need roof rack for 2007 Jeep Commander with no crossbars

[nashuaNH]

I'm having a hard time figuring out what I can use for a 2007 Jeep Commander roof rack. The issue is I don't have the crossbars, only the black siderails that run from the front to the back of the roof on both sides. I attached a sample picture that shows the 2007 Jeep Commander with the factory rack and crossbars. Mine currently doesn't have the 2 crossbars that run across the roof. And the siderails are solid. There is no space or openings below the siderails that you could attach a Thule or Yakima roof rack to the side rails.

I would really like to go with a Thule or Yakima roof rack on the 2007 Jeep Commander if I could because the rack would be able to handle much more weight than the flimsy Jeep Commander factory rack crossbars I could probably get installed on it at the dealer (not sure if this is even possible either). Plus with the Yakima or Thule roof rack I could attach any of their gear carriers to the crossbars and also I could get longer crossbars if I decide to ever go with the cross country set up I've been dreaming of. Roof basket and cargo box mounted next to each other for the ultimate cross country camping expedition!

Anyone able to shed some light on what my options are???

*here's the sample picture that shows the 2007 Jeep Commander with the factory rack and crossbars. Mine currently doesn't have the 2 crossbars that run across the roof. And the siderails are solid. There is no space or openings below the siderails that you could attach a Thule or Yakima roof rack to the side rails.

[ORS_techhead]

Your 2007 Jeep Commander is an excellent example of the new style of vehicles that car rack manufacturers are cranking out and forcing car rack companies to redesign new systems to fit them. Your Jeep Commander doesn't have crossbars and it doesn't have usable side rails. You're right that normally you can just attach the Thule 450 CrossRoad roof rack system or the Yakima LowRider roof rack system to a pair of side rails. They just clamp onto the siderails. But the Jeep Commander has this solid raised rail as I'll call it. So you can't mount one of these racks and you can't use a style of roof rack that normally mounts to a naked roof top such as the Thule 400XT Aero roof rack system or the Yakima Q Towers roof rack system.

Thule Racks is currently the only company that has come up with a solution for this issue. Vehicles such as the 2007 Jeep Commander now include fixed attachment points on the roof that Thule Racks has taken advantage of. They have released the Thule 460 Podium roof rack system which will mount to these attachment points. The Thule 460 Podium uses a new style of Thule Fit Kit to work with these attachment points. The Thule 460 Podium Fit Kits are actually specifically designed plates the attach to these fixed attachment points on many new model vehicles. You will use the Thule 3040 Fit Kit on your 2007 Jeep Commander. These four plates mount to the attachment points on the siderails and then you connect the four Thule 460 Podium Feet to the FitKit plates. A pair of Thule load bars mounts to the four 460 Podium Feet and you now have a super solid multi-purpose base rack system that you can then mount any of Thule Racks gear carriers to.

The Thule 460 Podium roof rack system is a complete base rack that includes the four 460 Podium Feet, the four FitKits and a pair of load bars. Thule Racks also makes the Thule 460R Podium roof rack system to fit the Jeep Commander. This is essentially the same as the regular 460 Podium except that it uses the elliptical aerodynamic load bars instead of the classic square Thule load bars. You would still use the same Thule 3040 FitKit with the 460R Podium version.

FYI, any of Thule Racks or Yakima Racks gear carriers would attach to the 2007 Jeep Commander factory rack crossbars if you had the factory rack crossbars already installed. If you don't already have them installed there's really no reason to go with the factory cross bars, as they would cost as much as the Thule 460 Podium setup and they aren't rated to carry as much weight as the Thule bars.