Ski Rack Suggestions

errrka

errrka

Active member
Alright it's about that time of year and since my old car died this summer I was left with my moms old dodge neon. I want to get a rack for the top (optimal carpooling numbers), but I am aware that there are no bars running across the top. I've heard of magnets and clamps on the door, but what do you think will work out best and/or where can I get a good deal (college budget)?

Also this may or may not belong in Gear Talk, but in my 6 years on NS I've never ventured there, I have faith in you all.
 
I'm an expert on this stuff. first of all you do not want to use anything with magnets. So yes you will want something that hooks under the door.

Roof racks for a naked roof usually come as a modular system. You buy a load bar, a foot pack and a vehicle specific kit. For you (college budget) this means you can probably buy almost everything used.

The first thing you need to do is look up the fit for your vehicle. You can look up your vehicle on yakima, thule and INNO's websites.

In my opinion Thule is the best for 90% of applications. Thule has two base racks. The 400 system and the newer 480 system. Chances are, if there is a fit for a neon, then it will be for the 400 system. This is good because they have been the same for the last 20 years and are easy to find used.

If Yakima has a fit it will be with the Q-Tower system. With this, if you buy used, make sure they are newer than 2001. The older qtowers have a different geometry and will likely not work. Plus the pre 2001 qtowers are a pain in the ass to work with.

INNO basically makes a clone of the thule 400 system. They are probably going to be harder to find used, but if you need a new system it will be the cheapest. There is a good chance that they don't have a fit for an old neon. They have old japanese cars, but not many old domestics.

There are other options but Thule, Yakima and Inno are the best. As for buying used you want to make sure that the towers are in good shape. The tension bolts must be able to turn fairly easily. A bit of rust on the threads is fine, but make sure it isn't seized. The second thing is the bar. You will want to make sure they are not too badly swolen from rust.
 
BA-DUM-PSH!

But seriously, don't leave your skis on a rack naked. The road salt will buttfuck your bindings and edges so fast it'll make your titties twist right off.
 
Fuck, I forgot about road salt..... (just moved back to the midwest)

oh and for real, chicken +k to you sir
 
Every time I see skis just up there collecting road grime and letting salt cake up in the bindings, I die a little bit inside.
 
Last year what I did was I went to pepboys, bought a cheep crossbar set for $20 and put a roof box on it that I already had.
 
just get a rocket box so you can put more than just your skis in, I perfect them being sheltered from the elements anyways

you'll need the fit kit, 400xt feet, 50" bars, and the box.

Look through craigslist- I got mine a few years ago for under 100$ total-new would have cost around 500$ easy
 
I found this on craigslist... I may give it a go. Think it would work? And it's hella cheap.

http://columbus.craigslist.org/pts/3296361579.html

"Want one of those super hip, ultra cool, and super useful roofracks for the top of your car? Can't see spending 300$ on a system for your 800$ car? This is the rack for you. This is a Thule rack system designed for a pickup(sierra). I had it on a Jetta and a Mirage. As it turns out, You can modify these to fit onto several different cars. All it takes is a little creativity and patience. Unless you have a pickup, chances are you're going to have to wing it. To put this onto the jetta, I didn't have to make any mods to it at all, and to put it onto the mirage, I just had to bend the foot into an angle that would grab my door ledge. Both held firmly. But, alas, when it went onto the Mirage.. I never once used it. It did, however, make my car look cool.

In the pictures, you will notice that there are a lot of parts. It's because there ARE a lot of parts. The Thule kit comes with the visor, two cross bars, the feet, and this nifty wind viser dealio. It is ultra cool(and removable). There are also a couple of front to back cross bars and a bike rack. HOLY CRAP A BIKE RACK! The clip into place with hardware(included). There is a second rack here as well. It's less hip because... it's not as expensive new. Made by barrecrafter for some sort of car. It has the feet, crossbars and the hardware as well.

I'm telling you that you can make this fit onto prettymuch anycar. You can. Without buying anything else. I'll show you how I did it if you really need to know, but mostly just want these things gone. I'm asking 35$ for the Thule, and 25$ for the barrecrafter. You can have them both for 50.... or o.b.o., You know. You're a craigslister. You're the guy that shows up at my door after aggreeing on a price and then you say, "will you take (significantly lower amount) for it" And I'm the guy that says, "(sigh.... fine)"

Let me know what type of car you have, and we'll see if one can fit."

Sounds promising!?
 
i'd go for the thule and its actually a great deal for the feet, crossbars, and fairing. you'll have to buy the fit kit for your car (probably $50 +/-).

