Wanted: Roof Rack

[TrailBlaser]

HI. I have a 2017 Kia Optima that I want to outfit with a rack system for my canoe. The car has a panoramic sunroof, so I need a rack that is suitable for a "bare" roof. I have done some searching online, but would appreciate any leads you can provide. Thanks.

 

[Pook]

Hi,

My wife has, I think, the only Kia Soul ever made without roofracks.

It has a sunroof and no obvious attachment points for a sunroof but she wanted to put on racks so she could use a soft roof top carrier for a trans-Canada road trip.
She ended up with a Yakima set that clamped under the lip at the top of the side windows. It took about an hour of goofing around to install it but it works like a charm and I've also used it numerous times to transport our Chestnuts back and forth to water.

I see Thule and Yakima make something similar for the Optima. Talk to Rack Attack or someone who specializes in racks- they'll get you outfitted easily.

Cheers!
Bruce
-

 

[Guest]

I see Thule and Yakima make something similar for the Optima. Talk to Rack Attack or someone who specializes in racks- they'll get you outfitted easily.

Or sit down at the RackWarehouse site and plug the make/model/year into a half dozen different manufacturer’s Fit Guides to see what style (and price) racks are potentially available.

https://www.rackwarehouse.com/fit-guides.html

It might take an hour to data enter through the 6 or 7 vehicle roof rack Fit Guides and take notes/save links, but you’ll have a rack education and know what the choices are.

I like Thule and Yakima stuff, in part because I have been able to find some racks and towers used, and repurpose racks or at least crossbars and accessories from vehicle to vehicle. And find lots of accessory stuff (especially kayak cradles and J-bars and storage boxes) used at 1/3 the retail cost.

Once you have installed a crossbar design, square or round or aero, you are kinda stuck with it for future use. We have mostly Thule rack add ons, largely because we have accumulated a lot of square bar Thule accessories and retrofitted others over the years, and there’s no sense changing horses now.

In the accessory realm I am a fan of stuff that goes on and comes off without too much fuss or tool fiddle ; if those accessory pieces are PITA to get on and off I’m probably leaving them there.

Huge fan of gunwale stops, especially when used with a short crossbar spread. And of locking crossbars, even though I usually take the empty racks off and stick them in the vehicle, even at a put in (it may pay not to advertise “I’m gone and will be for a while”). Locking the crossbars is a good reminder to check the towers and give everything a stout test wiggle.

And, more than anything, of racks, or at least crossbars, that go on and off easily. I really don’t need to drive around 24/7 with racks on, especially with 2-boat wide crossbars sticking out the sides.

See commuter cars driving round with naked roof racks and cradles, etc. Pains me to see that on salt covered winter roads, and there is a design flaw reason that stuff is still up on the roof.

 

[Pook]

Yup better advice, Mike.

I did the online thing then went down to Rack Attack to see the options in person.

I have Thule on my car, with Malone Canoe kit attached. My car has roof mounts and I remove the whole shebang at the end of the season- stretched out to November 15th this year.
Bruce

 

[Guest]

I did the online thing then went down to Rack Attack to see the options in person.

I have Thule on my car, with Malone Canoe kit attached. My car has roof mounts and I remove the whole shebang at the end of the season.

Bruce, we ruled out some vehicle choices, and bought others, based solely on roof rack-ability. We bought the last model year minivan before Chrysler did away with rain gutters, mostly so we could reuse our Quick & Easys. And when that POS died we bought a full sized Ford van with rain gutters, and repurposed the Q&E towers with new 2x4 crossbars once again.

Still going strong after 30+ years and three different vehicles. I mourn the passing of rain gutters. And side vent windows, but that’s another lament.

The same (sadly discontinued) Thule Tracker II crossbar posts and towers fit on two different CR-V’s, and on my Leer truck cap. I love roof mounted pegs or bars for ease of tower and crossbar removal. The Tracker II stuff literally takes seconds to remove (another reason I like locks, and take the towers/crossbars off when unboated at a launch).

