roof rack

amyperl · 10-15-2005, 01:22 PM

Has anyone had any experience putting a roof rack and a kayak on their Prius? I'm a kayaker who is interested in buying a Prius, and i see they don't have factory racks. In doing some research, i did find that there's a Thule rack that can fit on it. But i'd have to load the boat from the side due to the antenna location. Is anyone else out there a kayaker? How does the car perform with a boat on it? How does side loading work for you? Does the antenna get in the way? Any thoughts/advice?

engunneer · 10-15-2005, 01:41 PM

You can always take off the antenna as part of your loading procedure. Do you actually listen to the radio?

There are roof racks that fit, and a few people here have them. I think the common thing to do is to remove it whenever you can (off-season, mondays, etc.) for better fuel economy.

lekofraggle · 12-03-2005, 01:48 AM

I'm a windsurfer, and I got a rack from the rackwarehouse.com. It fits well. I did not get the farring to save money on the purchase end, and don't seem to loose too much for MPG with just the rack. It is noisy above 40 mph however. WHen my board is on, I loose about 5mpg, and it is quieter. I bet the faring would solve at least one of these issues. When my board is on top, I try to keep the antenna between it and the mast which is usually the only other thing on the roof. I don't have any problem, but it does come off esily. You could put a rack on that holds your boat on its side. I am not sure how well that would work for avoiding the antenna, but you could try it, and if it doesn't work, sell it on ebay or take off the antenna, you could also get longer crossbars. You would then risk walking into them, as the roof of the prius is not as high as an SUV.

altaskier · 12-03-2005, 07:29 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by amyperl@Oct 15 2005, 12:22 PM
Has anyone had any experience putting a roof rack and a kayak on their Prius?

[snapback]141456[/snapback]

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Adventures delivering kayak...
Thule rack?

tuco · 12-25-2005, 07:46 AM

You may want to look into getting a vacu-rack from ebay or vacurack.com. It sells for about fifty dollars and won't damage your paint.

Tuco

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10-15-2005, 01:22 PM	#1
amyperl Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 2 My Car: Model: Package: Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts Friends: 0	Has anyone had any experience putting a roof rack and a kayak on their Prius? I'm a kayaker who is interested in buying a Prius, and i see they don't have factory racks. In doing some research, i did find that there's a Thule rack that can fit on it. But i'd have to load the boat from the side due to the antenna location. Is anyone else out there a kayaker? How does the car perform with a boat on it? How does side loading work for you? Does the antenna get in the way? Any thoughts/advice?

10-15-2005, 01:41 PM	#2
engunneer Prius Hacker Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 302 My Car: Model: Package: Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts Friends: 0	You can always take off the antenna as part of your loading procedure. Do you actually listen to the radio? There are roof racks that fit, and a few people here have them. I think the common thing to do is to remove it whenever you can (off-season, mondays, etc.) for better fuel economy.

12-03-2005, 01:48 AM	#3
lekofraggle Join Date: May 2004 Posts: 3 My Car: Model: Package: Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts Friends: 0	I'm a windsurfer, and I got a rack from the rackwarehouse.com. It fits well. I did not get the farring to save money on the purchase end, and don't seem to loose too much for MPG with just the rack. It is noisy above 40 mph however. WHen my board is on, I loose about 5mpg, and it is quieter. I bet the faring would solve at least one of these issues. When my board is on top, I try to keep the antenna between it and the mast which is usually the only other thing on the roof. I don't have any problem, but it does come off esily. You could put a rack on that holds your boat on its side. I am not sure how well that would work for avoiding the antenna, but you could try it, and if it doesn't work, sell it on ebay or take off the antenna, you could also get longer crossbars. You would then risk walking into them, as the roof of the prius is not as high as an SUV.

12-25-2005, 07:46 AM	#5
tuco Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 13 My Car: Model: Package: Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts Friends: 0	You may want to look into getting a vacu-rack from ebay or vacurack.com. It sells for about fifty dollars and won't damage your paint. Tuco