Remember this car has a tiny, 4-cyl Atkinson engine which delivers lower torque than a traditional engine. Thus it takes quite a few extra RPM's to get enough torque to overcome wind resistance.

 

D-mac,
Have you had any problems since removing the rack? Any leaks? Any tape under the rails to remove?
I have an '05 Mariner that I would like to remove the rack. Not for milage but, I am going for a cleaner look. But, I was kinda worried about what I would find under the rails.
Thanks,
-Kirk

 

I haven't had a chance to do mine yet, still plan on it.
Clif

 

Hmm, I thought the MMH started in '06? If you have a regular Mariner, the racks are different. But anyway, there are no issues going rackless! I don't know why a roof would leak with the rack off if it doesn't leak with it on. From what I've seen, these bolt-on racks don't have a watertight seal anyway.

 

Does anyone know if the '05 or '06 track rail holes line up with the '07 track rail holes? I thinking about putting those on my '07 since I have all the Yakima components designed for that type of rail. Thanks!

 

Both Yakima and Thule make an adapter that slides into your existing factory track.

At the front and back of the track, there are plastic tabs that you can press down and it will let the cross-bars slide completely out of the track. Yakima and Thule make a roof mount adaptor that actually slides into the factory track and holds their cross-bars.

It looks like Yakima's adaptors come in pieces.... they sell something called the "control tower" and "landing pads" (apparently they've got some flight theme going on). The "control tower" is the bit that supports the Yakima tubes -- but they have no "feet" on them. The "landing pads" are the feet which come in different shapes & sizes to fit various roofs.

Assuming you own the rest of the gear, you can get the "control towers" and "feet" designed to adapt your Yakima system to your existing track for about $150, wont have to worry about what mounting holes you'll be unsealing (and leaking) and, since it is a track, you can slide the bars to wherever you need them and slide them off completely when not in use without damaging the roof.

Both Thule and Yakima's website vehicle "fit" configurators are a bit confusing to use... just remember that they *assume* you don't own anything but the car. But if you indulge ignore the initial prices they're showing you and take the configurator through to the end, you'll get to a page where they show you every little thing you need and how the price breaks down (e.g. initially Yakima shows that the "control tower" is $207 -- but you'll later learn that they are *really* $102 + ($24 x 2) -- or about $150 for the parts you really need -- because you own the rest already.

I just went through this whole exercise myself because I was contemplating getting a system (haven't done it yet).

 

I've owned both Thule & Yakima. Just sold my Thule system to a surfing friend. I like the way Yakima systems are built. They have a much better design and construction than Thule and are more durable, I've used the same crossbars for 15 years and they have not warped/bent despite hauling kayaks, mountain bikes and a 14' boat with 15hp motor full of camping gear. While the Thule bars warped hauling a kayak and 2 mountainbikes. The Yakima system I have now was on my ex's Nissan Quest and utilized the factory rack rails and also on my old '91 Cherokee which had rain gutters. I have boxes of Yakima parts for hauling various items and a bunch of mount configurations.

My question is if the '06 and prior rails line up with the mounting holes for '07. I have to stop by dealership to sign new Extended Warranty paperwork as it was lower than I originally paid for so if I have time this afternoon I'm remove one of my rails and compare it to one to the previous version.

This would be a good conversion for anyone with a '07 or '08 and wants to use aftermarket racks since the older system looks better with the rack off and most likely sturdier since the newer system requires you to purchase factory crossbars and then attach your aftermarket rack to it with mounts.

 

Jerry - ditto on the endurance of the Yakima products. I have a set of crossbars that even survived my wife's run-in with a garage door that was not finished opening....but we don't talk about that anymore

Looks like you want the "Landing Pad" product if you have the 05/06 roof "tracks". And you want the "Lowrider" product if you have the 07/08 "roof rails". (Have you seen those?, they look rather study and allow the use of a Yakima crossbar in place of the OEM)

If you don't get to compare the hole locations in the tracks with the holes in the rails -- let me know and I should be able to measure the tracks on my 06.

 

I would say that there is a very good chance they do. I could not envision Ford drilling different holes for the Escape and the Mariner bodies, as both ran down the same assembly line.

 

Hahahaha. Yeah my ex did that to my Titanium seat post at a drive-thru. Snap! $80. gone. As a joke I took the Do not Disturb sign from the hotel we were staying at and wrote "Look up" and hung it from the rear view mirror. Needless to say, she found no humor in it.

I did look at the lowrider set up, but would rather use pieces I already have. I can source the '06 and prior rails from a junkyard for cheaper since I already have the Yak Control mount system for these rails.