What is a safe roof load on a GQ patrol?

My 'bought' rack allows for up to 150kg- guess this is to prevent damage to racks and gutters and also is always sensible to keep centre of gravity low.
A standard GQ up to a 2" lift should not 'feel' top heavy with that sort of weight.
Best just to go to the wreckers to get sway bar- they're not exactly a popular item!
Enjoy your new old bus- she'll give many years of pleasure.
PS: didn't know there was such a thing as a 'gentle' rollover! heh heh

The GU11 had a limit of 150 kgs

They probably didn't specify it back in the days of the GQ

Seen some awful things on the roof of a 4WD.

No more than the 150 including the rack. other wise it handle like a bucket of slops.

I reckon 150kg would pull it up. Just make sure the legs of the rack are supported in the gutter along the whole length. I cringe when I see some roof racks pretty-well loaded-up and the 4 or 6 6 feet are the only points of contact. The ARB units (as well as others no doubt) have a system whereby a steel channel goes under the 3 feet on each side. This serves to spread the weight more evenly and lessens the possibility of fracturing the roof gutter/s.

As far as the sway bars are concerned, I have a GU with 4" of lift and have long-ago hung the sway bars up in the garage to collect dust. However, when I come to sell it in the next few weeks, I will offer the intending buyer the option of re-fitting the bars. I tend to only carry swags and fold-up camp chairs etc on my roof rack.

About this much. Lots

The Brewman...................
Life is short......Upgrade to a Nissan early.
I plan on a long life so I thought Id better get a Toyota!! LOL

We had lots maybe 150kg and bent the gutters heading south into Yunta going thru the washouts, one of the mounts was right above centre of the back doors (like Brews above), mine had only three mounts tho, couldnt close the back doors when the kids got out at Yunta, had to make a minor adjustment

Steve

By accident I had around 100kgs on my 6 poster rack with full length gutter mount a while back.

I then drove some very heavy cross country stuff and each one of the legs of the roof rack cracked. The roof rack is one supplied by 4WD Systems.

I have gusseted the legs now and I am sure they will not break again. I am also keeping the weight on the rack down to below 50kgs. ie maybe one full spare wheel and some other light stuff.

Cheers

Is yours a DX version? Mine is and doesn't have a front sway bar and I have been told they came from the factory without them.... only the "upper" specs got front sways. Most of my friends with GQ's take both sway bars off anyway.

Just keep your roof load to as little as possible, we have had maybe 100kgs up there and it was fine. The roof will collapse somewhat in a rollover, after all, it wasn't designed to have that much weight sitting on it, but not as much as you probably think. Maybe think about putting a cargo barrier in, they not only stop stuff smacking you in the back of the head in the event of a sudden stop, but also will take SOME weight (not all) in the event of a roll. And before everyone slams me for saying that.... I know they AREN'T designed for rollover protection, but I HAVE seen it myself and I KNOW that a cargo barrier helps.

Cheers!

Brian

Just a quick and simple test I suggest people try when cosidering how much to put on the roof.

Climb up onto the roof rack yourself and move from side to side at a reasonable speed. Stay on your hands and knees so you don't artificially raise the centre of gravity more htan a typical load would.

As you move about take notice of how much the car is moving under you and ask the question. Would I feel happy with that much movement while travelling down the highway at 100km/h? Then ask would I be happy with that much movement while crawling down a steep rocky incline with big steps?

I am about 100kg when I did this myself the answer to both questions was no. My roof rack is now in the shed leaning against the wall. I will still use the rack but I am very careful about what I put on it.

Duncs

Doesn't the handbook specifiy a max roof load - most 4wds are only rated at about 100kg - even though the rack itself may be rated higher - the load (including the load) must be the lesser of the two.

As has been highlighted in other posts some have gone to higher loads and not had a problem - some have. Nissan should be able to tell you the designed roof loading of your car.

Good luck

Garry

I think the question has a couple of parts to it. Safe, legal, recommended and capable weights are quite likely nothing alike. The truth is that many push the envelope (like me) and run additional risks etc. I understand that for the GU the weight is 150kg and I have travelled with something closer to 200kg on my setup without a problem. Just lucky - maybe! But go to the trouble of getting a good rack that straddles your pillars and make sure of its engineering pedigree if your planning to exceed the limit. Also make sure you are happy with the additional risks and take steps to minimise these as far as possible.

Kind regards

I have put a test load on my home made rack about 280 kgs and nothing moved so i think if i stick to the recommended 150, i should be ok.steve
[IMG]http://i43.photobucket

Hello
You can put as much up there as you like, as long as you are stationary!!

What you have to think about the the uplift forces applied when you are doing 100K. That's why manufacturer's generally state a 100Kg limit

Noel

I recently sold my Nissan GU 4.5 petrol 1998 model and when I removed the roof rack (after deal concluded) and noticed cracks in the vehicle body at the rear of the gutter about 3cm long on each side, with a bit of rust showing. I can only think it happened last winter on a trip to Weipa/Portland Roads/Lakefield when I carried a tinnie on the top. Estimated all up weight about 150kg inc. weight of rack. It was a heavy duty commercial rack with three large legs (about 20cm). Have done this before and problem may have been caused this time by having the end rack (with a roller) right at the end of the gutter as this made it easier to load the boat. I did strike lots of corrogations but have carried similar loads before across roughish tracks such as Gibb River Road, Cape Leveque, Tanami, Bungles etc. but with a slightly different rack placement. Can only agree with earlier suggestion keep rack legs where the gutter is stronger and not right at the end. Incidentally on 3 occasions I have ripped the rack off on tracks with low tree limbs, but always managed to replace legs elsewhere on the gutters (on GU and Range Rover). I would have had more severe problems if the gutters had not bent!