Toyota Venza
No roof rails, not exactly kayak friendly. How about the VW Jetta or Passat? Not exactly great cars but they do come with roof rails but they have this stupid antenna in the middle of the roof.
looks like
– Last Updated: Jul-31-09 1:37 PM EST –
the newer RAV4s overdosed on steroids and had a one night stand w. the blimpy Ford Edge.
Why is Subaru going backwards w. that kind of SUV?
The market has already been flooded w. that bloated body type.
I thought, one day, that I would use my ACA discount and get a Subaru... not if this is what they are offering.
p.s. I'm like gnatcatcher, 5'3" and now even more grateful for my Toyota Matrix.
“Eybrow fenders” look like you’re
… all out of ideas … on any car
Mileage
I should note that the new Outback has improved mileage figures - 29 highway vs. the Forester’s 26. Not bad, but I’m going to try out the Jetta Wagon Diesel when the old Subie gives out.
Alan
Weight loading in the VW
We couldn’t get an answer from the salesman at a car show about the weight bearing load of the rack on the Passat a couple of years ago, but another couple looking for the same features as we were did. The number they were told was no more than 95 pounds, too low for our purposes since current third party systems rest onto the existing rail rather than in the gutter above the frame.
There also isn’t any VW until you get to the Taureg or whatever that has the same storage space as the old Mercury/Ford Sable/Taurus wagon. Then you are into the taller roofs and non-existent gas mileage and we haven’t even checked out the racks because of that. We already have an Outback and it just isn’t great for the really laden trips we make a couple of times a year.
Short of paying the bucks for a Volvo, we are coming up empty on a vehicle with a station wagon height roof with the cargo area of the older Taurus/Sable wagons.
CVT Transmission
– Last Updated: Aug-01-09 8:31 AM EST –
Also looked at the new Outback. Its' big jump in MPG is due to the use of a new CVT transmission. My mechanic thinks they thought it out well, but still this year would be the first for the new transmission. When test driving it the computer printout screen was showing high twenty's and well into the low thirties as I drove it. That is a plus. I did like the increased interior and particularly the much greater seating space front and back, but then again 6'+ is my family.
that’s why i have
a volvo xc…i pack so much crap in my car it ain’t funny! plus 2 dogs!!!
can’t afford new, so i go with newer used. i had 2 subbies and had bad luck. i’d rather have a xc used than a new anything at this time in my life. a reg. volvo wagon is just as handy if you can find one.they are hard to come by. but i can put a the hullivator on it and still have room for a regular kayak rack along side it.now ain’t that sweet?
Saab 9.3 and BMW 325 X wagons
Better than being seen in a Volvo
CVTs
Subaru had CVT experience many years ago with the Justy. Don’t know how they fared. Ford has one too in some models.
As for being seen in a BMW or a Saab 9.3 rather than a Volvo, I imagine Charlie would have a stroke if he had to transport a boat with Justy!
Jim
Solution…
Thule or Yakima racks are for fools. 2 x 4’s from the garage and a visit to Home Depot, a rack for under $20 bucks. Folks that spend more, are silly fools trying to impress others.
You didn’t get it
Kind of a non-sequitor there, and cranky at that. I presume the rain is getting to you.
The main problem is the too-short spread available on the new Outback rails, not what components to put on top of said rails.
As to your complaint - I am sure that the OPer is perfectly capable of using wood if needed. As are many of us. But if you want to start carrying three and four boats on a normal sized vehicle, like on the used-to-be Outback, you need to have vertical supports as well as two pieces of wood to put the boats on their side.
Clearly YOU are not trying to impress…
… others, because if you were, you probably would have put forth the effort to comprehend the original post and tailor this response to the topic at hand, rather than just copying it from the Thule vs Yakima thread and pasting here for no apparent reason. The type of cross bar that you use in this case does not solve the problem addressed by the original poster.
Landing padls/rails
Hi Celia,
Just went through all the wagons available and decided not fit my needs and bought a Honda Odyssey.
I walked out of a dealership when they didn’t want to bother answering my questions regarding load weight on factory racks… They thought I should just drive the car…
Anyway - what I did was have a Yakima drilled roof with landing pads. More secure than the 125 lb limit on the factory rails. I bought the model with a bare roof to do this. The load limit is now 165 lbs which is top for what Yakima recommends. I was able to increase the spread over what you can achieve with Qtowers which rely on the door openings.
As for stores that will do this in New England, I am familiar with only Rack Attack. I will say that NOBODY wants to drill into a brand new roof!
So, don’t be afraid of getting a bare roof without factory rails as there are options to make a secure system.
PS - I looked at the Venza and it drives nice and all but found that the space was no more than my old Subaru Outback but less efficient due to the curves inside.
kayakpro ezeevee
Or make a set after you study the store bought type. My 21 ft kayak requires a 48 in spread. I am thinking of buyng based on factory rack with lots of spread. Thank you for your post on subie
more room than the outback or forester -
How about a VW Jetta wagon or Passat. The Jetta is similarly sized to the outback, and the passat has tons of room. Much better fuel economy too.
I haven’t looked at the rack on the new ones, but our 04 has outstanding factory rails, allowing up to 4 feet of bar spread.
Available with AWD if you need it too.
Finally saw one…
and although I consider myself creative when it comes to racking vehicles, I cannot see how the new Outback can be effectively racked.
Drastic solution: Have dealer remove the rack “rails” and mount Yakima channels directly to the roof.
Sheesh. Subaru of America really screwed the pooch on this one. What a disappointment.
Jim
I found
that using Yakima’s gunwale brackets works very well to tame boat creep on any bar spacing. An 18.5’ hull looks precarious laid down on bars 30" apart but the brackets may help.
yea…
With two weeks of work!
VW’s…
= horrible reliability! My '02 Passat has been a reliability bomb. Reviews have been saying the newer models are even worse. AWD is gone I believe, also. GREAT rack though, and drives fantastic when sorted out.
Passat antenna flexs and folds down