Roof racks/cross bars?

Does anyone have any experience with OEM or aftermarket cross bars for the Legacy sedan?

I'm an avid cyclist and one thing I loved about my Forester was the factory roof rack and cross bars. I slapped two Yakima racks on there and was good to go, but the Legacy requires a different option.

So far I've found the OEM Subaru cross bars (around $320) and the Yakima Q towers system (around $250) as good quality options. Has anyone here used either of these?

Anything else I should look at?

 

Thanks.

I have the Yakima Q-towers setup (with ski racks/fairing) on mine. It's technically the setup from a 4th Gen Legacy (I got the right clips for it, but the crossbars are a hair shorter than they should be), but fits just fine. My only complaint is how much it demolishes my (already suspect) MPGs!!! On the highway I used to be able to get 27mpgs when cruising... with the rack I never get over 20mpg now!

I was going to buy the Subaru cross bar set up to use with my bike. The drop in highway mpg concern me, because I do mostly highway driving.

Maybe the bike rack is better, I don't know... The Yakima ski rack is like 3-4" tall and ~2ft wide of plastic/rubber that's not particularly aerodynamic... the fairing helps, but apparently not enough to keep my mpgs down! lol

Yeah, I suspect that having the two racks installed all of the time on my Forester was a main cause of the poor mpg I was getting over the past year (not the only reason, but a reason).

The Yakima bike carriers are easy enough to install and remove, so maybe that will be the plan for the Legacy. If I go the Q Towers route I can add in the air deflector for about $75 and still come out around the cost of the OEM Subie bars and attempt to not kill the mpgs too much.

Thanks for the replies.

Ordered the OEM bars and rockymount rack last week. Hope to install this weekend. I figured the lower noise from the whispbar was worth the price differential.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Ordered the OEM bars and rockymount rack last week. Hope to install this weekend. I figured the lower noise from the whispbar was worth the price differential.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

I'd love to hear about your experiences and maybe see some pics once they're installed.

I have both roof rack (Thule for kayaks) and a hitch that I use my tire mount bike rack for. I prefer this method for carrying bikes as it is the least restrictive on wind/mpg and what have you.

I agree. I would rather use a hitch set up for bikes. In my case the hitch would bottom out on my steep driveway.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Same here, I'd like to see some close up pics of the OEM bars and affects on MPG's.

 

FWIW, I had the yakima towers with round bars on my 08 STI (no fairing)...very loud in the car and dropped mpg's by 2-3 mpg. Apparently, the fairing helps with noise, but not MPG's.

 

I also had the OEM crossbars on my last saabaru wagon...much quieter. Still a drop in MPG, but that was with some tall yakima ski racks.

I'm now leaning toward the OEM bars. They look a little cleaner installed, imho, and the fact that they're "aero" should be beneficial at least a little.

I have the thule aero bars with the transverse towers. Recently I went from RI to NH and got 24-25 MPG with the boxter box mounted on top.

 

http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu290/stu1811/Car/IMG_0398.jpg

I have the thule aero bars with the transverse towers. Recently I went from RI to NH and got 24-25 MPG with the boxter box mounted on top.

 

Not bad, I actually just looked at that setup in the store. I'm assuming the setup is not cheap though.

Definitely not cheap. Helps to know someone

yakima q-towers w/ round bars and a fairing was what I originally had. I sold them to a friend and upgraded to flush whispbars. The mounting system used by the new whispbar attachments are so much easier to use (and are more expensive).

 

The round bars worked great w/ a fairing but the whispbars are quieter. I am going to throw up some pics right now.

 

I use all types of bike racks and use the whispbar ski rack. The new system is easier to mount, quieter, doesn't have the classic round bar w/ fairing look but is definitely pretty sexy.

 

http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab189/mhoran89/2011%20Subaru%20Legacy/IMG_1245.jpg

 

http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab189/mhoran89/2011%20Subaru%20Legacy/ScreenShot2014-02-08at100827PM_zpsdcdfc215.png

 

http://i862.photobucket.com/albums/ab189/mhoran89/2011%20Subaru%20Legacy/ScreenShot2014-02-08at100842PM_zps3f784a70.png\

 

Hope this helps!! Pm me with any questions or post them here. I have a good amount of experience with these racks!

