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Warping of Roof Rail Plastic covers

18K views 42 replies 23 participants last post by  A440 
#1 ·
I own a 2015 Subaru Outback since March 2015. I May, as the weather warmed up, I noticed that the plastic covers on the roof rails started lifting away from the roof at least an 1/8 - 1/4 inch. Usually occurred during midday when the sun warmed the top of car. On closer inspection, the gap occurred at what appeared to be a seam in the plastic roof rail cover.

I brought to dealer and they agreed to replace the roof rails and plastic covers. When the new roof rails arrived, the dealer noticed that the the new roof rail covers had the same warp as the old ones, so they decided not to install the new ones and instead glued the old ones in place. I picked up the car and the glue held for two days, then they pulled away again.

I have informed the dealer that in my opinion, the roof rail covers were not manufactured properly and that Subaru probably has a bad batch. They tried to convince me that most 2015 Subarus had the same warping and that this is normal. I do not buy this argument.

I personally looked at a few new and older Subaru Outbacks, and they do not have the warping problem.

Has anyone had the same experience ?
 
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#2 ·
I haven't noticed warping but did notice that I can move it/lift it a bit if I wanted to. So there can be some separation. I don't think it's supposed to be glued down but if it ever does warp I may just get some gorilla glue and try to fix it myself.
 
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#3 ·
They tried to convince me that most 2015 Subarus had the same warping and that this is normal. I do not buy this argument
I believe what they told you is probably true (that it's normal), BUT, it's total BS that that's the case! Mine has the exact same warping. I noticed it several weeks ago. It's just an inferior piece of equipment IMHO and Subaru should admit to it.

Andy
 
#8 ·
During the last 3 weeks, we have driven through Needles CA when the high that day was 116, through Flagstaff Arizona, Albuquerque and Santa Fe New Mexico, and west Texas where the daily high was in the high 90s to the low 100s. The OB was outside either on the road or in the parking lot of the hotel every day except for 3 nights in Flagstaff. Fortunately, I did not notice any such warping.
 
#9 ·
Geeeze.... Not just ugly and impractical, but warp too!!!! Plastic crap. Thanks for the heads up. I'm visiting Florida in a few weeks and will be watching these rails for warpage (or melting!!!).
 
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#10 ·
I'm trying to figure out what's "warping". I looked over the rails in detail while polishing/waxing our 2015 yesterday and couldn't figure it out, what could loosen up, etc.
 
#11 ·
I can't take a picture (car is out of town with wife), but I can explain where the warping is. Think of the plastic of the rails coming down and connecting to the roof as a skirt. If I run my hand (or eye of course) along the edge of the plastic where it connects and seals to the roof, there will suddenly be a bulge (or ripple) outward, creating the gap that Strato mentioned.

In my case, the bulge isn't quite at the seam, but close to it. I just wonder if the skirt is supported underneath in some sections, but not in 'that' particular section. If that's the case, I'm sure most of them will bulge out in the same exact spot. It's most certainly a design flaw.

Andy
 
#14 ·
Here is an update on this issue. Car in to dealer again this morning for an oil change and discussion with the Service manager about this warped Roof rail cladding.

Service manager agrees it's a problem, but has no solution other than ordering a second new roof rail kit and hoping it will be better than the first replacement they tried which was no better than the original.

While I was at the dealer I checked all 2015 Outbacks on the lot, new and used, and none had the defect. My guess, they have a bad batch of roof rail cladding that are still in the parts system.

Will wait until new kit arrives and is installed to see if it solves problem this time.

BTW, 2014 and older models have a different, more solid cladding. Looks like Subaru went to cheaper solution.
 
#15 ·
So the rails are not sealed to the roof so just keep that in mind they sit on the roof and the bolts are sealed so if they have a gap etc it won't cause an issue. However with high speeds and various gear on the roof rack the rubber pad between the roof and the rail might vibrate and sound like angry bees. The fix is just a little pea sized blob of gasket sealer between the plastic rack and the rubber pad to keep the pad from flapping in the breeze.

These racks are just 3rd party parts they are probably used on several vehicles not just the OB so I doubt they are perfectly fit to any specific vehicle given they don't need to be exact in the sense of issues with water etc given they do not seal to the roof. The only points sealed are the bolts.
 
#16 ·
No noise coming from my roof rails, they just look like a terrible fit for the contours of the outback roof due to the thin plastic cladding and what seems to be an obvious issue with the manufacturing process they are using for the cladding moulds. The cladding mould has to be specific to the 2015 Outback since the roof contours are specific to this year and model. I am sure they are manufactured by a third party and probably have a batch that are out of spec. As I mentioned, the 2014 roof rail cladding is much more sturdy.

Will wait until Subaru comes clean on this issue.
 
#17 ·
Noticed this on my 2016 outback when I picked it up. The sun was shining on it, and the plastic was obviously expanding and warping at the seam. It disappeared after the test drive, but comes back in similar conditions. Plastic expands a good deal with heat, and something in the way these are formed or attached causes this. I did make mention of it, but unless there is a positive repair I don't want extra fiddling with the car. I am interested to see if you get an acceptable repair/replacement. I liken this "defect" to vinyl siding, if not installed right it can warp terribly in the hot sun. Even if done right, if it heats up unevenly there are times you may be able to see some warp. After a time in the sun it did lay down evenly, but I do not remember seeing this issue on my 2011. Personally I would like a roof rail delete, or much smaller units.
 
#21 ·
Heat will cause it to expand and contract also. Only fix would be to use a totally different rail which doesn't contain so much plastic. Nothing thats going to be fixed anytime soon nor is it anything critical regarding the car or the rack. Its just thin plastic that expands and contracts and gets cranked down to a roof thats not flat etc thus you get bends and such in the plastic sides of the rail. Not condoning it but were talking about a AWD wagon that is cheaper than anything else in its class. If you want perfection and a well built AWD wagon this size you need to up your budget.
 
#36 ·
#39 ·
I've hauled some crazy stuff on my stock rack far more than the average Subaru owner also. It works fine and to be honest the only good complaint I've seen is when someone with a clamp style snow board holder couldn't get his boards clamped due to the spacing between the rails and his bindings.

This crazy enough?
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I don't get it. Why is it crazy?
 
#37 ·
Has anyone had the same experience ?
My 2016 is a few weeks old, and I recently noticed some warping of the passenger side rail gasket at the inside middle. The warpage was about a foot long, with the center raised about a quarter inch. The gasket is about the size and flexibility of a windshield wiper rubber blade, larger and less rigid than the one on my wife's 2013 Outback.

I stopped at the dealer and the service manager took a look at it, grabbed the rail housing, and clicked it into place. Warping disappeared. He said he has seen a few like mine. We'll see if it remains fixed.
 

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#38 ·
After reading this, I checked our 2015 delivered on June 15th out and YES, the driver's side rail on the inside was warped and lifted up about .25"..........I pressed it back, the cover clicked and it's back in place but I'm aware now so will keep an eye on it.

Have to go to the dealer in several weeks to get my free oil change and will point the problem out to the service manager when I check in.....

Feels like the material thickness of the covers is too thin to be stable during hi heat conditions as we had this summer...and we're in NH.

Steve
 
#41 ·
Definitely. This is why the stock Outback rack sucks. Given that I also have a Land Cruiser, a Lexus LX570, and a Lexus RX400h in my garage, I know a little bit about premium vehicles with racks. If it was such a great idea every 'premium' brand would do it. Here is a contrast between 2 weekends with 2 of my cars. Can can get anything on the Thule rack using standard roof rails. Difficult on the Outback.

Should have bought a Crosstrek.
 

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