Bike rack for wagon - what have you done?

[dcgt05]

2005 wagon with roof rails (no idea if these are stock or were put on after the fact - doesn't matter, I guess). Leaning towards a roof mount option but I do have a sun roof I need to be cautious of.

Curious what other people have done. I don't plan on doing a ton of biking so don't want to drop a lot of money on this but I'll get what I need for something safe and reliable.

Don't love the idea of rear mount in fear of chipping paint or other damage. Pricing for both a hitch plus bike rack is looking like $500+.

Thanks for ideas and pictures.

[Max Capacity]

I bought both wagon mounts and sedan mounts, back in 2004 for the car, That way I could move the crossbars more forward. Yeah, it wasn't cheap. I still have this set up shown, but the rest of the stuff and the bike rails have long been lost.

[dcgt05]

It's like I'm looking at my car but with a sweet Thule rack on it.

First question...are the rails (the ones running front to back that the cross bars are attached to) something that came with the car stock or you had to add them? I bought mine used so I have no idea. Just curious.

Second question...are the rails something fairly standard and you just find any ol' bike rack to add to them or they have to be specific to this setup?

[Max Capacity]

In the USA these cars came with roof rails, I seem to recall in other country's they did not come with rails (?)...

 

Yes, I believe almost any bike rails will fit on the Thule rectangular bars.

[dcgt05]

Sorry, I wasn't clear. I meant are the rails fairly standard to have cross bars attached to them. That being said, looks like the answer may be no because I'm having a tough time finding appropriate cross bars because everything I find seems to be compatible with rails that have a gap between the roof the rails themselves. This ain't rocket science but I'm feeling pretty dumb.

So my current goal is to simply find a set of cross bars that are compatible with the existing rails and hopefully on the inexpensive side because all I'm putting up there is a single bike. Lots of options less than $70 but everything I'm finding is for those rails with the gap.

 

[KZJonny]

I did a hitch mounted rack. Hitch was like ~$180 CAD from Uhaul, and did the install myself. Pretty easy if the exhaust system is reasonably solid and won’t break when you lower it a little.

2 bike rack was ~$200 CAD??

So, waaaay under $500 USD…. 6-7 years of using it, and no damage to the paint on either the car or bikes….

I can drag up the manufacturer of the rack, but it’s solid enough for my dually XC bike or my Ebike…

[dcgt05]

I'll take the info (thanks) but a friend of mine has the bike rack component so it appears all I need are the cross bars for the existing roof rails. As mentioned, I see a number of options for less than $100 (that budget works for me!), just none that look like they attach to the style I have. Or maybe they do. I just don't know enough about this gear because I haven't had to buy it before.

[KZJonny]

https://www.mec.ca/en/product/5018-825/xtc-2-bike-xc-dual-receiver-hitch-rack?gclid=Cj0KCQjw_7KXBhCoARIsAPdPTfh-f70yIApEmWs6V6gFm7CsO2e_XhLG-Eb-iq1fkHKYQVY_cQnKhb0aAjIREALw_wcB

Since your going with a roof rack, it’s a little less important, but I just find it easier to load/unload the bikes with a rear rack. Not as much with the GT as the Outback, but I’ve also gone down some kinda gnarly back country roads where the tree canopy would’ve surely been hitting my bikes, were they roof mounted.

I guess since I need a hitch to tow things anyway, it seemed like a bit of a no-brainer.

Edited August 5, 2022 by KZJonny