Gobi Rack on Gen 3

[MrBuddha]

Howzit gang,

For anyone waiting for a Gen 3 Gobi rack; I can confirm that the Gen 2 rack does fit the Gen 3 without any modifications to their existing hardware. I didn't want to drill holes in my roof, so Gobi was pretty much my only option. A few weeks ago, I stumbled on a rack/lightbar on Craigslist, so decided to take the chance. Shout-out to Frank and Nozz at Top Shop Auto for the painstaking installation. They are super thorough and do great work.

The rack is absolutely stout. From the 1-piece rack itself, to the fittings and brackets...everything is solid. I've driven about 600 miles with it so far and have no complaints. I will say that the fitment of the wind deflector is key to managing wind noise. I originally had a gap at the bottom of the deflector and the lightbar assembly was vibrating like crazy above 45MPH.

 

[DMays]

That's a nice setup. How bad is the wind noise?

 

[MrBuddha]

Thanks @DMays ! It's less than I was expecting. Some wind noise is noticeable around 60mph+, but it's not too intrusive, at least to my ears. It becomes white noise after a few minutes.

With all the framing, crossbars and mesh panel, I thought it'd be worse. I usually run Thule aero bars and a Good Boy Paddlesports rack on all my vehicles to accommodate a SUP/outrigger canoe, so I'm used to some wind noise.

 

[DMays]

Good to know. I’ve got a Yakima rack that I use for my kayak and it’s definitely noticeable but not unbearable. I’ve heard the KC lights are miserably loud so I was curious about this setup. May need to add it to the list.

 

[Sheeepdog18]

You think the clamps that's on the side that hold the rack in place would damage the paints when the cab flex?

 

[MrBuddha]

@Sheeepdog18 I've used both Thule and Yakima doorjamb clamp style racks for years and haven't had issues with my paint being damaged. They ship with pre-cut sheets of PPF film, which you place onto your car. Then the clamp sits on top of the film.

If you look carefully, you'll see some of the film bunched up under the clamp/bracket in the close-up shot. I also placed a strip of PPF film under the wind deflector as well, as per the instructions.

So far, so good...