Vehicle roof rail attachment apparatus and method

An attachment apparatus for attaching a roof rail to a roof of a vehicle comprising:

• the roof rail including a bottom portion for engaging the roof, and a top portion opposite the bottom portion, and an inboard side portion and an outboard side portion each extending between the top portion and the bottom portion and spaced apart from one another;
• the bottom portion and the top portion and the inboard side portion and the outboard side portion defining an elongated shape enclosing an interior space of the roof rail;
• an access hole in the roof rail to provide access to the interior space for attaching the roof rail to the roof of the vehicle, the access hole disposed inward relative to the outboard side surface and below an uppermost point of the top portion;
• and
• a fastener attaching the roof rail to the roof of the vehicle and accessible through the access hole
• wherein the roof rail is a one-piece structure having longitudinally opposite first and second ends;
• the bottom portion of the one-piece structure extends from the first end to the second end, and the bottom portion includes downwardly projecting leg portions, wherein the downwardly projecting leg portions are configured to engage the roof of the vehicle and hide the fastener.

A method of installing a roof rail to a vehicle, the method comprising the steps of:

• placing a roof rail onto a vehicle roof;
• extending a stud through a bottom portion of the roof rail;
• inserting a fastener from through an opening defined by the roof rail and into an interior space defined by the roof rail, wherein the stud is disposed within the interior space;
• attaching the fastener to the stud in a top-down direction and securing the roof rail to the vehicle roof;
• wherein the opening is disposed in the roof rail at a location that is lower than an uppermost point of the roof rail.