That easy roof-mount is only an option if the vehicle roof has factory roof rack mounting points, but is a rock solid system. I know, I smacked a guardrail sliding on ice with 100 lbs of boats on the racks, and nothing budged or broke.

Seeing the tower and crossbar attachment designs in person, with an eye towards “How easy on and off will this be” is an excellent suggestion. I would opt for the easiest system to remove when not in use, and that may be hard to discern just reading a manufacturer’s self-glowing-praise description of their product design. I’d like to actually see that crap come on and off if real life if possible. If it requires an Allen wrench hex or other tool I’d keep looking.

Door clipped towers can specific about exactly where, at what door frame point, they should be installed. We have a Yakima system on an old Corolla that is very roof line fussy about that exactitude. It’s an old hooptie car, so I outlined the tower locations with enamel pen on the roof.

Same with the van, we use a four Q&E crossbar system to carry four canoes; each Q&E tower location is paint pen marked on the rain gutter, and each 2x4 crossbar is marked (1, 2, 3, 4) so there is no guessing. I yellow paint penned those tower locations the week I brought the new Ford home. And drilled holes in the beefy chrome bumper for SS eye bolts the day I brought it home. Fugit, it’s a boat toting vehicle and I’ll have my way with it even before it has a scratch.

FWIW I paint yellow paint pen marked (wood burned the 2x4 Quick and Easys) all of our crossbar ends, not just for the specific vehicle, but also for front/back/left/right. That little Back Right “Taco BR” or Front Left “CR-V FL” paint pen notation helps with putting the racks on, and it matters at times with both proper fit and correct accessory orientation.

Jblaser, does the Kia Optima have tow rings up front for bow painters, and something at the back for stern painters? With a short roof line and crossbar spread I’d want bow and stern tie downs attached to the vehicle fore and aft, augmenting gunwale stops and two cross bar belly lines.

Admittedly I am belt & suspenders & garters when it comes to boats tied on the rack, I’d rather see nothing so much as budge or wiggle, even in crosswinds or with semi trucks blowing past on blue highways.

Under-hood webbing loops are an easy DIY. Stern tie downs can get trickier.

 

[Mnoutdoorfunguy]

I know it is more expensive, but look at a SportsRig Trailer. The canoe, etc. that you haul is much more aerodynamic, there is no chance of the rack coming unattached and the mounts are much lower.
Best of luck.

 

[TrailBlaser]

Thanks everyone. I have a Yakima system that I really like for my wife's minivan, but it's off-limits for me to take for canoe-camping trips. Last season I used our 2010 Fusion with foam pads and that worked ok with lots of tiedowns and fore and aft painters. Unfortunately, my son is now driving the Fusion regularly during canoe-camping season, so that has got me backpacking again rather than canoe-camping. I don't really want him driving the Optima, so I am hoping I can outfit it with a rack system. So far I have been unable to find one that is within my budget (less than $400). I had found one on eTrailer, but when my family went to buy it about month later for my birthday, the price jumped up significantly and put it out of reach. I was hoping I might come upon a used one that would work with my car that someone wants to sell because they changed vehicles. I am going to check the front and rear for ways to secure the boat and continue looking. If anyone finds one that would work, please let me know. Thanks again.

 

[Pook]

If the Optima is like the Soul it will have a tow hook that screws into a socket in the front and rear bumper cover. Same system I have on my BMW.
I bought a second tow hook and use them both as front /rear tie downs.

Bruce

 

[yellowcanoe]

You don't need hooks for tiedowns front and rear. For many years I have used hood and hatch loops. Now they make those in a removable form. No need to chafe your hood.
I do this
https://www.amazon.com/Built-U-S-Sherpak-Hood-Loops/dp/B0024ALDMS

but this is available

https://www.amazon.com/Sherpak-0781...?srs=2600437011&ie=UTF8&qid=1547746632&sr=8-4

 

[Pook]

Good Catch!
I use a set of loops from MEC ( $7or so) mounted on rad frame under the hood on my car- very slick!
The length of canoe on the Soul allows using front and rear hooks.without touching hood.

