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Photos of roof? Location of braces?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by darelldd, Feb 27, 2006.

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  1. darelldd

    darelldd Prius is our Gas Guzzler

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    After trying out the Yakima towers on my Prius, I've decided it is time to drill, and put tracks up on the roof. I know it has been done before, and I'm confident in doing it myself. I just need to know where the cross-braces for the roof are. Does anybody have a shot of the roof without the headliner in place? If you can share it with me, you will be surrounded by a harem of your choosing when you finally pass on (in happiness and in no pain).

    Thanks!
     
    #1 darelldd, Feb 27, 2006
  2. Frank Hudon

    Frank Hudon Senior Member

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    why would you bolt that s**t on your car and destroy the aerodynamics that help get you good mileage. Makes no sense to me. And on the roof no less? making water leaks? Oh well you paid your money you do what you want.
     
    #2 Frank Hudon, Feb 27, 2006
  3. darelldd

    darelldd Prius is our Gas Guzzler

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    OK... so no pictures for me then?

    Yeah, I'm not one to let the car maker decide what's best for me. I guess I could have bought an SUV that came with racks... or add them to my Prius and suffer the 50mpg. I've done the same thing to my irreplaceable Rav4EV that's worth about $55k, so doing it to the Prius really isn't a big deal. But thanks for the concern! ;)

    Turns out that if you do stuff like this correctly, nothing leaks, and there is no air drag penalty when the racks are not in place. I'm certainly not twisting anybody else's arm to do this!
     
    #3 darelldd, Feb 27, 2006
  4. hobbit

    hobbit Senior Member

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    What sort of fittings are left in place when the rack towers
    aren't on? Certainly not open holes, I hope. Is this some
    kind of longitudinal-rails system that the crosspiece optionally
    bolts to when you need it on?
    .
    _H*
     
    #4 hobbit, Feb 27, 2006
  5. joelparks

    joelparks New Member

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    And I fully believe that you're not only going to do it correctly, but like the good spaceman engineer you are, you will fully document your success for those (like myself) who hope to someday follow in your footsteps. Alternatively you will document your failure so that those who are tempted to follow in your footsteps will avoid the same fate!

    Seriously, I'm right behind you. I can't wait to drill my roof.

    Here's hoping for success!
     
    #5 joelparks, Feb 27, 2006
  6. hobbit

    hobbit Senior Member

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    [oops, dupe post]
     
    #6 hobbit, Feb 27, 2006
  7. darelldd

    darelldd Prius is our Gas Guzzler

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    Here's more than you probably ever wanted to know about it. (but I'm only going to respond once, and that's my final answer).

    http://www.darelldd.com/ev/rav_rack.htm You can leave just the tracks in place (what I'd do) or also leave the bases on the tracks with the neat little covers on them.

    Thanks for the confidence, Joel! :)
     
    #7 darelldd, Feb 27, 2006
  8. Allannde

    Allannde Just a Senior

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    #8 Allannde, Feb 27, 2006
  9. naterprius

    naterprius Senior Member

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    Listen, Darell just isn't right in the head, that's all. I've learned to encourage him for my own sick pleasure. ;-)

    NO, Darell, none of us have drilled into the roof. You'll be the first. I would be extra careful of the airbags, however. It would suck to have a rivet tear one open while deploying on that fateful day.

    Good luck.

    Nate
     
    #9 naterprius, Feb 27, 2006
  10. landstander

    landstander darling no baka

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    A possible alternative (which may not help the OP, as I assume he's already purchased the Yakima) would be get a set of Saris load-bars instead. I recently acquired a pair in order to transport some bicycles, one of which is a tandem, and I'm very happy with how they're working out... in fact, I'll probably post a review sometime later this week. :)

    The main benefits of the Saris are that the bars can be installed/removed very easily and quickly (approximately 30 seconds each), and they don't require you to mangle your roof in any way.
     
    #10 landstander, Feb 27, 2006
  11. Frank Hudon

    Frank Hudon Senior Member

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    lots of water leaks that start on the roof manifest themselves as rusted out rocker panels and rear quarter panel bottoms. And never show up as leaks that drip on you inside the car. Where I live, a couple of hundred inches of rain a year, no holes in the roof at all is the best plan. See that black plastic strip up on the roof? that was almost enough to make me not buy a Prius. Pull that puppy out and have a look at the seam, yup some fancy sealer there that will eventually crack and start a water leak. My intention is to reseal that every 4 years. Just to preclude any water intrusion into the inner structure.
     
