The definitive Yeti roof bar poll!

[angrybeard]

Finally I am in a position to order some Roof bars for my Yeti, and having researched the subject before I have been Unable to come to a decision on the matter, I am 50/50 between the original skoda bars @ around £165 or the Thule option with the 775 footpack around £80 and Bars taking this up to £120/150.

So having trawled the internet and been unable to find any real savings on either product and trawled the various threads on the forum regarding the matter, I thought I would save myself and others in future by just gauging opinion of those in the know and perhaps asking people to Share their experiences/reasoning's. So that in future people perhaps find this thread to not spend hour's scratching their heads weighing up options as I have, perhaps note down any discounts they have seen on their travels.

So enough questioning, pass your vote and if possible explain reasons

Thanks very much, and BEGIN....

[The Plumber]

Have the Thule footpack and square bars myself, bought separately on ebay; footpack new, bars second hand. From memory the total cost was about £80.

Very pleased with them as there easy to fit, although the square bars do drone a bit with the softbox removed but we could live with it and left them in place while we toured around.

TP

[dbg400]

I have no experience of the bars, or having a Yeti to put them on as yet, but I plan on getting the Skoda bars. I've a roof box (Kamei Delphin 380) due for delivery this week* so commited to getting something to fit it to! Currently it's looking like the Yeti will turn up close to holiday time - if so I won't have time to shop around once it arrives. I liked the look of the Prorack Whispbars that carnivorous had on his Yeti, but they'll only be fitted when the box is needed, and I think the wind noise from the box will mask anything from the bars.

* which has now arrived. For what is described as a short box it is pretty big!

Edited 29 March, 2012 by dbg400

[Bobdog]

I have the Skoda originals. Once the initial fitting has taken place (fixing the mounting screws into the roof rails) getting the bars on and off the roof is the quickest and easiest I have ever found. No faffing about with funny little torque wrenches - one simple lever to click into place, then put on the plastic bar ends and turn a key. 5 minutes absolute tops to fit or remove.

[Bigfoot]

I also opted for the skoda bars. Mainly to guarantee enough clearance to open the sunroof(which doesn't leak by the way). I also think they look better IMHO.

[AndyC]

I have Skoda roofbars as well. Very easy to fit/remove. Use a Thule Ranger Softbag when needed.

Andy

[beej]

Having previously owned Rola & Thule bars, and found them to be noisy, I am going to give these a go:

http://www.whispbar....orsuvrails-6006

If the video demonstration is legit, then it should be a winner. Plus a friend who recommended them after swapping out his Thule units believes them to be much quieter.

I don't need a lot of width in the bars - nor carry a heap of weight there. So I'm happy to sacrifice this and get the model that fits between the rails, rather than on top of them. Looks far neater IMO.

I tried a cheaper alternative to these from eBay (see here) but they didn't fit properly.

[Llanigraham]

In the UK those, beej, are more expensive than the Skoda ones!! (£174)

[BillN_33]

I have the Skoda bars but have also had Thule bars on all my previous cars, (Estate cars for over 20 years). I have had no problems with the Skoda bars carrying the usual Ikea stuff plus or my roof box.

The Thule bars on previous vehicles have been very good and I have carried really substantial loads on these bars the length of France.

I find the Skoda bars a lot easier to remove and fit and we have never been troubled with "noise" when driving with the bars fitted.

Looking at the fittings I would say that if you are going to push the weight limit on roof bars over long distances, consider the Thule bars - it just never occurred to me to check if Thule did bars for the Yeti when I needed to buy a pair.

Edited 29 March, 2012 by BillN_33

[900000]

I have the OE Škoda ones. I had Thules on my Audi but they were too short to fit on the Yeti and I needed new footpacks anyway. So also had to decide between new Thule's and Škoda's. The Thule would have been key matched to my bike racks which would have meant carrying one less key but in the end I went for the OE ones because they don't stick so far past the edge of the car's own roof rails. They sit on top of the rails and say Škoda on the side which to me looks much better and as part of the car.

The Thule ones just stick out past the car's own bars too much for my liking:

The only advantage of the Thule ones is that you can positioned them anywhere on the roof rail. The OE ones have one fixed position at the front and two positions at the back. But in truth these positions are fine for any roofbox, cycle rack or any sheets of timber and MDF you might want to carry!

Also remember that if you do order the OE ones you must give them your chassis number or at least specify if you have black or silver roof rails so that they can match the bolts (that will be permanently attached to the car) to the car's rails.

[Deputy]

I've got the 775 and Thule square bars (brand new from an ebay shop, £111 inc delivered next day). I went for these as I can use them on my other car and also they sit lower than the Skoda ones (no sunroof for me) which I prefer when loading bikes or the roofbox

[900000]

I've got the 775 and Thule square bars (brand new from an ebay shop, £111 inc delivered next day). I went for these as I can use them on my other car and also they sit lower than the Skoda ones (no sunroof for me) which I prefer when loading bikes or the roofbox

The sunroof issue is really a non-issue when you have any equipment to fit on a roof bar that works with T-clamps. ALL of the system fits inside the bar and there is nothing that goes below this line - see image below. So these are MILES above an open sunroof - even if you have these inbetween type of cross bars some people have (Whispbar). Only the cheapest of the cheap of kit to fit on a roof bar, still use U-clamps that clamp around the cross bars and protrude below the main cross bars... And even these I'd say will be well above an open sunroof when used with either the Thule or especially the OE system.

