Should I Put a Yakima on the Roof?

July 12, 2006 9:40 AM

I'm thinking about buying a big Yakima or Thule roof cargo box. I'd appreciate your advice/tips on whether this would be a good idea and whether you found either brand to be better.

We have a VW Passat station wagon. Baby on the way; dog goes in the back. We're going to need more room, especially for long trips, but we really really don't want to buy a bigger car. A cargo thingamajig on the roof seems like the way to go, but I have no experience with them and don't know anyone who has one. Here are my key questions:

--Yakima or Thule? I'm leaning Yakima, but that's really just because their website is a lot better.

--Is it easy to pop on and off, or do you just have to leave it up there all the time? I understand there is a big gas milage hit, so I'd like to pop it off when I am not using it, but don't know if that is feasible.

--Will it whistle and make all kinds of noise up there?

--Will it block the sunroof?

Thanks for your advice.

posted by Mid to travel & transportation (22 comments total)

I have a Thule which works fine, but I think Yakima and Thule are approximately even in practically every way. It takes about 5-10 minutes to put it on or take it off. It doesn't make a ton of noise, but anything on the roof does make some. This is especially true when you have a sunroof.

It will almost undoubtedly block the sunroof at least partially, but whether it will still open depends on your sunroof. Mine works fine, but I have the sunroof that slides into the roof of the car rather than above.
posted by JMOZ at 9:58 AM on July 12, 2006

We had a Thule rack on our VW Golf for a while. Some people prefer Thule because it uses square bars; Yakima's are round. The assertion is that rack components are less likely to pivot on the round bars. I don't know whether this has any relevance, however. Most things you clamp to the rack are fastened both fore and aft and therefore aren't prone to this kind of pivoting.

There is a gas mileage hit, though I couldn't tell you how much. You can get a small spoiler that clamps to the front of the rack just above your windshield; this is intended to reduce both drag and noise. You might not need this (and it might not fit) with a long cargo box on the roof.

It's not that easy to pop the rack or its major components off the car. I'd leave the load bars mounted for sure, but would probably take the cargo box on and off as needed, especially if I only used it seasonally or for the occasional family trip.

I didn't have noise issues from the load bars or bike trays I used, but I did have noise when I had a bicycle wheel carrier up there--this is a two-pronged fork designed to hold a loose bicycle wheel via the normal quick-release skewer and a safety strap. It was silent when there was a wheel affixed, but when I took the wheel out it would magically start singing when I hit a certain speed (45 miles per hour, as I recall). Fortunately the fork could be swiveled down out of the wind with a minute's work (futzing around with a thumbscrew clamp that controls the mounting angle). A really big, boxy cargo case would probably make some noise but a lot of them are pretty streamlined and you might not notice anything bothersome.

The rack itself did not obscure or interfere with our sunroof. I wouldn't think a cargo box would prevent you from opening the sunroof, but it would certainly block the sun, and with a cargo box and/or a spoiler on the rack you're going to be changing the airflow over your sunroof.
posted by Songdog at 10:11 AM on July 12, 2006

I have a Thule. I haven't noticed any wind noise from it, but I don't have a sunroof. Mid's estimate of how long it takes to put on & take off is good.

When you say "block the sunroof," I assume you mean keep it from opening. the answer depends on how high the roof rack is; the box won't be lower than the rack.

Get one of the long, narrow boxes. They are more aerodynamic than the square ones. Even if it overhangs the windshield some, you won't notice it while driving.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 10:12 AM on July 12, 2006

Even if it overhangs the windshield some, you won't notice it while driving.

I always used to check to make sure the bikes were still up there. Drove my wife crazy.
posted by Songdog at 10:16 AM on July 12, 2006

In the choice between Yakima or Thule, figure out if your friends have one or the other. Then pick the one the majority of your friends have. This lets you share components when you need three bike carriers and you have only two. Otherwise, they are roughly identical. I started with Yakima because my parents had one.

In terms of noise and gas milage, I notice a definite increase in road noise with an empty Yak rack on my car, and a definite decrease in gas milage. With two bikes, it's about 10-15%; with just the rack, about 5%.

