Have just purchased a new (well, newer…) car, which has an antenna on the top toward the back. It’s a 2006 Hyandai Accent, if that helps. I presently load my kayak by protecting the trunk and windshield in the back with bath mats, then slide it up onto the roofracks - - but on the new car, the antenna is right in the way ! Any ideas on how to protect the antenna while loading the kayak? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated ! Thanks - Sue
Sue…
Most of those roof-mounted, toward the back of the vehicle antennas are screw-ins. You may be able to unscrew the antenna from it’s base, load the Yak and then put it back on if your load the yak cockpit down.
please describe
Are you using factory rack, or aftermarket? if aftermarket, how wide are the bars?
Do you use saddles? Can the saddles be moved to one side or the other so the antenna doesn’t interfere?
Screw off
My Hyundai Santa Fe has one and it screws on and off. The reception really isn’t degraded all that much when its off, either.
When shopping for cars,
that is the time to decide your priorities. A car that will not support your boat carrying requirements is not the car to buy. Pay attention…
1 Like
Really?
– Last Updated: Apr-30-09 12:18 AM EST –
"Pay attention..."? Are you saying she should pass up a good used car because it has a rear-mount antenna? That doesn't seem like advice - more like a scolding.
To the OP - my Mini has an antenna back there - as mentioned earlier it screws off easily. If your antenna is centered, it makes good sense to have your saddles pushed to one side or the other - the antenna does not interfere unless I'm carrying a really wide boat. I have them on the driver's side so I can tighten straps quickly if I have to pull over. Others prefer the passenger side as it's close to the curb. Having the boat to one side makes it easier to load and secure, as well as keeping its weight close to the supports so the crossbars will flex less.
hyundai antenna
We are a multi-hyundai family. the Santa Fe antenna not only screws off but also rotates to a flat position so it is out of the way.
the antennas on the Elantra do not unscrew easily but are very felxible and can be bent over double without damage (they just flex when going thru a car wash)
antenna
I’ve got a Hyundai Santa Fe too, and um…just carry the boat on one side or the other. No rule says it has to be in the middle.
Bill H.
Kind of like shopping for boats.
If you want to take ocean voyages, but you can get a smoking deal on a 10 foot rec yak, then you go for the smoking deal right?? Then try to figure out how you can make that work for your original needs. Hey, everybody has a method I guess.
I thought that was the windup handle
Wow,
that’s incredibly unhelpful.
No
No, those situations are not comparable.
I find it curious that someone who incorporates ‘zen’ into a screen name is so judgemental to a neophyte.
get serious
An antenna that you have to unscrew is not a SOT that you paddle across the pacific. Get serious.
Interesting
I probably load and unload a kayak or canoe 4 or 5 times a week. I am in the market for a new car and have eliminated all those with roof antennae. Life has too many hassles to have to deal with another one.
David
Folks, take a look first…
… at the car in question before giving too much advice:
http://www.cars.com/go/crp/research.jsp?makeid=19&modelid=218&year=2006§ion=summary
Click on the photo for a larger view.
This antenna can indeed get in the way if it cannot be unscrewed! An easy fix is to move the boat position to one side if the boat is narrow enough.
Another is to just remove the antenna and possibly relocate it if reception sufffers.
If it was mine and it was not removable, I’d just chop to top of it off to just an inch above the roof and finish the top with some household goop or epoxy glue to make sure it stays watertight and is smooth.
My Prius has a removable antenna in the front and when removed there is only an inch left poking-up. That provides sufficient reception in metro areas but in the country it could use its full antenna.
There are aftermarket antennae that are flush or it can be relocated with some basic autmotive repair skills to just about anywhere (there should be a cable under the headliner that can be routed to the side or to the rear window and a stick-on or other antenna mounted…
it unscrews
Only took 15 posts to say it unscrews!
15 posts and 11 years… Car is probably rusted away by now… 