Roof Box questions

[Gleb]

Hey, I have a 2004 Subaru Outback and to maximize how many people I can bring to the mountain on a given trip (goal is 4-5) I'm getting a roof box.

First question: How do they affect gas milage? I usually get 25mpg on the highway.

2nd Q: How large do you think it will have to be to fit 2 alpine boards and 2 pairs of skis? I'm not getting a ski

rack since the salt from the road can corrode the bindings and board.

3rd Q: Which box should I go for? (get your mind outta the gutter;) )

[MR. JOHN DEERE !]

1st. when i had to put the a roof box on my volvo xc-70, which is under powered like your subaru, the mileage did drop a little. i have the thule frontier, which is a longer narrower box, so it cuts down on the drag. enzo, has a nice thule on his subaru, which seems to hug his roof line better. but expect to loose a couple mpg's.

2nd. my thule frontier can fit 2 alpine boards with bindings and a couple pairs of ski's, and remember the pioneer is narrow, like 28" wide. i would suggest you get a wider one that is a little narrower than your roof. so after riding, you could possibly throw a couple ski bags in the thule for extra room. plus, you dont want smelly ski socks wrecking that wonderful aroma from all that weed that you'll be lining your lungs with on your way back down i-93.

3rd. i would recomend the thule atlantis 1200 or the thule ascent 100. poke around on ebay or craigslist for a used one. i think the atlantis is $550. the acsent is cheaper, but less room. they are good quality, ive had my frontier since 2001, locks still work and everything.

4th. gfy

[stevo]

just make sure you can fit inside the thing cuz im not taking anotha ride like eces again....gfy

[lowrider]

Make sure there is room for the cat ! Seriously the Subaru Wagons have clearance issues with longer boxes (rear hatch opening) the shorter the box the less front overhang. The further back you mount the box the less lift it suffers from overhanging roof line.If you haul skis as well as boards its nice to wire up the ski brakes they take up alot less space.

[canuckcarver]

ive got a thule mountaineer on my 98 4 door golf i can hold a 200cm board no problem and up to 4 on alpine decks with neurotic packaging more if you can get creative its big for the car but Ive noticed minimal fuel economy loss... maybe a 5 bucks on a tank.

[CaRtharsis]

I have a Thule Atlantis 1800 on my A4 wagon. Love it. Hasen't been off my car since ECES last year. Its a pricey unit if you purchase directly from Thule. You can however buy it from Volvo. It is the same unit with Volvo lettering on the side and $300 dollars still in your pocket. Give them a call. Its listed in their accessory catalogue apparently.

It fits a 195 Donek a certain lady won at ECES. All in we had 8 boards, 4 pairs of boots, 3 back packs, boarding gear, pillows and numerous other miscellaneous bits in there. Almost had aforementioned lady in there too lol. It is friggin mind boggling what it can swallow. Get your mind out of the gutter. I'm referring to the box not the lady.....

[SuperBee]

1. Yes, you will loose ~ 2 MPG

2-3. I also have a Thule Atlantis 1800 on my Mitsibushi Outlander or Acura RDX. Acura RDX has a shorter roof, a longer box would not fit while opening the rear hatch, you need to double-check this issue. I like the width of the 1800 ( 36" wide ), making easy to load from either side. Fit easily 185 GS board.

If your Subaru has factory roof bar, look for Thule 450 Crossroad Railing foot. It converts any roof side bar into a strong roof rack.

[GeoffV]

Gleb,

I've had experience with 2 different Boxes.

The Thule Atlantis 2100

and the Yakima Sky Box Pro 21 (pictured below)

I believe that both of them are the largest ones they make

I've noticed that that Yakima box is noticably quieter than the Thule.

I wouldn't be concerned with fitting them on your Outback. If I can get a roof box on my Mini Clubman that will fit 10+ boards with bindings you should shouldn't have a problem fitting them on your car.

As previous posters have said, expect to lose about 2mpg's.

