Victory Roof Rack Safety Warning (please read if you have an over-cab rack)

Thanks for the response here. Will you notify current owners of the potential risk?

 

Use a stop collar on your drill and this can be avoided. You should always use one when drilling into things that are very specific/dependent on depth.

 

please don’t work on airplanes if you don’t understand how to make a simple drill stop or how to slowly drill a large piece of metal without overpenetrating and damaging something on the other side.

Yes, Victory should include some warning or something about airbags in their instructions (they actually do when they tell you to not drill more than 1/2”) and they should provide better hardware to fasten the rack down. BUT: you can’t get mad at them for something that YOU damaged because you overdrilled the roof.

 

I looked at a truck with a drilled roof rack that had an airbag light on. The bags are not directly under the drill areas, they are offset and sit lower but the harness routing may vary and this one got nicked. Had a proper stop been used damage could have been avoided in both cases.

The absolute best install practice is to drop the headliner for install the first time. It would have saved lots of time and money over the dealer cost to repair.

I'd chalk these up as installer error. Could v4x4 be a little more blatant with the risks in their install instructions? I haven't checked their documents and videos but for legal reasons I sure hope they have some disclaimers.

 

Everyone has their own opinion and this is a freedom that we should all be able to enjoy in this great country that we live in. I'm just going to go out on a limb and say that if the install video and directions said NOT to over penetrate by more than half an inch then they did their due diligence here with informing the consumer. We all take certain risks with modding our trucks and at the end of the day we are responsible for the outcome of any mod. I'll never forget being told years ago by my dad and grandpa to measure twice and cut once...... in a way this same principle can be applied here. Hope everything works out for you and everyone else with their mods!

 

I just found the install package from
V4x4 and they included a drill bit to be used specifically for the install. I agree that we all have to take responsibility for after market modifications but we also have to put responsibility to the manufacturers that they provide us with safe products AND proper instructions on how to safely install such equipment.

Hind sight is always 20/20. I’d prefer not spending several hundred with the dealer inspecting the airbags. Using a drill stop and such would have been easier. I/ we relied on the manufacturer’s video instructions. The manufacturer said I/ we were drilling on a SAFE ZONE. They PROVIDED a drill bit to be used for the install. All of these factors, plus our inability to precisely control drill bit depth free hand, directly contributed to possible damage of airbags.

There really isn’t much to be resolved Or debated here. I’m just thankful to the OP for sharing his experience and giving us fair warning. I’ll leave it up to Toyota to deal with @Victory4x4 if they find damage to my airbags. It’s just disappointing that they aren’t taking this seriously since bodily injury and/
or loss of life is a possibility. @Victory4x4 doesn’t have to admit to liability but they should notify their customers that this “may have occurred” during the install. Saying nothing is blood on their hands.

 

This is my opinion as well.

The screwup was on the part of the installer, not the Mfg. 100%.

It's not that difficult to limit a drill bit from poking too far thru.
Sometimes I will just start a little electrical tape on the bit and run the drill until there is a nice clump of tape on it.
The tape stops the drill from going too far and it wont scratch paint either.

 

X2

 

I wonder if these are merely opinions or do you have first hand knowledge and experience on drilling a roof. I used the drill bit provided by V4X4 and several wraps of electrical tape to mark the 1/2 depth. Based on actual experience, the bit provided by V4X4 pulls it in more than intended once it penetrates the metal. Maybe give it some actual experience and then let me know what you think.

 

I installed the Prinsu rack on my cab and their instructions recommend removing the trim around the headliner to expose the underside of the rail. This seems like it would be a no brainer move for anyone installing a roof rack. Don't just trust what you are drilling into without seeing the other side. I was able to drill all my pilot holes and knew exactly how far I was away from the air bags. Plus I could vacuum out all the metal shavings. Anyone who has installed these racks without vacuuming has a curtain air bag covered in metal shrapnel.

For what it's worth Prinsu does say to use a drill stop.

 

The rack is intended for DIY's. If you don't have the knowledge to install a rivnut correctly or even drill a hole then you should stop. Blaming someone else for your inadequacy's is juvenile at best

 

I helped install a rack a few years ago, first thing we did was drop the headliner. We put painters tape and plastic over the air bags to keep metal shavings from getting on the air bags. We put tape around the drill bit to prevent over drilling and one of us was inside the truck holding a shop vac hose up to the metal to catch the metal shavings. The vac hose also push the air bag over just a bit to be further away from the drill bit.
Not putting eyes on what is on the other side of where you drill is asking for trouble. There are so many air bags, wire harness and other damagable items all thru our trucks, fully investigating beforehand is a must and is the installers responsibility.
Someone here in San Antonio tried to do the stock air box mod on their truck and hit the ecu wiring harness with a hole saw, truck got traded in at a great loss due to the cost to replace the harness. Any mod has risk, but how you plan and prep will reduce the risk. Unfortunately the OP's aftermarket truck mod is incurring additional cost for over drilling and not visually seeing where items were before drilling. It sucks and I am sorry the OP caught the air bag.

 

I'll probably never do this mod anyway but I appreciate the tip. I'd be pretty furious to make that costly mistake. Live and learn.

