I have a new car and I don’t want to damage the paint or the roof [as I did with my 1995 Ford Escort].
What car top carrier do you recommend for carrying a kayak [or canoe if I win the latest Paddling.net contest] and why do you think your suggested car top carrier is best?
The only “limitation” is that I’m 67 years old and lifting a 50 pound Pungo is not something I can do easily, so I need a car top carrier that will assist me in doing so.
Thank you for all your recommendations.
Auntie Coosa
Yakima and Thule have good guides
on their web sites.For instance:
http://www.yakima.com/shop/water/lift-assist/showboat
You need basic racks to use this.
Small trailer
A small trailer is a nice option. Really easy to load/unload.
I have used yakima
all my life on 7 or 8 vehicles and I have been happy. But I think the next time I buy a vehicle I may go to a permanent mounting bracket professionally mounted to the roof. Less chance of damage to the finish.
Trailer for Corolla
The rear bumper on a Corolla doesn’t look conducive to installing a ‘bumper hitch’ … that’s why I had not considered that choice … THEN I searched the web … and found this … http://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Hitch/Toyota/Corolla/2005/11266.html?vehicleid=20051000097
Maybe I need to talk to my Toyota Dealer to find out how much they’ll charge to install this … because it’s NOT that expensive when compared to the Yakima car top carrier.
But then the cost of an aluminum kayak/canoe trailer is a bit more than a Yakima!
THANKS for giving me the idea to do a bit of research on this.
Auntie Coosa
a bit of money 
Yes, it is more expensive, but the ease of loading and unloading is worth it to some
Here is one link to hitch http://www.etrailer.com/hitch-2012_Toyota_Corolla.htm
I don’t know…
…how tall you are but there are plenty of roof racks that can make loading pretty easy. I’m 5’6" and use a Thule. It has a roller on the end and once the bow of my kayak is situated on the roller, it’s easy to push my boat up and into place (SlipStream 887xt). If you are very gimpy, check out the Hullavator.
Fortunately the roof on your car is low, which should help.
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Hey Marius, getting out on the water much this year? I have yet to hit Lake Erie but it might be interesting tomorrow
5’4" and shrinking
I got on the Thule site and looked at the car top ‘set’ for my car … now I need $604.70 plus shipping.
I’m going to think about the whole thing …
480 Traverse Foot Pack
847 Outrigger II
544 4-pack lock cylinder
871-T Fairing 38"
It’s less than the hitch plus a trailer by half.
Thanks for the input everyone, Auntie Coosa
Got an email suggesting
The Glide and Set “Roller Loader” from Thule.
What about the SLIPSTREAM?
Anyone using that one?
Thanks again for everyone’s assistance. Auntie Coosa
That’s the one…
`…I mentioned above that I use. It works fine for me but I’m a gym rat.
To get a feel if it would work for you, see if you have any difficulty getting the bow of your kayak up to about head height or a little above that (with the stern still on the ground). That’s about the position that you must achieve to get the bow positioned on the rear roller guide (the roof on your car is not very high which really helps).
If you can do that, you should have little difficulty lifting the stern and guiding the boat up onto the rack.
You might have to position a towel or something on the upper edge of the trunk lid to prevent the bottom of the kayak from rubbing on the trunk while you are loading it up. That’s not an issue for me as my kayak is a little over 17 feet in length.
Thank you …
I’m not a gym rat … I’m working on it … I’m 67 and went to a friend’s fitness center for women and got some instructions [I live ‘on the Eastern Shore’ in Alabama and she’s in the North Georgia Mountains] … I’m hoping that by the end of the year, I can lift 50 pounds over my head … the weight of my Pungo … … but I’m not sure I could control the Pungo well enough to actually place it on the car.
Therefore … a car top carrier. Or trailer. Now that I know where I’m headed … thanks to you all … I’m looking for those nice discount auto supply stores that sell Thule … I might be able to buy the ‘set’ I’m looking for for 2/3rds list price … and that’s actually affordable!
Thank you all for the input …Using your knowledge is helpful beyond measure.
Auntie Coosa
Another option
Not to detract from the Thule Yakima parade, but, for a low cost simple solution, this one is pretty hard to beat.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGtn55rV_K8
Not bad at all, thanks for the link!
This looks like a simple solution that might work on some cars. I think this would be good one wagons if the rack is far enough to the rear, but it might not be good enough on a Corolla with a short kayak - the bottom of the kayak will likely hit the rear of the trunk lid, especially if there is a spoiler (as on the “S” models).
Alternative is to get a permanent 5-6 foot rack extension that has a foot or two that sticks out to the rear beyond the bars. Serves the same purpose but also gives better support for the kayak after it is loaded.
Regardless, a lightweight kayak would make a lot of difference: compare sub-30lb light composite with a 50/60+ lb one -;(