AussieInLA

Hi Guys,

Looking to get roof racks and ski carrier & bike carrier for my 08 GTS. Does anyone have any recommendations on the best one to get for price, functionality and most importantly QUIET!

3 options I am coming across are:

Thule Aeroblade
http://www.thule.com/en-us/us/buyers...ks&q=XnC3oQCnp
$474 racks (around 200 for ski racks + 200 for bike rack)
Has the extra wide rack.

Yakima Whisbar
$520 racks ($149 for ski rack, $200 for bike rack)
doesnt have the extra wide racks

OEM Bars on Suncoast
http://www.suncoastparts.com/product...552S_roofracks
$375 racks (100 ski rack, 130 bike rack)
Cheap! no extra wide racks. and bike rack looks like it couldnt handle my downhill bike.

Anyone have recommendations?

touareg

This will bolt directly to the roof channels, but may not be the prettiest. I spent about $200 for all the gear when it was on sale at amazon. Probably not what you are looking for as I used it more for off roading duties, rather than sports. Thought I would throw it out there anyways.

http://www.clubtouareg.com/forums/f6...ack-18819.html

TomF

I'm looking for an expedition rack that I can mount an LED light bar across. It needs to be aluminum as the steel ones are 250#. I may try to modify a Land Rover OEM one, but they are pricey at about $1500-2000...

Cheers,
TomF

wrinkledpants

Consider getting a hitch, and going with a Kuat hitch rack. Rock solid - even with 4 heavy DH bikes on the back (if you have the +2 extension on the rack). Super quiet, fast loading, no worries about low roofs. Factory towing package is about 800 bucks and an easy install. If you don't actually plan on towing 7700 lbs, any Curt hitch can be purchased and mounted for under $300. Only benefit to the factory towing package is that it will shut off the rear park sensors when you have the hitch on (if you have park sensors), at least in regards to putting a hitch rack on there.

My second choice would be the whisp bars and a Rocky Mounts Brass Knuckles. Love the Rockies since each tray takes 2 locks - one to lock the tray to the crossbars, and the other to lock the bike to the rack. That way, you don't have to remember to re-lock the tray when you don't have a bike up there.

Something to consider. If you go with the OEM adjustable crossbars, you're going to have a hell of a time getting a DH bike up there as they are tall bars. If you go with the fixed silver rails that run the length of the roof. the whisp bar will fit a bit lower. If you've got heavy DH bikes, it's not going to be fun getting them up there. Especially if you're parked between two cars. If you've got wide bars (760 mm or bigger), you might have to flip one tray around so the bars aren't banging against each other - at least if you're using thew whisp bars. If you go with a traditional rack with bar overhang, you can mount them out board, but it's ugly and loud.

I've had bikes mounted on my roof since I was in high school. I can't explain how fvcking awesome having a hitch mount is. The rack is fast enough to take off that it's easy to install and remove as needed. But, once you mount beefy trays on the roof, you'll want to keep them on as it's such a pain to take off. I can install in my Kuat in 2 minutes or less.

wrinkledpants

For skis, I would pony up for the adjustable load bars, plus your favorite ski mount. I like the Yakima ski mounts since they're low-profile and easy to slide into the T-slot on the top of the load bars. Plus, it's super easy to remove and install those adjustable load bars. If you want to put a ski box up there, get the factory rails and use the whisp bar. This keeps the box nice and close to the roof so you have less dragging in the wind.

jschnelk

+1 for the Kuat NV hitch rack. If you do a lot of biking, this is the best rack to get in my opinion. It's sturdy, quiet and really nice looking. I've owned all kinds of hitch and roof mounted bike racks and the Kuat is the easiest one to use. You can mount 4 bikes in a minute as opposed to having to fight the bikes on and off the rack like a jigsaw puzzle. Four fat bikes will even fit. Awesome customer service as well. I had a part problem and they sent me a replacement in 48 hours. The black and chrome version looks really nice on a black vehicle.

AussieInLA

Great feedback thanks! I had the Thule Hitch rack on my 08 Volkswagen Touareg but that had a hitch pre-installed. Being a bit of a princess, I dont want to ruin the aesthetic of the back of my GTS so the roof racks were the option. Maybe i need to re-explore the rack.