Rightline Gear Waterproof Rear Car Cargo Carrier Bag, Attaches With Or Without Roof Rack, 13 Cubic Feet, Black

I thoroughly read all the reviews and knew for certain, before I attempted anything, that 1. I was going to build a frame with p.v.c. and 2. I was going to make a photo copy of my license plate to put in the protective pouch. Both were key to success, I have no doubt. I did have an additional copy of license plate kept in glove box just in case something happen to the other one (which it did not).The initial placement on car was tricky, I think. I felt like one side would slide down and would shift things around. We only put it on once for our one week, 2000 mile trip, I didn’t want to attempt it again. In hindsight, I think the best approach is to hook it on to your roof rack or roof bars, fill it up and then finish the final latch down. I was trying to secure it all around, empty and it would just shift around-even with the frame. Having weight in there would have helped. though I was not ready to fill it up. I wanted it secured on the night before we left as we were heading out at 5 am and didn't want to have problems. But was not ready to put everything in.I have a Chevy Equinox, 4 cylinder. We had five people on this trip (never again😩), but we did it and had all our gear stowed.I looked under the car for somewhere to secure the bottom and did not see anything, I moved around the plastic bumper and there is a small hole and I was able to put two small carbinder type things latched on the frame and then strapped the bottom straps to those. I don’t think I would have had to. We did every secure option as I was not taking any chances. Had straps to the roof rails (I do not have roof rack or the short side to side rail, just the long two rails), we put the belt around the middle that gets tucked in or you close the hatch on that, and then the lower straps in the car frame through the bumper bit. The pack did not move. We started out in Wisconsin during a snow storm, drove through sleet, rain, everything. All items remained secure and dry. 1000 miles each way.We stayed over the first night somewhere that felt pretty safe so we left everything in the pack without a lock. just backed the car up close to the front of hotel in well lit area.When we arrived to Gulf Shores, we emptied the pack out and just left it attached to car. we did not drive a ton once at our destination but even with it empty, it stayed secure, no noise, just overall very nice.I am really glad we went this route. Thought about various rooftop options or getting a hitch added. Soft rooftop I was concerned about noise and flapping. I really didn’t want a hitch and all that goes with storing whatever I would have needed. We have a small garage. This is perfect. Everything disassembled tucked in a bag and on a shelf in the garage.We fit two standard size, soft sided carryon bags, a couple cube ish duffel bags, a collapsed cot that was flat packed. And then further on in the trip we shoved in our bigger jackets on the top (because we started in a snow storm!). We did not attempt to open the hatch. Everything that was in the back of the car we just accessed through the inside of the car with the seat folded down.There was no discernible noise or flapping. Gas mileage, hard to say. 4 cylinder car loaded to the gills and with 5 people included. Mostly highway driving. I really have no comparison because I drive short trips in the city, normally, without much gear or passengers.I will update my review if I can find the review someone posted with the exact pvc cuts they used to make the frame. we did exactly what they wrote for measurements and worked perfectly. I thank you! Such a time saver not having to math that out.Last thing, purchased item as an open box at a significant discount. It truly looked like only the box had been open, everything inside looked like original packaging.With some adjustments and time, I would highly recommend this item!

We used this for our 1200-mile move from Texas to South Carolina, and it is a great find!!! Definitely listen to all the people who recommend a PVC frame. I'm so glad that we did this. It definitely helped keep things weight balanced, and the bag didn't budge from my car even when we hit bumps. I was a bit nervous about that and concerned about the bag falling off the car (after reading some previous reviews), but my mom was traveling in the vehicle following me, and she said it didn't budge at all and just moved with the car.I don't have a roof rack, but I bought the car clips from the same company (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008YS3V88/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1), and they worked great. I also purchased a protective mat (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07GDBGDWV/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) to place between the bag and the car, and I didn't have any issues with scratches. I was a little confused about the instructions in terms of the bottom straps, and I'm still not sure I put them on completely right, but I think the main goal there was to keep the bag stable against the car and from bumping along, so it seemed to work. It could also be that the bag was weighted down enough that it really wasn't going to move. For the PVC frame, I had trouble measuring the pieces and could have gone slightly longer, but it still worked well. I didn't want to have to use a wooden bottom and sand the edges, so we cut out a cardboard piece to be the right size and then stabilized that by wrapping it in duct tape. It worked great for a stable floor.I didn't weigh the bag, but I think we may have exceeded the 100 pound recommendation. I'm not recommending you do that -- just saying. We also ended up putting the bag on the car first and then loading it, and that seemed much easier. I stuffed the bag to the brim with a few bags of vacuum sealed clothing (the medium and smaller bags -- not the extra large size.) We also had a couple of big ziploc totes with towels and bedding (something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Ziploc-70162-Flexible-Totes-Jumbo/dp/B003UEMD1M/ref=sr_1_2_s_it?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1539893571&sr=1-2&keywords=ziploc%2Btote.) We had other random bedding wrapped in moving wrap and at the last minute we added our robot vacuum and charging base.I had a small lock, so I used that to lock the two metal parts of the outside zipper together. I imagine someone could have broken into this if they really wanted to, but I have the feeling it would have been noisy and not quick. We spent 2 nights on the road staying in motels, and we didn't have a problem with security. Of course, we were in relatively small towns too for our overnight stays.We were in Florida a day and a half before Michael hit, and we drove through heavy rains throughout our trip. In the last hour of our drive, even with the wipers on the highest setting, I had to slow down and use my hazards because visibility was so poor. Despite this downpour, when we opened the bag, everything was dry, and I didn't find any water inside the bag. Again, I think the frame helped here because with the bag keeping its rectangular shape, the flap over the zipper was able to stay in place and keep water from going into the bag. When we unloaded the bag, we even had a pool of water on top that i had to scoop off.I was a little skeptical of putting my license in the bag as well, but you can only access the license from the inside, and it fits tightly in place -- especially if you pack things in place like we did. I suppose with a sharp enough blade, someone could cut through the outside to get to your plates, but it wouldn't be a quick job. In terms of gas mileage, it didn't seem to cause any reductions. I also checked the straps at every stop, but the only ones I ever had to adjust were the bottom ones (and again, that's likely because I didn't put them on right. I think if I could find some thin ratchet straps I might use those next time instead. I also like the idea of another ratchet strap underneath the bag -- maybe with a couple more of the clips. I don't know that it was really needed, but it would have been more for my peace of mind. Also, like others have posted, I didn't have an issue with using the bag while driving at high rates of speed. Yes, I drove through Texas with some high speeds, and I never had a problem.For the cost of this compared to other options -- including trailers and hitches or roof bags and racks -- it was definitely well worth the investment. I could easily see myself using this again. It's not the kind of thing I would set up and use for a quick trip -- but definitely for a longer one where I didn't need to get into my trunk and wanted to haul a lot of things.p.s. Amazon, can I get credit for a roadway referral? While stopped in traffic on the interstate in Louisiana, I spotted someone taking a picture of my cargo bag. He wanted to get the brand name to know what to get. He then pulled up next to me, and I told him he could purchase it on Amazon.p.p.s. If you're that Cajun gentleman from the interstate in Louisiana that saw this on the back of my white Kia Sorento, then yes, this is the bag you should get. If you want it to look as beautiful as mine did and be as stable, then definitely make yourself a PVC frame and something to use as a base/flooring -- either the wood people have suggested or cardboard wrapped in duct tape like I did. (For everyone else, sorry, there are no pictures. After our long trip and the longer time spent packing up and unpacking -- not just our two SUV's but a 26' moving trailer too, I just didn't have the time, patience, or energy to take pictures.)