You can get a lot of the yakima stuff on ebay for much less. I'm sure they have thule as well. If you need help with finding dimensions or anything let me know. I am sure I have some left over q-clips I could sell you for less than half the original price. Let me see if I can find them lying around!!!

^^cool, thanks for the info!

 

How did the round bars mount (onto the car) vs. the Whispbars? Did you have to remove the roof molding for either?

 

I'm leaning towards the OEM rack, the Thule Aeroblade, or the Whispbars...the whispbars are expensive though and tough to find used. I think the ease of install/removal will be important, because I'd like to save on MPG's when the rack is not is use.

I have the OEM crossbars and snow carrier installed. It's great because the noise at highway speeds is negligible. Also, with 4 snowboards and everything on I only see 2-3 mpg drop overall (30 down to about 27 or 28).

No need to remove anything for either system.

 

The round bars are tool-less. Just crank the adjuster, push down, and lock. Only thing is the tension needs to be spot on, if it's not they might slide. If they are too tight lock cylinder won't turn. It's a very fine balance.

 

The whispbar needs an allen wrench, but it comes with them. It's not too bad. Both systems are rock solid! The fact that the whispbar feet sit more in the gutters is nice. Less wear on your paint, but nothing a quick polish can't solve. Either way no one looks there except you. Finding used whispbars would most likely be next to impossible right now. And used ones cost a pretty penny! They will run you somewhere around $450 for the set!.

 

The most economical thing would be to pick up q-towers on ebay along with a faring. Then look on cl for some long round bars. I usually stick the bars on the car and then take them off, sawzall (or hacksaw if you are ambitious) right through them stick the caps on and then they look flush like the ones in my first pic. They won't make much noise and will keep your cost down so you can splurge on the bike, kayak, ski racks which aren't cheap. Look at some thule stuff too. CRAIGSLIST IS YOUR BEST FRIEND. Also if they only have adapters to mount to thule square bars you can almost always get adapters to mount to the round bars. Round bars are by far the most universal! If you pick something up and it's busted no worries. Call thule/yakima and they should replace it. Tell them your uncle handed it down to you. EVERYTHING YAKIMA/THULE SELLS HAS A LIFETIME WARRANTY!!!!

 

If you go w/ round bars and q-towers let me know. I am positive I have the q-clips lying around and I'll let them go for very cheap! I might have some extra lock cores I could throw in too for a few bucks!

I have the OEM crossbars and snow carrier installed. It's great because the noise at highway speeds is negligible. Also, with 4 snowboards and everything on I only see 2-3 mpg drop overall (30 down to about 27 or 28).

Cool, thanks for the info. Same question though - did you have to remove the molding for the install? Any pics of it installed?

No need to remove anything for either system.

 

The round bars are tool-less. Just crank the adjuster, push down, and lock. Only thing is the tension needs to be spot on, if it's not they might slide. If they are too tight lock cylinder won't turn. It's a very fine balance.

 

The whispbar needs an allen wrench, but it comes with them. It's not too bad. Both systems are rock solid! The fact that the whispbar feet sit more in the gutters is nice. Less wear on your paint, but nothing a quick polish can't solve. Either way no one looks there except you. Finding used whispbars would most likely be next to impossible right now. And used ones cost a pretty penny! They will run you somewhere around $450 for the set!.

 

The most economical thing would be to pick up q-towers on ebay along with a faring. Then look on cl for some long round bars. I usually stick the bars on the car and then take them off, sawzall (or hacksaw if you are ambitious) right through them stick the caps on and then they look flush like the ones in my first pic. They won't make much noise and will keep your cost down so you can splurge on the bike, kayak, ski racks which aren't cheap. Look at some thule stuff too. CRAIGSLIST IS YOUR BEST FRIEND. Also if they only have adapters to mount to thule square bars you can almost always get adapters to mount to the round bars. Round bars are by far the most universal! If you pick something up and it's busted no worries. Call thule/yakima and they should replace it. Tell them your uncle handed it down to you. EVERYTHING YAKIMA/THULE SELLS HAS A LIFETIME WARRANTY!!!!