 

[TrailBlaser]

Thanks for the tips and recommendations. Very helpful! Now I just need to find an affordable rack system.

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the tips and recommendations. Very helpful! Now I just need to find an affordable rack system.

“Affordable” is a tricky adjective. If you paddle frequently or travel any distance to paddle the cost per trip or per mile declines agreeably over time. The Thule system we had on the CR-Vs and now on my truck was (ballpark) $300, including towers, 78” bars*, gunwale stops and etc. Averaged across ten years of trips with the CR-V’s running between the Adirondacks and the Carolinas, and five years of trips with the Tacoma, including one 7000 mile wander, those racks average well under a buck a trip or (calculator and mileage approximations) some incalculable fraction of a penny per mile (? $0.005 per mile +/-)

I would shy away from the least expensive or no-name rack systems for buy-once, cry once reasons. And also because a door-clip tower/footpad system from Yakima or Thule (I have no experience with others) offers proven design & engineering and because they can usually be fitted to another car by purchasing different towers or foot packs and re-using the crossbars and accessories.

Our old Corolla recently lost an argument with a deer, and those racks (Yakimas bought used) may go on whatever compact replaces it with new towers. That is another reason to use towers and crossbars that are easily removable when not in use. The Corolla was a 2001; had those racks, or at least towers and feet, been on for 18 straight years they would be toast by now.

*About crossbars; the Fit Guides all seem to default to the shortest crossbar length that will work with the distance between towers. On a narrow roofline vehicle that may be just enough to squeeze on one canoe with gunwale stops on the outwales, and eliminating two-boat travels or even offering much help cross loading another canoe on downriver shuttles.

I have always opted for crossbars approximately as long as the distance between the side view mirrors. That can put the crossbar end at head clonking position, but the ability to carry two boats, or a boat and rocket box or boat and bike rack outweighs the noggin hazard. I do still keep slit tennis balls on the ends of the crossbars, if mostly for the bright yellow visual warning.

Have you found anything that fits? It looks do-able even with the Kia’s panoramic sunroof. This thread lists an example (unknown if this will work for boat toting):


https://www.optimaforums.com/forum/7-optima-appearance-body-modifications/3192-roof-rack.html

For the Thule setup similar to the one pictured above you'll need:
Thule Rapid Traverse Roof-Rack Foot Pack - Feet to hold bars to car ~$150
Thule AeroBlade Load Bars - Aluminum - 53" (Thule has non-aero bar available) - ~$130
Thule Roof Rack Fit Kit for Traverse Foot Packs (1629) - Specific kit for our car ~$70
And some kind of mounting system for the Rack, I went with the Thule Universal Ski/Snowbard-6/4 ~$100

Total Price: $315 without shipping (If you find items on sale, like I did).

 

[Zac]

How often do you haul a canoe? Do you have any intent on hauling two canoes at a time? What is your canoe made out of? How far do you plan on transporting your watercraft?

Living in an urban environment you should expect theft if your rack is not locked down. My favorite theft deterrent is to make things ugly. No one wants to steal my rusty, home-made receiver rack even though it is stronger and functions better than a pricier, manufactured one.

If your car were any older I would recommend going to a junk yard to look for a factory roof rack.

Does your optima have a receiver hitch? I firmly believe that a receiver hitch rack is the best way to transport a canoe on a vehicle with a shorter wheel base. With wider spread bars, you will be less dependent on the bow and stern straps (which stress the hull) to hold the canoe in place. I've done it plenty of times myself but I still don't like seeing a canoe resting on two too-close-to-each-other crossbars with straps at the bow and stern pulling the canoe down towards the bumpers like you're trying to add rocker. Unless it's an aluminum canoe. My car came with a factory roof rack with two crossbars but they are less than 3' apart at the most. I have strapped non-ultralight canoes to a coupe or a sedan with as little as two straps ran through the open doors and a few of those foam blocks but never for travel at speeds greater than 30mph.

