hey guys, trying to get my hands on a surco safari rack.. my parents siblings are fishing my parents for gift ideas, and id like to steer them toward this item that i want but dont wanna pay for

thanks to surco's website (www.surcoinc.com) i know i will need a 50" x 60" rack.

who has one, and how do you like it? did you fit it to the factory rails? any complaints?

im looking to get the light mounts, the hilift jack mount, and the "carry it on" adapter (shovels, etc)... later on when i get 285's or bigger, ill get the spare tire carrier.

where is a good online retailer to get this item from? I found a local shop who is looking into pricing, but i fear the markup on the rack, accessories and shipping costs will drive the price up too high.

im expecting it'll cost somewhere in the neighborhood of 250-400 bucks depending on what i exactly get.

thanks!

 

Hopefully, someone chimes in but I know Firstoy had one for sale awhile back. I was interested so I asked similar questions in regard to setup and he told me it was a direct bolt-on to the stock racks.

 

yea, i know i need the 'thule adapter' to make it fit the factory rails... just seeing if anyone had info on other mounting methods, etc.

thanks!

 

I have one...I used the mounts that mount to the factory rack tracks with screws, not to the cross bars. I think its stronger that way. I like the rack a lot, because its really light, really strong, and fairly inexpensive...BUT, you cannot carry anything small in it because the floor of it sucks. If youre only gonna carry a tire, and then get the accessories for shovels, etc, then it will suit you fine, but it wont hold smaller gas cans well, or anything else small. you can easily fix that though by making your own floor out of that crosshatch steel screen stuff or something like that. Also, dont waste you money on the light mounts, make your own. its easy. oh, and I put my tire up in mine without the "tire carrier" thing....I just got a small chain and locked it down and it never moved. -Alex

 

thanks alex. surco actually makes a 'floor board' kit... i saw it in a catalog, but cant seem to find it elsewhere. ill ask the store that i saw the catalog at about it and try to get a price/part number.

 

sweet...sounds good.

 

Hi there, I know your asking about the Safari rack but I have the Urban rack. I bought this a little over a year ago and had no issues with it yet. The size I got was 50x60 I think and it fits just from the moon roof to back and I had to get the Track mounts to attach it to my OEM roof rails. I have mounted two pairs of lights on it, one pair on the front and one on the back, and like 6lug said, you can fab up the brackets pretty easy without having to pay $45 bucks for it.

 

I've gotten my surco stuff here:

http://www.everythingsuv.com/

Prices are competitive (not the best, but decent), customer service is GREAT! I have the 40x45 basket and I think the fit is perfect - I would not want the 50" one personally. I have it mounted to thule bars/thule feet/factory rails - it's a great setup for me. I also have the light tabs, the hi-lift mount, and the spare tire carrier.

The light mounts are pretty basic - nothing fancy. But they do leave bolts exposed, which from my experience, caused A TON of wind noice over 40mph. I got a Thule fairing to shield the bolts, and it made all the difference in the world. No way could I have lived with it without the fairing.

The spare tire carrier is very nice - I highly recommend it over a DIY type mount. Easy to mount, easy to use, and lockable.

The hi-lift mount is ok. Is solid and secure, but it uses 3 bolts to mount the jack to the brackets. That means you have to use tools to take the jack down/put it up. You could probably pick up some wingnuts or soemthing and tweak it pretty easily so the jack can be taken down without tools, I just never got around to it.

The basket itself is just what I was expecting - a light, affordable, light-duty safar basket. It's great for carrying gas cans, tool boxes, camping gear, or a spare tire. Anything more than that really taxes the joints.

With all that said, I'll be selling my stuff if I can ever get it dug out of the garage and get some pics taken. I know you said you were hoping the family would get it for you for Christmas, but I can probably cut you a good deal on my stuff if you're interested.

 

i am interested indeed.. very interested!

they were just gonna pay me back for it, since they have no clue what to get or where, so this works just fine.

are you selling now? pm me your price and shipping cost and we will discuss

 

I can sell it now. Let me get home and give everything a once-over. The rack and the light tabs are pretty well used. They are still solid and reliable, but they do show a bit of wear and tear. The hi-lift mount and the spare tire carrier are in good shape. I'll try to remember to take some pics tonight and we can talk. I think you're only about 5 hours from me... perhaps we could meet half-way (would be cheaper than shipping it if you can find the time).

Anyways... I'll try to get some pics off to you tonight along with a price. Are you interested in everything (the 40x45 basket, the spare tire rack, the hi-lift mount, and 3 pairs of light tabs)? I can include a set of thule bars and the mounts for them as well for a few extra bucks if you're interested in those.

 

if youd be willing to meet me, i will of course fund your gas

thanks, send me the info on everything (ill see what i can afford) and ill get back to ya

 

lee:

here ya go:

 

thanks andy, yea ive seen those pics (big fan of his runner to begin with)...

thats exactly the rack setup i want.

 

i have this rack....its awesome. you really dont need anything else.

dont waste your money on all the accessory mounts. do them yourself.

ive got my hi-lift, spare tire, and 11 lights on there, DIY, and they work out great. if you want some pics, i could go snap some. but seriously, those mounts, unless you can get them for cheap are a waste of money.

 

Another thing to think about with the size is that 50"x60" is HUGE. My rack is either 40"x45" or 45"x50" and in my opinion fits the 4runner well as far as width and length are concerned. Maybe somebody else can chime on the best size, but I think the 50x60 will be too long and too wide (even though that is what surco recommends).

 

cool, yea, jackson has the 40 x 45 one... and it looks like exactly what i want. 50x60 was what surco said i needed, but i guess they werent taking into account that i might have a sunroof.

 

I bought mine for my old 2nd from waskillywabbit and loved it. I agree, I wouldn't waste your money on the mounts, just do it yourself...you'll save a LOT of money. The spare tire carrier is like $60.

Anyway, awesome product!

Fink

 

I used to have one on my 4Runner but took it off when gas prices hit the roof after the hurricanes. I bought mine as jacksonpt said from everythingsuv.com. My only complaints is the "boards" are very flimsy and weak, but I'm sure if I could get some aluminum sheets and paint it black it would be much stronger. I would definitely buy the light mounts, spare tire mounts, and hi lift jack mounts from them as my own custom mounts were much more of a hassle than it was worth. Other than the wind noise (which can probably be fixed by the mentioned Thule adapter) and the flimsy board I like it.