[Frenchtone]

Pro rack bars for me, neat and seem to make little diferance with mpg figs - leave 'em on all the time!

[Llanigraham]

A question to the Thule roof bar proffesors. What bars should I be looking for, as to length?

BELAY THAT!!

Now found it;

square bar 769 (127cm)

"foot" 775

Found lots of the bars on eblag, just got to find te 775's now, but work have suddenly blocked access!!

[angrybeard]

So only 19 Yeti owners have roof bars!!! I'm surprised. Well people the votes show a preference for the Skoda bars, but i'm so frustrated that no Skoda retailers seem to want to better the RRP, having worked in retail, I find that pretty frustrating and its making me swing towards the Thule bar's.

Its mad that the various Skoda dealers locally won't try to tempt me to visit the garage for future use with a few quid off!!! Madness.

[Llanigraham]

Have you tried the sponsoring dealers on this forum? I'm sure they all offer discount.

[angrybeard]

I had thought about that, but with the extra cost of postage i think it would work out about the same, although its possible some family members may be in east London soon!

I have just seen that Tesco's are offering the Thule 775 footpack at £69.99, a bit under the average price, esp when u can 'click and collect' and pick it up!

[cppgr]

Only initial fixing of mounting screws is the 10min issue.

[JCP]

So only 19 Yeti owners have roof bars!!! I'm surprised. Well people the votes show a preference for the Skoda bars, but i'm so frustrated that no Skoda retailers seem to want to better the RRP, having worked in retail, I find that pretty frustrating and its making me swing towards the Thule bar's.

Its mad that the various Skoda dealers locally won't try to tempt me to visit the garage for future use with a few quid off!!! Madness.

23, and it is only those who can be bothered to answer your poll.

FWIW. I bought Thule because they were available there and then and the dealer had none that day.

Thule are cheapest but the fixing system-while entirely serviceable is rather crude.

The Skoda bars look better and have a better fit/remove set up.

The expensive whisper bars are unobtrusive and most stylish but are only available in silver and cost even more.

Sounds like you want cheap-and you are probably right to go on price alone, The ones which look good enough not to make it aesthetically necessary to remove them as soon as your finished carting stuff are expensive.

So do the job cheaply, Thule.

[angrybeard]

Obv bumping the thread meant 4 extra people cast their vote, I don't see why anyone 'wouldn't bother' clicking a box to discuss things on a forum!

The fixing system of the Thule feet pack is one of the main reasons I have sought to ask others for opinions, although I am sure the rubber is not weak, I worry it will perish quicker over time, it also allows some movement, where as the Skoda ones sit on the screws.

The whisper bars have always been prohibitive with price, and as far as the point of leaving them on there, these things always last longer if you put them away.

Price isn't all of the reason to choose, I don't think I would ever go for the cheaper aldi/lidl purchases, I look for the best value for money, if the Thule ones were a lot cheaper, then it would be an easy choice, but with only £30/40 difference, it does mean you think about it more.

Can anyone point to the area on the site that mentions promotions/discounts with sponsor's. i have yet to find anything.

Next question will be all about the cycle carriers... lol. Thanks for your input so far everyone! :clap:

[Dave_B]

Hi there,

I bought the skoda bars last week. My dealer (Derek Slack in mboro) gives a 10% discount if you bought the car from him, so I got them for £149. Not bad and as previously posted once the little bolts are attached the fitting is very easy.

David

[Bobdog]

I didn't get a discount on the price of the roofbars, but my dealer did do the initial fit of the little bolts and the initial mounting of the bars for me free of charge. And in answer to your next question I bought Thule cycle carriers which I'm well pleased with. Not sure what that other Yeti is fitted with though

[Llanigraham]

Can anyone point to the area on the site that mentions promotions/discounts with sponsor's. i have yet to find anything.

Sorry, but the details seem only to be visible by Freedom members, but there are regular adverts from the three dealers that help sponser the site.

[fireblade]

I've got the skoda roof bars, because I feel they look he best, planning on leaving them on all the time. All I need now is a yeti to fit them to!! 3 1/2 months since order and counting...........

[threeshoes]

Having previously owned Rola & Thule bars, and found them to be noisy, I am going to give these a go:

http://www.whispbar....orsuvrails-6006

If the video demonstration is legit, then it should be a winner. Plus a friend who recommended them after swapping out his Thule units believes them to be much quieter.

I don't need a lot of width in the bars - nor carry a heap of weight there. So I'm happy to sacrifice this and get the model that fits between the rails, rather than on top of them. Looks far neater IMO.

I tried a cheaper alternative to these from eBay (see here) but they didn't fit properly.

Newbie

I have used Whispbars on my BMW 320d Touring and I hope to use them on my SM when it arrives later this year. But do you know which model fits between the roof rails on the Yeti? I have the S44 models which fits a gap of between 92 and 104cm, I gather.