Should I buy roof bars?

steelo

I've been riding regularly now for over a year (still own just 1 hardtail) and i'm getting a bit tired of loading and un-loading a muddy,wet, sometimes clean bike in and out of my car every week. I also had to have physio when i snagged a nerve in my back lifting it out one time! I'm wondering whether or not to get a set of thule roof bars and bike carrier fitted to my shiny Leon FR. Anyone else done it?

Are the Thule roof mounted bike carriers any good?

nicklouse

do you want to be lifting the bike that high?

robmanic1

Roof bars are fine if you're man-enough to lift your bike up that high (as long as you remember your bike is on the roof when you drive through the restricted height tolls on French motorways :oops: )

steelo

Lifting the bike isn't an issue. I'm more concerned about how secure they are, the ones I've seen on the Thule website look quite flimsy and I get the impression the bike might fall over! Also would the roof bars damage the roof of the car? My car doesn't have roof bar slots so will need the clamp style fixings and they just look like pieces of metal ready to scratch my car up!

robmanic1

Take a trip to your local Halfords (I think most of them stock Thule), have a look at the mounts, see what you think. Thule are reckoned to be among the best so they should be ok.

Rich Hcp

I'd rather hang it on the back, at least you can see it

alex_VRS

Yes you should buy roof bars! I was in the same situation a few months back so I went to my local Halfords and bought the Thule Aero Bars and Thule ProRide cycle carrier. Loading the bike is so simple and once they are on you can forget they are there. The rack is super safe and definitely worth the money.

Like you, I thought the racks looked unsafe and as if the bike could easily fall off but I can assure you that is not the case!

Here's mine.....






Alex

steelo

Do those roof bars locate into slots in the roof or use clamps that are shut under the door weather seals?

Hanging the bike on the back on a boot-rack just screams out scratched paintwork to me!

alex_VRS

steelo wrote:

Do those roof bars locate into slots in the roof or use clamps that are shut under the door weather seals?

They fit into the slots along the top of the car.

Alex

Rich Hcp

steelo wrote:

Hanging the bike on the back on a boot-rack just screams out scratched paintwork to me!

The Hollywood rack I used for yeras never caused any problems with damaged paint.

Briggo

I use a rear mounted Thule and its awesome, the straps that hold it on never lose grip and I prefer to see the bikes.

Never had any paintwork issues either.

One thing you have to be careful about with rear mounted is when the wind gets the bikes while your doing 60mph, good idea to try and secure them down so they dont move about in that respect so much.

shin0r

Go for it, the Thule stuff is great.

VAG use water-based paint iirc, the clearcoat will get scuffed by the rubber feet of the bars no matter how careful you are; I use a layer of Duck tape to stop this happening on my car.

Andrew_J

I brought the Thule roof carriers a couple of months ago, I would totally recommend them, takes 30 seconds to put a bike on, they lock the bike on, so can stop to go in a shop without the worry of someone stealing your bike (i know they can take the car but ....), have driven down motorways and in gales and bikes are totally secure, bit pricey but well worth the investment.

impished

You could always try an automatic lifter if you don't wanna strain your back. More expensive, but whoah, thinck of the gadget-points you'd earn for having one of them!!!!

Jumile

Aren't there roof bike carriers that require you to remove the front wheel, and then use the skewer to anchor the bike to the rack? Seems like it would give a more secure fitting.

But then, I've only ever seen them on passing cars, so don't take my word for it.

Andrew_J

There are but why would they be more secure ?

edzio

Have you thought about getting a Towbar mount? They are quite secure

mcbazza

Having used those (roof bars) to transport our bikes to Morzine last year, can I just point out the importance of cleaning your forks, and more importantly, your grips upon arrival.

You wouldn't believe the amount of dead insects they will gather. Well, you will once you put your hand around the grip.

Kiwi Kranker

I have the Altera Giro AF's

Basically another Euro competitor to Thule, I chose them as they fitted the frame of my bike better.

I have four of the carriers on the roof of my car and they are rock solid. I had to do an emergency stop from about 80mph with four bikes on the roof and they never moved.

Cant fault the roof carriers and they are much more convenient if you have to get kit out of the rear of the vehicle when you get to your riding destination.

Oh and they look a lot cooler than rear mounted racks IMHO

Underscore

I can highly recommend the Atera Giro AF. It seems to hold the bike very securely and seems as decent as any from a security perspective...