[Enzo]

Gleb,

I have the Thule 1800 Atlantis on my 08 Subie. I love it!! There's tons of surface area for lots of rad stikkas!! You'll look super gnar cruzin up ski93 to gOoN. Plus, you can pack a ton of skis, boards, and bags in it. Great size for road trips!! Length is an issue on the car. I had to push my oem roof bars all the way forward to fit the box. I still experience some rubbing when i open up the rear hatch. The 1600 is a perfect fit, but it's shorter in length and can't hold boards/skis over 178cm. Go to a store and check out the size on your car before buying! EMS is having their Club Day sale coming up. I bought my Thule box two years ago at EMS @ 20% off. Not sure if they'll accept your NORML card, you might have to join AMC or Sierra Club. As others have said you'll lose some mpg. I'm running Hakkas in the winter as well and drive like a ma$$hole so I'm down ~4-5mpg. Get yourself some Hakkas!! They'll turn your awd Subie into a fkn tank!!

[Keenan]

You might want to check out Inno Racks. I had to special order mine but it's the only box that was low profile enough that I could still get into the garage.

http://www.innoracks.com/

As far as mileage goes, drop in a K&N air filter (about $50-60), that should make up the difference in mileage/power.

[Dave Pushee]

Gleb, I have a well used Yakima Rocketbox that I haven't used in a long time.

It probably needs some refurb, but I would let it go cheap. Let me know if you are interested. If will be up around exit 25 some time, give me a shout.

- Dave

[refried]

I have two older Thule boxes on my Legacy, One 1700 (for boards, skis and wet stuff) and a 1100 that we use for clothes and stuff we want to keep dry. I think I loose about 1 or 2 mpg but I don't realy notice it. There's plenty of room for a 200 tanker and never had to leave a board at home because I didn't have space.

[shawndoggy]

I will respectfully disagree with anyone saying you'll only lose 1-2 mpg. That could be true for around town driving, but on long freeway stretches, it will be more unless you religiously drive 55. I'm a 75-80 mph driver in the west, and I've had a roof box on five different vehicles. The more economical the vehicle to begin with, the bigger the impact on mileage. I lost 5+ mpg with a box on my 1997 accord wagon. Similar losses on top of my wrx (plus major PITA with spoiler clearance). Honda Pilot, Nissan Pathfinder and Honda Odyssey all lost 3+ at highway speeds (and those are all sub 20 mpg vehicles to begin with).

Which is not to say don't buy a box. Love it love it love it. But it's not without penalty at the pump.

[Allee]

I inherited my box in the split for the last BF. I think I did pretty well.:) It's a big, long vintage Thule thing that swallows skinny snowboards whole.

MPG, schmoo. It's a couple of bucks here and there, but there's nothing better than being able to throw your gear on the roof, and your friends in the back. I have an SX4 which is a tiny car - a 173 board won't fit in the hatch - but with the box on it easily takes two people and two dogs camping for the weekend, and four people riding. Mine lives on my car, I never take it off unless I have to haul building materials on the roof rack.

The hatch opening thing is also an issue on my car, as the box is long and the car is short, but after you've clipped your head a few times you learn to look where you're going. :lol:

Best of all is when you're cold and wet, and all the dirty gear can go in the top - leaving the car dry, clean and funky smell free!

[refried]

I live on a small island with a speed limit of 45 so they don't effect milage here, and I take the backroads to Baker and the maximun speed limit is 55 but only for about 30 miles. I use between 7.5 and 9 gallons of fuel (depending on conditions) going to Baker (240 miles) and this hasn't changed in thousands of trips.

[GeoffV]

I will respectfully disagree with anyone saying you'll only lose 1-2 mpg. That could be true for around town driving, but on long freeway stretches, it will be more unless you religiously drive 55. I'm a 75-80 mph driver in the west, and I've had a roof box on five different vehicles. The more economical the vehicle to begin with, the bigger the impact on mileage. I lost 5+ mpg with a box on my 1997 accord wagon. Similar losses on top of my wrx (plus major PITA with spoiler clearance). Honda Pilot, Nissan Pathfinder and Honda Odyssey all lost 3+ at highway speeds (and those are all sub 20 mpg vehicles to begin with).

