Re: Roof box experience? (archive)

I'm shopping for a roof box for my X5 (long trip coming up...). Does anyone have experience with any of the following roof box brands on their X5: BMW, Packasport, Yakima, Thule? Any advice? Is the more expensive BMW box worth it?

I went with the Thule, both for the rack itself as well as the box. Their rack looks very factory-like, and clamps onto the roof rails much easier than the Yakima. The box I purchased opens up on either side, which makes installing it much easier as well as giving it the flexibility of mounting it on either side of the rack. Thule's boxes also are the easiest to install, requiring no tools whatsoever. The Packasports look very, very nice, but are also pretty expensive. You can also spend an additional $250 and get it painted to match your car - they purchase paint from the auto manufacturer. I gave this option some thought, but decided against it since I wasn't planning to keep the box on my car (nor the rack for that matter) when I wasn't using it. The other thing that became apparent when I started using the box is that you will undoubtedly scratch it while lugging it around. I would have been pretty upset to have spent big dollars custom painting the Packasport had I gone that route.

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