Bought a 2010 Chevy Equinox. Great car but factory racks with Yakima bars allow for a maximum bar spread of 33 inches. I would like to carry a canoe or two up top as I do with my Forester but the spread is a bit small. Any creative suggestions out there? Thanks.
Possibility
You could look into whether installing either Thule or Yakima tracks would work. You have to drill into the roof ,the kit comes with everything needed. This will allow for mounting bars and will give a good spread. Not sure if this mount would clear your factory rack?
extenders
I don’t know of anyone that makes this commercially but might take a look at www.yostwerks.com for plans on making an extender for the racks. I forget exactly where on that site the plans are, but it’s there. Was designed for a Toyota Celica I think that had the racks something like 22" apart, pretty silly.
Bill H.
new vehicles
are not designed with cartopping in mind. I thought about one rack grabber at the rear of the rack and a door mounted clip up front to increase the spread. Short spread is probbaly ok for J cradled kayaks but for longer canoes they dont create a secure fit. Extender modifications of some sort may be the ticket. Thanks.
towers up front
You should be able to install yakima towers near your front doors, right? That would give you a nice spread, and you don’t even need to buy a new bar. Just get the appropriate towers and clips.
Good luck.
idea
The extenders aren’t a real new idea, came from racing kayaks, very fragile long boats that need lots of support. They have lots of extenders available for them, but they arn’t cheap.
http://photokayaker.fit2paddle.com/C1440587403/E20070330105744/index.html
Bill H.
Thanks
for the responses. I would like to cartop a Minnesota II so spread is important. Under vehicle tie downs are another issue with many of these new vehicles. Having said all that the car is a great ride.
Update
Let us know what you end up with. I’m planning on getting a new Equinox and will need to rack it also.
reciever hitch
There is another possibility, put on a reciever hitch and use one of the T bars on the market for the back cross bar then use only the front bar on the roof, will have a great big spread of the bars that way. Like a pickup.
Bill H.
Goal Post
I second two of the ideas above, that I employed on my 2nd generation CRV which didnt have enough spread. I used the T post/goal post that attached to the receiver hitch. I also, gasp, installed the Yakima Track system because I didn’t have the factory rack to start with. I hated to drill the roof but it worked quite well.
Joe