Yakima Rack Fitment

[MSOEMiller]

The Q127 front clips with a straight cross bar didn't work for me.

The front clips kept popping off when I did a shake test. I bought the Q116 clips and I will give them a try.

Update 7-2-08 - Got the rack back on tonight. The Q116 clips for front and back work, just like Yakima said. I'll post photos soon.

[MSOEMiller]

Here's the Yakima rack with the Yakima's suggested parts. Find at Yakima Racks, Bike Racks, Roof Racks for Skis, Cargo & Kayaks - Yakima

[ShoshTrvls]

Are those the Q116 clips front and back?

[MSOEMiller]

Originally Posted by ShoshTrvls

Are those the Q116 clips front and back?

Yes, they are Q116's.

I went for a ride today. Drove 25 miles each way at 65-70 mph with my bike in the rack. No problem. The wind noise was barely noticeable. Well, over the breathless exhaust that is

[Little John]

I purchased the Yakima rack parts specified on the Yakima web site, with the Q116 clips. I also purchased the spreader bars. I installed it using the 5" front measurement from Yakima and put the back Q-Towers and crossbar as close to the rear as possible.

The only glitch was getting the correct tower covers for use with the spreader kit. My kit came with the clip in covers. I needed the screw in covers. Yakima sent them for no charge. Nice customer service!!!

The picture of the Blue/Silver smart with the rack installed and the box on top is in the Blue smart gallery. Search key words are rack, ski, skiing.

There is some interference in the back with the window lifting up but it is not too bad.

It rides nicely on the car and is amazingly quiet. The biggest obstacle is the lift over height. You end up standing on the passenger door sill to reach things.

I'll report back with updates as we go through the winter.

[tinysmart]

Originally Posted by SmartAzz

Perhaps because of how narrow/tall it is? Throws off the balance too much (danger of tip over)?

If it were because of the polycarbonate roof I'd think the manual would state that considering that the Pures don't have it..

gimmie a break, you have to be really fast for that to happen, so as long you don't anything "stupi", you'll be fine. jeezus.

[epbrown]

I'm curious - why all the focus on roof racks? The accessories catalog shows a bike rack for the back of the car.

[gurps]

I know that there are a couple of us that have tandems- bikes only a few inches shorter than our smarts! A roof rack is the only option for us, unless our bike frames have S&S couplers to allow the frame to be disassembling into small pieces, but spending more time assembling/disassembling a tandem than riding isn't very worthwhile.
Another reason for my preference is keep access to the rear cargo area clear. I have had rear bike racks before and they could be a nuisance when getting to the rear hatch or trunk, but not impossible.
it sounds like the Q116s combined with a stretch kit is the way to go for tandems, since Yakima does not recommend carrying a tandem when the towers are closer than 24 inches. I first though I wouldn't be able to carry my tandem, now there is hope, thanks to Oliver!


Tom

[stzul]

I just installed the yakima set with the basket case - needed extra storage room, something off the shelf that I could put together in an afternoon. Plus I can easily swap out the basket case for a bike mount in the future. You can see the pics on the 451s.com site (search for "Yakima" - I can't post links since this is my first post...)

It dropped my highway mileage significantly - could definitely feel a drop in acceleration. Not as much with cross-wind issues.

[kannonvaggon]

Soooo...

Are folks mounting a Yakima rack on the CABRIO roof rails without any issues....

or not .....

I'm wanting to get a folding boat that is about 12' long, but light in weight. A PortaBote. It won't work for me without being able to use a roof rack to get from the RV site to the water. I ASSUMED I could just get a simple roof rack and put the darned thing up on it even though it would most obviously hang off the front and rear quite a bit.... but hey, we ain't sissies ....

Now I'm wondering if the roof rails on the Cabrio model are capable of keeping the rack in place with normal clip types, or will they try to lift off the tridion... ??

Anybody have experience with this sort of setup on a CABRIO?
I'm not too concerned with being able to drop the top whilst the rack is on the vehicle, but it wouldn't bother me if that worked also... he said stupidly...

;-)