Yakima RocketBox Pro 14 Compact Roof Cargo Box Carrier, 14 Cu Ft Premium Aerodynamic Storage with Dual Side Opening, SKS Locks, Tool Free Installation

There are some good and bad things about this box but I found that it meets my needs and it is pretty acceptable for its purpose.I have an acura mdx with factory aero rack.Good: Sturdy, opened and closed well, adjustable and easily fit on to my roof rack. The adjustments were straightforward. The clamps to hold it down were sturdy. Both locks work well. The button is convenient. You cannot remove the key from the box without locking up. I took it on its first trip recently and really it is a good roof box. In terms of space, we fit 3 carry on sized bags, some beach toys, some baby gear. It really holds a lot of stuff. It could not fit a baby rock and play folded down. Mostly that is because of the tapering width from front to middle to back. It was fairly quiet up on top of the car.Bad: At about 60 MPH we got about the same fuel efficiency. At 70, there was some impact 2-3 MPG. At 75, the impact was 5-6 MPG. Because the freeway speed on my trip was 70 MPH, it was preferable to go 70, but I noticed at 60-65 I did better for efficiency. That was too bad, I really expected it to not be so bad and to be more aerodynamic. The fit was really close to my satellite radio receiver when positioned on the car. I heard a bit of rattle when it was empty, I am not sure if the box was tapping the antenna or if the rack was rattling (the rack needed to be tightened a little after a few hundred miles. Like I said, the front and back taper and so you cannot fit larger items that would fit fine in the middle because they start hitting the taper. Also, the height seemed a little higher than was reported. I am not sure if the height reported is interior height, but it does not clear my garage door by a small bit because it is taller off the roof rack than expected.Storage, I hung a 1X2 on my garage wall and I hang it there when not in use, it is very effective and keeps it out of the way. Yakima suggested either storing it flat or hung up on a wall so I think my technique is most space saving.Weight - I am a fairly scrawny person. I was excited that I can get it onto my car by myself and into position. I can also get it back off and onto the wall. But, I also had to install it in my sloped driveway because it won't clear my garage door, and I found that hoisting it in the air on the sloped driveway was still fairly easy. You will probably find that the clips to hold it in place fold back in and trying to get it on the car is a little tough with that, but the competitor used a forward and backward facing clip and that means you have to line up perfectly dead center. At least with the yakima you can be a few inches ahead of where the box goes and then slide it backwards with the clip open.In general, there was plenty of space for everything, it mounted well, and it worked well. I wish it had not reduced my efficiency so much, but I think I can adjust my driving some or bite the bullet when I need the extra space. It does not stay on my car all the time (which is good with the clearance problem.

Consistent with other reviewers - good price for the quality and performed as advertised. Just returned from a 1200 mile holiday trip down the east coast (600 each way) and drove through serious rain and heavy winds for most of the way - all contents stayed dry. While obvious, don't overpack the box - it is pretty flexible material so an advantage could work against you if you aren't careful. I got in the habit of looking at the seam to ensure it was tight when packing the box. We did between 70-80 mph most of the way and didn't notice much noise, although our 2014 CRV isn't the quietest cabin to start. Nominal drop in mpg - about 1 to 2 mpg. I did notice when the winds were really whipping we got knocked around a bit more than we usually would, but expected. All in all, a great way to free up space on the inside of the car and happy with the purchase. Also, install is a relative breeze and fit great.

I received the RocketBox Pro 14 in good condition. I bought it to use on two different autos (04 Subaru Outback, 09 VW Jetta Sportwagon). It was easy to mount to the Subaru using the factory crossbars. It has enough clearance to allow the hatchback to open without interference. When driving I expected increased wind noise, but was pleasantly surprised to find very little noise. I can tell it is there in high crosswinds, but at normal highway speeds on a day without winds, I don't even know it is on the car. It does rattle slightly at low speeds (0-20 mph) when going over bumps. I think when the speed gets above 20 mph, the air load holds the top clam shell down tighter and the rattle goes away. This is barely noticeable and not a problem in my book. The only reason it is a 4 star and not 5 is that the hinges seem a little weak. While it hasn't been a problem yet, I can see that opening the RocketBox on a windy day will be a risky endeavor. I don't have my cross bars for the VW, so I haven't installed it on that car yet. Overall I am very happy with it so far and would recommend it to a friend.UPDATE: After several trips and close to a year of using the Rocketbox on both of my vehicles, I thought I would provide an update. I have installed it on the 09 VW Jetta Sportwagon, as well as the 04 Subaru Outback. It is easy to switch from one vehicle to another. I have the full size moonroof on the Jetta and I can open it (using the slide function) without interference from the Rocketbox, but if I tried to open it with the tilt function, it will hit the bottom of the Rocketbox. This is mostly a function of the height of the crossbar towers (I have Yakima railgrabber towers with round crossbars). Also, as I suspected, the hinges of the Rocketbox are a bit weak. One of them has taken to coming apart if I open the box too far. It snaps easily back into place and works fine, but I have to be careful to keep from opening the box too far or it will pop out of position. This is annoying, but doesn't create a big issue. Overall, I'm happy with the Rocketbox and expect many more years of use out of it. They would to well to make the hinges a bit more sturdy.