Roof bar advice

A snowHead

I'm looking for advice on purchasing roof bars. They'll be fitted to a 2014 2.0 tdci Mondeo if it's relevant.

Has anyone any experience of the Thule aero bars and the Whispbar systems? Ive looked at the Thule and Whispbar websites but these will always give favourable views.

I like the modular systems available for the Thule and it's only 60% of the cost of the Whispbar.

I can see that the Whispbar is quoted as being the quietest but how noisy is the Thule system at French motorway speeds (80 - 85mph).

Also does anyone know what would he the effect on mpg at motorway speeds of either system?

Any help would be appreciated.

A snowHead

@Bertie Wooster, we have the standard square Thules (approaching 10th season) and are very happy. In retrospect I'd have sprung for the Aeros. TBH, nost of the noisy is presumably generated by the ski rack and skis, not the bars. I would think...

Importantly, we have the "Extender" ski rack which maybe not so important on a Mondeo, is seriously helpful on our SUV. We are also not very tall wink

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

@Bertie Wooster, I have used the Thule modular rectangular system for many years and many cars. It has always worked and always worked well. As to the noise - well it depends largely on what you fasten to them and if I don't fasten anything to them then I take them off.

Generally we will have a double ski tube and one or two ski bags tied to them. It makes a bit more noise in my wife's skoda, but not that much, conversation is still comfortable and you can listen to the wirelss. Rain and concrete pavement have a much bigger effect. Without anything attached tot he bars there is a tiny increase in cabin noise

It does hit fuel consumption at speed though. Cruising at 130 on French motorways drops the fuel consumption from 45 to 41 mpg. But once again it depends on what you have tied to the roof bar. It is a lot better with just the ski tube.

IMHO the system makes almost no difference it is what is attached to it that matters.

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@johnE, my experience as well. With the Extender rack on (6 pair capacity, well, piste skis anyway!) it's both noisier and noticeably affects the car's acceleration. Feels "heavier" pulling away, loses speed faster when lifting pedal.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

I bought the Thule Wingbar Edge roof bars a month or so back, fuel consumption hasn't altered at all and there's no additional wind noise. I also bought a motion 600 roof box and using both fuel consumption only drops 1 mpg. It's a 3.0 tdi audi so even fully loaded there's no difference in acceleration.

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@francium., wind resistance being partially a function of surface area and shape, I bet my flat faced ski rack causes a much bigger effect than your roof box....

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

Yeah thats why i went for a streamline roof box rather than a snowboard rack and it's only 70cm wide so keeping the front surface area to the minimum i could get away with, plus i can carry way more gear in it. I read a lot about how roofboxes affect mpg but i assume thats the cheap square ones you see.

After all it is free

As others have said I'm sure the stuff attached to your bars will have more impact on noise and efficiency. That said many people who use roof bars quite a lot might leave the bars on for a period of time even when nothing is actually on them, in this case I'm sure the aero style bards will be better.

I'd say go for the cheaper Thules; I doubt you'd notice the difference.

When I hav ski's on the roof its only to trvel tot he airport and the noise isnt increased to a point where you would notice which is about the same for the fuel.
I have used Thule kit for a while as does my girlfriend and we find it to be well made and as its modular, it can be upgraded/changed when you change cars without having to purchase the whole lot again.
They are also very good at providing spare parts even for older kit which I think is a product of the modular approach.

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The Thule Extender is brilliant. Infinitely easier (especially if you have a high roof, or are not tall) than getting skis in and out of a box. And easier to store when not on the car. I have aero bars but I'm not sure how much difference they make. I leave them on all the time - it never seems long between winters. Twisted Evil

And they were not easy to fit to the Zafira - it took me some time to get it right, and I CBA to do it again.

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I bought the Thule winch system to store the box on the bars in the garage roof space, drops straight onto the roof bars, no cursing, no children dropping the bar end on the paintwork, and tidily out of the way for 11 months of the year. I went for the square bars by the way and am not worried by the noise, even with the sunroof of my Subaru Forester partially open.