Which is not to say don't buy a box. Love it love it love it. But it's not without penalty at the pump.

It depends on each car and roof box. I lost close to 4mpgs on my Passat Wagon with a Rocket box. My Mini seems to do really well with the roof box. Your mpgs will drop even more with a Ute.

[bobdea]

You might want to check out Inno Racks. I had to special order mine but it's the only box that was low profile enough that I could still get into the garage.

http://www.innoracks.com/

As far as mileage goes, drop in a K&N air filter (about $50-60), that should make up the difference in mileage/power.

really? I'm under the impression that letting more air in with a fuel injection system a sensor would tell the system to pump out more fuel. on a carburated system it would just lean out the mixture.....

not a mechanic or anything this is just coming from me dealing with wheelers and dirtbikes.could be very wrong.

[bobdea]

Gleb, I have a well used Yakima Rocketbox that I haven't used in a long time.

It probably needs some refurb, but I would let it go cheap. Let me know if you are interested. If will be up around exit 25 some time, give me a shout.

- Dave

dave, if gleb does not jump on it I might, BTW my car is from plymouth. came from the guy that owns the lucky dog.

[kieran]

HDi/TDi with custom mapping is what you want.

one of the tune shops here will sell you a device that can switch between an economy map, and a torque graph that looks like a cliff.

my 2.0 HDi gave me 73.1 mpg on the long trips north this year. i averaged 54.7mpg. no roofbox though.

[BobD]

HDi/TDi with custom mapping is what you want.

one of the tune shops here will sell you a device that can switch between an economy map, and a torque graph that looks like a cliff.

my 2.0 HDi gave me 73.1 mpg on the long trips north this year. i averaged 54.7mpg. no roofbox though.

Note: imperial gallon is 25% more than a standard (US) gallon, because a UK pint is 20ozs.

[bobdea]

HDi/TDi with custom mapping is what you want.

one of the tune shops here will sell you a device that can switch between an economy map, and a torque graph that looks like a cliff.

my 2.0 HDi gave me 73.1 mpg on the long trips north this year. i averaged 54.7mpg. no roofbox though.

yeah, I'm impressed with the milage I get in my older non-turbo jetta, I get damn near 40 mpg if I drive carefully. I can't imagine not driving a diesel now. for a smallish mid sized 4 door sedan I get the same mileage as I was in a microscopic hatchback running on gas.

[kieran]

Note: imperial gallon is 25% more than a standard (US) gallon, because a UK pint is 20ozs.

good point. this is also why we look grumpy in US bars. ;)

[Guest]

I have no advice to offer you on the roof box, but I just wanted to say hi long lost friend

[michael.a]

really? I'm under the impression that letting more air in with a fuel injection system a sensor would tell the system to pump out more fuel. on a carburated system it would just lean out the mixture.....

not a mechanic or anything this is just coming from me dealing with wheelers and dirtbikes.could be very wrong.

nah, it has to do with the fact that most older stock filters are pretty restrictive, installing a non-paper filter or even a cold air intake allows air to flow in more freely which increases horsepower. same thing with exhaust, go up to a 2" exhaust and ditch all the smog equipment and you can see some big increases. though most modern cars (like after 2005s) have pretty good filters so it may or may not do anything.

i normally get 5% worse diesel mileage, of course a lot more when the car is packed with gear

[sfleck]

I've had this box for a long time. Had it on my Subaru, on my jeep, and now on my new toy! Like Geoff said, I actually notice it less on the Mini, maybe because of the stiffer suspension than my other cars. Don't notice a huge drop in MPG either, but a little bit. I've fit two bundles of gates and some boards in there before, so there is plenty of room.

Geoff, think I saw you on 146 the other day, heading North after work?