Awning rail advice needed

H

Hilly64

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VIP Member
T6 Pro
I have just upgraded from T5 to a 2019 T6. The van came with an awning rail fitted which I suspect was fitted when the van was supplied new (OEM?). The problem I have is that although it sits discreetly in the roof gutter it is fitted to the drivers side and I am used to fitting my driveway awning on the passenger side which seems to be the norm and probably my preferred option.

I thought I could simply swap over sides but the awning rail that is fitted is handed and shaped to the gutter profile. I could just cut the ends but this seems a shame as the existing rail is well made and is a good fit with no leaks.

so my thoughts are fit a second rail to the passenger side but the nearest matching one I can find is a “Camper Essentials” one which seems expensive at £100 compared to <£30 on eBay etc. But if i have to I guess.

so the question is:

do VW do an OEM rail or equivalent?

can anyone identify which one I have?

if not what are my options for one to match my existing but opposite hand?

4EA77E05-431E-4533-B8E7-7EC38AF0BBB5.jpeg07FA2F3C-AD69-4796-A18D-3746CBD720A0.jpeg

Anyone got one for sale?

My OCD won‘t allow one that doesn’t match lol
 
It looks like a Camper Essentials rail as i have one on mine.............i bought a CE as i also had the spacers to allow roof bars to be fitted but they have since been removed. Because of the way the ends are crafted it allows the awning to slide in and out easy.
 
Thanks. Ordered the LHS for the passenger side, should be with me imminently. They look well prepared and the existing one on the drivers side is very discrete So will now be ambidextrous

i believe the drivers side fit is a California thing due to furniture layout but i have always set up with the driveway on the passenger side which I think i prefer but not really sure why, maybe because i could fold down my previous twin seat and now have a single swivel so a little more room to get in and out….my side of the bed so at least i am closer to the porta loo
 
Hi @Pewt

I am thinking of buying a multi rail to allow us to attach our new awning. I have a VW OEM roof rack, (not the aftermarket rails). I wondered if the multi rail interfered with the fitting of a roof rack? My worry would be it narrows the gutter profile which will prevent the roof rack being fitted.

Thanks, Dave C
 
DaveCrampton said:
Hi @Pewt

I am thinking of buying a multi rail to allow us to attach our new awning. I have a VW OEM roof rack, (not the aftermarket rails). I wondered if the multi rail interfered with the fitting of a roof rack? My worry would be it narrows the gutter profile which will prevent the roof rack being fitted.

Thanks, Dave C
Click to expand...
If you mean the Reimo Multi Rail that's glued+screwed to side of the van so will be clear of the rail gutter on the top.

You can get some stepped C channel rails that offer a more stealthy less drilling option but on most of them you are going to have to do some fettling on the rack feet for both fit and water tightness and you might need to change to longer bolts. There is a good thread here about a few approaches on longer but water tight bolts:

www.t6forum.com

Roof Rail Leak Free Fixing.

Got some ebay roof rails and did not want to gorm silicone into and around the fixing holes. Instead I got some M6 threaded bar cut a little longer than the bolts supplied with the rails. I then used the rubber washers that came off the blanking bolts together with a washer and M6 nyloc nut...
www.t6forum.com www.t6forum.com
 
Thanks I'll have a read of that thread.

But no, I would rather not have to drill into my Shuttle. I was thinking of a rail similar to @Hilly64 in the first post.
 
I don’t have any rail yet. I do have a VW roof rack, the two transverse rails, rather than the more fashionable parallel rails most buy. If you look at my profile pic you might spot them?
Anyway, I’d like to know which rails do not interfere with the roof rack, as the awning rail will stay on, and I put my kayak rack on only when I go away kayaking.
Thanks.
 
Last edited:
There are two ways your bars might be mounted.

They could be mounted direct to one of the 4 roof mount points in the gutter.

Or you could have the "roof bar preparation" and they mount to that - which is the rail @Pewt posted.

If they are direct mounted you may be able to put an offset c-rail underneath them and remount them.

If you have the preparation rail then you'd have to remove that as it's highly doubtful both will fit, that could be tricky if it's well sealed down and you'd need new rails.

A picture of your roof would help.
 
I have nothing mounted to the roof gutter. It’s got the OEM cover bolts in, which are removed when I mount the VW roof rack on.
 
Have a look at the pictures on the Funky Leisure site for the offset rails as they show the sort of trimming the feet may need.

Also you can order a sample length from them for a few quid to offer up before you buy the full thing, much easier than trying to judge from pictures

www.funkyleisure.co.uk

VW C-Channel Awning Rail - SAMPLES

70mm length samples of our aluminium C-channel awning rails - price includes delivery. If you re in any doubt whether you think one of our awning
www.funkyleisure.co.uk www.funkyleisure.co.uk

No connection with them but it's where I got mine from so I know they do samples, other suppliers may do similar
 
I'm not sure a rail will work with the roof racks you have Dave. You may need to go down the route of rails and bars then add a Camper Essentials rail with their spacers. I have a set of spacers here i removed when i did away with my roof bars.

Have you got a close up picture of your roof and how the bars are mounted?
 
DaveCrampton said:
I don’t have any rail yet. I do have a VW roof rack, the two transverse rails, rather than the more fashionable parallel rails most buy. If you look at my profile pic you might spot them?
Anyway, I’d like to know which rails do not interfere with the roof rack, as the awning rail will stay on, and I put my kayak rack on only when I go away kayaking.
Thanks.
Click to expand...
camperessentials.co.uk

VW T5 Bolted Awning Rail VW Logo Roof Rack – Camper Essentials

Camper Essentials offers the best Volkswagen VW T5 Bolted Awning Rail VW Logo Roof Rack option available. The two sit seamlessly together in the channel.
camperessentials.co.uk camperessentials.co.uk
Can recommend , guy really helpful if you have any queries. Look at site plenty of options.
 
Qq on this as I searched for a recent thread rather than start a new one

When removing the factory fitted bolts from the roof, is there any special prep before fitting my new awning rail, it's come with rubber washers but is there anything else I could do to prevent water ingress?
 
All i did was fill the holes with silicone before fitting the bolts.......so far so good.
 
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