CURT 18115 Universal 42 x 37-Inch Black Steel Roof Rack Rooftop Cargo Carrier

For this year's summer fun I wanted to go further in our adventures with my little 2013 Mazda 3. Did a lot of research on compatibility, price comparison, and other reviews. Then went for the ROLA Roof Rack with the Curt Cargo Carrier. A perfect combination!The ROLA Roof Rack - There are many choices for universal roof racks that are appealing and affordable. BUT they will either damage the paint at the point of contact OR damage the weather stripping at the door. Sure, you could save a couple hundred if your fine seeing 4 scuff marks or worse on your roof everyday or if you don't mind raindrops tapping your shoulder and pooling on your leather seats. Luckily the Mazda engineers had the foresight to include anchor points on this model. There were only a few roof racks to choose from that are compatible with my Mazda 3 and they were double or triple the cost of the universal racks. I decided on the "ROLA 59833 Removable Anchor Point Xtreme AP-GTX Series Roof Rack for Mazda 3 Hatchback". The reviews were great and I didn't have to pay extra to thule around town and yakima'bout having a label. Easy to install (about 20 min). The black compliments the trim. And now my sporty little Mazda 3 is adventurous like those pristine Subarus that only see dirt when taking their labradoodle to the dog park.The Curt Cargo Carrier - This one was much more difficult to select. Do I go with an open basket or a closed bag or a hard shell? Then there was the issue of spacing (between bars and connection points) and orientation (having front/back instead of along the sides). And of course spending more on the roof rack meant I had less for a carrier. I opted for the "CURT 18115 Roof Rack Rooftop Cargo Carrier 41-1/2" x 37" x 4" Mounted". An excellent decision as I wasn't limited to what a case can carry and didn't need to worry about a ripped soft case or broken zipper. Plus this cargo carrier is adjustable in it can fit on a wide range of roof racks and can be expanded with an extra accessory. Easy to setup by myself in minutes. Sturdy construction. And just looks cool. The protruding thread from the connection points aren't a problem if you can load items between them like camping chairs, sleep pads, etc. The distance between the connection points and the bars on my Mazda 3 is offset by maybe half an inch but it's ok with this cargo carrier. The carrier has these wide "feet" that can attach to any set of bars on the basket to accommodate different roof rack separations. And because the feet are wide there's some leeway if you need a little more or less distance. Get a cargo net and extra bungee cords and you're good to go.So give your beloved Mazda 3 a new personality and go exploring!

My rack came in damaged. It appeared to have been an open box deal as the box appeared retaped and some of the items were opened and rattling around inside. The box was damaged and two mounting pieces were broken.Don't get me wrong, I love open box deals and I almost always go for the Warehouse deals. What I was upset with was the fact that I paid full price for a damaged product. I called Amazon CS and they offered me a replacement. Like I said, I like open box deals and shipping this thing back would have been a nightmare due to the damaged box. When I explained that, they offered a partial refund instead which I was more than happy with.Now, the product itself.The rack seems solid and well made. The fairings aren't plastic like I thought and they actually seem pretty well designed. The brackets that hold the fairing on the other hand... I am going to need to replace two of them... Snappy plastic that likes to break on installation.The size is good, perfect for my needs. I still have room on the top of my Outback to mount my radio antenna.Installation was relatively easy, instructions pretty straightforward. It would have between easier with two people.I.am going to replace the wing nuts that secure the basket to the roof with standard nuts. The wing nuts are exhausting to use on my roof as they require a ton of effort to use on thinner bars.I also plan on sealing the joints and replacing bolts with steel ones to minimize future rust. On of the other top reviews details how to do this, so I won't repeat it here.One of the Allen nuts was improperly cast, it had no head. Easy to replace, but shoddy manufacturing.I will update this if I ever have issues in the future, otherwise you can presume it's still a 5 star!First impressions: 3 starSatisfaction with customer support: 5 starHardware quality: 3.5Cost for value: 5The overall reason that this gets a 5 star is that, despite lack-luster manufacturing and cheaper parts, it still has a great value for the price. The cost of upgrading parts to make this a truly nice piece of hardware is minimal, but it will take effort. If I disliked that kind of thing it might get a 3 or 4 star, but I can't do that as, to me, it is not a 3 star item