The big front runner does look good especially with that back ladder (lucky8?), but for me i don't think I'm going to go through the risk/hassle described in this thread. Maybe I'll go with the smaller one that uses the oem rails

 

This is also my plan...just need to make sure I'll still fit in the garage...

 

+1 I just didn’t have access and was wary of applying heat as well. Love the ideas in this thread! Both the bolts had plenty of loctite blue, but on driver you can see that there was a lot of silicone on the bolts (and the brackets for that matter).

All in all, not giving anyone a lesson on using the right tool for the job just sharing what worked for me!

see y’all out there!!

 

I am totally with you on whatever works for you. Myself, being from an aviation background never want to use impact on anything. Reason; aluminum work hardens really quickly. Then you get cracks propagating from the fastener holes. Heat gun and a shield works good for applying heat to a small area. Most modern heat guns have dial in temps. I still cannot get over how long it is taking dealers to get out old rivnuts! Then again, dealing with stripped fasteners is a daily thing in aircraft and success separates the good mechs from the, well...tire changers. Makes it even more firm, I will make adaptors for the factory rails when my Defender eventually gets to the USA.

 

jen - did your dealer say what their repair solution was? I just never repaired mine because the dealer said it was a full invasive body cutting situation. Even though it’s warrantied - I don’t want that extensive of work done. I have a local company that did my rack and they crated a pressure foot mounting for the spot where my bolts were. I’m not inclined to fix it since this solution worked well. Pic below of the rack.

 

Nice rack !!!

 

Hey Bdcrosswhite - if I follow the thread correct you said your rack was a custom proto to compete with Voyager- it looks awesome. Is it available? If so, who’s is it? Thanks.

 

It’s from upTOP (https://www.uptopoverland.com). They’re local to me and wanted to prototype it since there are so few options out there. We did it in the spring but it’s taken a while for them to push it out. Definitely give them a call since it’s not up on the site yet. They can even custom color the rack.

Another plus, it may not have the same look as voyagers, but it’s cheaper and more versatile. They sell all sorts of attachments. I mounted quick release tent mounts and awning bracket to them below.

 

Holy Moly!

I removed my factory rails last night to install the front runner rack and ran into a similar issue but luckily got them all out. I was chuckling at the Front Runner instructions that simply say "remove the land rover rails but be careful not to break anything". I was sitting there thinking so do I take off these black oval flaps? If so how do I get them off? Ended up just breaking them off and possibly also breaking my rails when trying to pull them off. 💁

I sat down thinking I could knock this all out in two hours and ended up taking two hours just to "carefully" get the rails off of the defender. I did a fair amount of research before buying Front Runner but didn't realize that Voyage was also out there. I kept thinking why don't they just allow this to work with the factory rails. Now that I have them off I will just continue with Front Runner and love the look of the rack and all the accessories they have but probably would have gone with something that worked with the original rails to avoid the scare/hassle.

I am about to finish the install of the front runner rack tonight and would love any tips for that part. I have loctite to put on the bolts when securing the FR rack rails. Is that what everyone used here?

 

Anyone run into this nut issue on recent 2021 Defender builds? Are they still slathering the screws in loctite, or is it a bit more resonable?