Cargo capsules

xxx

 

You should take a look what Darell has done. He talks about both the Yakima and Saris racks, as well as installing the permanent Yakima Landing Pads. He did have to install the Shark Fin Antenna to allow for clearance.

EDIT: Jack Straw and I had the same source. And why not? It's well explained there.

 

New Guy Question: anyone have a rough estimate of what one of these does to your mileage?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Tadashi @ Aug 23 2006, 08:34 PM) [snapback]308552[/snapback]</div>

I believe Darell has one of the classic (older) RocketBoxes in those pictures. I think they may still sell an updated version of that box.

I had one of those RocketBoxes years ago, and switched to a Thule Evolution series because it was much easier to setup, adjust and they open on either side. Since then, both Yakima and Thule seem to have made their cargo boxes even easier to setup than the one I have, and I believe Yakima now has boxes that open on both sides. I don't think you can go wrong with either.

FWIW, although the Saris roof rack is very slick and has some nice features, I still like the Yakima roof rack setup. The newer roof boxes allow fitting through a wide range of bar spreads so the feature of being able to position the Saris at a variety of locations isn't that important for a cargo box. Although not as easy as the Saris, I often put on my Yakima racks solo without scratching the car by placing a rag on the far side and placing the far side clip on top of the rag until I position that side. Certainly not as elegant as the Saris, but it works. The main thing I like about the Yakima is the physics of it's design. You have a clamping force being applied directly between the clip and the roof. I kind of wonder where Saris is heading with their roof system. They don't provide any information about it on their website anymore.

 

Roof boxes look more aero than bikes on the roof, so there's hope. An ugly roof load can easy cost 12% mpg at highway speeds...and next to nothing below 40 mpg.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Jack Straw @ Aug 12 2006, 09:43 PM) [snapback]302368[/snapback]</div>

WOW! :blink: I just took a look at the photos. Nice job! And my husband is worried we wouldn't be able to transport the two of us, a toddler, a greayhound and all of our stuff for a week at the beach because we wouldn't have a capsule. Heh... I'm gonna get him busy on acquiring one of these babies!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ekpolk @ Aug 12 2006, 09:55 PM) [snapback]302393[/snapback]</div>

With kayaks on the car, highway mileage will drop down into the mid to upper 30's. under 40MPH, you'll easily see high 40's if not 50's.

I love my Saris racks. Unfortunately, they've decided to discontinue their entire roof rack system, and instead focus on their trunk racks and biking stuff (sent them an e-mail to ask a while back). They'll still support the roof racks for anyone who currently has one, but they aren't selling any more, and from what i see, don't plan too. I guess they decided they were just making so much more money from the trunk racks that the roof racks were just eating up valuable resources since they were considered to be in third place of the three (Yakima and Thule being the other two). The ability to install from one side was definately worth it.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(eagle33199 @ Aug 24 2006, 12:34 PM) [snapback]308824[/snapback]</div>

With so many tall vehicles (SUVs) on the road, getting stuff on top is a pain. That has probably hurt the roof rack sales of all the manufacturers. All these trucks are also easily fitted with hitch receivers. It's a lot easier for Saris to make hitch products in two receiver sizes and some strap-on carriers than create custom fitted roof adapters for all the vehicles on the market in the recent past, present and future. FWIW, both Yakima and Thule have shown an excellent ability to steal good ideas from each other and from other competitors. Maybe some of the great concepts that Saris has will find their way into Yakima/Thule products down the road.