![yakima rocketbox vs skybox yakima rocketbox vs skybox](https://www.switchbacktravel.com/sites/default/files/image_fields/In-Depth%20Gear%20Reviews/Yakima%20SkyBox%2016%20Carbonite/Yakima%20SkyBox%2016%20Carbonite%20Cargo%20Roof%20Box%20(opening%20with%20front%20lever).jpg)
The ShowCase was also designed to allow better hatch clearance - no more cracking your noggin on a partially open hatch back as you grab groceries, etc with a box on the roof.
YAKIMA ROCKETBOX VS SKYBOX UPDATE
This design update makes for a safer cargo box as it prevents a loaded box from launching forward in the event of a fender bender. Interestingly enough, this new clamp opens forwards instead of towards the rear ala the Skybox design. They also feature a new, steel claw that clamps the boxes to the roof racks.
![yakima rocketbox vs skybox yakima rocketbox vs skybox](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41jstlNBZwL._SX425_.jpg)
The two ShowCase boxes, the Showcase 15 and ShowCase 20, both feature one button opening vs the old handle that could sometimes be a cast iron bitch to lever open. The new top of the line ShowCase roof boxes are a definite improvement over the old cargo boxes. And if you've got the old round bars and all the accessories to go with them but just need a new set of towers and clips for your new rig, no problem: the new towers and clips will also work just fine with the old round bars, too as Yakima’s Product manager put it at the roll out for the new racks, “ We can party with everyone.” To accommodate them, Yakima had to completely re-design all their towers, making them stronger, more streamlined to fit in with the design philosophy of the new bars, more adaptable by building in pitch adjustments, and by creating a variety of foot pads and clips for various roof and rail attachments - the clip library for the new towers can now accommodate an astounding 95% of existing vehicles on the road today without any modifications. This system gently cradles any bike vs the older clamp style that wasn't quite as, well, cush.īut if the bars are the face of the new StreamLine system, the manner in which one attaches those bars is the heart and soul of the new system. Nearly every back of the vehicle bike carrying accessory from the trunk racks to the spare tire racks to the trailer hitch mounts such as the Literider three or the Ridgeback 4 gets a bit of a collagen injection by way of the addition of the Super Cush bike frame carrying system. And really only noticeable by its absence. It may not be complete and total silence, but it’s a noticeable improvement over the old round bars. Golden, blessed silence reigns supreme as you get from A to B with them on the roof. So after 28 years of rack noise, I never knew what I was missing until I experienced Yakima’s new JetStream bars, one of the new aero shaped roof rack cross bars Yakima is rolling out with their new StreamLine System. But it was the type of noise one easily and automatically tunes out - like when you live next to a railway yard or near a highway: after a week or so, you sleep through that midnight express or the din of rush hour traffic. But here’s the catch: ease of attachment and versatility were great things, but lash that sucker to a roof and hit highway speed and the racks nearly always made a surprisingly loud amount of noise. And recently, as pictured above, I saw a Porsche 911 with a Yakima roof rack in Death Valley, CA. The matching lock cores, while not unique to Yakima, were sweet, too one key to rule them all.Īs seen recently in Death Valley: an 80s something Porsche 911 with a Yakima roof rack with all the trimmings.īut the heart and soul of the system ( less the trunk and trailer hitch racks) was always this simple round bar rack system with a variety of towers that would somehow attach to the roof of damn near any car - even an old Volkswagon bug with its rounded roof. You name the activity, and Yakima had something for getting my gear from the front door to the start of my next adventure.
![yakima rocketbox vs skybox yakima rocketbox vs skybox](https://images.etrailer.com/static/images/pics/y/0/y07175_ff_1000.jpg)
Since that first rack, I’ve had a number of other cars and made use of a number of Yakima’s other racks and mounts to carrying my gear around: everything from roof racks and all the attachments to hatchback/trunk racks to trailer hitch mounted racks. All with these classic round Yakima bars and Yakima’s nifty accessories for carrying my various toys.
![yakima rocketbox vs skybox yakima rocketbox vs skybox](https://images.etrailer.com/static/images/pics/y/0/y07178_3_1000.jpg)
Those round crossbars across the roof were my portal to adventure. Why is this a surprise? Let me turn on the way back machine to 28 years ago… Which surprised me, considering I had a rack on the roof of my car and some accessories. Sure, the hum of my tires on the asphalt, but that was pretty much it. As I drove down I-84 towards Hood River, OR, I heard nothing.