Box Review: Thule 686 Atlantis 1600 cargo box

Update May 19, 2016:

The Thule 686B Atlantis 1600 mold is still being used to make the current Thule 628 Force Large box. This box is a very popular size for modern SUVs with racks near the rear of the roof. It allows you to carry a ski up to 180cm+ while still avoiding the hatch on the vast majority of vehicles.


The Thule 686 Atlantis 1600 cargo box is a popular discontinued Thule rooftop carrier. The shortest, stubbiest box in the Atlantis series, the 1600 is perfect for wagon, minivan and SUV owners who need cargo capacity without interfering with the vehicle's rear hatch.

A common problem with long cargo boxes on modern vehicles is that vehicle manufacturers want to mount roof racks to the back of the roof to minimize the wind noise heard in the cabin. This makes it nearly impossible to center the cargo box between a vehicle's axles. On vehicles with hatches that open up, this tends to result in paint meeting box and scratch meeting paint. By going with a short style box, you minimize this effect or avoid the problem entirely. The downside is anything longer than a 180cm ski is going to have to stay home for this trip.

The Atlantis series of boxes are dual-side opening, which is ideal for loading and unloading the boxes, and makes installation a breeze. The QuickGrip mounting hardware consists of four knobs inside the box, each controlling a set of rubber-coated steel jaws below the box. A few cranks of each knob and the box is installed. This is by far my favorite cargo box to install because of the QuickGrip and dual-side opening. It's literally a 2 minute job, if that.

The Atlantis 1600 is available in 2 standard colors, a smooth silver and black. For summer '07, some shops have a few boxes with a limited edition carbon fiber or brushed steel look. While the box has a steep MSRP of $875 CDN, I feel the ease of install and ideal size and shape for vehicles with rear hatches makes the Atlantis 1600 one of the best cargo boxes going. Plus it has the Thule lifetime warranty. You can't go wrong. Strongly recommended.