_

steelo

Well i'm pretty much sold on the whole 'keeping the inside of the car clean' principal, but do I really want to put roof bars on my hot-hatch? :?

danslesud

I don't own a Thule roofrack and wouldn't , but thats only because of where I live and the fact that I dont have to wait like a lemon for 10 minutes to pay the toll on the motorway.
I do however own a Thule clip-on boot rack. These have the advantage of not having any dodgy nylon strapping unlike older types of rear mounted bike jobby.

allthegearnoidea

one of the guys in our group has one of the fancy and very impressive roof mounted systems, (much like the one in the picture posted up on the fabia) and as quick and easy as it is, i wouldnt have one on the basis i cant stand roof racks on cars!! sounds silly but having seen the damage some racks can do (pro. valeting for 13 years) its put me off big time! i know new racks are different to the old gutter mounted ones but still not for me!

i have a simple two bike folding hatchback rack for the wife's car and a three bike towbar rack on mine, the one for the wife's takes Seconds to fit litrally! and as for paint scratching, no issues at all! if your that worried then simply give the area the pads fit a quick wipe down first and lay a soft microfibre cloth under the rack pads! wont do half the damage as slipping lifting the bike onto the roof and craping your pedals on the paint!

Surf-Matt

We have an estate car to avoid needing one.

It means we can carry

up to three surfboards
two bikes
lots of people
the dog

without a roof rack - I HATE roof racks even though the car has roof rails that make fitting one easy.

RichMTB

! I'm wondering whether or not to get a set of thule roof bars and bike carrier fitted to my shiny Leon FR. Anyone else done it?

Are the Thule roof mounted bike carriers any good?

As another proud owner of a Leon FR I can say categorically yes on both counts.

I have no issues with having two bikes on while driving briskly to the trails i don't even notice they are on most of the time

dave_hill

Two things to bear in mind with roof racks...

1. Don't drive into car-park with height restrictions with your bikes on the roof. My mate learned this the hard way - bikes OK, buckled roof panel on car and expensive car body repair.

2. Any externally-mounted bike carrier (or roof box, roof bars, etc.) will put your fuel consumption up by about 4 to 8 miles per gallon, whether it's in use or not. I didn't believe this until I found out for myself - with my bike on the boot rack, my car will do about 33mpg on a long motorway run (say to the Lakes or Llandegla). If I put my bike inside the car, I can reckon on 38 to 40mpg. In this day and age, that's a big consideration.

If you're bothered about getting the inside of your car censored up, try covering your upholstery with an old king-sized bed-sheet...

Chris`I

dave_hill wrote:

2. Any externally-mounted bike carrier (or roof box, roof bars, etc.) will put your fuel consumption up by about 4 to 8 miles per gallon, whether it's in use or not. I didn't believe this until I found out for myself - with my bike on the boot rack, my car will do about 33mpg on a long motorway run (say to the Lakes or Llandegla). If I put my bike inside the car, I can reckon on 38 to 40mpg. In this day and age, that's a big consideration.

Also more so if you have a sporty car like mine! 350z really not set up for hiking bikes around. Saying that I still get 26MPG on the motorway with the bikes on the back. I could only imagine what it would be like with them on the roof!

parkshark

Hello

i'm looking at buing the thule roof cycle carrier to fit fabia vrs. Can roof bars damage your paint work when your bike is covered in mud i was speaking to a guy in my local pub who advised it will scratch my roof i cant see this myself can any one help me out!!!!!!! as i was going to by them this weekend but this has put me off some what as my car is my pride and joy (dont know what really but hey)

thanks

xtremedash

My transportation method of choice is Thule roof bar and 591 bike racks on top of my Leon (couldn't afford the FR though ). They fit fine and are stable.

Surf-Matt

Parks - I had a Thule roofrack on a hatch years ago - it left a very deep scratch in the paint yet was the correct one. I hate them.

Chris - roof bars will not make the mpg drop of a "sporty" car any worse than a "normal" car!
Like the 350Z though - tested one before buying the Golf (R32) but decided back seats were needed in the end. Shame they are such high band emissions though - before the government interefered, they were a great vfm GT.

Kiwi Kranker

dave_hill wrote:

2. Any externally-mounted bike carrier (or roof box, roof bars, etc.) will put your fuel consumption up by about 4 to 8 miles per gallon, whether it's in use or not. I didn't believe this until I found out for myself - with my bike on the boot rack, my car will do about 33mpg on a long motorway run (say to the Lakes or Llandegla). If I put my bike inside the car, I can reckon on 38 to 40mpg. In this day and age, that's a big consideration.


Not saying what you wrote isnt true in your case but its quite a sweeping statement.

I can squeeze 36mpg out of my Audi estate without racks and with racks (no bikes) I can squeeze 36mpg on the same run, no difference. I suspect its the shape of the car and the way the airflows that is the biggest factor here, it is like puching a brick through the air! It does drop like a stone with 4 bikes on the roof though, thirsty to say the least 26mpg. Thankfully with two bikes it drops to only about 33/4mpg.

Many factors to consider