Im a new paddler and curious about the various rack systems offered. both Wife and I have leased cars which will be up within a few months for her and a year for me. Hers is honda pilot and mine is a ford f350 crew cab.....My question is are the rack systems by thule and yakima interchangeable or once you buy for a specific car will you be forced to spend lots of money to outfit a new car...
Super site and wonderful topics!!
Thanks for any and all comments suggestions and advice.
Allen
Car Racks
Moderators: kenneth, sbroam, TheKrikkitWars, Mike W., Sir Adam, KNeal, PAC, adamin
The tower systems for both Thule and Yakima are standard for the most part to most makes of vehicles. The F350 if you are to mount a roof rack to the roof and not the bed, will need different adaptors and cross bars than the Pilot. They will both use the same Tower. There are real good fit guides at each vendors website. I use both. I do have a bed mount system from Thule for my truck, the X Sporter, that is real nice. I have found the "saddle" type boat mounts to be a pain and not very efficient for loading a lot of boats. I glued minicell foam across the length of the cross bars and have been pretty happy. I also use ropes instead of cam straps as they do not buzzzz like cams straps do at highway + speeds.
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Grillmastertoo
- C Boater
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car rack
thanks for the info Tom---I have alos seen the goalpost style rack that attached to the receiver hitch...Does anyone have expereince using this set up rather than using two roof racks vs goal post and one roof rack? Does either one ride better than the other? My main concern is buying a "system" for the f-350 and then in 5 months ahving to purchase all new attachements when i get a new truck---it wont be another ford f350....thats another story..
thanks
thanks
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Sir Adam
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I recently picked up racks for Adk Sara's new wheels (Honda Element). WOW has rack technology changed (my Thule rack, which I just sold with the car, I purchased in 2002, and the Yakima I have kicking around (Yakima didn't make (and still doesn't) a rack for that model) is from 1998 or so.
If I were you, for the F350 I'd get a simple one-bar setup for your cab and run some verticles in the bed (not sure if you have holes for posts or not. 2x4s work well:) .
If you'll have the Pilot for a while, or a similar sized unit, get a complete Thule or Yakima system (just make sure the Thule is as "portable' (change the "landing pad", the Tower and Bar stays the same)>
I don't know much about the latest Thule systems, and if they've changed at all, but I can tell you that the latest Yakima system is the best I've seen yet for fit, portability between vehicles, and ease of adustment. We'll see how it holds up....
If you do find a truck you plan on keeping long term, and to a lot of boating, I'd recommend checking out the Tygart River roof racks. They are not cheap, I've heard nothing but good things about them over the years.
For a dedicated rack that rarely comes off you can't beat an expedition style rack, but they are noisy and definitely reduce gas mileage, even when empty.
Welcome, and good luck!
If I were you, for the F350 I'd get a simple one-bar setup for your cab and run some verticles in the bed (not sure if you have holes for posts or not. 2x4s work well:) .
If you'll have the Pilot for a while, or a similar sized unit, get a complete Thule or Yakima system (just make sure the Thule is as "portable' (change the "landing pad", the Tower and Bar stays the same)>
I don't know much about the latest Thule systems, and if they've changed at all, but I can tell you that the latest Yakima system is the best I've seen yet for fit, portability between vehicles, and ease of adustment. We'll see how it holds up....
If you do find a truck you plan on keeping long term, and to a lot of boating, I'd recommend checking out the Tygart River roof racks. They are not cheap, I've heard nothing but good things about them over the years.
For a dedicated rack that rarely comes off you can't beat an expedition style rack, but they are noisy and definitely reduce gas mileage, even when empty.
Welcome, and good luck!
Keep the C!
Adam
Adam
I actually have the "Y"-shaped Yakima rack (the "goal post" type) that attaches to the 2" hitch and have liked it on my Tacoma. The only negative is you cannot lower the tailgate when the bar is mounted in the hitch. I added a camper shell and mounted Pro Rack tracks and crossbars which work well enough. I also retained the Yakima roof rack for the cab. One note about roof racks. The towers are pretty much universal on car roofs--you have to make sure you get the right clips for your make/model vehicle AND the location of the towers. I have to use different clips if the towers are mounted to the rear of the cab or the front.
Cannot say about any of the other rack systems. If you are interested in the hitch-mounted "Y" rack, let me know. We may be able to work something out. Good luck!
KNeal
Cannot say about any of the other rack systems. If you are interested in the hitch-mounted "Y" rack, let me know. We may be able to work something out. Good luck!
