Sherpa Roof Rack
Sherpa Roof Racks Review
Sherpa Equipment Co was born in Colorado with one purpose in mind: disrupt the roof rack industry with a series of racks that were seriously built for off road abuse. To make that they needed better, stronger and thicker materials. Well, they have delivered.
With aircraft aluminum grade side plates, their roof racks are thicker and stronger than most of those from the competition. Their side plates or panels are ¼” thick, which is quite impressive. On top of that, they all come with a special designed rubber feet or seals, that go between the rack’s panels and the vehicle’s roof. This protects the roof from vibration and rattling on off road trails, avoiding any damage as well as any water leaking in and rusting the rack or roof.
As you can see on our Sherpa roof rack video review, the quality and design is out of question. We visited the Sherpa Equipment Co booth at the Overland Expo West, had a chance to speak to the staff as well as thoroughly inspect their roof racks, and trust us, quality is out of question. Whether you own a 4Runner, Tacoma, FJ Cruiser, Sequoia, Ford or other vehicles, Sherpa should be one of the first rack brands you look for.
Best Sherpa Equipment Racks
In this collection we will briefly introduce some of the best Sherpa Equipment Racks. We will take a look at their Toyota 4Runner platform racks, as well as other systems for the Tacoma and GX470. Sherpa does manufacture cargo rack systems for other vehicles, and they are as great in quality and craftmanship, we only chose these given they are perhaps the most popular models!
The Crestone: Sherpa Roof Rack 4Runner 5th Gen
The Crestone: Sherpa’s Toyota 4Runner 5th Gen Roof Rack, an authentic work of art built for the elements. With a 700 lbs static load rating, you know that really heavy off road gear can go on your Sherpa rack and nothing, I repeat nothing can rattle it, pun intended.
Thanks to rubber seals under the aircraft grade aluminum side panels (which are ¼” thick), this rack can sustain a real off-road abuse and no water, dust or any other thing should go between the legs and roof. These same seals will protect the roof of your 4Runner from rattling, scratches or any other potential damage.
This long platform roof rack comes with 9 crossbars or slats, all of which can be easily added or removed from the side of the rack itself by simply unbolting them. Each slat or crossbar has an inner channel where aftermarket rack accessories can be added, such as MaxTrax mounts, or roof top tent mounts.
Needless to say, thanks to the great load rating, this overlanding roof rack will enable you to carry a roof top tent over it without any trouble. The long footprint makes it even ideal for hard shell roof top tents.
The Matterhorn: Sherpa Roof Rack 3rd Gen 4Runner
The Matterhorn, that’s the name of This Sherpa Roof Rack for a 3rd Gen 4Runner. They also have the Antero, which is a shorter rack, half rack to be precise, for those looking for a shorter footprint.
The Matterhorn roof rack is ideal for any Toyota 4Runner from the 1996 to the 2002 version. As usual with any Sherpa roof rack it’s made with aircraft grade aluminum side panels, both of them ¼” thick, and it comes with the choice of either a full height wind fairing, or a half height fairing so you can install a light bar on the front of it. The rack can be either fully powder coated in black for a slick look, or leave it in bare aluminum for a tougher raw outcome.
Installation is quite simple, thanks to a drill free mounting. Just bolt the platform rack onto the existing mounting points of your 3Rd Generation 4Runner. The load rating of this roof rack is of 200 lbs dynamic and 600 lbs static, so when you are parked. That’s more than enough for the largest roof top tents in the market, as well as for any overlanding equipment.
Sherpa The Teton Toyota Tacoma Roof Rack
Sherpa has a few different roof rack options for a Toyota Tacoma, from the Access Rack to the Camper Rack, you’ll find what you need. The Grand Teton is the ideal Tacoma rack from Sherpa for a double rack Tacoma 3rd gen from the 2005 to the 2022 version.
This Sherpa roof rack for Tacoma comes with an impressive 400 lbs of dynamic weight capacity and a 700 lbs of static weight capacity. Quality is out of question, with a lifetime warranty and top notch materials all made in USA, this Sherpa Tacoma rack is one of the best in the entire market.
Make sure that you increase the cargo carrying capacity of your Taco with this aftermarket roof rack. Thanks to the 7 crossbars that go in the rack, you have quite enough space to carry a roof top tent, an LED light bar, kayaks, or other overlanding gear. Finally, the low profile of the rack itself, makes it incredibly aerodynamic and it will not be as noisy as other rack systems!
