Oh no way! Hah- that's awesome. Sorry for the delay in response- thanks for the feedback and glad it worked out so well for you guys- appreciate you subscribing to the channel, Grant! Please let me know if there's anything you're looking for that we don't have posted already and hopefully we can help :) hope all is well on your end

Thanks @Dave! Glad you found it helpful- very much appreciate the words!

Woohoo! Glad it was helpful and hope you got what you needed!

Hey thanks a lot Jason!!! That means a lot, man- I appreciate the encouragement and hope it was fairly quick and easy. Please let me know if there's anything else that you don't already see on the channel that you need

Oh nooooo! Glad you were able to get it out- very good pointer on that and thanks for sharing your experience- that could've been a lot worse- glad you were on top of it!

Very cool- everything go in ok? What do you plan on using the rails for? Thanks for taking the time to share and please let us know if there's anything else we can help you with, Tom! Have a great day

@@HowToEscapeDIYTipsandReviews Ordered the cross bars from dealership. On back order. Added for Kayaks… thanks again!!!

Sorry for the delay - thanks so much!!!

Thank you very much! Glad it was helpful!

Sure!!! Glad its helpful! I would recommend Permatex Black RTV gasket silicone

@@HowToEscapeDIYTipsandReviews Oh hey! Also, which type of 3m mounting foam tape is that? Is there a specific width and thickness I should be looking for? And do you know if a OEM rail kit comes with that or do I need to get it on my own?

Hey @Trucker, I did not measure the 3M tape used here- just eyeballed it for the foam that was used. As for the rails and cross bars, I found a set on FordEscape.org that a driver was putting up for sale. You can find competitive prices on eBay, but you just want to make sure that you're getting a genuine Ford setup. A comment below by Don Evans describes the ebay seller "Quickparts" who supposedly sells the factory kit. I hope this helps! Good luck and let me know if you have any more questions!

Working on a quick video response- I had some footage of the weather stripping removal but didn't include it due to video length of the rack install- I'm putting it together and will have it up in a few, so thanks for asking!

+Sarah Koehn Frey Hi again- here's the link to what footage I did have from the weather stripping removal! I hope it helps. Thanks for asking and for watching the channel! kzfaq.info/get/bejne/m9iEe9Kh0s2wZ6s.html

You can reuse the weather stripping that was already on the car- you do have to cut it down with a pair of tin snips if I remember correctly- please see both videos on the weather stripping removal and the roof rack install for the exact length to be removed- I am 95% sure it's in there. Hope this is helpful!

Hi Jim! Yes, you can remove them yourself without taking off the headliner. HOWEVER, you'll need full length "weather stripping" to replace the rack as well as filler for the holes. The weather stripping is hard to find, as it's an extruded aluminum profile and can bend/crease really easily. I was able to straight swap my weather stripping with another FE driver who wanted to do what you're doing and I paid the guy for shipping. In exchange, I shipped my weather stripping to him in a hard shipping tube and they arrived straight and ready to be installed. The reason the guy was open to trading with me was that the weather stripping is also almost the cost that a rack is depending on where you get it. Also, with roof racks, leaks can be a risk. Water marks can form on your headliner which is obviously undesirable as you'd have just bought a new car. If you're going to invest in a new FE SE, I'd ask the dealer to find your car without the rack from the factory- that way there are no holes to begin with in your roof panel. OR have the dealer do the removal as terms (as you suggested) if you can negotiate the costs of the rack from your overall purchase price- assuming they won't try to ding you for labor to remove it... if they really want to sell it, this should be possible. Easy for me to say though... Overall, the least monkeying you have to do with your car, especially your NEW car, is best. In my opinion, if you're going to get warranty for your purchase, let them do any changes you want, so that if something goes wrong, it's covered and on them. Hope this is helpful- thanks for the comment, and thanks for watching the channel!

