Reviews for Garvin 44074 Wilderness Expedition Rack for 07-18 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited JK 4 Door
Folds back for roof removal.
Very solid rack, and straightforward to assemble and install. Pre-assembly I managed myself in about two hours (including drilling), and only installing the rack basket took some help.
Trickiest part is installing the rear mounts after drilling. There are several small backing plates to hold together at the same time while fixing nuts etc, so be prepared to curse a bit and make sure you have a stubby ratchet at hand for getting into the tail lamp recess.
Rack is very stable on the road and has plenty of room.
Potential buyers should be aware that the Sunrider for Hardtop, and I assume a full soft top in Sunrider mode, will not work with this rack as there is not enough room under the rack for the Sunrider when open. Once the rack basket is off however, the front supports do not interfere with the Sunrider.
there were issues with getting all the parts as the flooring was never shipped but the guys at quadratec, especially, Bailey, moved heaven and earth to get things sorted out. Installation was pretty simple, but drilling the holes in my Jeep was kinda scary. However the instructions and the video made it less traumatic. The rack is very sturdy and very heavy. It does make a lot of noise when driving but that's to be expected. I would strongly recommend this rack to anyone who is shopping around.
Measure twice, drill once, well it was measure 10 times drill once. The instructions were nicely done. I found putting everything together in a large area made it easier to understand. I have had many Wranglers but never needed a rack. Took longer than the three hours but that was me being extremely cautious. Been on for two months now, raised and lowered a few times with a fair amount of ease. Loaded Kayaks and items nicely. I would suggest a two inch higher clearance on the front rack mount to clear the freedom panels better. Need a better bracket / system to hold in place while lifted. Best choice for what we needed it to do.
JC - OBXSOX - Rubicon 2017
Looks good went together as instructed. Watched the install video 3 times to make sure I measured correctly before drilling the holes.
I have had my Expedition Rack for about 9 years. AWESOME quality. It is TOUGH and extremely versatile. Only negative is that I have AEV bumper so rack won’t tilt as shown so the only way to take top off is 2 people lift and slide out and the Rack is very sturdy and also very heavy. It makes your Jeep a true utility vehicle that can easily haul lumber, Kayaks or set your tent up on top. 4 stars because it won’t lay back as designed.
Installation was not difficult but make sure to measure twice or three times before drilling! Generates a LOT of wind noise. The wind deflector accessory definitely helps but wind noise is still louder than I would prefer. Biggest disappointment is that after 6 months on my JK, I am already seeing rust on the ends of some frame parts and other areas...this is NOT GOOD nor what I would expect from an expensive rack! I will be bringing this to the attention of Garvin. And no, I did not ding up or scratch any of the parts that are now rusting through which is even more frustrating.