Receiver mounted racks are available for under $100. If you can do the install yourself, outfitting your car with a receiver and purchasing a receiver rack should still be competitively affordable when compared to a full roof rack with two crossbars. My car came equipped with a receiver and I made my rack in an afternoon with free scrap tubing, access to a welder, and about $30 in grade 8 hardware and paint. It breaks down into three pieces which I can store in my back seat.

With a receiver rack, you only need one crossbar on the roof itself (or two foam blocks). You can use those same foam blocks to hold a home-made crossbar (read: 2x2) instead of putting them directly on the gunnels. Affordable suction-cup crossbars are also available but I do not know if they are strong enough to strap to. For $14/pair on amazon, these https://www.airhead.com/suction-cup-tie-downs-1362.html would be worth trying for the strapping itself if I cared about paint finish and door weather stripping. Just be sure to write a review here after you've tried them out at high speeds.

Zac

Edit: Nevermind those Airhead suction cups, they are intended for fiberglass.

 

[TrailBlaser]

Thanks for the ideas Mike and Zac. If I had a rack system for the Optima, I would probably be taking 10-15 trips a season. As it stands now, once my son is home and using the Fusion, I will be fortunate getting in a couple of trips in the spring before he gets back from college, maybe one in the summer and then a couple in the fall after he returns to college. That is the primary reason I am doing more backpacking than canoe camping. I have no security or storage problems at home. I don't think the car has a receiver hitch, but I am going to check to be sure. I have drives of 3-4 hours to put-in at highway speeds, so I need a secure system. I use a foam block setup like you describe on the Fusion and it works fine, but have been told I can't put the blocks on the panoramic sunroof on the Optima.

 

[stripperguy]

It seems that mike did all the leg work finding the Thule part numbers you’ll need
i always scab craigslist and eBay looking for used Thule stuff maybe you can find a bargain

 

[TrailBlaser]

I like Yakima and Thule. I am going to check eBay and Craigs. Thanks.

 

[Guest]

It seems that mike did all the leg work finding the Thule part numbers you’ll need
i always scab craigslist and eBay looking for used Thule stuff maybe you can find a bargain

Not a lot of leg work, just some two-fingered typing “Kia Optima panoramic sunroof roof racks” into Google. Those rack recommendations seem directed at carrying skies or snowboards or bike, not canoes, which might present additional difficulties.

Two cautions, I got as far as typing in “Kia Optima Pano” and Google autofilled the search results with links to (unburdened) shattered panoramic sunroof disasters and lawsuits. I wonder about putting a canoe, with weight and windage torque & twist issues, on towers over such an expansive sun roof.

The second caution, even if carrying a canoe on racks over a panoramic sunroof is proven advisable, is on buying rack parts used. The Kia Optima has been around since 2000, and is on its fourth generation of design and styling (2000 – 2005, 2005 – 2010, 2010 – 2015, 2015 to present).

Rack towers and foot packs off a five year old Optima might not fit unless the seller knows the specific part numbers. Given the number of used “16 foot” canoes I have looked at that ranged from 14 to 18+ feet, if seller’s can’t even use a tape measure I doubt they accurately remember the old part numbers.

And even if used racks do fit, eh, buyer beware. I bought the Yakima racks for the Corolla used from an outfitter guy who frequents paddling boards with things for sale. The parts were all correct, he knew the model year Corolla they came off, but one crossbar was slightly bent, and two of the towers needed new footpacks. Even replacing the footpacks I saved a little money (not a lot) and I still had a bent crossbar and parts that already had some age on them.

I am still comfortable buying used rack accessories, but for the rack towers, feet and crossbars, even if the part numbers are correct, I’d want to have an in-person look at it first.

If I had a rack system for the Optima, I would probably be taking 10-15 trips a season. I don't think the car has a receiver hitch, but I am going to check to be sure. I have drives of 3-4 hours to put-in at highway speeds, so I need a secure system.

With ten to fifteen multi-hour highway trips a year I would want a real rack, from some proven manufacturer, with assurances that it will work hauling a canoe on a panoramic roof.

