Apologies if there is already a thread for this, but I was wondering if the Thule roof rack kit for the standard Focus would work on the RS. Do any current ST owners have roof racks? What company did you use? Has anyone who has seen a US spec RS in person noticed holes in the roof tracks? I love my roof rack and use it quite a bit for bikes and skis and kayaks so I would hate to have to give that up.
Roof Rack
rambo3500
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@17CanadianRS Can do! They’re out in the shed, can get a measurement later.
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@17CanadianRS alright so the rear is 36” and front is 37” of track width. That being said, that includes the plastic caps that go on the end of each bar which artificially ‘limits” the width.
first time using my roof basket (39” wide) I put rubber pads on the plastic caps. But then all the times after I just ran without the end caps. Obviously it looks better with them, but it is in no way necessary for functionality.
lol same camping spot 5 years apart
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first time using my roof basket (39” wide) I put rubber pads on the plastic caps. But then all the times after I just ran without the end caps. Obviously it looks better with them, but it is in no way necessary for functionality.
lol same camping spot 5 years apart
That's awesome, really appreciate all that info! I'll have to double-check but I think my canoe might be 40" wide, not quite the right fit for the Ford rack unless I put some wood on top to extend the bars.
Also really like the look of your car with the rack and roof basket. I'm still not sure whether I prefer the look of the overhang bars or the flush look of the Ford UK rack.
Love the RS but definitely needs a bit more space when you're hauling people and gear. Last time I went to the Algonquin backcountry it was a tight squeeze with 3 people and gear. Roof basket or box might be a nice addition to the camping kit.
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My rhino racks were great
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Can we still order the OEM roof rack from the UK? I just read through the whole thread and none of the links are working.
Please assist.
Edit: Looks Ford UK is still selling the part and currently on sale, but they don't ship to the US. May need to go through a reseller that is willing to ship to US shores via eBay or something.
Please assist.
Edit: Looks Ford UK is still selling the part and currently on sale, but they don't ship to the US. May need to go through a reseller that is willing to ship to US shores via eBay or something.
Sorry meant to answer that earlier. Anyone looking for the Ford OEM rack likely has to order from here now: FOCUS 5 DOOR HATCHBACK ROOF BAR / ROOF RACK KIT 2011- 2018
£172 seems like a pretty good price right now, I'm contemplating finally picking one up myself. Since they won't ship abroad, you can try to use a freight forwarder, who will receive the package from Ford UK and then ship on to you.
Yes you can
So I decided to go with the Thule rack. Buyer beware, it seems both Thule and RackAttack (at least in Canada) forgot that there is a different fit kit for the Focus RS. Both Thule and RackAttack websites list separate line items for the Focus and Focus RS, but spec the exact same fit kit for both (5125). It's like they used to know they were different, but with the updated roof rack system and part numbers they forgot.
According to Thule and other dealer websites in Europe, we want the 5089 fit kit, which comes with the alignment pins for the holes present on the RS. I went to RackAttack and had them show me the 5125 they said I needed, and it didn't have the alignment pins, as I suspected.
What Thule Europe recommends (and what I ordered) is the following:
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The foot part number for Canada is 710501, which does not come with lock cylinders, but the 710500 does! They also recommend the shorter bars (127 cm vs 135 cm here).
I ordered from Halfords in the UK, only because I was able to get £300 of gift cards to that store, through a work employee recognition program. It worked out that I was able to purchase the roof rack parts using the gift cards alone because of a sale, for exactly £300. I signed up for Forward2Me, and had Halfords send the packages to them. I was super impressed cause I ordered on a Saturday evening (Eastern Time), and Forward2Me had the package Monday morning!
Forward2Me then processed it over a few days (they had to give me a special quote because the roof bars were longer than their automated system allows). Total cost of shipping from Forward2Me was $115 CAD. They shipped on a Thursday and I had everything the following Tuesday. Last expense was some import duties and fees to pay to FedEx, total of $80 CAD. So all said and done, I got a new roof rack for about $200 CAD cost to me 😁!
What grinds my gears is the price difference in Canada vs the UK! Total retail cost of everything I bought from the UK was about $700 CAD delivered to me (which includes $200 of shipping/duties). The cost from Thule Canada or RackAttack is over $350 more with tax included! And it's not even the right fit kit... It might be a bit more work, but you can save a significant amount of money by buying from the UK. I had no issue with Forward2Me, they were professional and responsive. Would probably work well for those looking at buying the Ford UK OEM rack as well, since they won't ship outside the UK either.
According to Thule and other dealer websites in Europe, we want the 5089 fit kit, which comes with the alignment pins for the holes present on the RS. I went to RackAttack and had them show me the 5125 they said I needed, and it didn't have the alignment pins, as I suspected.
What Thule Europe recommends (and what I ordered) is the following:
- Thule Fit Kit (145089 or 5089)
- Thule Evo Clamp Foot (710500)
- Thule Wingbar Evo 127cm Bars (711320)
The foot part number for Canada is 710501, which does not come with lock cylinders, but the 710500 does! They also recommend the shorter bars (127 cm vs 135 cm here).
