I have a 2010 xc70 which since selling another vehicle will have to stand in for light duty hauling from lumberyards maybe once a month or so.
From the vehicle that was sold I have yakima rail mount towers and 56" round crossbars. That kind of length is ideal for 4x8 sheets of plywood, since the bars extend well outside of the sheet's edges and it can be well secured. I have the bars already and would only need the RailGrab kit from Yakima to solve the need, in theory.
However I've read enough reviews of the yakima RailGrab kit to hesitate. They sound fiddly and rather a pain to put on, adjust, or take off.
A bit of research got me interested in the volvo branded crossbars that are made by Thule. A plus for these would be that supposedly they are customized to fit the volvo rails and so I might expect them to mar the roof rails less, and possibly fit more securely. However they look to be about 48" long (can't find a spec on it just going by photos), and that's too short for my ideal use.
I would plan on removing the crossbars when they're not needed. I would probably use the crossbars for other gear (bike rack etc) but nothing specific is in the works. I never had sound issues with these yakima round bars on my previous vehicle but I'm aware that it might be more of an issue with the xc70. I would never drive at highway speeds with plywood on the xc70.
Does anyone have experience with either the RailGrab kit, or have an alternate approach to this hoped for setup?
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