FrontRunner Slimline II Roof Rack Install on LC200 (1 Viewer)

[Eire32]

Hi Everyone
Have any of you installed a FrontRunner Roof Rack (Slimline 2 is what I think I’ll get) on their LC 200 series?

Does it mount into the factory holes or do you have to drill them and rivet them yourself?

Is it a job you can do yourself? (ie not multiple people)

How long did it take?

what is the height on a stock (non lifted) LC200? Wondering if it’ll still fit in my garage.

Thanks in advance for any help!

 

[HSTexan]

I installed mine by myself with the exception I had my wife assist me lifting the rack tray after I had mounted the rails. I did a Front Runner rack install by myself on my old 4Runner which was manageable, but she was home this time and it was easier to ask for 3 minutes of her time. It took me about 4 hours start to finish, but I made sure to go intentionally slow when it came to removing the factory rack and installing the FR rails as to not push the retaining clips into the headliner.

Step one for me was assembling the rack tray on the ground along with connecting the two pieces of the side rails. After that was done I removed the factory crossbars and carefully removed one side of the factory rack. I immediately installed one of the FR side rails before moving onto the other side so that the time where the retaining clips were exposed was at a minimum.

The rack goes into factory holes, no drilling or rivnutting required. The Gamiviti videos (will link below) was a great resource in regards to how to remove the factory rack and a good method for sealing the new bolts (I also put some silicone around the retaining clips and on the black front runner spacer that the rail sits on).

If you want to do it by yourself I would recommend when it comes to installing the tray that you put a bunch of microfiber towels down the length of the roof so that once the rack tray is above the roofline you can rest one edge onto the towels to help slide it across the roof into position so that all you have to do is walk to the other side and lift it onto the side rail. Definitely doable by yourself, but as I said above, 3 minutes of help from a second person and you'll have less to worry about.

 

[HSTexan]

Would only let me link 2 videos in one post, but here is Jason Koertge's 4Runner install video (from about 10:50-11:40) where I got the idea for the towels from. Only recommendation I'd make is to lay the towels first so that when you set the tray on the roof it doesn't go on the paint at all.

 

[HSTexan]

Oops forgot one more thing--I didn't install my corner pieces before putting the tray onto the roof because I had accessories to install. They didn't want to play super nice with the mounting side rails and only went together after I held the front of the side rail in while screwing on the corner piece. A grinder and taking off maybe 1/4" of material on the corner would have had the same result. That was really the only hang up I had on it.

Lastly, if you were wanting the full wind fairing too I'd also recommend getting the 1345mm/1425mm which will actually go edge to edge of the rack. The recommended fairing for the LC200 is (or at least was when I bought mine back in March) the 1165mm/1255mm which will leave about 2-3" of gap on either side

 

[gaijin]

Hi Everyone
Have any of you installed a FrontRunner Roof Rack (Slimline 2 is what I think I’ll get) on their LC 200 series?

Does it mount into the factory holes or do you have to drill them and rivet them yourself?

Is it a job you can do yourself? (ie not multiple people)

How long did it take?

what is the height on a stock (non lifted) LC200? Wondering if it’ll still fit in my garage.

Thanks in advance for any help!

You could always take a look at the instruction manuals on the Frontrunner site:

Foot Rails: Start Here! Read Me First!

Rack: Universal Rack Assembly Instructions

HTH

 

[joylc]

I installed mine by myself with the exception I had my wife assist me lifting the rack tray after I had mounted the rails. I did a Front Runner rack install by myself on my old 4Runner which was manageable, but she was home this time and it was easier to ask for 3 minutes of her time. It took me about 4 hours start to finish, but I made sure to go intentionally slow when it came to removing the factory rack and installing the FR rails as to not push the retaining clips into the headliner.

Step one for me was assembling the rack tray on the ground along with connecting the two pieces of the side rails. After that was done I removed the factory crossbars and carefully removed one side of the factory rack. I immediately installed one of the FR side rails before moving onto the other side so that the time where the retaining clips were exposed was at a minimum.