 

I don't need to post my resume or justify my opinion. I also dont need to drill holes in the roof of my $50k truck.
This is just common sense here and it baffles me that some are so oblivious to it.

Punctured overhead airbags is what happens when someone with no business handling tools... watches a few youtube videos and gains enough mechanical confidence to do actual damage to their vehicle. Plain and simple.
Just another case of people not knowing their limitations and biting off more than they can chew... then those same people want to blame the drill bit or the rooftop carrier folks for their mechanical incompetence. Own your mistake like a man and suck it up.

Sad those youtube videos dont teach common sense, or how to own up to your own mistakes... but this is to be expected from the "all about ME" generation.

Sometimes... the customer ISN'T always right... and this is a clear cut case of it.

I'm done here. You can't fix stupid.

 

Or people have different perspectives and opinions on what they expect from manufacturers. Not having experience doing one particular type of install, then making a mistake, doesn’t equal incompetence or stupidity. But assuming it does might.

 

People have differing opinions on this, which is good and normal. But how bout we rise above petty personal insults just because those opinions differ? It’s juvenile, unnecessary, and reduces the quality/purpose of the thread. Nothing wrong with calling someone out on something, but have some class.

 

Gotta love forums

A couple of points restated here as questions...


Why would an installer worry about puncturing airbags when told the holes are in “safe zones” away from airbags? (In my case, I was under the impression it was the headliner that was at risk).

If its “simple” to not penetrate too deep following the instructional video with the supplied tool, why does the V4X4 installer allow HIS drill bit to fully penetrate the roof in the instructional video?



The personal stuff is keyboard-warrior chatter. This thread shares intel with potentially affected owners, and now they can decide what to do for themselves.

 

Instructions be damned, an “installer” would have dropped the headliner and made sure they weren’t going to punch a hole in anything. And we aren’t going to mention again the part about you be an “aviation guy” and not knowing how to use a simple drill stop.

Moral of the story is you messed up your install and now you want someone to be mad at so you aren’t mad at yourself for messing up. Get over it. You made the mistake. Own it, fix it, and move on with life. And please stop working on planes until you learn how to use the proper tools for the job.

 

Was this product marketed and sold specifically for installers? Or DIYers?

 

Lets go with your assessment.

Assuming there is a bell-curve for roof-drilling mastery, where would you expect the installer on the manufacturer’s vid and I fall in the curve?

Would the majority of rack purchasers be close to us on the bell curve?

Do you suppose there is a chance some could have also damaged their airbags?

Should I share what I learned (and fixed) with them, or keep it to myself?

 

As always the ending is kinda in the middle - should V4X4 have said it was in a 'safe zone', no. That just opened a can of worms they shouldn't have. Should people doing this have dropped their headliner, yes - never drill blind, it doesn't matter if a 1000 people have done it don't do it blind.

This is an opportunity for V4x4 to learn, there's certain things they should not have said and others they should have - because in today's society you have to cover your ass. Also for all of us at home mechanics to critically think about what we're doing - for instance if I'm doing something with drilling and/or splicing I will not only read and watch other companies install videos or paperwork to see if maybe they have a better way, tip, or warning than the others. For example when I did my sound system I not only went through James' instructions with a fine tooth comb, I also went through 'the company who shall not be named' videos only to compare, and then while doing the install I would take breaks and sit back and think about what I'm doing and what's next. All to make sure not only was I doing it right, but that I wasn't risking anything on my truck.

We don't need the personal attacks because that would only keep people from bringing up issues they've found. We need those issues brought forward or how else are we going to learn.

 

Glad you’re done... Maybe you should’ve never got started since you don’t have balls to drill a hole on a $50K truck; in my case I’m more like $65 rig. Stupid me I did 95% DIY install on this truck. Hope it doesn’t fall apart on me because I don’t know how to use a drill bit. One day I will learn how to use a damn electric tape to stop bits. Sorry buddy if I hit a nerve.

PS Heavy suspension and electrical work not pictured.

 

Great points.

The additional value of dropping the headliner is you can use bolt/nut fasteners and thoroughly apply sealant from the top and bottom. The short-grip rivnuts popped out with one tap of a punch.

 

That RTT tho-!

 

Are u an RTT dealer

 

The best purchase I ever made... even the wife loves it. Will always be thankful @Sunnier.

Always been wanting to join you guys but I’m still working on my rock crawling skills.

 

Apparently so.

 

V4x4 going forward needs to add possible airbag damage . Been class I machine tool assembler and road service repair tech for over 40 yrs ,used more and different styles of drills than most. No matter what your expertise level , we all know that it can happen , standing on a step ladder , awkward position , careful not to scratch truck ,supplier drill bit (we all know is never top quality) and to put in 8 holes thru sheet metal always has a chance of grabbing, at least once or twice. also I agree everyone needs to be notified. also if even 1 of the nuts spun , V4x4 needs to include tube of glue or epoxy of some sort , because if one is loose at assembly , more will work loose under load. And who ever said he'd rather his rack flew off , instead of his family being injured , please leave plenty of distance between you and any one following, ha ha. Thanks for info on rack and air bags. seems like honest mistakes all around , but now very helpful and thanks again.

 

YouTube?