Roof rack ????

We have recently purchased a 2013 Leaf SL and would really like to get a roof rack installed. Are they available anywhere ?

Thanks for your help.

Getting a roof rack installed will definitely affect your range. I have a Yakima rack on/off top of my car. It usually only stays on for a few days at a time due to range penalties. I use it for; bikes, kayaks or stand up paddle boards. I would recommend a hitch with attachments if you can get away with it for your use.

ColumbiaRiverGorge said:

Getting a roof rack installed will definitely affect your range. I have a Yakima rack on/off top of my car. It usually only stays on for a few days at a time due to range penalties. I use it for; bikes, kayaks or stand up paddle boards. I would recommend a hitch with attachments if you can get away with it for your use.

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I will check out Yakima racks online. Did the roof have to be drilled for it to be installed ?

I would take the bars off when not in use. As it is, I wonder about bringing home things like our Christmas tree. There often seems to be something needing to go on the roof.

I just checked Yakima and they have nothing to fit a Leaf.

The Yakima bars and towers come off in one piece for me, since I have bike racks attached to both bars. there is no drilling required. The towers have clips that hook in between the door in the door jamb. I have tab markers to indicate where the roof rack goes every time I take it on and off. I will look at the dimensions tonight when I get home but I specifically found Yakima sizing for a LEAF. they had sizing and racks for the round bars but not for the newer, flatter bars that yakima, has now released

Do the racks come on and off easily? I've been using soft racks for my surfboard, but they're not the best solution. I'd much rather have the hard racks if they aren't too much more difficult to get on and off.

and how much of a range penalty are we talking about?

I found the Yakima tower installation sheet that came with the rack I bought. I got the four Q116-A towers. I also got the 48" round Yakima bars. The spacing of the bars comes with the instructions for my 2011 Leaf. The Yakima sheet specifically indicates the following spacing for my 2011 Leaf; M1 40 5/8" M2 13" M3 41 1/8" and M4 30". I drive up and down a 65 mph freeway with 2000' up and down each day. This is along the Columbia River, so I also drive into a headwind between 5-20 mph in the afternoon on my way home. I would say driving 65 mph, there is at least a .3 k/wh per mile penalty, without my hillls and wind. With bikes, kayaks, and a stand up paddle board, it becomes significant. I only drive 55 mph, when these things are on top, and there is still a range penalty (not sure how bad), but not nearly as severe at driving at 65 mph. For me, it is pretty easy to take on and off, if you are careful. It is heavier taking the whole thing (both bars and bikes racks connected) off/on in one piece, than if I was just taking one Yakima bar off at a time. If I just had bikes to use, than I would have gone with the hitch and bike mount off the back. If your distances are short, it won't matter that much. For me though, doing a 58 mile round trip to work every day with 2000' elevation gain/loss with most of that at 65 mph, the rack hurts my range too much to have it on every day.

Well given that Yakima's website says they have nothing available for a Leaf, I think it best I phone them.

Very interesting stuff Columbia. We use our Leaf for short trips around town but I'd still want to take the rack off until I need it. And I do need it for trips to the lumberyard, picking up a Christmas tree etc.

Galiano said:

Well given that Yakima's website says they have nothing available for a Leaf, I think it best I phone them.

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I just checked yakima.com for '11-13 LEAF and it says Q Towers, Q116 clips and 48" CrossBars. MSRP $334.

My lease is up and I have moved on to another Plug-In Electric Hybrid.
My bike roof rack is manufactured by Inno Advanced Car racks. It hold two bikes and does not require drilling or damaging the vehicle in any way. Originally purchased for $575.00 I am willing to sell it for the best price offered. I am in San Diego, CA and anyone purchasing should be local. I have had no problems with the roof rack whatsoever.
Sorry...the roof rack and bike rack were sold to a happy purchaser a few blocks away!
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...942399.-2207520000.1396733751.&type=3&theater
Steve

I am living in Europe/Norway and have been using a roof rack with a ski box constantly for at least 15 months now. The effect on range is moderate if you keep to low speeds (below 80 km/h). Since I am mostly driving at speeds below 70 km/h (which is the max speed limit on the roads I usually drive) I don´t take it of- ever. The Leaf is so small inside and it is at least once a week I use the roof box. My range used to be around 140 km in summer, without the roof box and heating. Now it is maybe 135 km, which is just a guess since it is still winter here. However, I am sure if you are driving at higher speeds you might loose more than 20% of range. We have also been on summer vacation with the leaf and the rack. And at speeds around 80 km/t but careful driving without heat we got still 130 km on a single charge and the car was loaded with 2 adults, 3 kids and the luggage for 5 weeks of vacation...

The roof rack and box are from the Swedish company "Thule". I don´t know if they are available in the US. The rack is simply attached to the roof by rubber pads which are pressed to the roof by "hooks" to the door frames. The bars are called wing bars, because they have a wing shape and are supposed to reduce noise and "fuel" consumption.

SmilingWhenSailing said:

The roof rack and box are from the Swedish company "Thule". I don´t know if they are available in the US.

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Indeed they are - searching for "Thule" at one US outdoor-equipment chain (rei.com) returned 204 products, of which 12 were roof rack boxes. I own one of their hitch-mounted bicycle racks for my ICE car, and a complimentary colloquial term to describe it is "hell for stout"