The rack goes into factory holes, no drilling or rivnutting required. The Gamiviti videos (will link below) was a great resource in regards to how to remove the factory rack and a good method for sealing the new bolts (I also put some silicone around the retaining clips and on the black front runner spacer that the rail sits on).

If you want to do it by yourself I would recommend when it comes to installing the tray that you put a bunch of microfiber towels down the length of the roof so that once the rack tray is above the roofline you can rest one edge onto the towels to help slide it across the roof into position so that all you have to do is walk to the other side and lift it onto the side rail. Definitely doable by yourself, but as I said above, 3 minutes of help from a second person and you'll have less to worry about.

Thanks for this super helpful video. So, during the roof rack removal process on my 2014 LC, I noticed that one of the bolts (on the rear, passenger side) is spinning freely. It sounds like the metal plate that the bolt is attached to came unwelded or something. I can't lift that end of the roof rack either. I successfully made it through 5 other bolts before this happened.

If anyone has any suggestions on what my options are, I'd really appreciate it!

Thanks!

 

[Eire32]

Thanks for this super helpful video. So, during the roof rack removal process on my 2014 LC, I noticed that one of the bolts (on the rear, passenger side) is spinning freely. It sounds like the metal plate that the bolt is attached to came unwelded or something. I can't lift that end of the roof rack either. I successfully made it through 5 other bolts before this happened.

If anyone has any suggestions on what my options are, I'd really appreciate it!

Thanks!

Since there’s a lot of bolts and we don’t know where maybe a photo of which one it is

Since it’s Friday you may want to catch FrontRunner support in California before they close for the day

 

[joylc]

Since there’s a lot of bolts and we don’t know where maybe a photo of which one it is

Since it’s Friday you may want to catch FrontRunner support in California before they close for the day

Thanks, will give them a call. I've attached a pic as you suggested.

 

[Eire32]

Thanks, will give them a call. I've attached a pic as you suggested.

View attachment 2955861

If that’s spinning the nut on the inside or rivet probably disconnected and from what I hear you have to pull back the headliner to get at it from the inside

But before doing any of that I’d call Front Runner or wait for others to chime in as I’m no expert to be upfront about it

 

[aubie]

Sounds like you spun one of your roof rack nut plates...the primary pitfall of aftermarket roof rack installation and fairly common. Below is a good discussion on the topic with some possible solutions. Specifically post #11 in the thread.

Roof rack nuts fell into roof - https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/roof-rack-nuts-fell-into-roof.956366/

If you cant retrieve from above, my understanding is that you have 2 options: drop the headliner to retrieve or leave and drill/install new nutserts.

Wishing you good luck and an easy resolution!

 

[nakman]

See if you can spin it to where you can put the other bolt back in, or better yet another long M8 bolt that doesn't have a bunch of crusty loc tite on it. I am guessing that your root cause here was removing one of them completely before the other one was loosened, then the torque required to loosen the 2nd one was enough to dislodge the carrier? For whatever reason it's the one in back that usually has the issue.

Anyway if you can get the other bolt back into that threaded hole, you can then focus on the other side, and then work it out until it comes off, then pull out that first bolt and that carrier will plop into your head liner. then it's either riv nut or pull the headliner, as has been said.

 

[joylc]

See if you can spin it to where you can put the other bolt back in, or better yet another long M8 bolt that doesn't have a bunch of crusty loc tite on it. I am guessing that your root cause here was removing one of them completely before the other one was loosened, then the torque required to loosen the 2nd one was enough to dislodge the carrier? For whatever reason it's the one in back that usually has the issue.

Anyway if you can get the other bolt back into that threaded hole, you can then focus on the other side, and then work it out until it comes off, then pull out that first bolt and that carrier will plop into your head liner. then it's either riv nut or pull the headliner, as has been said.

