HandiRack and HandiHoldall Review

Like many other young families out there when planning a holiday into Europe I thought we will take the car and that way we will have everything we need! Of course sometimes its not a simple as that and actually what we now need to take with two little people in tow is actually a lot more than we will fit in the car. However we do not have the space to store a larger roof box as we do not have a garage. I also don’t want to invest in a pair of roof bars for a car which is not mine. Sound familiar?

This is where HandiWorld comes in, they have thought of this very conundrum and have invested a series of products which are designed to be more fun and less hassle. They very kindly sent us two of their products a HandiRack and a HandiHoldall for our trip to Eurocamp. When we received the items the first thing I noticed was just how small the boxes were, when you consider the space needed to store more traditional products I was both pleased but also slightly concerned. Would these be as good?

HandiRack: Everything you need is provided in the small box, the idea behind the roof bars is that they are easy to fit in a few minutes and the one size will fit most models of car. They have a full list available on the website. In the box you get – A HandiPump for inflating the tubes and 2 x 3 metre HandiStraps for securing your load to the 5 ‘D’ ring anchor points located on each HandiRack.

There is an instruction video on Youtube which explains really well how to go about securing these to your car. But very basically all you need to do is make sure the top of the car is clean, lay the anti slip pads onto the roof above the doors, lay over the HandiRack. Secure these to the roof by the HandiStraps that go through the car and secure on the other side.

Once you have done this on both the rear and front set of doors, the pump can be used to inflate the bars. It took my husband very little time to inflate them, probably around five minutes each. The whole process is really very straightforward, the only thing we found was that on my husbands car (which has frameless doors) the strap hands down lower level with his forehead. Although this would be okay for short journeys he would worry that it would become a distraction on longer ones. My car does not have frameless doors and so the HandiRack fits much better and we do not have that problem.

Things we like:

• They really are so simple to put together with the added bonus that they are interchangeable between cars and totally portable
• They have a load capacity of 80Kg, the HandiRack is immensely strong and meets the internationally recognised standard for roof bars ISO/PAS 11154. They are also puncture proof
• Very easy to store
• Great value when compared to traditional roof bars, the HandiRack retails at £65.00 but there are a number of packages on the website which means you get a discount compared to buying the items individually
• There is a wet weather kit available which means you are not restricted to just using them in the good weather.

These are really such a great idea, we have used them several times since the holiday and expect to get a lot more use out of them going forward as they really are very versatile. Especially next time we take a trip to a well known furniture manufacturer. I think the best thing about them is that the HandiHoldall can be used in conjunction with the HandiRack.

HandiHoldall: Again everything you need is included in the box, the HandiHoldall has a retail price of £130. To assemble the holdall you need to open the bag up and the attach the metal rods by sliding them through the hoops. Once the bag is formed you place it on top of the HandiRack and use the straps to attach the loops on the underside of the bag to the rack. It is a little fiddly to do this and should be done before you fill the holdall.

Things we love:

• The HandiHoldall can actually be used with metal roof bars as well as the HandiRack
• Its fully waterproof so you don’t need to worry about your belongings getting wet. There are a number of design features to enable this. It is manufactured using dry bag technology, has a storm flap, made from polyester tarpaulin material which is resistant to cold, heat, tearing and ripping. Finally it has fully welded seams resist water, harsh weather and provide excellent durability.
• If packed properly the HandiHoldall will give you an additional 320 litres of space.
• Taking the bag off is relatively easy, putting it on was a little more complicated but I think as you get use to it you would be able to do it quicker.
• If you don’t want to fill up the holdall directly you can also buy a HandiDuffel, two will fit in the holdall. We are considering doing this to make it easier to load, since they are specifically designed to fit lengthways.
• The zips can be locked together with a padlock

Overall I think this is a fantastic idea and a very good substitute for the traditional roof bars and boxes. The HandiRack will enable you to put pretty much anything on top of your car. My husband feels that for a lengthly period of driving the straps inside the car may become an issue. I think investing in the HandiDuffel bags will make filling the holdall easier and this will be something we will be looking at in the future.

Thank you HandiWorld for making our life easier, and the job of packing a lot easier.

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This is a collaborative post we were given a HandiRack and a HandiHoldall for the purpose of this review all words and opinions are my own.

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