Roof Cross Bar Installation Easy?

Pitter

Pitter
Contributor
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2020 CX-5 Signature Azul Metalico
I had the roof rails installed a while back and on a couple of occaisions have used some generic cross bars to support long boards but I think I need Mazda's cross bars. First of all as the rails are flush with the roof the generic bars can't grip around them so not really solidly connected. The other thing I realized is they're not high enough that sheet material such as plywood will clear the shark fin antenna. I haven't seen Mazda's bars in person yet but I assume they're high enough that loads clear the antenna. They look like they should be easy to install and uninstall if one doesn't want to drive around with them all the time. Can anybody confirm this? Thanks.
 
This video will show you how high and how straightforward it is to install a genuine Mazda crossbar on the CX5
 
Here is what I recommend.
Have done this to my '17 and recently my '22.

1. put on rails. Don't fully tighten the bolts. Leave a bit play to them.
2. put on the cross bars.
3. fully tighten the bolts on the rails.
4. fully tighten the bolts on the cross bars.
5. snap on the tiny plastic covers.

Point is: if you fully tighten the rails first, you might have a hard time pushing in crossbars between the rails. It happened to my '22.
I had to loosen the bolts on rails to snap on the crossbars.

Maybe yours will fit nicely.
These things are not made with precision...
Good luck.
 
Thank you for those tips. Will be very useful. Since I bought the rails sometime back from Mazda and they installed them I'm hoping that the crossbars, also from Mazda will fit without a lot of tinkering but if they don't I now know what to do. The bars are being shipped down here to Cali from Bogotá and should be at the dealer next week. There are a number of off brands for sale here much cheaper but I don't trust them. There's even an offer from Aliexpress an Alibaba company from China. Imagine sending those back if they didn't fit!
 
Added tip - ditch all the torx screws and replace with 8mm hex bolt, easy peasy with your ratchet, especially if you eve need to remove it
Great idea for those who won't leave anything on rack for any amount of time but...

Anything that makes it easier for you also makes it easier for thieves.

Am installing mine next week. Plan to use a combination of hex, torx and spanner screws to attach roof rack to the rails. May make install and uninstall(when not in use) more difficult for myself but the chances of a thief having all three types of bits on them is slim.

If you're only hauling lumber and stuff from Home Depot, then might not be necessary and makes sense to do the hex bolts. But last thing you want is for your luggage carrier, roof rack and all etc. to disappear on vacation.
For those who need more security and don't mind the extra work to uninstall when not in use, then different fastener heads may be the way to go.
 
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Good idea. I won't be carrying anything more than lumber and sheet materials. I suppose the crossbars themselves could be stolen (especially here where dealers will rivet the badges etc. to the car to avoid theft) but if stolen I don't see them being a hot resale item as while the CX-5 is one of the most popular SUVs I have never seen one with the crossbars.
 
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Phew! Well I wouldn't call it easy because of the location of the screws but it's done. And they're certainly not something I'm going to remove periodically.
 
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