lexus114

hi all. i just bought a roof rack removal kit from a lexus dealer on ebay. what do you guys think of the look with out a roof rack? i cant find too many pics of them with out it on. and i never see any in my area with it removed. but im thinking it would have a cleaner look especially with my black color. what do you guys think?

kitlz

You probably don't see many RXs around here without roof racks because FWD is pretty rare. I've thought about it myself a few times to make clearing snow off the roof easier. Even polishing too. But I want to stay true to the AWD SUV looks. Yours will definitely stand out from the crowd. Just make sure you use plumbers tape on the bolts to prevents leaks. And be sure to post pics when you're done.

Lexwerkes

I have a 450h without the roof rails and crossbars. it is does appear sleeker and is easier to clean. Some have also reported a small bump in gas mileage.

If you do remove it I would be interested in buying your roof rails. Although I like to look of the no rails, I want to carry my kayaks. Sent you a PM

Raeanj

I'm thinking about having my roof rack removed at my 5000k service. My rx is black and I think it will look better without it. It would be nice if it helped with the excessive wind noise, but probably not.

ThChinaman

I agree with Anita. The roof rack does give it a sporty look and without it the car looks kind of naked.

BertL

FWIW, I'm also of the opinion my 2013 looks better with the rails on. The few RX I see on the road without the rails make me always feel like they are missing something ...but that's just my opinion of the esthetic. My previous RX400h came with rails and cross bars. To Anita's point, it was significantly harder to do the weekly wash job (no snow in sunny SoCal -- ah ha), and to polish when that was due. When the 2013s were introduced, Lexus changed the package so the rails came with the RXh, but not the crossbars. I thought I'd be sad with their cost-cutting ways, but I have not been, as I've not had a need to tie anything to the top of my RX450h in the past 3 years, and just like the look the silver rails provide as a contrast with my Nebula Grey.

It's great it's a fairly easy thing to remove the rails if you want to, as you can always put them back on if you change your mind. Good luck with your decision.

kitlz

My black 300 didn't come with roof rails or the spoiler on the tailgate. They weren't options back then. I affectionately called the RX hippo because he looked like one with the big 'butt' and stubby 'ears,' LOL! I did buy the roof rack removal kit for the 450h but I just can't do it. That's me though. Maybe yours will look sleeker without the contrasting roof rails. How about doing a little Photoshop to see how it looks? If you don't have the program, post a few pictures taken from different angles in the Photoshop forum. Someone will do it for you.

lexus114

thanks for all the replies my friends. it is a difficult decision for me. heck i already wasted money over having the body moldings installed, then removed. ...

pheonix72

iTrader: (6)

I removed the crossbars and side rails from my wife RX350 cause the wind noise was unbearable!

Raeanj

Did it make a big difference?

pheonix72

iTrader: (6)

I would say yes. Especially the cross bars removal reduce the majority of wind noise. We wanted a cleaner look so i removed the side bars and that pretty much eliminated most of the wind noise. The car is so nice and quiet now.
The cross bars are easy to remove! Try it and see/hear if you could tell the different.

Raeanj

I don't have the crossbars, just the side bars and I get a lot of wind noise. I'll find out in couple of months if removing them helps.

pheonix72

iTrader: (6)

I see! From my experience, the side bars generates some noise at lower speed but were very noisy at higher speed (above 75MPH) and even worse in crosswind situation.

Tom558

I don't have any love for the rack or crossbars. My "every expense spared" Sportage doesn't have either and I had to go and and look as I could not remember if they came with the car or not.

Our kids are grown and we won't be taking anyone to college in the RX so I don't see the need. We do long road trips (3 weeks or so) and "if it don't fit inside the RX it ain't goin'".

The crossbars were a line item on the Sticker when we purchased the car but the dealer would not remove them and give us a credit. :-)

I don't think I'd pay to have them removed but if someone offered to pay for a professional removal I'd give them the rails and crossbars.

Raeanj

You described my exact problem! I'm going to call tomorrow to see how much the dealer will charge to remove them. I would think not much.