1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

DANGER- If you have a Yakima Rack Read this!!

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by skyisblue, Sep 5, 2008.

  1. skyisblue

    skyisblue New Member

    Joined:
    Apr 10, 2007
    8
    0
    0
    I had a Yakima roof rack on my 2005 Prius, using footpads Q50 and 124, and it FLEW OFF MY ROOF while traveling at freeway speeds this weekend on Hwy 101!! :eek:

    I am writing today to warn others who may have the same set up as I am virtually certain that this is a design failure. I am also asking others who have had similar experiences to contact me.

    The short version of my story:

    I bought a Yakima rack in 2007, when Yakima was still recommending the Q50 pads for both front and back, I did the install myself numerous times and kept on having the racks slide back when carrying multiple surfboards (and even when just carrying one). I wrote about this experience in detail here:     http://priuschat.com/forums/prius-main-forum/37441-thule-vs-yakima-2.html

    As described, I eventually took it back to REI where they found out that Yakima was now recommending different pads. I paid for professional installation and hadn't had any problems since.

    This weekend I went on a surf trip with 4 friends. We packed 5 surfboards onto my rack, strapped them down carefully, and double checked the security of the rack before leaving (these boards are our babies). While traveling in Labor Day weekend traffic, at fast highway speeds, the entire rack and all 5 boards launched into the air. By some incredible luck the cars behind me managed to swerve and miss the flying boards and did not hit each other. This was amazing skill by the other drivers as the road was packed and traffic was moving fast.

    The damage to the boards was not nearly as bad as we had feared, but there are still some dings and scrapes and one board is badly damaged. The roof of my car is dented where the racks grab on and the paint is badly scraped now. Mostly, we are just lucky no one was hurt.

    Because I had been through this before, had the rack professionally installed, and because I have read a few posts of others having a similar problem, I am concerned that this is a design defect and may happen to others. Nowhere in the material that came with the rack or in the information on the web have I found something that suggests that this is not an appropriate use of the rack.

    I am working through the claims process with Yakima now, it looks like it will be slow and painful (to start they want me to ship my entire rack to them, which will be neither cheap to do or easy to pack).

    If you have had similar experience please let me know.     I want to convince Yakima to take the appropriate protective action so that no one gets hurt if this is happening to others (and no more surfboards, bikes, or kayaks meet an early death either). If it is just me then I will move on.
     
    #1 skyisblue, Sep 5, 2008
  2. tochatihu

    tochatihu Senior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 10, 2004
    9,045
    3,528
    0
    Location:
    Kunming Yunnan China
    Vehicle:
    2001 Prius
    If you have any photos of the attachment points, it would be helpful.

    I used Yakima on 2001 Prius (apparently quite a different setup) and it always seemed secure.
     
    #2 tochatihu, Sep 5, 2008
  3. darelldd

    darelldd Prius is our Gas Guzzler

    Joined:
    Jan 17, 2006
    6,057
    389
    0
    Location:
    Northern CA
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Bummer.

    Yet another advantage of bolting the things to the roof! Honestly, I'll never clamp a roof rack on again. Several reasons not to!
     
    #3 darelldd, Sep 5, 2008
  4. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

    Joined:
    Jan 6, 2004
    12,754
    5,245
    57
    Location:
    Minnesota
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    There are TIE-DOWNS available for securing loads to the roof. I hadn't realized it would be necessary to provides photos for them. They'll be in the User-Guide fairly soon. Stay tuned.

    FRONT in the back corner of the hood, where the hinge connects to the frame of the car itself, you'll see a hole. That's actually an eyelet you can use which is outside of the waterseal... very convenient for attaching a rope as a safety catch, just in case the rack slips.

    BACK at the top of the hatch, where the hinge connects to the frame of the car itself and outside the waterseal. The hinge itself can be used to attach a rope for additional securing. This is also very handy if you are carrying bikes on back.

    .
     
    #4 john1701a, Sep 5, 2008
  5. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

    Joined:
    Jan 6, 2004
    12,754
    5,245
    57
    Location:
    Minnesota
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    This link provides a temporary copy of the draft currently being worked on. Feedback is appreciated...

    There are 6 new photos illustrating how to include a safety-catch to prevent the unfortunate event described in the first post of this thread.

    User-Guide is where the final version of the 2 new pages will be available.

    .
     