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I have these Whispbars on my A6 Allroad. They are very quiet and don't affect fuel consumption so they stay on all the time. I use them with the Yakima Fatcat 6 -
http://youtube.com/v/XxnLC5H-xsw That can be put on and taken off in a couple of minutes. The only issue with this combination is this:-

It is not a problem with my Head Icons but the bindings on my Magnums and my sons Salomon SLs are just a bit too tall and strike the roof. I can mitigate by putting the taller bindings close to the edge where the roof slopes slightly giving more clearance. Other than that I need to whip one rear binding off.

One tip:
Dont carry the skis on the roof like that without the bindings being well wrapped.
The road salt on the way there and the way back will finish your skis & bindings.
If your driving to the alps get a proper ski box or coffin to keep them in.
Also when you take the wet boots off at the end of the day to drive back to the apartment they don't fill the boot of the car up.

You know it makes sense.

I've never subscribed to that view @DrLawn. Skis and bindings are designed to be outdoors and exposed to the elements so I don't see the problem. A rinse off or immediate use would clean up both.

As it is I only use the rack for going to/from my local drive slope or through to Braehead so no major distances covered. I do have a Thule box that I could use if I wanted but it is much harder to fit than the FatCat.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

@DrLawn, I'm skeptical. Our skis are on the roof most weekends of the season, at least 200km/ weekend, sometimes, 400-500km.

Never seen any problems with bindings nor salt related ski damage.

Not suggesting it's improving them, just that it's not all that harmful.

A snowHead

no, I've never had any problem either, though they are not on the roof as much as UANN's. The roof of the car gets a lot less mucky than other parts (and that doesn't come to much harm either, come to think of it).

A snowHead

The Alps is full of cars with unprotected skis on the top - if it were a problem I guess people would have stopped doing it.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Ah well ... I've been told now havent I?
If I ever drive again I'd still take Box' its just a better way to do it.
You can keep the chains handy too rather than get them from under all the luggage on a dark snowy night
I've still got a rack some where though ..
But it was made to fit a MkII Golf

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@DrLawn, sure, I would too, especially with family, kit, and with a lengthy m-way drive either side. I'd imagine the fuel savings non-negligible.

But for running around here? It's too much of a faff usually to take the rack on and off, never mind a roof box.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

We've had Whispbars for a couple of years on our Freelander 2. There is more wind noise with them on, even on their own. This is mainly, I think, because the feet grip the outer gutter seals and crush them slightly. So overall not that impressed. Also, if your going for an "aerodynamic" bar, make sure it's not too wide for the mountings you have for any existing racks or boxes.

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@Bertie Wooster, I've got some roof bars that came off an "08" Mondeo. There are screws under each door that they attach to. If yours has screw holes there you can have them. Throw them away if you don't like them. PM me if you're interested.

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

@Bertie Wooster I've had various different bars, from cheapy Halfords box section, "Skoda" aero bars (actually Thule) and another aero bar (can't remember the brand), on various cars. Bare bars are generally not noisy, except one car/bar combination that whistled at about 65 mph. It wasn't just the bars - they were quiet on another car - so there's more to it than that, possibly the height of the bars above the roof (which for me varied because all my cars had rails). There's more noise with a box on, but again not really noticeable. Add a bike, or an Optimist (small but very square dinghy) and it's a different matter. Fuel consumption mirrored the noise - bare bars or box, almost no difference.
With my current car, I had the same debate you are, until I discovered that there isn't a whispbar that fits. I opted for Atera aerobars (from roofbox.co.uk - they're very helpful & delivery etc good) which were cheaper than the Thule bars. They're not modular, so they won't fit another car, but so much better than anything else I've had. I can fit them in 2 minutes (literally, and probably less if I tried), and if I leave the t-bolts in the track, the roofbox takes 5 minutes more, max, on my own. So I fit them when I need them, and take them off again when I'm done. I'll happily take the extra cost of a new set if/when I replace the car, just for the convenience. Thule bars were a right pain in comparison.

After all it is free

We have whispbars attached to the factory rails on our vw golf wagon. Best crossbars I have ever used. Put them on a year ago have yet to remove them and likely never will. No noise. No increase in consumption. Very slick factory look. Have a yakima box that moves from car to car very easily. Expensive yes but we keep cars for quite a while so we feel it is worth the cost.