The weather stripping extrusion profile is the same for the full length strips w/out the rack vs the inserted middle piece w the rack. This makes it so that either scenario can still have a piece to snap into the center mounting bracket. People who have purchased OEM racks and done self installs have measured the distance between the two pegs of each foot per side, drilled holes in their original long strips, and then cut them to length. It should work just fine! Please let me know if you have any other questions and thanks for watching the channel!

Hi Bridget- sorry for the delay in response- are you still interested in trying this? Ford has the weight limit set at 150lb for these racks typically... If your dolly and gear are below that amount, then yes it SHOULD work. My next concern would be the clearance of the wheels of your dolly and the roof of the car. I am not sure if there's enough distance between the top of the rack where the dolly would rest and the roof where the dolly wheels may touch. This may be a bit dangerous especially if you have the glass panoramic roof. Please let me know of your thoughts when convenient!

2014 ford escape titanium I may add if that makes any difference...

Hi Ryan- good question- and good call on the basket and cross bars being aftermarket. I am not a huge fan of the factory crossbars due to the flex and then outward pushing on the front to back rails... Anyhow, Ford recommends 100lbs limit without glass pano roof, 45lbs WITH pano roof.... that being said, there are multiple people reporting having carried kayaks and SUP's much heavier than 45lbs with and without oem crossbars with no issue at highway speeds for extended trips. I think with your stiff Thule bars, you should be more than good to go for the basket and the camping gear and your SUP. Is your SUP inflatable or hard? Only reason I ask is that if inflatable and you can tie down in your basket, it would reduce a lot of the front to back flexing from wind loading during highway speeds. If a long board, I'd just follow standard gut protocol in making sure it's tight but not too tight so that it flexes your rails or bends your board For a thread with people putting SUPs and kayaks up top with pano roofs and roof rails, check out the fordescape.org forum topic here: www.fordescape.org/threads/question-about-roof-rack.20985/

OOOoooo- good question! I'm not sure- I do not know that for sure- I am pretty darn sure it works on '13-'16 as they're the same body style basically. The same principle may apply to the '17- '19 body styles but it may not be exactly the same.

I have the SEL is that what you have as well ?

Hi Trevor- I do not know for SURE as I only have access to our '13 - best thing I think would be to call the parts department at your local dealer to get the scoop before spending your time at a picking yard- get the info from them, then do it yourself perhaps and save the cash if it is compatible? Sorry for the delay in response here- hope you found your answers at this point but I'm open to more discussion if needed. Thanks for the question and for checking out the channel!

Hi @Mitchel- That's correct- just make sure you seal it up really really well! Silicone (RTV, Black Gasket, etc.) works great- be generous and just wipe away any that looks in excess.

Awesome, thank you! I think you just saved me a fair amount of money on an install.

Sweet! Yeah- headliner removal is no joke- gotta go from the floor up... Good luck! Just go slow and check all your gasketing pads that are under the rails and then fill any fastening holes up well. Thanks for watching the vdeos! Post if you have any requests in the future :)

I’d like to know this as well

@@TheSignatureK Be careful with this. I decided to buy a used 2016 Escape. Found one I liked a t a local dealer and asked them to install the rack. I figured that a factory rack installed by the dealer should be a safe bet. The salesman was OK with they deal but the parts/repair department refused to do it. They reported that of the last 4 installed 3 of them leaked. If the dealer can’t get it right then I am not going to try. I found an escape with a rack already installed and it has been a great car for 3 years now. BTW, I really recommend the turbo.

Thanks a lot @BerettaM9USAF! I appreciate the positive feedback and glad it helped a bit!

problem: I purchased a OEM rack and cross rail kit [actual ford parts] I'm a detail-guy so I prepped the hell out of the situation, used Butyl caulk and it rained last night and I found leaks inside the car :(Any recommendations? I wish I could say I missed something b/c that would be an easy fix, at this point I have to fully disassemble, clean all that damn caulk out and re-do basically what I already did... If I possibly over-torqued the bolts a bit could that have caused the leak? Do you recommend a different kind of caulk? I guess I am gonna fill every possible nook 'n cranny with caulk...maybe clear hi-performance silicone?...I'm just super frustrated b/c when I do a job I spend a lot of time so this kinda $hit does not happen. Any advise would be appreciated.

Hey BerettaM9USAF , sorry to hear about the leak- totally understand on the prep side. If you DID overtorque the bolts, it could have opened up the threading a bit more than it should have, but unless your rack is wobbly when you yank on it, you are probably fine there... I used RTV Silicone and it SEEMS that it's been in pretty good shape- just gobbed it in the holes before threading as shown in the video. Butyl caulk would seem like a good medium to use as it's used on window seals and such- which is weird as to why it didn't work for you... I looked up specs and many Butyl caulks are known to have a shrink factor when drying- that may also be the cause. Which areas did you apply it to? Just the threads? Threads and flat surface around the hole? Just trying to brainstorm a bit more on what the situation may be...if the shrink factor was the issue, it may be solvable by taking your rack off and then just smearing it on the flat faces making contact- ie, the 1''x1'' area around the holes in each surface. That way, you're adding redundancy sealing to back up the threads if they were the culprit. What are your thoughts? Perhaps you've already tried some of this?

thx for the quick reply!I used vulkem which is a slow-cure hi-performance butyl, I build custom homes and that is the go-to for exterior installs...fig exterior of car or house same environment right?... it will still be tacky I'm sure.Anyways I tightened with 1/4 driver hand + about 1/3 turn...unless Im doing engine work I rarely use a torque wrench. I applied caulk in the hole, washer side of the bolt[s] and approx. 1" either side of hole[s]...now you [really] get why im frustrated...new car, new rack and cross bars plus basket and misc. for vacation next week...all to save some money vs. my other vehicle [full sz truck] that gets half the mileage.I guess I'm gonna tear down 2day and since vulkem is white I will get some hi-end clear and black RTV and have a caulk party [part II]...Maybe I will wrap a bit of this problem-solver TFE tape I have that I've used for plumbing threads. Once again trying to thk outta the box to figure out before headliner or something else gets damaged.I'm not gonna give up! there is a gap/flaw/etc. somewhere I just have to find it! hopefully I don't have to tear it down a dozen times to find it! :)

Agreed- props to the determination! If you find anything else out that could have been the cause, please let us all know! The goal for these How To Escape videos is to share findings with the community, so you could be onto something unusual, but valuable to know! Thanks again BerettaM9USAF

Short answer is YES! I can speak for the '13-'16's, and pretty sure it's the same for '17-'19, but my Escape is a SE, and it actually did not come with the roof rack, hence installing it in this video. It fits, but just follow the steps in the video, along with the video we have for removing the weather stripping beforehand!

Beefier crossbars would work great. The less flex the better. The front to back main rails are pretty stout. The 100lb limit I've HEARD is mostly for risk of increasing.center of gravity for the car's traction and handling. If you have the panorama roof there's of course the risk of something harming the glass, but yes the thule bars should be great! What are you.thinking of carrying?

@@HowToEscapeDIYTipsandReviews I greatly appreciate the quick and informative response! I'm planning on getting some Thule crossbars and putting a 130 lb Tepui rooftop tent up there. No pano roof, so I have nothing to worry about there.

@@MicahHorner88 that sounds awesome! My only word of caution would be that these factory escape roof rails (main front to back, not crossbars) is that the seal in the front can sometimes leak. With that much weight AND the weight of you and possibly another person climbing in and out (assuming ~170lbs per adult???) That would bring it to 340lbs plus the tent of 130lbs which would sum to 470lbs on the main rails. That's pretty high. I think you could mount it up there, but I'd be nervous to ask the seals of the rails to hold that much weight :/

@@HowToEscapeDIYTipsandReviews thanks for the heads up! I saw your other video about fixing the seal and read all the comments. I'll be redoing the seal before installing the tent. Thanks again! You've been incredibly helpful.

@@MicahHorner88 no problem! Good luck!

