I have a snowboard racks that I want to transfer from my 4Runner to my Camry and was wondering if you guys have had any experience with the Thule or Yakima roof racks on the Camry? I did a search and read about someone having problems with the door closing or getting mis aligned because the clamps of the racks interfered with the doors. I really wish that Toyota would have some sort of integrated screws in the rain gutter like BMW . Pics would be awesome and much appreciated too !!!

 

I started out using a Yakima Ski Rack and Snowboard attachment, but because I gave the local Rack n' Road dealer the part numbers for the clips, he gave me a 10% discount on anything in the store. I got a 16 cu ft cargo box to fit the Yakima rack and it worked out great. The load limit is 125 lbs. Search the Yakima wewb site and it should be updated for the 2007 TCH by now. Their are actually little indents in the door liner for the clips to fit in. When I removed the rack late last month, no visible marks were noted.

 

Good to know about those indents. I'll probably purchase next winter as the season's mostly over. I also plan to put some 3M film down where it rests on the car. Also, I was wondering if it's worth getting the front air dam as I hear it helps with gas and noise.

 

Just to add in case someone wants to know, I have a Thule rack kit without the air dam accessory thing. I hauled two kayaks, one 14 foot and one 10 foot, 600 miles each way from Indiana to northern Wisconsin and got around 26-27mpg. This is also including all of our camping supplies for a full week. Also, since the car is relatively quiet, the wind noise is pretty loud. You have to keep the shade on the sunroof closed and it still takes a little getting used to.

Also, I've only had the TCH for about 2 months and I'd have to say the most suprising thing to me is that they actually have those spots in the door frame just for these racks to sit in. Now that's quality! Thanks Toyota.

 

What kind of mileage are you typically getting? Have you driven that same or similar trip without the rack? Just curious as to how much of a degredation you are seeing.

 

Yeah, I should have posted that. When driving around home I get between 38-41 depending how much I get my foot into it. I have not had the chance to take the TCH on the same long trip without the kayaks, but on shorter trips on the interstate I'm usually 35-38. So I'd say the kayaks and the rack take off a good 10mpg or more. I'd say may 27mpg is pretty good, but that's only because I had a lot of slow traffic through Chicago. On the interstate at 75mph it looked like I was getting 22-24 at most. A pretty big drop but that's at higher speeds. I spent about 1.5 hours in Chicago during rush hour going under 40mph so I could get better use of the batteries and help bring up the average. Hope that all makes sense.

 

I just bought my Camry and I also have 2 yaks, though mine are slightly bigger than yours (size DOES matter). The folks at REI told me I NEED to have a tie down at the front and back to keep the yaks from blowing off the car at highway speed. How did you attach yours? There are NO attachment points anywhere that I can see.

 

What a misleading thread title!

And here I was expecting a discussion of 10-point bucks!

 

If your car is a Japanese built Camry there should be two very nice tie downs underneath the rear bumper. They were used on the boat ride over here.

If not, there should be some bolt holes underneath the car on the backside of the bumper where these brackets would have bolted on. The right side is between the muffler and bumper (on the frame rail) and the left side is covered by a aerodam. You might be able to buy the brackets as a service part item, or find someone who has installed a hitch (you need to remove the brackets for a hitch).

As for the front (if your car was built in Japan) there is a small square plug in the bumper where an eyebolt can be mounted. It is included with the tire jack.

 

Yes tie downs are very necessary. However, I don't like tying down someplace low creating a good chance of the ropes rubbing the paint in the highway winds. Instead, I created my own tie down points that work marvelously. I took an extra nylon strap and cut out two 18" and two 12" peices. (I'm guessing that's how long they are, but you could change to whatever you like.) I folded each peice over and used grommets to hold each one together creating a loop on one end and a hole to put a bolt through on the other. The front needs the longer ones because the bolts I put them under are back a few inches from the front of the hood. I used the bolts that are under the hood and back a few inches from the inside of the headlights. Those are strong since they are right into the frame. However you can choose whatever bolts make you feel comforable. The back is a little different since there aren't any bolts to use. I ended up deciding to actually drill a hole on either side of the trunk lip. There is a wall on the left and right side of the trunk towards the back that works great. (This is not IN the trunk, but the flat vertical wall just outside the weather seal.) I bought all stainless hardware and also used rubber washers on the inside and out to make sure it's good and water tight. So now there are 4 straps available to tie down to. The ones in the front easily fold down into the area behind the headlights and can be pulled out whenever needed. Close the hood and there are two neat and clean loops to tie too. The trunk is the same way. You don't see the straps other than when you have the trunk open. Fold them over and close the lid and they are gone. It's just what I did and I'm sure others will have better ideas, but it was cheap and does the trick. I hope this helps a little. If you think it's a good idea and wants some pics, I could take a few if you'd like. Good luck gwarstadt@yahoo.com. Have fun Kayaking!

P.S. You mentioned that yours are longer, so I'm assuming that they are touring or sea kayaks. I weigh 260lbs so those don't suit me all that well. I have a 14' Wilderness Systems Pungo 140. It's also a hybrid. It tracks like a touring kayak, but it has a large cockpit like a recreational as well as the very comfortable WS seat. It's a great fit for a guy my size who wants to kayak! My wife is just learning, so she's started off with a 10' WS Palmico 100. It's short, but wide and overly-stable. So it's a decent kayak to use to decide if you like kayaking or not and not sink a lot of money into.