It takes two people about five minutes to put it on / take it off. One person takes about 10 minutes (more time spent running from one side to the other.)
posted by printdevil at 10:33 AM on July 12, 2006

i have a thule on my VW GTI (4th gen) and it doesn't interfere with the sunroof at all. i use it to carry bikes primarily - it stays on the car for three seasons and i take it off for the winter. it makes for some extra wind noise which i'm told would be alleviated by using a fairing, but it doesn't really bug me. i haven't noticed any meaningful gas mileage difference, but i do mostly city driving anyways. the thule "Atlantis" series of cargo boxes have some kind of quick-release system for easy on/off, something that might be worth further investigation.
posted by the painkiller at 11:09 AM on July 12, 2006

I read an interesting article (which I can't find now) about how a roof case reduces your gas milage by 5% or something and most people never take them off because they're hard/big/bulky to store.

The solution (from the manufactuerer of course) was this. Its basically a hard-cased rolling luggage with a locking mechanism to attach to your roof rack.

I have no experience with it at all, it just seemed kind of nifty. Not cheap though.

My buddy's Thule rack (not box though) on his Outback survived a half-dozen ski trips with us not-so-careful guys manhandling it so that gets my vote.
posted by Skorgu at 11:18 AM on July 12, 2006

If you have a factory roof rack your cargo box can go on there and you don't have to buy into either Thule or Yakima's system. I agree that Thule and Yakima are both equivalent for this; I bought the one they had in stock.

I have a Thule Evolution 1200, which holds my snowboarding gear great, but is long enough that it keeps my hatch from opening (WRX wagon; the spoiler hits it). The Passat's a longer car, so it's unlikely you'll have that problem, but you should look out for it, because it's irritating.

I only put my cargo box on top when I'm about to put cargo in it (eg before a skiing trip). I don't notice significantly worse mileage, or much noise, but I think it's ugly. It's super easy to attach or unattach; lugging it up and down from my third story apartment is the biggest part of the hassle. It would be more difficult to attach if I weren't fairly tall.
posted by aubilenon at 11:27 AM on July 12, 2006

I have a Yakima rack and -- while I can't comment on Thule -- I'll just say that Yakima customer support has been awesome. Twice they've replaced parts (at no cost to me) that I broke without any questions about how they broke or expectation that I return the broken parts. Maybe Thule offers the same, I don't know, but if you're already leaning Yakima, here's another reason to go that way.
posted by dseaton at 11:30 AM on July 12, 2006

Also, if you haven't already, I would recommend reading this previous AskMe, in which a lot of the same considerations apply.
posted by JMOZ at 11:30 AM on July 12, 2006

This is funny. I have an Audi A4 Avant, which is in most respects the same car as the Passat Wagon you have. We recently bought a cargo box because, like you, we have a baby in the back seat (well, two babies) and a dog who rides in the rear cargo section on long trips --- so we needed someplace to put luggage + stroller + pack n play + everything else one takes on long trips.

I assume your car, like ours, has a factory luggage rack already in place (the raised black/silver bars that run along the roofline). I bought the Audi luggage bars, although they were a little more expensive, because I could be sure they would fit and because I understood that they were rounded and therefore created less wind noise. I believe, but am not positive, that the Audi rack is manufactured by Thule. I assume VW has a similar accessory available.

After that, I ordered the Thule Evolution 1200 box online. It fits perfectly and is easy to put on/off the car. Takes about 5 minutes each way. The nice thing is that the box opens from both sides, so you can easily access all the interior mounting bits. It also holds an AMAZING amount of stuff. Basically, we can go away for a long trip and have everything we need stored up there, with no luggage in the car. It is a perfect length for the car, meaning it is as long as possible without interfering with the lift of the tailgate.

It does make some noise, but not so much that I'm distracted by it or notice it regularly. The Evolution box is contoured, so wind noise is minimized. It does rattle slightly if you go over bumps.

