Luggage limit on Skoda Yeti 1.2 outdoor

[SamHudson]

I am looking at purchasing a Skoda Yeti Outdoor 1.2 petrol. My only question is whether it will career for our holidays. We have two children- camping gear and 4 bikes.

I was thinking of having two bikes on the roof next to a roof box and two bikes on a tow bar at the back. Could the 1.2 petrol cope with this or would it be too much weight? 

[Urrell]

All 620 kg

[edwards]

I suspect it will 'cope' as in it won't collape under the weight. Whether the steering and ride would be affected I simply don't know, we've had ours with 5 adults and a fair bit of kit in it no problems, but that was with no external things like racks etc and the wind would affect those a lot more.

 

I guess that, dependant on your driving style, you might notice a slight lack of oomph in the 'go' department but for how often you would actually drive it fully laden, that might be something you can live with. The 1.2TSi is a pretty willing unit so I suspect it will be plenty good enough unless you are Stirling Moss                     

[weasley]

Will it take the load?  Yes.*

Will it go slower?  Yes.

Will it drink more fuel?  Yes.

Will it get there?  Yes.

 

You don't say how far these driving holidays are or the topography.  Camping in Norfolk or trekking through the Pyrenees?  And how often - putting up with the increased thirst and lost performance once a year may be an acceptable compromise for the other hundreds of journeys you make where the 1.2TSi works well.

 

* the spec box needs to be read in detail, with caution.  For example, the 620kg is everything that goes in and on the car - people, boot, roof and towbar.  Also, the 100kg roof load is great, but often roofbars have their own maximum of 75kg (which is a common maximum roofload for many cars).  A quick reckoning on a bit of paper suggests you'll be OK (unless your family are large, your bikes are heavy and your tent is canvas) but it would pay to think about where to put each thing.  For example when I take bikes on the roof and towbar, I put the smallest bike up top and the rest behind the car.

 

But given that the car is specifid to be able to move its maximum payload then you should be OK.

[muddyboots]

If you're thinking of having two bikes on the roof alongside the box....couple of thoughts specifically spring to mind:

1) Check you can actually open the box - remember the box lid will need room to hinge sideways when it opens. Depends on the box size I guess, but when I have our box on the roof of our Superb, I can only realistically fit one adult bike alongside it.

2) Getting the bikes on the roof might be quite awkward due to the height of the car, especially the one nearer the middle of the roof. Lifting my mountain bike to the outer side of the roof, is a physical challenge (it is an adult sized, full suspension bike) as in you have to be able to press it right up to arms length overhead, and then hold it in place on the carrier until the clamp is done up. It's only fallen on my head once  There's no way I could do it further inboard without having a reasonable sized step to stand on.

 

Other random thoughts:

With the car being higher already, watch (and know) your overall height if you have bikes on the roof. With my mountain bike on the roof, I have to be careful of overhanging branches especially going down any rural lanes.

Watch our for height barriers. Easy to forget!!

You'll almost certainly notice the effect handling characteristics - it'll roll more in corners with more weight up top, probably understeer more (eg coming off roundabouts etc) and with the weight of bikes hanging further out back it'll bounce up and down more. 

Beware of your extra length with bikes on a towbar carrier. The rear parking sensors won't be any use, so reversing into spaces will be trickier (based on my experience of having 3 bikes on a towbar carrier on our Superb). Also beware of the extra overhang when turning, for example pulling out of parking spaces.

Unless you get a towbar carrier that tilts or slides back, you won't be able to get into your boot.

Unless you have it already, a set of roof bars, bike carriers, roof box and towbar carrier won't be cheap! And you need somewhere to store it all.

 

We've done the last few camping holidays with 2 kids, loaded up with roof boxes, one bike on the roof, and three on the towbar carrier (in our Superb estate).

I'm now seriously looking at a combi van (eg Transport or Transit Custom sized van with two rows of seats) - much less faff, just chuck it all in the back, and it's out if sight! And somewhere to get changed if your muddy when you come back from rides, walks etc.

[SamHudson]

Thank you all for your help and thoughts with this- has really helped. I have roof bars and bike carriers that will fit the Yeti already- wrote a bike off once going under a car park barrier!! 

 

Any recommendations for tow bars for bikes for Skoda Yeti 1.2 DSG?