When it comes to fitting a Toyota Hilux roof rack by Front Runner, drilling is required. This can be quite a daunting task, drilling 8 holes into the roof of a vehicle so if you are not 100% confident in fitting it successfully please feel free to contact us for advice or to ask about our fitting service. 

Dropping the roof lining is a must. Yes, it adds a little time to the installation and it does not state this is necessary in all of the instructions (only in some of them for some reason) but we highly recommend you do this. This will protect your roof lining whilst drilling. Once dropped, follow the instructions to mark up where you are going to drill the 8 holes however BEFORE drilling, grab each foot/leg and ensure that the screw holes align with your pen markings. DO NOT drill before you have checked that the feet align up. 

Next, centre punch and then drill a small pilot hole, normally about 4/4.5mm works well and then open that up to the required size stated in the instructions. Don't just drill the larger size as your drill is likely to slip and damage the roof of your vehicle. 

When installing the legs, ensure you use plenty of silicone to stop any water coming through the holes you have drilled. If nutserts are used, silicone around the edges and where the bolt goes. As the bolt is screwed into place the silicone will fill any small gaps there may be to ensure that your racks mounts are water tight. Install both legs finger tight, making sure that all bolts will easily turn. This will help reduce the chances of any issues arising such as spinning nutserts as you can see if pressure is being put on the bolts unnecessarily. Once happy, tighten all bolts to the stated strength and then add the roof rack tray on top. 

There you go! Done! 

To fit the DARCHE Hi View roof tent, we firstly prepped the tent (installed the ladder, the mounting rails etc) then using the Front Runner Tent Mounting Kit we placed the tent on to the rack. The Tent Mount Kit lifts the tent just high enough to clear the shallow lip around the edge of the rack allowing for clearance whilst opening and using the tent. This is attached to the rack using the M8 bolts provided. Tamperproof nuts can be used instead of the standard nuts provided for additional security if you require.

Check out one that we have recently fitted in the images below. If you are interested in installing a roof rack to your vehicle, please contact us to discuss the options available. Call 01751 430693 or email info@trekoverland.com.