The Ford F-150 is a full-suite pickup truck with a ton of options. If you’re looking for a pickup truck with different trim levels and over the top performance, the Ford F-150 is one of the options that ticks all the boxes.
In this article, we’re going to tell you everything you need to know about the Ford F-150 roof rack, the different roof racks and how to go about choosing the best one for your Ford F-150.
What is a Roof Rack?
A roof rack is a set of bars that are secured to the roof of a vehicle. If you want to carry a heavy load with your vehicle and do not want to tow it, using a roof rack may be the best option. With the roof rack, you can carry items on your roof such as luggage, bicycles, canoes, kayaks, etc.
With a roof rack, you put the roof of your vehicle to good use without having to shove these items in your car and reduce interior space.
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Types of Roof Rack
There are different types of roof racks depending on the vehicle they’re going to be attached to.
Rain Gutter
Most cars have a rain gutter, this made it incredibly easy to attach things to the roof of these vehicles. While newer cars don’t have a rain gutter, it’s still a popular place to attach roof racks for vehicles that have them.
For older vehicles, the roof rack was mounted directly to the rain gutter surrounding the roof. The rain gutter was a favorite because they were relatively easy to fix and had high load limits. The only con was that you had to buy locking knobs as an accessory before they could be mounted.
Fixed Point
The fixed point is a kind of roof rack where a stud is fitted into a point into a factory-fitted point in the roofline. Since this is a factory aided roof rack, it’s very neat and has a considerable load limit as well.
A con associated with the fixed-point roof rack is the lack of flexibility concerning where the rack stays on the roof. This means you don’t have the option of readjusting the roof rack to suit the load you intend to carry on the roof.
Raised Roof Rail
Some vehicles come with rails attached to the roof. Hence, it’s easier for the roof rack to stay attached to these factory-made rails. They have high load capacities and also offer you flexibility on where the loads will be placed in the roof rack.
A con associated with the raised roof rack is that some vehicles come with extremely short rails.
Door Mount
As the name suggests, the door mount roof rack is a type of roof rack that is fastened on top of the doorframe. This is often the last resort when it comes to roof racks. It’s not a favorite because it comes in contact with the paint and has a lower load limit.
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The Best Ford F-150 Racks
Your Ford F-150 is capable of carrying a lot of things in the bed of the truck. But if you’re a heavy-duty user and intend to carry more load, then you need to acquire a roof rack for your Ford F-150.
- MaxxHaul 70115
The MaxxHaul is a Ford F-150 roof rack that’s a steel luggage rack that allows you to carry up to 150 pounds atop your Ford F-150. To assemble the crossbars in your MaxxHaul rack, you’re going to need some simple U-bolts.
This is a great Ford F-150 roof rack as it is rust-resistant and can handle any weather you happen to be in. The protective caps on the U-bolt prevents any damage from happening to your truck’s exterior. The MaxxHaul roof rack measures 46-inches by 36-inches by 4-1/2 and it weighs only 25 pounds.
- The SeaSucker Monkey Bars Roof Rack
This is a universal roof rack that is a guaranteed fit for your F-150. It is a double-bar roof rack that can be adjusted to match whatever you’re carrying on the roof of your Ford F-150.
It has a great design that will sit perfectly on the roof of your Ford F-150. It can also be installed with ease and is corrosion resistant due to its silver powder coat finish.
- INNO Rack 2015-2018 Super Crew
If you own a version of the Ford F-150 that was made between 2015-2018, then this is a great option for you to use as your Ford F-150 roof rack. It comes with two crossbars. They come with K fit hooks that do the job of ensuring the load on the roof of your vehicle is secure.
- The Pro-Series HTVANRK 500 Lbs.
If you intend to carry incredibly heavy loads on your Ford F-150 roof rack, this is a fantastic option as it is capable of carrying up to 500 pounds. If you want to carry half the world on the roof of your Ford F-150, the Pro Series is a roof rack that was made exactly with that in mind.
It is a wide and strong roof rack with crossbars that enable you to spread the load evenly on the roof of your vehicle. It also comes with rope hooks that goes to provide the extra security needed on the load being carried.
This rack installs on the rain gutter of the Ford F-150. Hence, is extremely easy to install. It also has three height settings that you can adjust according to your needs.
Load Capacity of the Ford F-150 Roof
Before carrying anything on the roof of your Ford F-150 you need to calculate the load capacity of the Ford F-150.
To figure out the load capacity of the Ford F-150, you must have four pieces of information.
- The load capacity of the Ford F-150 roof.
- The load capacity of the roof rack foot.
- The load capacity of the roof rack rods.
- The weight of the chosen rood rack.
To ascertain the loading capacity, you proceed to subtract the weight of the entire roof rack from the total load capacity of the roof of your vehicle.
Also bear in mind that the roof rack has its weight capacity.
Conclusion
The Ford F-150 is an impressive vehicle that can handle anything thrown at it. But you need to make sure it’s well equipped to handle these things.