I would have concerns about using receiver hitch and T bar as the back support. Any issue with panoramic sunroof will be exacerbated by a T-bar wiggling around. Plus you would need to purchase the receiver and T-bar (and something, not foam blocks, for the front crossbar) . As a used car buyer I am leery of small or mid-sized cars that already have a receiver installed; I have no idea what that engine and tranny have been towing.

The first thing I would want to know is the advisability of carrying a racked canoe over a panoramic sunroof. Can’t resist; a quick Google search provided this reply to the question on Song of the Paddle:

“There seems to be quite a difference in what you can load onto modern cars with glass roofs. It depends on whether you have a traditional "sun roof" i.e. small opening in the roof in either glass or steel that slides back, or the modern "panoramic roof" which is generally a very large area of glass covering most of the roof from windscreen backwards. Traditional sun roofs seem to make little or no difference to load limit (and are handy for checking state of the load whilst driving!) BUT the load limits on the panoramic roofs seem to be severely restricted to the extent that roof racks are often not recommended at all, presumably due to lack of flexibility in a glass roof to various forces from a roof load? Manufacturers restrictions on these new style roofs are such that. . . .” etc, etc.

It’s a good mystery; let us know what you find.

 

[TrailBlaser]

I am now leaning towards buying new for much the same reason Mike. I found a paddle shop that has the Yakima system for my car that I can get installed for under $400. I am going to keep shopping for new until the spring and then will pull the trigger. Thanks again for the help.

Sent from my SM-N920T using Tapatalk

 

[Guest]

I am now leaning towards buying new for much the same reason Mike. I found a paddle shop that has the Yakima system for my car that I can get installed for under $400. I am going to keep shopping for new until the spring and then will pull the trigger. Thanks again for the help.

I have a pet peeve with (at least badly written) installation instructions, but Thule or Yakima rack instructions are pretty idiot-proof. If you can find those parts on sale, or coupon discounted, the DIY install savings are worth it. If you are not comfortable with a DIY install it may be better buying from a brick & mortar outfitter and having them put the racks on.

I know it is more expensive, but look at a SportsRig Trailer. The canoe, etc. that you haul is much more aerodynamic, there is no chance of the rack coming unattached and the mounts are much lower.
Best of luck.

If the panoramic sunroof proves a no-go for hauling the weight of a canoe on the racks the small/lightweight trailer idea may be the best option. A lightweight trailer can be hauled using any present or future vehicle equipped with a hitch receiver, and resolves the two-canoe carry dilemma for companion trips and river shuttles.

We used a DIY’ed trailer to haul two canoes and excess gear on four-boat family trips. The two trailered canoes were racked vertically, centered well forward over the tongue, so I wasn’t hauling a 17 foot long canoe trailer behind the car, and there was plenty of gear storage on the sides, including side pocket slots for bikes.

Even with the DIY design, between buying the receiver and the (cheaply modified) trailer it was more costly than buying a set of roof racks, but we needed to haul four canoes, and that wasn’t happening with the then existing minivan roofline.

With two boats on the minivan roof racks and two on the trailer we were set to 4-boat family travel but, I will confess, I did not like hauling a trailer. Merging into traffic with 30 feet of vehicle, trailer and canoe overhang, checking the bearings and hubs, checking the lights, backing up. Especially backing up. Oh look, the narrow dirt access road is washed out after a mile, guess I’ll just back out.

For a twisty mile. I still have that crick in my neck.

YMMV.

 

[Guest]

One more thing on trailer use. If you tow boats on a trailer absolutely, positively have mud flaps for the towing vehicle’s rear tires.

Those tires will be throwing up water, dirt, debris, dead squirrel guts and road salt, maybe aimed directly into the hull, especially with boats low racked side-by-side behind the wheels.

The front edges of the nearest thwarts, and even the yoke, will thank you. A mere thousand miles of rear wheel spray abuse and I needed to refinish the brightwork on a once-pristine canoe, hauled sans mud flaps.