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Roof Mounted Bike Rack

33K views 62 replies 19 participants last post by  Lightman 
#1 ·
Hey guys i'm an avid mountain biker and was wondering if anyone here has purchased and installed a roof mounted bike rack on the 2010 3's? I had a 2006 nissan frontier before i got my mazda so never needed a bike rack before :clap:. So i would appreciate some suggestions.
 
#3 ·
any chance on a total cost for this setup? I am also looking for this option on my 3
 
#4 ·
ALL FUNDS IN CANADIAN

Depends on where you go.

Cap-it quoted my g/f $1xxx.xx for it. +tax + install.

Through my work, buying from another company (that doesnt deal with the public)

Control Towers 157.71 (set of 4)
48" Cross Bar 70.31
Landing Pads 37.46 x 2
6 Sks Cokes 74.26
High Rollers 244.46 x 2
Fairing was around $80 i think.

Bare racking Was $302.94

866.21 For Racking,2 high rollers ,6 locks
946 with Fairing + taxes.

Really, there is I could have locked the fairing on but I decided to use Red Lock tight and nuts.
You will Save a significant amount of money if you go with King Cobra holders. Somewhere around 40- 50 per.

I only got 6 locks to do each tower and the 2 holders, a 4 lock box was cheaper as well.
Also I probably could have used a Wind Jammer for way less $$ but the Fairing is way more bad ass looking. haha
 
#6 ·
Thank you for the info. With the new car I have lost the space to put two bikes in the car for myself and my gf. I have been trying to piece together how much it is gonna cost me to get the setup I want.

p.s The fairing is indeed way better :eek:
 
#7 ·
I already had attachments from my previous rack setup, which was on a 1998 Audi A4. I had old Q-towers, and I hated setting them up all the time, so I went with the Landing Pad setup like Red Dragon's. I re-used the attachments - a bike attachment that clamps down at the front fork (idk what model...its old) and ski attachment (likewise) - and the 48" bars. The landing pads were $144 and the control towers were something like $60, and I bought a fairing as well. The control towers come with new endcaps if you re-use old bars. I bought all the new parts from RackAttack - I initially wanted to do it cheaper by looking for stuff on craigslist and piecing it together, but in the end, RackAttack was having a Yakima sale (they generally have the best prices though) and it saved me the hassle of driving all over the state to get the equipment I needed.

If you already have stuff from your previous rack, go w/ that brand (I think RA stocks Yakima and Thule). If its Yakima, go for the Landing Pad setup...it mounts to pre-drilled holes in your roof (that are currently covered by caps that just slide off) and can be taken off and put back on in less than 5 minutes (if you're one of those people who takes off racks for long drives if they're not being used)

Here's a pic of my rack when it was first installed back in the summer. Good luck!

 
#8 ·
I had a bitch of a time getting my 2nd set of landing pads.

They were back ordered 2 weeks from where I got my 1st set from, then I called them and it was factory b/o 2 weeks so another 4 weeks.

I called Rackattack Vancouver they had 2 sets left so I bought one of them lol and they had been waiting for the landing pad 11 for quite a while as well.
 
#9 ·
awesome suggestion on the Rackattack site. I just built my Yakima setup and it should come in right around 700 bucks for what I want which works for me! I just gotta wait a couple weeks to get the loot to do it. Thanks again to everybodies input!
 
#10 ·
nice! I like Yakima equipment, its stylish, durable, and not overpriced like Thule...

$700?? Did you get the gold-plated option? j/k I guess I'm just a cheapskate when it comes to rack equipment (I think my bars and attachments pre-date my car by about 10 years lol)...I'm currently looking around for a ski rack because the rubber and plastic on mine has become so brittle, and my skis (Volkl Supersports) are so GD thick that I've broken a couple of the holders and the skis move around quite a bit when clamped down. I like the Yakima ski racks, but I'm not about to drop $150-200 on a set (I'm thinking more like...$50 haha). I hope you enjoy your new setup!
 
#11 ·
well I am gonna try to squeeze 3 bike racks on so the price gets up there just with each added bike rack. I have mine, my gf, and our 7 year olds bike. I might toss his bike in the back, but when we go up north to the cottage or camping we need the room inside!
 
#17 ·
works for me :D

what are the thoughts on the setup?
 
#19 ·
+1...same price as the Steelheads (which is what I guess I run...I never knew the model name!) but with better ergonomics.
 
#21 ·
well for a small update, money flow was less than what I had available so the setup changed quite a bit, but it has been ordered.

yakima control towers
yakima landing pad #11
44inch fairing
1 copperhead rack

My girlfriend has decided to get a 3 bike holder for her freestyle since it is what we take on the majority of our trips up north so I just needed something for my own bike at the time. I decided on the copperhead as I really only need a point A to B mount up top and it seems to fit the bill just fine for that. Most people were concerned about theft of the bike since the locking mechanism on it sucks, but again I don't ever plan on leaving my bike on the rack for more than transport.

I will be taking pictures as soon as it arrives :clap:
 
#22 ·
nice! can't wait to see it

+1 on leaving your bike on top. i've never had the locks installed on my bike attachment, and i would never leave my bike on top anyway for your same reason. too much of a theft/vandalism attraction
 
#29 · (Edited)
That looks much cleaner than the Thule sidearm that I have without a bike mounted. NICE! Here's some pics of mine with and w/o my bike mounted. Sorry for the poor pic quality, used my blackberry.
 

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#35 ·
The roof rack sold by Mazda dealers is made by Thule and accepts all the standard Thule accessories for rectangular bars, but is priced alot higher than you can get the same stuff from a Thule dealer. I had Thule bike attachments and a fairing from my last car, a Saab, which had a custom made Thule where the rack bars are permanently attached to the feet, so I couldn't reuse the old bars. (It was actually a very nice rack set up, using 2 pins on each foot that mounted into holes under the rubber door molding. To tighen the rack onto the car, you just turned knobs on the end of the bars. And the feet couldn't be removed with the doors closed, so you didn't need lock cores on the feet.)

For my new 2010 M3 hatchback, I just bought this Thule setup:

460 Podium Foot Pack
3069 Fit Kit
50" load bars (shortened to minimize protrusion past the feet)
lock cylinders

Rackwarehouse.com sells everything (both Thule and Yakima) at 10% off MSRP, with free shipping on orders over $75.

By the way, I have no problem fitting two bikes and a bunch of other gear inside the M3 hatchback. Over the years of owning hatchbacks, I’ve refined the practice to a fine art, with no damage ever to the bikes. (The key is using ratty old blankets under, over, and between the bikes.) I'll only use the roof rack for those trips when my girlfriend and I bring both the mountain bikes and the road bikes (four bikes!).
 
#36 · (Edited)
So I finally got the rack mounted and surprise, the fairing sits right on the edge of the glass of the fairing :001_unsure:

It seems to function ok, however, if you have the sunroof open and are going more than 60mph, the fairing gets caught under the pop up wind diffuser of the sunroof which is quite annoying. I've contacted Yakima and they have no solution. The only thing I've seen other people do is add a 3rd short crossbar about 5-8 inches in front and mounted the fairing on there. Here's a pic of my install.

 
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