Can Crossbars Be Installed Behind Freedom Panels on 2015 Jeep Wrangler

Updated 03/08/2022 | Published 03/06/2022

Question:

Hey there, I was just wondering due to your extremely large volume of products if y’all could help me out, I’m trying to fix a cross bars onto my 2015 Jeep Wrangler, however it doesn’t have full gutters and I’m not okay with blocking my freedom panels so I’m looking for a fixed mounting system and To my knowledge it seems the rhino rack rfmpc mount fix kit would work for what I’m trying to do but they’re hard to find and expensive, while looking online it keeps bringing me to your websites customs kits and I was just wondering if y’all could give me any more info at your earliest convenience

asked by: Dante C

Expert Reply:

I do have an option for you but the location of the crossbars is rather important as these are the points on the roof that the roof rack manufacturer have determined are suitable for weight bearing loads. I understand you want to place the crossbars further back so you can still use the freedom panels but there are a few issues with this; the first being the one I mentioned previously, the second being that the rain gutter don't run all the way back, and the third is that you can't just mount the bars directly to the roof due to the lack of support.

In other words, if you want to add crossbars you will have to place them over the freedom panels but you can remove the rack when you want to take the panels off. I recommend the Aries Roof Rack for Jeep Wrangler with Hardtop part # AA2070450 which you can see in the photo below on a model with freedom panels.

expert reply by: Conner L