How to Stop Roof Rack Wind Noise?

Wind Noises that your rack produces are not only annoying and irritating but can also put your mind off the road. While distracting you, can cause a delay in your reaction time and lead to a situation, that you never planned to be in.

I hope you find these tips helpful in understanding How to Stop Roof Rack Wind noise, and if you have success with them be sure to pass it on!

The simple rule of thumb to make your yelling roof rack quiet is to disrupt the air passing over the car. Along with inspecting, its contact points and the installation. Doing this quickly can make your journey more peaceful. But how to do it? Let’s get into the details;

How to Stop Roof Rack Wind Noise – Getting Started

1. Tighten the Roof Rack

Doing minor changes, and adding a few accessories is enough to stop your roof rack from making noises, but this is not always needed. You need to choose right roof bike rack and inspect it before moving on to any other method.

Check out all the bolts and nuts, and ensure whether they are tightened properly or not. If not, then better to check out the rack’s response after fixing it. Not only bolts but also look out for the tightness of the crossbars overall.

When putting the cargo on, it should also be tightened properly, as any of the loose parts can become a reason for your rack to roar. However, if you still feel the problem is there, then move on to applying the following methods.

2. Get the Wind Deflectors

The very first thing that you are supposed to do is to get a plastic shield called a wind deflector or fairing and attach it to the front crossbar.

The aerodynamic shape of the deflector makes the airflow divert, eventually stopping the wind noise. Though in some cases it does not eliminate the noise completely. You can expect a bit of whistling when driving at a higher speed.

You might also find it vibrating at a higher speed, which can be stopped by setting it higher on the roofline of your car. Further, it also depends on the quality of the wind deflectors.

You should only be investing in a high-quality wind deflector and get it only from a reputable brand. When going out you will find them in multiple sizes and quality. Getting only the one, whose size is compatible with your car is going to be effective only.

There are also options for universal wind deflectors, so if you are struggling to find the one for your car model, you can think of them as well. A good universal wind deflector made up of high quality and does not vibrate can be bought at 100-150$.

3. Pad Your Cross Bars

Being on a budget or unable to grab a wind deflector, should not keep you from hearing those annoying noises. Here’s a budget way for you to practice.

Grab the crossbar pads from Amazon or anywhere, and use them to cover the smooth metal surfaces of your crossbar. This way, you will make the bars rounded, which will not let the noise production be as aggressive as it was producing before.

The other benefit of using a pad on your crossbar is to keep them protected and safe, while not exposing it to the external environment a lot. You can get the best one at 30-40$ only.

DORSAL Crossbar is the most recommended one from my side because of its nylon construction, durability, ease of use, UV resistant high-density foam. You should try it out to get relief from wind noises.

The point to remember is that it is not as effective as a wind deflector could be. At a very high speed, you can expect a little bit of noise production. Though, not to worry, If you always drive at an optimal speed and do not accelerate aggressively.

4. Wrap the roof rack

Well, even if you are not interested to spend even 30-40 dollars on the crossbar pads, still I have covered you.

You can get Bungee cords and wrap them around the roof rack from one end to another. keeping it in a spiral pattern. The cord should be at least five feet long to have minimum space when wrapping the cord. You will be amazed to see how this small modification can help you stop roof rack noise instantly.

Wrapping the paracord around the crossbar can also deflect the wind flow and eventually reduce the wind noise.  The best thing about both of them is that they do not cost you a fortune, you just need to spend a few bucks and the problem will fade away.

Moreover, they can be solely used but I recommend not to only rely on them. Better to use it along with the other methods to get the more effective results at the end of the day.

5. Use Edge Bars

 When it comes to the bars, there are 2 types including the edge bar and the load bar. I would suggest switching to the edge bar as they are aerodynamically designed, hence their shape diverts the airflow, not producing wind noises.

But here’s a catch;

You will not be able to use them for heavier cargo as they are shorter in surface area and cannot bear a lot of weight. So you should only use them if you can bear with that.

On the other hand, the load bars are capable of bearing heavier weight objects, but due to their larger surface area and square space, they tend to produce more sound.  If you can’t switch to the edge bar, you can use a wind deflector and crossbar pad to reduce the wind noise of your load bars.

6. Get Aerodynamic Crossbar

Well, if you don’t want to get into the hustle of applying any of the previously mentioned methods, you can just have an aerodynamic crossbar. An aerodynamic crossbar is specifically designed to deal with the same problem, and its design ensures you do not hear the wind noise anymore.

Though, not everyone has the luxury to afford these crossbars as they are quite expensive. But if you can, you should grab it without any second thought.

Here are a few recommended ones;

• Thule AeroBlade Edge Flush Mount Rack
• YAKIMA – JetStream Bar Aerodynamic Crossbars

Final Thoughts on Roof Rack Wind Noise

The core to stop the wind noise is to divert the airflow, which can be done by using multiple methods. Let it be using a wind deflector, crossbar pad, or cord on the rack. You have the privilege to choose any of the methods as per your budget and noise intensity.

But to completely eliminate it, and if you have the luxury to afford then I would suggest investing in an aerodynamic crossbar, as it will have the most effective and long-lasting results. Otherwise, the rest of the methods can be of your help as well.