KNeal
C-boats Moderator
"Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing-absolutely nothing-half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats."
"Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing-absolutely nothing-half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats."
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Grillmastertoo
- C Boater
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- Joined: Mon Sep 24, 2007 8:17 am
- Location: Alabama
car racks
Many thanks for the comments---Im thinking i may just wait until I can decide what car to buy the rack for...In teh meantime does anyone have expereince with the generic foam blocks that are sold? Are they substantial and what would the downsides be other than a pain in the but to get straight and probably not very durable...
thanks
thanks
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sbroam
- CBoats.net Staff
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Foam blocks will do for carrying *one* at a time just fine. I used them regularly with a Toyota 4Runner I had until I bought racks, on various friends' cars in college, and a number of times on rental cars when out of town. Never damaged a car or lost a boat! Even on the Jersey Turnpike when the Coleman canoe seemed bigger than the Dodge Neon is was perched on and the tractor trailers showed no regard...
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Mike W.
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I think a lot hinges on how long the boat(s) are that you'll be hauling. For short boats (<8') I just toss 'em in the bed. I have a 6 1/2' bed & the 8' boats fit catty-cornered just fine.
For long boats I've got a Yakima on the cab & a Rail-N-Rack (no longer available) on the bed. I've seen ads in magazines for a rear rack that's easily removeable, fits at the rear of the bed & uses either Yakima or Thule cross-bars. I have only seen the ads for this system, but it looks good.
The Yakima that I have was originaly purchased for my wife's Chevy Venture. After we traded the van I found that I only needed to get new clips & adjust the spacing of the towers to put the rack on my GMC truck.
I think I read or heard somewhere that nobody made roof racks for the Super Duty trucks. Something about there not being much support in the roof. I don't know if this has been fixed or worked around.
Whatever system you go with, get the longest bars you can.
Oh, Adam's dead on about the Tygart River racks. They are awesome. Strap (or tie) anything you want on them, climb all over 'em if you want & they're fine. They'll make anything you want. They even make racks that mount to the bed & allow a camper shell to go on.
For long boats I've got a Yakima on the cab & a Rail-N-Rack (no longer available) on the bed. I've seen ads in magazines for a rear rack that's easily removeable, fits at the rear of the bed & uses either Yakima or Thule cross-bars. I have only seen the ads for this system, but it looks good.
The Yakima that I have was originaly purchased for my wife's Chevy Venture. After we traded the van I found that I only needed to get new clips & adjust the spacing of the towers to put the rack on my GMC truck.
I think I read or heard somewhere that nobody made roof racks for the Super Duty trucks. Something about there not being much support in the roof. I don't know if this has been fixed or worked around.
Whatever system you go with, get the longest bars you can.
Oh, Adam's dead on about the Tygart River racks. They are awesome. Strap (or tie) anything you want on them, climb all over 'em if you want & they're fine. They'll make anything you want. They even make racks that mount to the bed & allow a camper shell to go on.
Try Spring Creek Outfitters for your truck rack. I use one of the reciever mount "goal posts" from somewhere else for the rear (wish I had theirs), and their suction cup mount for the front. I drive a dakota 4 door, so I just run the strap through the rear door and lock it down tight. I can move the rack forward or back depending on whether I'm carrying a whitewate boat or a huge flatwater boat.
It's not as verasatile as the Yakima or Thule if you want to alternate between bikes, skis, canoes, 'yaks or C1...pretty much setup for OC. Their nicely padded (won't scratch wood gunnels) and the slide out loading bars are nice when you are loading a bigger boat by yourself.
The nice thing is that it's versatile on vehicles within limits (ie, one for your F350 might be a tad wide on a Subaru or something). I can switch it to basically anything with a rear reciever and go with it. It's not as elegant as their bed racks (which I would prefer), but if changing a vehicle is in your immediate future, might be worth trying in the meantime.
It's not as verasatile as the Yakima or Thule if you want to alternate between bikes, skis, canoes, 'yaks or C1...pretty much setup for OC. Their nicely padded (won't scratch wood gunnels) and the slide out loading bars are nice when you are loading a bigger boat by yourself.
The nice thing is that it's versatile on vehicles within limits (ie, one for your F350 might be a tad wide on a Subaru or something). I can switch it to basically anything with a rear reciever and go with it. It's not as elegant as their bed racks (which I would prefer), but if changing a vehicle is in your immediate future, might be worth trying in the meantime.