Why “no way”
My Yakima rack "landing pads" are bolted right through my truck roof to the space between the inner roof and outer roof.
They can still steal the towers, but not the pads.
the towers are fairly cheap.
It is probably the securest way to install racks, and are better than the factory rails on other vehicles.
The first hole you drill hurts the worst. Once that is done, the rest are painless!
Jack L
stealing
must be why a local kayak store keeps getting broken into
so many times this year.
If they are hollow
run a cable lock through both of them to lock them together.
Or…buy a steel bar, and run it perpendicular to your load bars in the center of the vehicle, drill through the bar and your load bars, and bolt the two load bars together, then mash the threads up so they cant be unbolted. If the setup gets stolen, they will be unable to load it into a vehicle to get away. It will be difficult to conceal, and readily identifiable.
Or you can lock it on and squirt super glue into the locks.
Backup
Haven’t had it happen yet, and don’t have any bright ideas re how to prevent it, but I do always carry spare straps and foam cradles. As least this will get me home if I come back from paddling to a bare roof.
Unfortunately, most cables are fairly
easily cut by thieves with tools.
that’s what she said
where does jackl live? now thats funny…
Where do you live, so I know where to get cheap stuff?
Update
Yakima offered me a permanent mount installation option. They have tracks that can be bolted to the roof, landing pads hold control towers and cross bars. These towers when locked cannot be removed as easily as a clip installation according to Yakima. They also offered a sympathy discount of 70% off then entire setup!
I have not looked into Thule because I have been very satisfied with the Yakima product. Yakima needs to come up with a better solution to the current trend in gang related theft of their product. These can be easily removed apparently even if locked. I must say that I was pleased they helped me out so that I can now use a proper rack and ditch the foam blocks.
Thank you all for the advice given especially those that were brave enough to have holes drilled on their car roof. This idea seems like the only option other than always having to remove the rack which is not appealing to me.
Please note that I do not live in a high crime area. My community is one of those that has guarded entry and rovers. Even the police officer that came by was taken aback about the report. So if this is a new “gang trend” it may happen anywhere.
True Enough, But…
…all you can really do is the old mantra - make’em take time, make 'em make noise, make 'em bring tools - you won’t stop a determined pro, but you can make it as inconvenient as possible for the more casual thieves…
Electrical-shock boobytrap
Wishful thinking, but wouldn’t it be fine to zap would-be burglars and vandals so hard that they fell over dead, red-handed?
NO sympathy for any criminals, no matter how bad a childhood they had, how tough their life is, blahblahblahblahexcusesexcusesexcuses.
The Make My Day law should cover all 50 states and include one’s automobiles as well as houses.
Big thumbs up Picabike!
Please run for president next time…
around.
You got my vote !
Jack L
wanna…
…borrow my welder ? a few zaps and it’ll stay where put !
racks
Racks are noisy and kill the mileage of the car they are on. Takes maybe 10 minutes max to remove them.
Bill H.
That’s nice of them
I guess you can’t complain about their service.
However, it would be better if they just made racks that were easier and faster to remove and install, so people didn’t feel compelled to leave them on the car all the time. I never leave my Saris rack on my roof if I’m not using it, as it goes on and off quickly enough that there’s no point in leaving it on. Although I haven’t actually taken it off while I’m out paddling, if I was in an area where rack theft was an issue, I wouldn’t hesitate to do so.
I agree…
…which is why I never leave mine on. However, I can install them in about two minutes, so it’s no major inconvenience. Some racks are a pain to remove and install, which is why people leave them on. Although it sounds counterintuitive, if rack maker made their racks easier to remove and install, it might actually result in less theft.
Rack mileage depends on the car
I get the same 24 mpg at 60mph on the highway with no racks or with three racks on the roof.
just curious…
What part of the U.S. are the thefts taking place? Any speculation as to why gangs would go out of their way to steal racks? Thanks.
Pagayeur
thefts
Yakima told me that they were contacted by the LA police department because of all the thefts in that area. If you google that question you will find most occur on the west coast of the US. I also saw reports from Ontario, Orlando, Tampa, etc. It seems to me that there is a connection between thefts and demand of these racks by a large community of bike clubs and paddlers. These racks have a simple lock that can easily be opened with a flat head screwdriver and a firm twist. Clips can also be pried and pulled off with some force.
So if you live in an area where many use roof racks…this could affect you.
Oh, boy
Whatever crime hits southern CA gets pretty quickly to CO. They’re probably already targeting the bike mounts, as those are as common here as kayak cradles are in the Seattle area.
Now, where is that NRA sticker and the bumper sticker that says Never Mind the Dog–Beware of Owner.