New Thule roof rack (and box) fitted

[Dan32]

Thought there was a post listing all available roof rack options but can't find it so here's some pics of my latest purchase. Its the Thule wing bar roof rack. Really well made and loads of neat design touches. Tempted to anodize the bars black.

Excuse the state of the car - we've got a hosepipe ban due to really dry winter and I'm not letting anyone else clean my car!









I'm driving down to the French Alps in the summer to ride my snowboard on the Tignes glacier with a mate and figured a bit of extra space couldn't hurt. Found this brand new box on ebay. Its big (420 litres) but you can't hear it on the roof. I reckon it should be colour coded! (This is fitted to my Votex/Thule roof rack)

[rajuncajun37]

I heard about this new Thule rack from the SEMA show last year in Vegas. It's lighter and stronger but also reduced their wind noise due to better wind flow than before. Quiet bars with very little reduction in fuel economy.

Very nice, looks good too.
Can you post part #'s for our cars?

[Dan32]

Hopefully they'll be the same between our different countries.

Wing Bars - 961
Feet - 754
Fitting kit - 1050

I also fitted new lock barrels so the whole lot including my Thule bike rack is on one key.

It sits quite a bit lower than the Votex one which in my opinion makes it look better but should also help with wind noise and fuel consumption, plus if you know where to look the Votex one can be removed/stolen without going near the locks

[nickmn]

I got a quick question on how you installed the front rack. I know the back one has the arrows that point where to put the bars at but is there a certain spot where to put the front one?

How much was this set up compared to the Votex?

[Dan32]

If you pull back the rubber trim towards the middle of the door in the rain gutter, there are 2 mounting bosses (bolts mounted into the roof). Unlike the Votex one, this Thule uses just one of these bosses on each side. There's basically a metal bracket with a hole in it which you put over the boss and then tighten it up.

This rack costs about £150 in the UK which is roughly $240. No idea how much the Votex one is - I got mine for free from a friend

[Mc.:R]

Very nice, looks good too.
Can you post part #'s for our cars?

^ this. What Thule box is that. Been looking for a snowboard box.

[Dan32]

In Europe it's called Motion 800. 205cm long, 84cm wide and 45cm tall. Up to 75kg load capacity.

This is me Burton Nug 150 inside it.

[dainese]

Car looks great dan. You had the wheels differently coloured didn't you?

Do the bars clamp without harm to the body?



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[Brake_Dust]

[blinkinbanana]

In Europe it's called Motion 800. 205cm long, 84cm wide and 45cm tall. Up to 75kg load capacity.

This is me Burton Nug 150 inside it.

Gotta love the Nug, I can't stop laughing when I ride that board, 146cm.

[Dan32]

I absolutely love the Nug. I'm 100kg so normally would have to ride a 163 so the 150 is like a skateboard!

As for marking the paint, I'm guessing it could given enough time for dirt to find its way under the feet. My roof is covered in carbon vinyl so thats not an issue but the rear bar could mark the paint so I've just slapped on a bit of carbon vinyl where the feet sit just to be on the safe side.

Yes, well spotted that the wheels have been redone. They were BMW Sepang Bronze with satin clear and they are now Nissan Titanium Grey with gloss clear. Its not as gold as the BMW colour but its still a bronze sort of colour in the sun.

[nkgneto]

I love that Thule setup and I've always been a fan of your front bumper.

[dainese]

Yeah. Looks great.

Are your b-pillars sprayed or wrapped? Been wanting to do mine for years...!

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[Dan32]

They've been sprayed gloss black.

[jmh2002]

Are there any roof racks that have a cleaner mounting system?

Or, do I understand from your posts that this IS one of the cleanest systems?

I think the box is a great idea for trips away. Would be awesome colour coded.

[Dan32]

There are no 'clean' versions for the Golf 4 as it doesn't have mounting posts welded into the rain gutter for the rear bar. Maybe someone with a welder and bit of skill could add the posts and then you could just buy 2 front bars from Thule but I suspect there's a lot of work involved. I've seen someone in the US with a silver R32 who had drilled his roof for the permanent feet to be attached but to me that's completely crazy.

Going to get a quote for both bars in black (hard anodize) and colour coding the box this week.

[loosefalcon]

So, just to confirm, the Thule bars fit with the Votex feet? I'm mildly obsessive compulsive, so the bar has to end at the feet, rather than extend over it as with the Thule feet. haha

[Dan32]

No, they wouldn't fit with the Votex feet. The votex roof rack is actually made by Thule IIRC. But this new setup (the photos without the roof box on) are of the Thule Wing Bars and they extend past the feet by a little bit.

[loosefalcon]

No, they wouldn't fit with the Votex feet. The votex roof rack is actually made by Thule IIRC. But this new setup (the photos without the roof box on) are of the Thule Wing Bars and they extend past the feet by a little bit.

Ok, cool. Thanks for the clarification.

[dainese]

They've been sprayed gloss black.

thank you sir. will add that to the 'list' of million things to do to the car