I currently have BMW aero type bars on my car having had Thule before the only noticeable difference for me is that the BMW ones are effectively narrower as they curve in to look nice (I am a canoeist so care ab out the width). The other brand I would look at is Atera who are sold on www.roofbox.co.uk who are a decent company but I have no affiliation with them.

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interesting, am currently looking at roofbars - though for bikes and possibly a canoe, not skis

I can't really see the advantages that more expensive bars offer me for occasional use - As I have a volvo with roof bars, the options I can see on www.roofbox.co.uk are £45 for the basic bars, more than double that for basic Thule bars, or triple that for the Thule Aero bars (Atera come in at about £135).

The carrier I'd be buying is a tandem carrier

and it doesn't seem to use the "channels" offered by aero bars. Don't need an external carrier like this if we're on solo bikes as they will fit inside the car.

I reckon the Bog-standard £45 bars will be good enough, unless anyone can think of a compelling reason to spend more? I'd be fitting the bars for each use and removing them afterwards, rather than leaving them in place

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the very cheap bars are known to bend as one reason not to go for the fully budget ones but I do put three or four kayaks on my roof fairly regularly so maybe the weight difference is key. The channels are also key for me for my Thule bike carriers - they are so quick and easy to put on and take off.

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@nbt, it really is a case of each to their own. My A6 Allroad has factory rails. I have the ultra low profile Whispbar Aero-X bars. I like them as they effectively sit at the level of the rails and can be left in-situ with no noise or fuel penalty. I bought them because I didn't want to have to put them on each time I need to use them but I still wnated to maintain the aesthetics of the car.

The downside as I indicated above is that the taller bindings can touch the roof but that is easily solved by slipping one off.

@Gaza, I bought a set of these exact bars for my Skoda Yeti, was planning on fitting this weekend - how difficult is it?!!
(I got them on ebay and so don't have instructions!!)

You know it makes sense.

@jellemr, it is very easy. Turn the keys. Take the covers off. Slacken the bolts inside each foot with the provided allen key (if it is missing you will need to get one). Position the bars where you want them and centre so the bars are equidistant in each foot. Tighten the bolt with the allen key. Refit the covers, Turn key and you are done.

With pictures HERE.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

Different note here... get the super wide bars so you can get a box and other stuff on...just an idea.

A snowHead

@Gaza, just noticed you replied to this - thanks!! I actually still haven't got round to fitting, so you instructions / photos will come in handy when I do so!!

A snowHead

We've tried various systems over the years and they're all much of a muchness. Ease of adjustment is my main criteria as we often swap between out two cars. Suprisingly I find the bars on their own make more difference to noise than with the box on as the the box seems to be quite aerodynamic and creates a slipstream for the bars.

Anyone who says they don't reduce fuel consumption by much hasn't done their calculations correctly or is driving realtively slowly. Modern cars have amazing slipstream design and just the roof bars alone usually puts at least 10% on the fuel bill if driving at speed.

I think the other thing to remember is the speed given by your bars or roof box. It will have a maximum persmissable speed. If your car stops suddenly in an accident. you roof box may not if you are travelling very quickly. You insurance company may not pay up if you have been driving above the set limit. The photo in this article is fantastic. http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/bills/article-2967640/When-roof-rack-wreck-insurance.html

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

This article is good. http://www.whatcar.com/car-news/real-world-mpg-true-cost-attaching-roof-box/1342338

We've had all sorts on the car over the years, from ski, bikes, ocean kayaks and roof boxes. By far the worst for fuel efficiency were bikes on the back of the boot. We might as well have towed the garden shed and it put about 35% on the fuel consumption on 4000 mile tour of Europe.

Air resistance is proportional to velocity squared so it's when you really start moving quickly on the European motorways that you really feel the effects. Being a bit of a Physics geek I once did some experiments with just the bars on. I took my Old Audi A4 ( Which was deemed amazingly aerodynamic in the mid nineties) up to 100mph. They started whistling at about 90. Taking my foot off the accelerator at 100 was more like braking than simply deccelerating.

Help!!

Roof bar advice

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