Tom Sandford thanks for the question- there are quite a few differences in the two cars. The same basic platform but a lot of different parts :-)

But the rails will fit the same as they do in your video.

If you're asking, I do think they're very similar in process. Others have said that the kuga rails only have one mounting screw on each end rather than 2 like the escape.

Hi Kristen, this is a factory roof rail set- I purchased it from another Escape driver who was trying to sell it. There are great resources other than Craigslist and eBay. Try searching the classifieds section at www.fordescape.org - a direct link is here: www.fordescape.org/forum/ford-escape-classified-forum/ . The gentleman I bought it from traded with me in exchange for my factory weather stripping. There are really great people on this site who may also be willing to part with theirs. Hope this helps!

Hey @Jeremy, we've updated the description of this video with an Amazon link to an aftermarket set that is supposed to have very close if not exact fitment of the OEM roof rails. The only thing is that they're in silver and not carbon black color. You also need a tap and fasteners as the screws included are not self tapping like factory rails. Hope this helps- let us know if you have any questions! Thanks!

I got mine complete from a junk yard for $75. They just didn't include fasteners. Ford wanted over $400.

Under the compressed foam blocks to stick them back down to hold the parts of the connecting weatherstripping to the rain gutters.

Hey Bill. Did you ever install on your 2017?

@@chrisnichols2722 Hi Chris, yes I did and it worked great! (Sorry i did not see you question from 3 years ago). I just noticed a bit of water damage in my head liner near the front right window. I'm assuming the seal from the tapping screw may be leaking and I want to pop the cover from the front rail. Since it's a snap in type connector, I'm concerned I may damage it if I pry it off.....any words of wisdom before I do so??? Thanks in advance!

Hey @PD_Hurt, great question- sorry for the lack of follow up on this one- they're pretty flimsy as far as cross bars are concerned, so no, haha- not satisfied. The joint that allows the crossbars to expand outwards and be "adjustable" to reach each side rail easily is one major hindrance. They also depend on an arched geometry for spring and support like an arched bridge rather than be a stout, flat crossbar similar to the Thule Aeroblade, or RhinoRack AeroBar systems. This means that anything you put up there of substantial weight (even though Ford suggests a limit of 50lbs with a pano roof), will move around. From a cosmetic standpoint, they can look alright- it bothers me though when some people have bicycles up top and they're tipped away from eachother because of the arch in the cross bars... a small issue, I know- but lots of us are used to seeing the flat bar look with the security of the aftermarket systems (again, Thule, RhinoRack, Yakima...). Thanks for asking- should probably discuss that in one of these videos here sometime soon!

PD Hurt Thank you, exactly the info I was needing .. I have a 2016 Ford Escape (glass roof) with rails and I am needing crossbar/rack for my Kayak. I am concerning the 45 lb weight limit.

Excellent- glad we could knock out another question here :) The weight limit is SUPPOSED to be attributed to the rollover computers/sensors in the Escape. This means the weight of the panoramic roof AND the "max" load of 50 lbs is the "recommended" limit to have the intended handling in the manual. However, all things designed and engineered have what's called a factor of safety, or- a fudge factor as some may call it. For engineering purposes, this FOS may be a factor of two (just guessing here) OR the bars may actually be able to hold more weight than your 45 lb kayak. I personally don't know because I haven't tested them yet. However, in terms of worrying about the rollover/handling sensors of the Escape, it all comes back to common sense really- if you're towing/carrying anything outside of normal driving conditions (ie something on the roof or on a trailer), we obviously drive differently knowing that these accessories are present. I know this is probably way more info than you were looking for, haha. Let me know if you have any other questions- hope this helps!

Sorry for the delay- here's a link to Amazon of similar side rails to the factory type. I can't find a link to the black plastic ones, but these silver ones are the same type! Hope this helps and thanks for checking out the channel! amzn.to/2PCTAux

Sorry about that one, man- you're right, I should've done that. I had thought at the time that the roof rails were the hardest part, and just focused on that- might do an add-on video for the cross bars... thanks for the tip and for watching!