I ordered from Halfords in the UK, only because I was able to get £300 of gift cards to that store, through a work employee recognition program. It worked out that I was able to purchase the roof rack parts using the gift cards alone because of a sale, for exactly £300. I signed up for Forward2Me, and had Halfords send the packages to them. I was super impressed cause I ordered on a Saturday evening (Eastern Time), and Forward2Me had the package Monday morning!
Forward2Me then processed it over a few days (they had to give me a special quote because the roof bars were longer than their automated system allows). Total cost of shipping from Forward2Me was $115 CAD. They shipped on a Thursday and I had everything the following Tuesday. Last expense was some import duties and fees to pay to FedEx, total of $80 CAD. So all said and done, I got a new roof rack for about $200 CAD cost to me 😁!
What grinds my gears is the price difference in Canada vs the UK! Total retail cost of everything I bought from the UK was about $700 CAD delivered to me (which includes $200 of shipping/duties). The cost from Thule Canada or RackAttack is over $350 more with tax included! And it's not even the right fit kit... It might be a bit more work, but you can save a significant amount of money by buying from the UK. I had no issue with Forward2Me, they were professional and responsive. Would probably work well for those looking at buying the Ford UK OEM rack as well, since they won't ship outside the UK either.
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@17CanadianRS great deal overall!
Had the same experience back in summer of 2018, bought my entire kit for less than half price from amazon uk including shipping and customs. Definitely getting ripped somehow in the supply chain to Canada and/or by canadian thule dealers. The fit kit pins are a nice feature so I also made sure to use them, similar Rhino bars moved slightly on my previous ST without them.
Edit: I’m from Canada but my flag shows UK now as I’m over there for professional training.
Had the same experience back in summer of 2018, bought my entire kit for less than half price from amazon uk including shipping and customs. Definitely getting ripped somehow in the supply chain to Canada and/or by canadian thule dealers. The fit kit pins are a nice feature so I also made sure to use them, similar Rhino bars moved slightly on my previous ST without them.
Edit: I’m from Canada but my flag shows UK now as I’m over there for professional training.
Yea was reading through some of your posts before and the pictures you posted, wondered if you'd moved! Interesting that it changes based on your locale.
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Is there anyone or a forwarding company in the UK that can ship an OEM Ford Focus Roof Base Carrier to the US?
Really wanting this for my RS.
FOCUS 5 DOOR HATCHBACK ROOF BAR / ROOF RACK KIT 2011- 2018
Product No. 1767840
Really wanting this for my RS.
FOCUS 5 DOOR HATCHBACK ROOF BAR / ROOF RACK KIT 2011- 2018
Product No. 1767840
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121 Posts
Please read above, I noted my positive experience with Forward2Me only a few lines above in Post #590. They shipped my rack from the UK to Ontario, Canada for $115 CAD, plus $80 in customs / duties charges.
Happy with the service and responsiveness they provided, no issues.
Happy with the service and responsiveness they provided, no issues.
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73 Posts
Hello,
Thank you so much for getting back to me. I actually just set up an account there now and will order soon. Really appreciate the suggestion.
FOCUS 5 DOOR HATCHBACK ROOF BAR / ROOF RACK KIT 2011- 2018
Product No. 1767840
Aside from the OEM Ford UK Roof Bar Rack Kit, is there anything I will need to buy to make it work my RS?
I am planning on putting a Kuat Piston SR Bike Rack on this. Thoughts?
Nothing to add here, but let us know how this ends up going, cost etc. I'm kinds in the same boat and considering getting a roof rack, and this seems like the best option. I'm on the opposite end of the country, but atleast it'll give me an idea.
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I've got the Euro bar kit with a Thule Uprider rack. Was able to match the locks on the roof rails with the locks on the bike rack.
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So I signed up to Forward2Me and followed their instruction to the tee. The Roof Rack arrived to their warehouse several days ago. I tried to ship it to myself, but I got the following error:
"This package will need special handling by the courier. A pallet or additional packaging maybe required resulting in additional cost. Please contact customer services for a detailed quotation."
I emailed and called their customer support and their response was that they need to get in touch with someone at the warehouse to make necessary arrangements to get it shipped out to me.
Kind of confused as to why this would need a pallet when the packaging is not that large. Despite that, I told them to send me quotes from the various internation shippers, but I requested that they send it via the cheapest mode possible.
Still haven't heard back from them since that conversation.
Attachments
I got the same error.
It's not that it needs a pallet, but I believe it's due to the length of the roof bars. Because it's oversized, it does not let their system automatically generate shipping quotes, so they need to do it manually by finding and assessing your packages. It sounds like you followed all the instructions, including providing them your tracking and bill of sale, so that should help them find the goods and produce any customs documents.
Seeing from your email screenshot, they last contacted you yesterday. Keep in mind their team is in the UK, and there's a 5-8 hour time difference depending on where you are in NA. Them replying at 11 your time is probably the end of their work day, and I'd guess you get a response the next day.
Based on that, I'd only expect 1 or 2 emails from them per day roughly, which I what I got. And it was just the weekend, which I assume they're not working, which may explain why it arrived a few days ago and it's taken some time to process.
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