BUT, make sure he has all 4 thule feet, from his picture it looks like there's only 1 in the box

i don't know about the barrecrafter feet- it might be harder to find the parts you need to make it fit your car. also don't know about the reliabiility/quality of it
 
In my opinion road salt is not as big of a deal as most people make it out to be. Still a rooftop box is hands down the best solution. Just be very careful when buying a cheap box. This is very important on a small car because your load bars are usually very close together.

feel free to pm me if you have any questions about a specific rack or box!
 
First thing is look up a fit for your vehicle. Make sure thule has a fit for the 400 tower for your car. If they do, and the towers are in good shape, then go for it! That's a good deal for a working 400 system.

The most important thing to check for is the threads. Make sure you can screw every bolt in all the way. Also make sure every bolt has a plastic, half-moon washer on it. Finally make sure the load bar is long enough (should be no problem on a small car). Don't worry about the hooks or rubber pads, they will come with the fit kit. And just so you know, the ones with the grey pads are the barrecrafters towers, he doesn't have a picture of the thule towers. Make sure you are indeed buying the thule ones haha!

Don't even think about the barrecrafters.
 
That Thule looks sweet on my phone, anyway, I got a similar one for 150 used so thats definitely a sick deal, also make sure it has locks, mine were ripped out. Thieves. Minnesota mean
 
Please, be my guest, buy me a truck. Oh and while you're at it can you pay for my tuition and rent as well?
 
What would you do to cove them if they're in an open rack? This happens to my skis when I use my rack, but just figured it was unavoidable.
 
Maybe cover the binding part with a small tarp and bungee straps on either side? Or an old blanket...
 
I think they actually make like a binding sleeve/cover. I'm not sure what you can do to help out your edges. Or just wrap up your skis in a tarp and then stick them in the rack?
 
I honestly would put them inside. Naked racks are the worst for the long term health of your skis and bindings. Salt degrades plastic at an alarming rate and even corrodes stainless steel and strips lubricants like none other.

I would seriously recommend wither a roof box or putting them inside, but I suppose you could get MacGyver on it with some tape and saran wrap or something. I've seen ski bags lashed to the roof before, but that just seems exceedingly gaperish to me.

I just put them inside my car though, and put my dry bags on the roof if space is an issue.
 
u could also call a junk yard and see if they have a neon that has a factory roof rack. i know this was an option. if they do all you need is the thule/yakima ski rack attachment. 50 bucks on cl
 
I really have to disagree with this. And that is based on quite a bit of informal research. On most days skis don't get that dirty, and they are only exposed to this for a brief amount of time. As long as you aren't leaving them caked in road grime, it honestly probably won't make much of a difference. At least based on the relatively short lifetime for freeski equipment.

using a box, with skis strapped down, is the best solution. Clamshells are just not THAT bad. The issue is blown out of proportion. I would put anything short of a race ski up there because honestly everyday wear and tear is orders of magnitude worse for a ski than a bit of salt.

I would be willing to bet that on some spring days a clamshell rack is actually better for this skis. I'm thinking those T-shirt days with dry roads. we have measured the temperature in boxes and being airtight, they can get pretty damn hot. If you have put a surfboard in one and showed up at the beach with no wax left you will know what I mean.
 
I even put my training race skis on the roof. Just make sure you thoroughly wash and wipe them down after use and after they've been on the roof + go over all the edges with a soft diamond stone to make sure the rust doesn't set in. Should be fine if you're on a tight budget.
 
No it really does.

My brother put his skis in a clamshell for a ride home, then just leaned them up in a corner for two weeks came back and the skis had to be reground there was so much rust on the edges. Upon further inspection the internals of the bindings had surface rust on them as well. Now this may not blow your shit up overnight, but it's not good for you skis and i don't know about you but I really don't want rust on my DIN spring.

So yeah, if I'm driving in shitty weather, I put them inside. Obviously if it's nice out it's not an issue.
 
so your brother left dirty skis in the corner for two weeks and they had rust on them... I left my skis in my roof box for a couple days and they had rust on them. Doesn't mean that roof boxes suck. You should always wash your skis and put them somewhere to dry.

I have taken apart bindings that went in an exposed rack and ones that always went in the box. There was no recognizable difference. Both usually have minor amounts of rust on the inside parts that dry slower. Nothing to be concerned about.

It's just funny when I see guys with skis they probably haven't waxed in a few days, with repaired edges and core shots, who will refuse to put their skis in those racks. It's like they think they are going to disintegrate as soon as some salt touches them.

 
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