Thule Force Rooftop Cargo Box

Lightweight and easy to install or remove, this rooftop carrier has been a great addition for road trips. I expected a bigger hit to fuel mileage, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought. It’s practical, convenient, and does exactly what it’s supposed to do without being a hassle. Would definitely recommend if you need the extra storage space.

Caja Thule XT Forcé 3 excelente construcción y tamaño L es perfecto fácil de instlar, una súper compra.

Initially, I ordered 'way too long of a box for my BMW X5. Sending it back was a snap. The right size box is great, and will be roomy for our 3 day trip to my summer home. Locking system is a bit flimsy, but probably is ok as it has to engage 3' away from the lock. I like it.

So when this came on a truck, I went outside to see if the delivery guy needed a hand. He said no, it was lite. He wasn't kidding. So you unbox this, pull it out and go oh boy. As a previous reviewer stated, it is very thin plastic as the top shell. Now I have a Thule carrier that's over 40 years old. If I dropped it off the top of my Chevy Traverse, nothing will happen. It's double wall construction like a hard cooler. This is more like one of those blue storage bins. Definitely try not to drop it. Not sure how the top will do.So it's real simple to get up on the car for it being so lite. The old one is a two man job struggling. Once on your rails, you open the clips with the dial and grab your roof rail like a claw. Super easy to use. It also slides a little so you don't need to adjust your roof rails (some may have too depending). I had my rails to fit my old one which was bigger than this, so no adjustment needed.Opening it is a bit tricky. The key doesn't go in as smooth as a normal key. Why, no idea. It has that big plastic knob which you turn to open it from either side. Opening is easy. Closing, just make sure you have it aligned correctly otherwise it won't close properly.We filled it for a softball tournament down in Virginia from New Jersey about 353 miles away. I had 3 folding camp chairs 2 stadium seats, a sportbrella, beach umbrella, little table, small suitcase, carry on, small duffle bag, air bed and some towels. Still had plenty of room. Went back in the house and realized there wasn't much left to put in the car. Anyway, I used the included straps and tied things down since another reviewer showed a pic of the top of this ripping off. Hopefully nothing would get blown around if that happened.We left and prayed. Firstly, you really don't hear this while driving which is a bonus. Once I used one of those bag types and it just flapped the entire trip. Drove me nuts. No noticeable noise here.As for gas mileage, a traverse gets about 22 miles per gallon on a highway. We averaged about 20.4 so not much drag. Mind you, this was almost full, trunk full, and 6 people in the car so you may get more if you were smart and didn't have four kids who are all teenagers now.Surprisingly, no issues with this at all. Held up great. It rained most of the way down, completely dry inside. I do like the fact it opens from both side so you just open your door and step up. You will have to close it, go to the other side and open it in order to load/unload.I was able to take it off by myself when we got back. Just need another person to put it wherever you want to store it.All in all, I was pleasantly surprised and relieved that it did so well. I am happy with this purchase. Amazon had the best price on it. I researched a bunch of these and decided on spending more on this than other brands hoping the quality was there. So far, it is.I have another tournament in South Carolina that this thing needs to come with. I'll update after that trip and let you know how it's holding up. Hope this helps.

Huge! Easy to install, and durable.

REVISED REVIEW 7/9/2024I decided to keep the carrier. Also, since there are so many questions related to fitting the unit to many different SUV's and Cars here are photographs which should assist you in determining if it will fit.PHOTO 1 Thule roof racks mounted on the the Subaru Outback.PHOTO 2 The Crossbars are Thule Aeroblades and are mounted at approx. 26" o.c. This distance seems to suit the Thule XL carrier. It is very stable at highway speeds (80+) when the clamps are tightened.PHOTO 3 Shows the clamp pushed forward as far as it will go. The center of the clamp knob is 3.5" back from the maximum forward position. Since the clamps are all the same - the distance from the rear of the adjustment slot to the center of the clamp will be 3.5"PHOTO 4 The maximum spacing between the clamps is 44" (This is when the clamps are pushed to the limits of the slots.Mounting on the Outback: This XL is long (see Thule's website). Care must be taken to permit the rear hatch to completely open without hitting the cargo carrier's rear end. Care must also be taken to limit the amount of overhang of the roof at the windshield. When in doubt limit the rear mounting distance to allow the rear hatch to fully open/close.My four star rating is based on customer support at Thule and the design limitation which only approves storage in the horizontal plane. Since the unit cannot be stored vertically it requires a lot of floor space that many, if not most, of us simply do not have.3/13/2024 After consideration - I have found a place to store the XT-XL cargo carrier. It is outside in my backyard on concrete lintels. Theft is a concern but an acceptable risk. I changed the stars from 3 to 4. For a comprehensive review read the information below.I bought this after using a friend's Thule. I took a 4200 mile trip out to Colorado and Utah. It has plenty of room for my camping equipment and some of my personal clothing and toiletries. It was very quiet. I was not able to detect any appreciable wind noise. I like the fact that can be opened from either side.I had intended to store it vertically in my shed. I was disappointed to see that Thule does not want this unit stored vertically. Now I have to rethink the entire storage issue. Thule has a suspension system that allows the unit to be stored off the floor. It is a series of cables and pulleys. Requires attaching the lifting cables to the ceiling joists. I wish that Thule's advertising stated that this unit could not be stored vertically. Not entirely sure how I will solve this problem.On 1/18/2024 I spoke with Evan at Thule's Support Line hoping that Thule had suggestions on how to solve this issue. While he was friendly he was not very helpful. He confirmed that Thule does not approve of vertical storage by standing it up on end or by clamping it to a wall using the internal clamping system.I have re-considered my review and changed it from 5 Stars to 3 Stars. BEWARE - Thule's website does not advise or publish this information on their website. Given the nature of my situation re: storage, I will probably be returning this unit. It is too expensive to risk damage for a failure on the part of the manufacturer's design restricting the product's use for vertical storage of any type. Evan was quick to point out that doing so would void the warranty. Thule is not helpful in solving this dilemma. Lest you think that I am simply a grumpy old man just venting; I take these reviews seriously. I will avoid Thule products in the future. Evan's only comment was "Yakima" has the same restrictions. On balance, should you be able to store the unit horizontally, you should be fine.Thule and Yakima can, with their design resources solve this issue with little additional cost to increase the load ratings thus allowing their clamps to support the horizontal loads imposed by vertical storage. This failure speaks volumes about their company's values and lack of interest to assist owners of their products.As a company in an increasingly competitive world, Thule has failed in three important areas: 1. Initial Design 2. Failure to warn customers of 'material' limitations 3. Unwillingness to redesign the product and assist customers with solutions to legitimate concerns.The Thule mounting system is very simple and adjusts to just about any configuration of lateral roof bars. I have Thule Aeroblade mounted on my Outback. Just tighten the four knobs inside the carrier until they click. You are then good to go.I do recommend a small folding step stool if you have an SUV or similar vehicle. Also mount the unit off center to allow easy access from the passenger side. This unit is large. It takes up the space between the rear hatch to the windshield.Just finished a trip to Nashville and the weather on the drive down was very windy. This unit did add to the wind drag and rocking of the car. It was not unsafe. But you should anticipate rocking of the car in winds above 20 mph.Good product. Amazon price was good. I like it but I will be returning it for the above stated reasons.