The Toyota LandCruiser 200 Series is able to climb mountains, ford rivers and conquer deserts but it can’t carry as much on its roof as you might think.
Roof load limits are always a hot topic. You only have to slide into a forum on off-road vehicles to know that. And it seems that it isn’t always as easy as you’d hope to find accurate and reliable information.
Too many people flock to social media for information about roof loading, or accessories makers…but those who ask car makers often receive no response at all. I visited a forum this week looking to see what ‘the public’ knew about roof load limits for the Nissan Navara and got a shock when most people were doubling the official roof load limit and then suggesting that number was conservative and as long as you drive carefully you can go heavier. You absolutely can’t. If you do, you could roll your vehicle or your roof rack could detach. But we’ll deal with the Navara another day because it’s an interesting story.
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Back to the LC200. Now, this is one where I’m expecting people to write in and tell me I’m wrong and then point me in the direction of the Toyota Australia website. I’ll head this argument off right now by saying I’ve had a few discussions with Toyota’s product and PR team already and they’re looking into the discrepancy. And that’s all I can really say on that matter right now.
But, what I can do is share the information I’ve been given by Toyota Australia about roof loading limits for the Toyota LandCruiser 200 Series. And you can’t carry as much as you might think.
Yep, according to Toyota, if you opt for a two bar roof rack your roof load limit is just 100kg and if you opt for a three bar rack then your limit increases to 150kg. Toyota advised MotoFomo that it doesn’t distinguish between dynamic and static loads but we’re still trying to clarify what those limits mean if you’ve got a roof top tent on top of your LC200.
Toyota told MotoFomo it doesn’t have a policy on reducing dynamic load limits when driving off-road the partners that supply the genuine roof racks might.
Indeed, Toyota works with third-party brands like Rhino-Rack and others to supply ‘genuine’ accessories that can be purchased through Toyota dealerships.
“Toyota Genuine roof racks are developed in conjunction with external suppliers but are tested to the same levels as any other vehicle component. So they go through fatigue, weather, UV and load testing as part of the vehicle development program. This is why we are confident about the durability of those products but also about the numbers that are stated on them for limits,” MotoFomo was told.
The main thing to remember when it comes to roof loading is that no matter what type of roof rack you’re purchasing, you always need to reduce your roof loading figure by the weight of the roof rack to know the payload remaining. And don’t think that because an accessory maker is telling you their rack or platform is rated for hundreds of kilograms means you can go with what they tell you…nope, in all things you’re governed by the vehicle manufacturer’s official ratings.
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