The sunroof still works, but the view is obstructed by the underneath of the box. You can still open it for air, though.
posted by GregW at 1:34 PM on July 12, 2006

I should also say that, while one of the posters above said their cargo box is ugly, the Thule Evolution box I have looks quite sporting, imo, and I don't mind driving around with it on the roof between trips.
posted by GregW at 1:47 PM on July 12, 2006

I have a big Yakima box with Yakima bars on one truck (a 4runner) and factory bars on the other (a Honda Pilot). They are both good brands. A lot depends on your particular vehicle. I highly recommend Rack Attack for incredibly helpful and detailed advice on which box and bars.

In general, factory bars are a MUCH better idea than add-ons because they make a lot less noise. In fact, I remove the bars when I'm not using them because of the howl at highway speeds.

Both bars and box will substantially reduce your MPG.

The only problem I have had with the Yakima box is in extremely cold weather (-18C and lower), which sometimes causes the clickers that hold the lid down not to click shut.

I also have a Thule bike rack for the rear of the 4runner, which is excellent.
posted by unSane at 3:22 PM on July 12, 2006

Thanks for the comments, all. Too many good ones to mark every best answer.

One question, if anyone is still reading:

GregW and unSane mention factory bars. Do I have it right that you mean the cross bars that attach to the existing factory rack? (In other words, you're not talking about the factory rack, which I already have.) I should buy them from VW instead of getting a cross-bar "system" from Yak or Thule? But will the Yak or Thule snap onto the factory cross bars, or do I also need some sort of adapter, like the Yak "Q-tower"?

Also, GregW -- the Evolution 1200 is only 12 cubic feet. Do you find that to be enough? I was thinking of a 16 c.f. size. Could you get, say, 3 big duffel bags in it? (I'm thinking of a large carry-on duffel, but not a huge military surplus duffel.)
posted by Mid at 6:51 AM on July 13, 2006

Do I have it right that you mean the cross bars that attach to the existing factory rack?
Yes

But will the Yak or Thule snap onto the factory cross bars
Yes

Bear in mind that the roof boxes and racks (including the factory racks) have load limits, which you can find out. If your three big duffle bags are full of depleted uranium, you may have a problem.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 6:55 AM on July 13, 2006

Depleted? Who needs depleted!
posted by Mid at 7:18 AM on July 13, 2006

I apologize -- I went back and checked the receipt and it is the Evolution 1600 I have, not the 1200. By the way, I got a very good price on it from LL Bean, which I hadn't thought of checking for cargo boxes at first.

It is quite large and more spacious inside than it looks. I am consistently amazed at the amount of stuff I can put up there. One very large and full duffel bag + a pack n play only takes up about 1/2 the available space.

You can buy the cross-bars from Yakima or Thule -- I became pretty frustrated dealing with the online "fitment" calculators though and so I ended up ordering the bars from Audi because I KNEW they would fit exactly. Also, I liked their style better than the other bars I found online.
posted by GregW at 9:30 AM on July 13, 2006

Yes, I mean the factory bars (crosswise) as opposed to the factory rails (longitudinal).

The factory bars usually have a much lower profile and an aerodynamic section, and connect to the rails much more cleanly than the aftermarket versions. They are also often slightly curved upwards as opposed to the straight aftermarket rails, which makes them much less saggy under load.

You will really notice a difference in gas consumption, wind noise and carrying capacity.
posted by unSane at 11:23 AM on July 13, 2006

Update: I just purchased a Thule Evolution 1600 from orsracksdirect.com, mainly on Gregw's recomendation.

I will post again after I have it installed.
posted by Mid at 8:21 PM on July 17, 2006

OK, they don't have the Evolution 1600 any more, so I'm back in the market.
posted by Mid at 11:24 AM on July 21, 2006

OK, so I bought an Atlantis 1600 from Thule and installed it a few weeks ago. It is great. It fits the Passat wagon perfectly, makes very little wind noise, and looks pretty good too. Also, I decided that I like the looks of the Thule adapters (the feet that hook onto your roof rack) much better than the Yakama product, so I'm happy with that also.

Thanks again for the help.
posted by Mid at 11:44 AM on December 6, 2006

Also, I bought it from rackattack.com. The service was very good.
posted by Mid at 11:45 AM on December 6, 2006