We just got my wife a suburban and will probably be using it to goto Port A this summer instead of my truck. Has anyone topped 2 yaks on the factory luggage rack or will it require additional mounts due to width or weight issues? Thanks

More is better when you are talking hauling two kayaks.
More as in a commercial rack such as a "J" rack that will mount to the factory rack.
Whatever rack you use they are not going to be 100% safe unless you use both bow and stern tie downs also.

That suburban rack should work for you just fine. The cross bars are probably not wide enough to carry both yaks side by side so you might have to get creative in how you load them. I don't really like the j style saddles but that might be a good option for you. There are some real affordable saddles on Amazon that should work on the factory bars.

I have a 2002 Nissan Xterra and have carried my Outback and my Cuda 12 on top of it. I got two pairs of the Malone Downloader folding J-racks (about $145 a pair) and mount them to the factory cross bars. The boats are on their sides facing in. I initially wanted them to face out but could not load them by myself that way, and with the racks facing in, I can get the boats up without help. It has worked well locally although with the boats on their side, they act as sails on top of the car when it is windy. We also have a Suburban but have not put them on that car yet since that is what my wife drives. I assume the Suburban would not be affected nearly so much by the sail effect. I would not be real comfortable going any kind of distance with the two boats on top of my Xterra due to the sail effect on windy days and I am not fully confident that the factory crossbars of the luggage rack would hold up over distance. The cross bars are heavy duty but they attach to the side bars with a plastic fitting that seems vulnerable.

I just got back from corpus. We hauled two rigged and loaded raptors on a factory 97' jimmy roof rack. I had to add some 2x4 on top to widen it. Worked great. The one I used was rated for 200lbs. I did have more straps than necessary.

Depending on the weight of the two yaks, I might be a cautious using the factory bars. I installed 66 inch Yakima cross bars to fit two flat. Here is how mine is set up on my Tahoe.

You didn't say what year you got but this is out of a 2015 model owners manual.


Roof Rack System
Warning: If something is carried on top of the vehicle that is longer or wider than the roof rack like paneling, plywood, or a mattress the wind can catch it while the vehicle is being driven. The item being carried could be violently torn off, and this could cause a collision and damage the vehicle. Never carry something longer or wider than the roof rack on top of the vehicle unless using a GM certified accessory carrier.

If equipped, the roof rack can be used to load items. For roof racks that do not have crossrails included, GM Certified crossrails can be purchased as an accessory. See your dealer for additional information.

Caution: Loading cargo on the roof rack that weighs more than 100kg (220lb) or hangs over the rear or sides of the vehicle may damage the vehicle. Load cargo so that it rests evenly between the crossrails, making sure to fasten cargo securely.

To prevent damage or loss of cargo when driving, check to make sure crossrails and cargo are securely fastened. Loading cargo on the roof rack will make the vehicle�s center of gravity higher. Avoid high speeds, sudden starts, sharp turns, sudden braking, or abrupt maneuvers, otherwise it may result in loss of control. If driving for a long distance, on rough roads, or at high speeds, occasionally stop the vehicle to make sure the cargo remains in its place.

Do not exceed the maximum vehicle capacity when loading the vehicle. For more information on vehicle capacity and loading, see Vehicle Load Limits.

A Center High-Mounted Stoplamp (CHMSL) is located above the rear window glass. Make sure items loaded on the roof of the vehicle do not block or damage the CHMSL.





This is for 2007-2014

Luggage Carrier
Warning: If something is carried on top of the vehicle that is longer or wider than the roof rack like paneling, plywood, or a mattress the wind can catch it while the vehicle is being driven. The item being carried could be violently torn off, and this could cause a collision and damage the vehicle. Never carry something longer or wider than the roof rack on top of the vehicle unless using a GM certified accessory carrier.

For vehicles with a roof rack, the rack can be used to load items. For roof racks that do not have crossrails included, GM Certified crossrails can be purchased as an accessory. See your dealer for additional information.

Notice: Loading cargo on the luggage carrier that weighs more than 200lbs (91kg) or hangs over the rear or sides of the vehicle can damage the vehicle. Load cargo so that it rests on the slats as far forward as possible and against the side rails, making sure to fasten it securely.

To prevent damage or loss of cargo when driving, check to make sure crossrails and cargo are securely fastened. Loading cargo on the roof rack will make the vehicle�s center of gravity higher. Avoid high speeds, sudden starts, sharp turns, sudden braking or abrupt maneuvers, otherwise it may result in loss of control. If driving for a long distance, on rough roads, or at high speeds, occasionally stop the vehicle to make sure the cargo remains in its place.

Do not exceed the maximum vehicle capacity when loading the vehicle. For more information on vehicle capacity and loading, see Loading the Vehicle.

�If small heavy objects are placed on the roof, cut a piece of 3/8inch plywood to fit inside the crossrails and siderails to spread the load. Tie the plywood to the siderail supports.
�Tie the load and secure it to the crossrails or the siderail supports. Use the crossrails only to keep the load from sliding. To move a crossrail, lift the release lever up, on both sides of the rail. Then slide the crossrail to the desired position balancing the force side to side. Press the release lever down on both sides of the rail, down to tighten it. Try to slide the crossrail back and forth slightly to make sure it is tight.
�To carry long items, move the crossrails as far apart as possible. Tie the load to the crossrails and the siderails or siderail supports. Also tie the load to the bumpers, but do not tie the load so tightly that the crossrails or siderails are damaged.
�After moving a crossrail, be sure it is securely locked into the siderail.
A Center High-Mounted Stoplamp (CHMSL) is located above the rear window glass.

Make sure items loaded on the roof of the vehicle do not block or damage the CHMSL

It's a 2013. This would be a one in a blue moon I would do this so Ive about talked myself out of doing this. Gonna have to come up with plan b or just rent some down there

I haul two FX-12's (31" wide) on my suburban no problem. I think it depends on what two kayaks have.
I have a set of Yakima bars that I want to get the brackets for one day. But until then I am not worried about hauling them on just the factory ones.

You can haul just about any kayak on any kind of factory roof rack if you do your best to properly secure the load, and that means plenty of tie down and fore and aft.
Keeping the load from shifting is the problem, where a manufactured rack that is made to haul kayaks makes it a lot easier and safer, and even then there have been failures because they weren't properly installed or there was improper tie downs.
Anything that is placed on a roof of a vehicle and not properly secured can come off especially with the sail effect at high speed.
There are a lot of lawyers out there that would love to take the case when someone following behind gets hurt or worse because someone didn't secure their load properly.

We hauled two all the way to Galveston on a factory suburban rack, it took quite the combo of rope, ratchet straps, etc to keep them from shifting around. Like slingbait said, probably depends alot on the yaks, in our case the two yaks were quite a bit wider than the rack. We have a trailer but decided hauling them on top would be less trouble than taking the trailer. If I did it again I would probably opt for the trailer. Bopro's set up looks like the ticket to me.