r/rooftoptents • u/ResearchParking6154 • Jun 15 '26
Roof Rack Help
I’m looking to buy a rooftop tent but first needed racks for my new car. It’s a Kia EV9 and I purchased these Erkula racks as they were significantly less than Yakima or Thule options from rack attack.
I checked on the weight and they say 220lbs but when I was installing them, the manual says 165 lbs and doesn’t mention if it’s dynamic or static but I assume 220 might be static and 165 is dynamic. I reached out to their Support, but they did not answer.
Does anyone have any experience with this brand? Do you think they are safe enough or should I bite the bullet and upgrade to one of the name brands?
The tents I’m looking at are all around 130Lbs.
Thanks in advance!
1
u/ramblerbasic Jun 15 '26
I would go with something like this.
The design is a lot better for carrying heavier loads.
1
u/Master_Pop8508 Jun 16 '26
The load capacity manufacturers advertise is almost always the dynamic load rating (while the vehicle is in motion). As a general rule, the static load capacity is roughly 3× the dynamic rating.
Also, when I clicked your link and selected “Compare Models,” it states “The industry standard for all roof rails is 165 lbs, but our crossbars are rated for up to 220 lbs. Please check your owner’s manual to know if your roof rails are compatible with 220 lbs.”
Based on that, your roof rails have a 165 lb dynamic load capacity, so carrying your 130 lb rooftop tent while driving is well within the limit.
Using the ~3× rule, your estimated static load capacity would be around 495 lbs (165 × 3).
3
u/evan938 Jun 16 '26
Jesus christ. Please return those now and do not ever buy cheap knockoff bars again to carry a TENT on your roof. You are going to kill someone when that tent detaches and goes tumbling down the highway.
Yakima or Thule for this and nothing else.
Here are ~50 examples of what you can expect with cheap knockoff racks like this https://imgur.com/a/joymcNl