How to Fit VW T5/T6 Roof Bars in Combination with FL VW T5/T6 C-Channel Awning Rail for Roof Bars

How to Fit VW T5/T6 Roof Bars in Combination with FL VW T5/T6 C-Channel Awning Rail for Roof Bars

Some types of VW Transporter Roof Bars have wide plastic mounting bracket bases which seat in the roof gully and overlap onto the edge of the roof, which makes them awkward to fit in combination with an extended C-channel awning rail. In this short article we will explain how to fit VW T5/T6 Roof Bars with our VW T5/T6 C-Channel Awning Rail for Roof Bars sandwiched underneath. 

Our subtle C-Channel Awning Rail for Roof Bars won’t detract from the cool look of your roof bars and, once fitted, will provide a secure, weather tight connection for a drive-away awning or VW sun canopy awning

Basically, the outer edges of the roof bar mounting bracket bases overlap onto the roof and obstruct the awning rail C-channel up-stand.  Trimming down and adapting each roof each of these bracket bases allows the C-channel of  the awning rail space to protrude. Cutting the plastic bases is a simple job that only takes a few minutes with a hacksaw on a steady work surface.

Instructions

1. Lay the plastic mounting bracket bases out on a bench and establish which side is the outer edge – if you have a look at the underside, you can see one side is an equal 10mm along the full length to the vertical feet that sits in the roof gully – this is the outer edge. The inner edge that faces into towards the roof is tapered from approx. 20mm to 10mm down the length – DO NOT CUT THIS SIDE.

2.If you are still unsure, lay the plastic mounting bracket bases in position in the van roof gully, line up the bracket holes with the roof fixing holes and mark the outer edge of the bracket.

3. Turn each mounting bracket base over, lay flat on the edge of a bench and trim the outer 10mm off up to the side of the vertical feet. Trimming will take just 30 seconds or so for each base using a hacksaw and the cut edge can be tidied up using abrasive paper.

4. Position the C-channel awning rail in the roof gully aligned with fixing holes and follow the roof bar manufacturer's fitting instructions using the 3 x adapted mounting bracket bases facing outwards from the van roof.

We include 4 x longer hex bolts (slightly shinier) with every VW T5/T6 Roof Bar Set bought through Funky Leisure to make it easier to locate the captive nut fixing hole positions in the roof gully for the front and rear fixing feet on each side.

We use this simple adaption along with our extended hex bolts to fit these type of roof bars in combination with our extended C-channel awning rail and find it the quickest and easiest method.

The Funky Leisure Team