is the lift assisted roof mounted bike rack. This is a kit that we have here at etrailer. Something that where if you want to load bikes onto your roof but you wanna make it easier for yourself and load your bikes down here, shoulder height for me, this is something that's gonna help you out. We have a roof rack adapter, which is our MOS UpLift and our Thule ProRide XT paired together.

Now if you have other roof mounted bike racks, you can use that with this system as well. We just have this put together because we thought it was a really good fit and if you don't wanna have to worry about specs and if it is compatible or not, this is going to be the way to go. With the UpLift, you have an 85 pound weight capacity and about 26 inches of space, which means if you wanted to, you could carry up to two bikes on this carrier. What you would need to do is get another bike rack that mounts to the roof. So the reason we picked the ProRide XT is because it's very popular for a reason, this secures into the T track of the UpLift just like it would in the channel of your crossbar, but it also has a really sturdy fit and easy way of loading up your bikes.

The way this works is we have two straps, one for the front and the rear wheel, but we also have a lockable frame mount where it secures to the frame of your bike and allows you to keep the front wheel on. The locks aren't included though. You do get a plastic cap that covers this lock spot if you don't have one of Thule's one key system lock cores. If you have other Thule products though, like I have a Thule roof rack on, you could have everything keyed alike making this very convenient to use. Over here, this is the lever or I guess knob that controls our frame mount.

So if you needed to release your bike, you press that button and that releases that knob or you can tighten it down. And this also works as a torque knob. So once you get to the right tension or spec, this will prevent you from turning it, but it'll also click on you to show you've completed your turn. It does sit pretty high up on top of our vehicle. That is gonna be one of the downsides of a wheel on bike rack because that front wheel does mean your bike fits up at full height.

So if you measured from the top of your crossbar to where your front wheel sits, that's seven inches. And then add the total height of your bike and that will help you figure out if you can clear your garage door, if you can go through drive-throughs or under bridges. So be very mindful of that measurement so you don't find out the hard way. So while this might seem like a lot both in price as well as height it adds to your vehicle, for people like you that might not have a hitch receiver. So you can't really put a bike rack in your bikes behind your car or maybe you're towing something so your hitch receiver is already used up, then being able to put things onto your roof is gonna be your next option. And if your bike is extra heavy, maybe you have an electric bike and you really can't get it up there, this MOS UpLift adapter for your roof rack is gonna be very helpful for bringing things back down. And with that, I very rarely am able to put a bike up onto the roof all by myself. And whenever I do, I usually do it with a lot of worry and concern hoping that the bike doesn't fall or I fall 'cause that would not be a good thing. This gives me a lot more confidence that even if I drop the bike or do something not the best way, this is still close enough where I can catch myself really quick, get the bike on there and then bring the bike back up onto the roof just like that and now I'm ready to drive. So it's a very quick and easy solution and if you want, you could carry two of these adapters or even two of these bike racks to carry even more bikes. And if you have other accessories you wanna mount to the UpLift, you might even be able to do that as well. Check out our product page for more information on that with what is compatible. Now if you're curious about how the UpLift itself works and installs to your vehicle, well I'll show you how I got it onto mine. For mounting your UpLift, it all starts first with your vehicle and taking a look at your roof rack. If you don't yet have a roof rack, you can find one custom fit for your car here at trailer.com. But right over here, the main thing we wanna know is that this is a part for the crossbar. So measure from one crossbar to the other, center to center and I have mine at 27 inches. So remember the number for your vehicle. Going over to your UpLift rack, and this is already pretty assembled, we just need to make the adjustments for the vehicle and just follow your instructions for assembling it the first time because after that it's gonna be very easy to remove as well as attach the UpLift rack. To help you out on top of the attaching crossbar, which you can slide back and forth, you have numbers. So these numbers are gonna be a ruler to help you line everything up. So remember how we said 27 inches Well, we'll line up that 27 inch line with the line on the UpLift and then we'll tighten that down with this knob. You'll have these shims included and these will fit onto those bolts. And then your spacer block goes underneath that. So definitely take off the whole UpLift system if ever you need to make these adjustments. And onto the bar. Where do you install your UpLift Well, for me, I always try to bring it as far out as I can. Utilizing overhang is always helpful, but not every vehicle is gonna have a roof rack with a crossbar that sits out with overhang. The big example of that are gonna be Subarus with factory bars because those sit on the inside and most lift assists don't work with that because of that design. Fortunately with the UpLift, you can adjust the UpLift and then slide the clamp around to fit best on your roof rack. So if in doubt, just push the UpLift out, slide the clamp in to where it's still an opening and that will give you some pretty good clearance. And then you're gonna attach the bottom bracket. So for the bracket, MOS does recommend following the symmetry of your roof rack 'cause you'll see that that bracket is angled. So for aero bars like this, we're gonna fit it in and then we're gonna slide the bracket around so it fits into place. What I then like to do is pull the bracket so I know this end piece is fully secure as I tighten it down with these wing knobs. This does have end caps included, but I did keep them off for this video so you can better see how the track system works. Now if you're planning on carrying a kayak with this, go ahead and put your rubber strips on. This is also what you would do if you're just leaving your MOS rack up without anything loaded. But if you are gonna be attaching something through the channels, then keep your rubber strips off so that you'll be able to slide things through. For loading the bike, we're going to start with the UpLift in the down position. I also try to make sure that the straps are stowed away. And then I'm gonna bring our frame mount up so it's ready to get the bike. So now I'm gonna grab the bike and then we're gonna get it up and onto the rack so it's sitting in the cradles. I'm able to hold the bike with one hand as I get this frame mount with the other hand over the frame and now I can tighten down with this knob. With that secure now all I need to do is put the straps over the rims, double check that everything is secure and that's gonna be it. Then you're ready to bring this back up onto your roof securing with the lever. And now you're ready to drive. This right here was a look at the lift assisted roof mounted bike rack with the MOS UpLift by MOS Racks and the Thule Pro Ride XT. If you have any questions about this kit or if you want more information if your accessory will work with this kit, just give us a call or send us a message or chat with us here on our website and product pages. But today, hopefully this video helped you out with the other questions you might have about this system. My name is Evangeline and I hope you enjoyed the journey.