Thank you. I'll give this a shot. Also, I realized my mistake in completely removing one of the bolts before loosening the other - *after* this mishap... Hopefully others attempting this won't make the same mistake

 

[SteveNC]

For the benefit of others who stumble across this thread here are some additional potentially helpful details...

As far as I can tell, the offensive part number is 6318760040. As you unbolt the factory rack, you'll see the yellow plastic guides sticking through the factory holes in your roof. Shown upside down in this picture....

 

[rlynch356]

Older thread … but do the stock ones have some thread lock on them?
If so… I’ll hit it with some induction heat for 5 sec before removal (partial it seems then the 2nd one

 

[ElJayBird]

I installed mine myself and it was pretty easy. You want to be extra careful when removing the factory rack - always keep one bolt partially screwed in when possible and by very gentle when removing both. The bracket is held on by clips and can be misalignment very easily. If the brackets fall out of alignment or come off completely, correcting it can be a major pain.

The only thing I needed help with was lifting it in place.

 

[SteveNC]

Older thread … but do the stock ones have some thread lock on them?
If so… I’ll hit it with some induction heat for 5 sec before removal (partial it seems then the 2nd one

This post from HSTexan was pretty close to my experience:

https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/frontrunner-slimline-ii-roof-rack-install-on-lc200.1261563/post-14014636

The Gamviti video will help you better understand (and witness) a factory rack coming off, and also highlight some danger zones.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Qb7u1D2VSQ

 

[El Cid]

I wanted to pass along some advice as well, now that I’ve done this TWICE(cough, cough) and I learned a bit each time as to the best method of approach that saves time, frustration and gets it done without a meltdown.

First, I purchased the Front Runner because I felt the quality was good. I still feel that way and it would be my choice if the decision were made for a third time. The engineering behind a few simple features of the product is solid, I used my previous 100 series FR Roof rack to do everything from hauling tires to moving a treadmill. Oh, and the finish. But the quality of the competition is improving. So if cost is an issue, I get it. And one comment about accessories. GET THE BOTTLE OPENER!

Now some advice on the install. I share this, because most us are time stretched in one way or another, you could perform steps 1 and 2 long before the rack lands on your door step and save yourself quite a bit of time. In my experience, the most challenging part is the installation of the mounts, as It usually uncovers a problem and involves precision. Generally speaking, you can break the task down into four distinguishable phases

• Factory(OEM) Roof Rack Removal. This can be tricky since an error hear stops the whole production. So take your time and be careful. Read all the comments about others losing bolts, etc. It’s easy to do. This is difficult depending on the amount of buildup on the removal locations. Once you’ve started this, you’ll realize that the factory rack is pointless, low quality and better in the scrap heap. Toyota routinely analyzes the size of the aftermarket and decides that the preferences are too specific for them to please anyone.
• Surface and connection prep. The amount of dirt and build up was almost troublesome. Prepare to be surprised here. The dirt left up here will become a problem if not removed. Use q tips, clean the grooves, silicone and scrub. Once it’s installed, you don’t want to do it again. Clean the surfaces thoroughly.
• Install of Mounts. Take your time here, these are just..awkward and don’t allow a lot of room for error. This has to be perfect for anything else to proceed and yes you can find the directions for the mounts on the FR website. Get ready to read them a few times to understand what you’re trying to accomplish and get it right the first time. There is no corner cutting here.
• Install of physical roof rack. It helps to have two things here: one, a space to lay out the entire rack, and two a friend that can help you lift the rack onto the physical frame. 6’5 friend not included. Sort of a twist here, but sliding the bolts into the rack for connection to the mounts is optional but it certainly saves time.

Suggested Tools:

• 13mm Ratcheting Wrench Metric Flexible Head Gear Combination Wrench 72 Teeth ratcheting box Spanner Chrome Vanadium Steel. Use this to tighten
• Box cutter
• Denatured alcohol
• Silicone
• Rags or cloth for cleaning

You can to a lot to prep for the install once you've ordered, primarily items 1 and 2 and printing out the instructions.