    #5 john1701a, Sep 7, 2008
  6. Rokeby

    Rokeby Member

    Joined:
    Jan 21, 2008
    3,033
    708
    75
    Location:
    Ballamer, Merlin
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    john1701a,

    Thank you for this information and the clear pictures. From time to time I
    will be carrying one or more solo canoes on a rack and your info answers
    my questions on independant tie downs.

    Have been doing so fo more than 20 yrs with no problems and have always
    used tie downs in addition to the rack, the only way to go.
     
    #6 Rokeby, Sep 7, 2008
  7. CMonster

    CMonster Member

    Joined:
    Sep 6, 2006
    115
    0
    0
    Location:
    Charlotte, NC
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Excellent photos and great idea. We use the tow eyelet in the front to tie down the fronts of the kayaks, but that does interrupt the driver's field of vision.

    To the OP, I have Q124s front and back and no problems (so far) with two kayaks at up to 70 mph. I remember reading your original post and I've been extra cautious with tie-downs since.
     
    #7 CMonster, Sep 8, 2008
  8. kayak_hauler

    kayak_hauler New Member

    Joined:
    Mar 5, 2008
    48
    0
    0
    Location:
    San Diego
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    I have had the back bar on my Yakima slide back ~2", but I was loaded up as in my avatar with 4 boats - kind of a lot of weight and wind resistance... Hard to imagine all 4 clamps giving up.... That sucks!
     
    #8 kayak_hauler, Sep 8, 2008
  9. whodat

    whodat Member

    Joined:
    May 8, 2006
    117
    10
    0
    Location:
    Aptos, CA
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Wow. Good to know. I am able to fit two surf boards (9 and 8 foot boards) inside my 06 Prius. I was considering racks before I read your posting.

    Thanks
    Dave
     
    #9 whodat, Sep 8, 2008
  10. bsd43

    bsd43 Member

    Joined:
    Sep 9, 2005
    130
    3
    0
    Location:
    San Francisco Bay Area
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    You sure you had the right clips? Yakima's recommendations a couple of years ago were for Q124s front and back; now it's Q5 front Q124 rear. (Not Q50.)

    Mine have been rock solid, though I only use them for skis, not kayaks.
     
    #10 bsd43, Sep 10, 2008
    DLC82SV likes this.
  11. bsd43

    bsd43 Member

    Joined:
    Sep 9, 2005
    130
    3
    0
    Location:
    San Francisco Bay Area
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Bump... Any updates or word from Yakima on this one?
     
    #11 bsd43, Sep 28, 2008
  12. nickfromny

    nickfromny Member since 2007

    Joined:
    May 26, 2007
    309
    24
    0
    Location:
    Binghamton, NY
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    Use Thule. Have run Ski Box loaded with 6 pair of skis in high winds on highway on my 07 touring. Mileage was down but rack and box stayed on.
     
    #12 nickfromny, Sep 29, 2008
  13. myben

    myben New Member

    Joined:
    Dec 24, 2006
    1
    0
    0
    Location:
    oakland ca
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    I also had the slippage problem with the first set of clips recommended on my 06 Prius. I have had yakima racks for decades with "zero problems" and always did self installs. Decided to change to the new recommended clips and to pay for the professional install--have had no problems since even when fully loaded. This post does give me pause.

    As to tiedowns, the info provided by John is great! I had used the tiedowns on the bottom of the car but couldn't go 100 miles without experiencing friction snapping the front lines (also the metal on the tow hooks has a sharp not rounded edge which probably contributed). Still,the rack should not go flying off, especially if you aren't exceedign the design limits of the rack. I frequently carry 2-4 kayaks or 2 kayaks and 2 bikes, or a basket full of gear.
     
    #13 myben, Nov 30, 2008
  14. TF63101

    TF63101 New Member

    Joined:
    Mar 16, 2009
    3
    0
    0
    Location:
    St Louis
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    It's not your rack that needs the tie down lines, its your gear! The upward pressure from the air off your windshield is huge, especially at 60+ mph. Add in a cross wind, or worse yet the jet blast from a passing semi, and the upward pressure on a boat or board is dangerous. Get a board cover with a loops or eyelets for fore and aft tie down lines to run (1) over your hood to your front bumper, and (2) down to your back bumper. BTW, Yak racks work great.
     
    #14 TF63101, Mar 16, 2009
(You must log in or sign up to post here.)