 

If you go w/ round bars and q-towers let me know. I am positive I have the q-clips lying around and I'll let them go for very cheap! I might have some extra lock cores I could throw in too for a few bucks!

Thank you very much for this informative post as well! I actually already have the Yakima round bars, q towers, feet, etc setup for my 08 sti and I also have a bike and ski rack with various attachment options (for round bars and factory bars) due to various setups over the years. I just found the round bars to be insanely loud without a fairing, and even with a fairing, I think there will be a huge hit in MPG's.

 

But speaking of my yakima round bars that I already have...they lock into the feet that bolt to the roof of the STI (already has holes). I'm assuming I'll need the correct clips (which sounds like you have them) and the appropriate feet to make them work on the leggy?

Round bars w/ a fairing I saw an average of 2-4 mpg loss on two different cars. And remember that was with a yakima fat cat 6 ski/board rack on top (usually with more than one pair of skis/board). The drop really isn't too bad w/ a fairing, w/o one the bars will be loud and tend to whistle or howl especially in wet/bad weather.

 

If you already have round bars you will need to see if they are long enough. Look and see what length yakima recommends on their website. The feet you have will only work if you have an existing oem rack.

 

You will need bars (unless you have ones long enough). A fairing (look on yakima's site for the size and buy new on ebay!) Q-towers (get them new on ebay; super reasonable!). The q-clips (I have some lying around! Some lock cores, unless you want to take the ones out of your sti rack feet (I have some lying around I think!), end caps, and the feet base. When you buy clips they will come with feet but I am sure you can pick new ones up on ebay for super cheap!

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/4-Yakima-Q-Tower-A-Pads-Clear-Silicone-New-Free-Shipping-/310860220708?pt=US_Car_Truck_Racks&hash=item4860b68924

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-4-Yakima-Round-Crossbars-Roof-Rack-Plastic-End-Caps-Black-8790009-/121105268536?pt=US_Car_Truck_Racks&hash=item1c326fbf38

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Yakima-44-Roof-Rack-Fairing-Kit-Wind-Deflector-/390453868267?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item5ae8dd36eb&vxp=mtr

 

The q-towers are going on ebay anywhere from $100-$130.

cool, thanks for the info. Same question though - did you have to remove the molding for the install? Any pics of it installed?

 

Thank you very much for this informative post as well! I actually already have the yakima round bars, q towers, feet, etc setup for my 08 sti and i also have a bike and ski rack with various attachment options (for round bars and factory bars) due to various setups over the years. I just found the round bars to be insanely loud without a fairing, and even with a fairing, i think there will be a huge hit in mpg's.

 

But speaking of my yakima round bars that i already have...they lock into the feet that bolt to the roof of the sti (already has holes). I'm assuming i'll need the correct clips (which sounds like you have them) and the appropriate feet to make them work on the leggy?

 

forget the above post!!!!!!! Tmf i pm'd you a link. If you can jump on that deal right now. It's bars, feet, fairing, and end caps! You can cut those to your liking and all you would need are lock cores and clips!!!!!!!

Thanks for all of the new info and pics!

The Q-towers via Amazon is definitely the budget way to go, but I don't think I'll dig the wind noise that they will probably create.

The Whispbars do look cool and clean, but the price is up there, for sure. $500+ new?

I think I'm still leaning toward the OEM Subie cross bars. At less than $350 for the package, they seem like the way to go for me...for now.

You don't need to remove anything for the OEM bars. They clip right on under the door and on the rain channel and are plenty secure. I have some pictures here of them.

Fit the OEM bars today. Easy install. The rockymount euro style bike rack did not fit the channel so I will return them and get a Yakima bike rack.

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk