Best roof bars to buy for your car

Roof bars have been an essential part of motoring for generations, but they are now more popular than ever. Using the top of your car to carry stuff makes perfect sense, whether you have bars to hold sports equipment such as bikes and kayaks, strap on planks for trips from the DIY store, or simply use them to expand the luggage capacity of your car when heading off on holiday.

With so many flights cancelled, new-car deliveries delayed and vehicle rental costs spiralling, more of us than ever will be taking a look at the family car and wondering if it will be able to double up as a van or luggage lugger with the help of some bars.

Deciding on the right pair for you will depend on your budget and what you plan to load them with, but you’ll also need to ensure they are going to fit well and be easy to use. So which of our seven will be loads better than the rest?

How we tested them

For modern cars, there are generally two types of roof bar. The first is designed to clamp on to existing rails that run lengthways above the doors and are usually found on estate and SUV-type vehicles.

The alternatives are more complex because they have to mount on to the roof without rails, and generally clamp around the door shuts, or screw into fixtures on the frame of the car. For this year’s test, we chose the latter type, fitting them to a 2017 Nissan Qashqai.

With the bars installed, we checked for wind noise at motorway speeds. We also awarded points for ease of removal, low weight and any built-in security features. Finally, we checked prices online to judge the value. All seven have a maximum load of 75kg.

Verdict

While the Thule bars are certainly the best in this test on almost every level, we can’t recommend spending £241.95 on them unless you use bars every day. For less than half the price, the Cruz Airo Ts do most things just as well. At the top, the Summits narrowly take the win from the Cruz Optiplus STs because they are more aerodynamic, marginally lighter, and easier to fit.

Reviews

Summit SUP-084

It’s not often that one of the cheapest products wins a test. But for anyone who only needs roof bars for occasional use, we see little need to spend twice as much – or more – for a premium product.