Roof box conundrum

[AudiMan9000]

What roof box best suits a family of 4 on an Audi Q5 Sportback?

Halfords Advanced 470L (£400)

Halfords Advanced 360L (£350)

In the shop, the 470L looked ginormous, but I’m wondering if I’d regret getting the 360L as it’s to accommodate the stuff of two adults and two young kids.

Anyone had experience of these sizes and can suggest whether they found them too big or too small etc?

[MrNoisy]

Without blabbing on for hours about our regular roof box usage I would simply say the bigger the better!

The issue is not when it is on the car but off imho, if you are tight for space at home then a big box can be an issue.

[Deerfoot]

Only you can decide, surely it depends on how much stuff you usually take…

We travel light compared to friends of ours who take st loads of stuff everywhere.

[Mave]

Generally, my advice would be to get the biggest one you can. We got the biggest we could, because if you're going to the faff of attaching something to your roof, why wouldn't you? Sometimes I wish it had even more space. I've never wished it had less...

The only caveat would be to make sure it's not so long that it interferes with opening your boot.

Edited by Mave on Sunday 29th August 08:24

[RammyMP]

I’d go with the suggestion of the biggest you can but the boot on a Q5 is a decent size, we’ve done two one week holidays in the UK in mine, got all luggage for a family of 4 plus beer and food in the boot.

[pherlopolus]

Whatever you get, make sure you get the garage roof storage straps as well... Assuming you have a garage.

We have these...

https://www.roofbox.co.uk/scripts/rbvehsel4_tab.ph...

[rodericb]

A premium motor owned by a discerning gent should have the OE accessory: https://shops.audi.com/en_GB/web/zubehoer/transpor...

[Davie]

I'd agree, assuming you have space to store it then I'd go for the biggest but also one that doesn't whistle / rattle / fall apart but Halfords stuff is generally pretty decent.

I have the use of a big roof box and on family jaunts, it's full but then the massive buggy and small humans bike dominates the boot. That and the more room, the more she packs so it's a bit Catch 22!

I did consider leaving a smaller, thin aero box on 24/7 as the car is usually carrying said buggy and bike and I debated if the roof box would be good for days out - lob the beach stuff up there or the prerequisite huge amount of spare clothes, shoes and general crap my wife and kids can't travel without thus freeing up interior space and eep the car clutter free day to day.

It's like the house, the more space you have the more space you need do go the biggest you can I reckon.

[MrNoisy]

Not trying to teach you to suck eggs but if you’re not in a rush then waiting for the right box second hand is well worthwhile...

We got our ginagarous Thule second hand, 11 miles away for £125.

Coming towards the end of family camping season too.

[Temo_Wil]

Bigger the better in my opinion, just be mindful of the total height though as some car parks have quite low height restrictions.

This is a XXL Thule Motion

[Andeh1]

Yep! Bigger the better, just make sure you know where to store it!

Hoisted up in the garage rafters is a good place, usually enough space underneath it.

[anonymous-user]

AudiMan9000 said:

What roof box best suits a family of 4 on an Audi Q5 Sportback?

Halfords Advanced 470L (£400)

Halfords Advanced 360L (£350)

In the shop, the 470L looked ginormous, but I’m wondering if I’d regret getting the 360L as it’s to accommodate the stuff of two adults and two young kids.

Anyone had experience of these sizes and can suggest whether they found them too big or too small etc?

Send wife and kids in a rental transit and meet them there

[Scrump]

Largest.

[anonymous-user]

Get a Thule , not Halfords rubbish , and aero bars :-)

[Leins]

I went for a Wego Modula 360, very handy for taking extra stuff for the kids when heading on holidays. Opens either side, and takes about five minutes to fit/remove. I tend to try put the heavier luggage in the boot though

I went for aero bars too, which prove a little bit quieter than previous ones I’ve had

[PH User]

You need to figure out how much stuff you really need to take. If you have a big roof box you will likely fill it with stuff you don't actually need. You also need to think about how often you use it, once a year and I wouldn't bother getting anything too expensive.

[Leins]

One other point worth considering is height. With my 360L box on a Qashqai it was just under 2.1M total height, which meant it got under a lot of car park restrictions. Not sure how tall a Q5 is though, and with my XC90 it makes no difference anyway

[JC 73]

If you are thinking of buying from Halfords I hope your experience is better than mine. The one I wanted wasn’t in stock locally but they promised a next day delivery for an online order which was Monday before going on the Wednesday. I got a tracking update to say it had been dispatched on the Sunday. After it not arriving on the Monday I got in touch with their customer services who said they have a 48hr SLA for updates which meant they would provide an update after we needed to go. I never got the update, it never arrived and they cancelled my order a week after when I needed the roof box for. At least they provided a refund without me having to chase but it did mean we ended up having to take 2 cars to the festival of speed earlier this yr.

[the-sharpener]

How about a small trailer?

Far easier to fit and take off and you can throw any ste in it


A roof box is a faff and it will end up being a permeant feature

[PH User]

the-sharpener said:

How about a small trailer?

Far easier to fit and take off and you can throw any ste in it


A roof box is a faff and it will end up being a permeant feature

Pros and cons with roof boxes vs a trailer that the OP would need to look into. Roof boxes are pretty easy and quick to fit though.