Sherpa Roof Rack GX470
Yes we know there is a newer version for this vehicle, but the truth is that the Lexus GX470 has become a sort of cult vehicle. People are increasingly looking for them for off road or overlanding purposes and guess what? It’s one of Sherpa’s best selling roof racks.
A long and wide overlanding platform rack, the Sherpa roof rack for GX470 is built to last. Made in USA with the benchmark Sherpa quality materials: aircraft grade aluminum for the side panels, both which are ¼” thick, which is more than the competition. Thanks to rubber seals, rattling noise is reduced to the bare minimum.
On top of all that an outstanding 700 lbs of static weight capacity pretty much certifies this as one of the top overlanding racks in the market. Built for off-road abuse. Literally abuse. That’s Sherpa’s purpose: to manufacture roof racks that can take a serious beating without affecting your vehicle in any way.
And when we mean that it won’t affect your Lexus GX470, well it’s not only the rattling or the roof, but the wind noise and fuel consumption. The notorious slim and low profile design will cut through the wind like a sharp blade, barely making any noise as you drive.
Sherpa Accessories
An aftermarket rack might not be complete without some rack accessories, don’t you think? Well, you can order any Sherpa rack with a half-height wind deflector which leaves a space for an LED light bar. Therefore, you can start from there. Alternatively, you can get some of their useful after-market rack accessories, such as the roof top tent mount, the Sherpa Smiley, or a few others. This section will go over two of the many rack accessories, but if you’re interested in more just scroll all the way down this page to find all the accessories we have available for your Sherpa Equipment roof rack.
Sherpa Awning Mounts
The Sherpa awning mounts are one of their best rack accessories or add-ons. Not only will they allow you to easily mount an awning to your rack, but there incredibly smart design will let you easily mount a roof top tent and awning at the same time without them colliding or being a complete pain in the butt to mount them.
These awning mounts are a sort of hook shape, that stick out from the side panel of your rack, and are perfect for mounting any side awning, and keeping it at least 1 or even 1.5 inches away from the tent, it any.
These Sherpa awning mounts will work with almost any awning brand in the market. Just be aware they will NOT work with a 270 degree awning or batwing awning, only and exclusively side awnings. For longer awnings, you want to take a look at the HD awning brackets.
Sherpa Handle Light Brackets
We personally love these handle light brackets, they are small, affordable and smartly engineered. Why? Well they are extremely versatile.
The main point of these handle light brackets is for you to install them onto the handle of the Sherpa roof racks. Also, there is a seamless integration with Baja designs Rock Lights, and you can even try to mount to them other rock lights from other brands.
Suddenly, you can have the side panels of your rack, as well as the handles lit, not only providing some much-needed light on any camping setup, but also just lighting up the sides of your rack for whenever you need to reach up and grab something from it. See them as a safety and practical add-on!
Sherpa Roof Rack FAQs
How much weight can Sherpa racks carry?
Sherpa roof racks can handle an outstanding 300 lbs of dynamic weight capacity (when the vehicle is in motion), and an even greater 700 lbs static weight capacity (when the car is parked). This means their load rating is great and can literally carry any type of gear, from kayaks, to roof top tents.
Does a Sherpa rack come with warranty?
Yes, all Sherpa Equipment Co roof racks come with a lifetime warranty.
How complex is a Sherpa roof rack installation?
Installation is not complex, but we do recommend the help of at least one more person. Sherpa racks don’t require any drilling, meaning it’s a faster and even easier installation process. However, you do need to bolt them and tighten them over the existing factory roof mounting points.
Where are Sherpa Equipment Co racks manufactured?
Sherpa Equipment Co is a Colorado based company, and all their roof racks are USA made.
Prinsu vs Sherpa roof rack, which one is better?
This is a very common question and a difficult answer. Both racks have a very similar design, low profiled, with an easy slat/crossbar mounting and removal solution, made in USA and capable of holding lots of weight.
Sherpa definitely can handle a larger weight capacity thanks to the aircraft grade aluminum side panel which is stronger and thicker.
Nonetheless, Prinsu does have some additional aftermarket accessories, and the price point is slightly more affordable.
In the end it comes down to you what you prefer, but both are excellent roof racks!
Are Sherpa offroad racks noisy?
Not at all. Sherpa racks are actually very low profile, and come with an included wind deflector, which helps cut the wind and reduce the noise a lot. Yes, we are looking at a roof rack, which means there will always be some noise and some whistling sound, but out of all the platform roof racks out there, Sherpa is amongst those making less noise.
All Sherpa Roof Racks
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