    #11 Frank Hudon, Feb 27, 2006
  12. naterprius

    naterprius Senior Member

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    Darell is a madman who cannot be stopped. He drilled into an irreplaceable RAV4-EV, the Prius is nothing.

    Nate
     
    #12 naterprius, Feb 27, 2006
  13. Godiva

    Godiva AmeriKan Citizen

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    If the crossbraces are steel, wouldn't a magnet find them through the headliner?
     
    #13 Godiva, Feb 27, 2006
  14. koa

    koa Active Member

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    I'm surprised a little lacquer touch up paint would work long term against rust in the Rav where those inserts are screwed in. If you drill your Prius, 3M makes some rust inhibitor products that might coat and stick better than the lacquer.

    Did you consider a custom rack that attaches to the frame of the car and when removed it wouldn't show at all. It wouldn't look as cool when on because of uprights, but would be a lot stronger than a roof rack. Then there's the resale thing. Anyway good luck.
     
    #14 koa, Feb 28, 2006
  15. darelldd

    darelldd Prius is our Gas Guzzler

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    Allan -

    Some good ideas here. I've tried to feel them, but you never really know what shape they are as they touch the actual roof. I'll have to pull the headliner if I go this route.
     
    #15 darelldd, Mar 1, 2006
  16. darelldd

    darelldd Prius is our Gas Guzzler

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    Yup. Those are certainly being watched for! The tracks would go well inboard of where the bags are though. You can see those bags pretty easily by just pulling down a bit of the headliner edge. Yikes!
     
    #16 darelldd, Mar 1, 2006
  17. darelldd

    darelldd Prius is our Gas Guzzler

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    Now this is something I had not seen before. What a great concept! Yes, I already purchased the Yakima towers and clips... but I've already decided to take a loss on those and move on, so your input is very valuable. Have you used this system on the Prius, though? The reason I'm not too happy with the Yakima towers and clips is because the shape of the roof is so odd. Not sure how well these would work, but you've got me interested enough to have a chat with these guys! They do offer a fit for the Prius I see. Snugging these up would drag the pad across the paint for a bit. Not sure I'm too happy about that. Hmm.

    I'm normally not one to take the easy way, but when the product is that slick, I definitely pay attention! Plus... I think if I *don't* drill at this point, it will tick Nate off more...
     
    #17 darelldd, Mar 1, 2006
  18. darelldd

    darelldd Prius is our Gas Guzzler

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    No water or air ever touches the part where I used touch-up paint, so the paint is basically just to keep everything looking good before assembly is complete. The first one of these that I installed was done 12 years ago, and there is ZERO indication of any issues.

    The tracks can support about 500 pounds evenly distributed, so I'm sure not needing any more strength! I consider just about anything, but cutting into, or welding onto the frame itself is a bit over the top even for me!

    I just sold my Civic with the tracks on it, and got $1500 over KBB price - one of the reasons the buyer was so excited is because of the tracks I'd installed. :)
     
    #18 darelldd, Mar 1, 2006
  19. darelldd

    darelldd Prius is our Gas Guzzler

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    Frank... I'm starting to think that you should REALLY not drill into the roof of your car! And also don't roll your windows down. Them's some HUGE holes! :)

    Really, I do appreaciate your concern here.
     
    #19 darelldd, Mar 1, 2006
  20. landstander

    landstander darling no baka

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    Sure have! :) There's a set of rubber pads underneath the rack supports to prevent damage to the roof, which seem to perform admirably. Personally, I was most concerned about the clips (seem to be enamel-coated metal beasties), but after several uses I haven't found so much as a scratch on the paint... I've pretty much stopped worrying about this, aside from verifying that the bars are properly clamped in place.

    As far as bike mounts, I'm using the Short Tray Fork Mount as it's the easiest to work with (IMO)... the Prius can also accommodate the Long Tray and Upright Mount versions, however. As for the tandem, I went with an ATOC Tandem Topper rather than Saris' offering. Everything is keyed the same, so the load bars and bike mounts are all lock/unlock using a single key.


    [Broken External Image]:http://home.kc.rr.com/snidely/prius_bikes1.jpg
    [Broken External Image]:http://home.kc.rr.com/snidely/prius_bikes2.jpg
    [Broken External Image]:http://home.kc.rr.com/snidely/prius_bikes3.jpg
     
    #20 landstander, Mar 1, 2006
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