Has anyone put a roof rack on their car yet? I like to kayak in the summer, and I'm guessing that my yak is not going to fit through the tiny pass through between the trunk and the back seat.

I'm wondering how drastically the mileage would be affected, and whether or not anyone has used a fairing to decrease the drag caused by the cross bars?

 

I take it you don't have the Moonroof then?? I'm sure putting anything on your roof will impact fuel economy. How much probably depends on how high and wide the cargo/holder is. Kayaking sounds like fun! Maybe someday i will try it.!!

 

I don't know if the roof rack would affect the sunroof, it didn't on my envoy?

Kayaking is enough fun that I'm willing to sacrifice my already shoddy gas mileage by putting a roof rack on my car You should definitely try it. I went out on the St Lawrence River a lot last year and watched the sunset and watched cargo boats go by. It's incredibly relaxing.

 

Carrying exotic animals in your TCH is not recommended.

 

Aw man, I knew I should've gotten the Saab instead

 

Down the road I'm very interested in what you find as I hope to be able to kayak here in FL soon.

I googled "Toyota Camry 2007 Roof Rack"

and through one of the forum (another site) links...someone had posted this:

"Yakima is the Best .... they have one built especially for the Prius when cuts down on wind resistance the best ....... You'll still be losing about 5mpg when using it but it's not a Perment Roof rank if you don't want it to be"

Someone else posted this link to Yakima. http://www.yakima.com/Consumer/Step1.aspx

I poked around this site and, if nothing else, its entertaining and informative. (e.g. "Add-vehicle specific Q-clips (00601-00730) to ensure a custom fit to your doorframe (Do not confuse Q-Clips with similar-sounding personal hygiene products. Attempting to clean your ears with Q-Clips may result in serious Vincent Van Gogh-like injuries.)")

I haven't checked Toyota, but I bet that any Camry rack will be Hybrid irrelevant in design. Of course it will affect mileage.....but what's your real alternative....no yaking?...a RAV4 with built in Rack at 23MPG?

Do post what you find and I hope someone else has real world experience.

P.S. I'll need to buy a kayak too...so I'll have to find some forums for the TCH equivalent best! Flats fishing will be a primary use.

 

An inflatable kayak would probably fit inisde the car

 

Saab's are great cars! I just got rid of a 1987 Saab 900S that i bought new and drove the entire 20 years. I also have a 1987 Saab 900 turbo convertible i am restoring now too. I love them........they just are expensive to repair, but they last al long time!

 

I had an envoy with a built in rack with 17 mpg, no thanks!!!

 

I was looking at an 04 off lease 9-3... It actually got better gas mileage on the test drive (I was pushing it too) than I've been getting with my hybrid. And it was a 5 speed! Oh how I miss driving a car with a manual tranny.