EvolutionIXMR

Tommorrow both my girlfriend and I are going to be purchasing our first MTN bikes and we're both extremely excited. We plan to hit as many trails as we can here in Jersey & PA. Except I now hit a hurdle in the road I don't think I can clear.

You see, I own a 2006 Mitsubishi Evolution IX MR Edition. (For those that aren't familiar with it, it's an AWD sportsedan). It's my everyday car and I need to figure out a way to haul two bikes on it and I don't know if it's possible.
The MR edition comes with an Aluminum roof like many of it's other body panels, so it deletes the little clips for any type of rack. Now I am aware that Yamika makes a model that will actually latch onto the pillars above the doors. But, I hear alot of people saying that it will still leave marks/dents. Plus, I don't know if I feel comfortable having anything floating above that roof. It's sort of fragile and will dent easily if anything falls or is dropped.
When it comes to trunk racks, there is still a slight problem. My trunk is ALSO made of aluminum I think. So I don't know if it might get damaged or not when you strap andthing to the trunk ends. Then you have the carbon fiber wing ontop that limits the clearance.
I have noted that the Saris Bone is adjustable and can probably clear the wing from the bottom, but Im not sure. I also haven't read many positive reviews on it. Some customers with many cases of bikes falling off as they're driving. YIKES!

Anyway, Im kind of stuck here and Im sure SOMEONE can help me out here. Hopefully there are other members here that own the same car as I do that can share their input.

This is a great forum btw. The bikes im going to pick up tomorrow(Trek 4300) were recommended by people on this site and it seems like the perfect one for me. Thanks to you guys, my decisions are made a little easier.

Gee3

Maybe you can find someone to bolt on a trailer hitch to the back of your car to be able to accept the trailer hitch type bike racks. And when you are not using it you can take it off.

And instead of welding a hitch on, maybe you can just get it bolted on with lock washers and loctite on the bolts to keep the bolts from backing out, but only if you don't plan to haul anything heavy like a trailer or boat, just bikes. That way, if you ever want to lighten the car up for any reason or sell it you can always just unbolt it.

I've heard of some BMW guys doing it that way.

BTW, nice car. I was a riceboy at one time. At least that's what my non-sport compact car friends called me. (even though my car was a sleeper) haha!

Good luck!

coldfeet

Personally I detest all racks, do the rear seats fold? Can you not pack the bikes in the back with the wheels off? 2 thick blankets, 1 to protect the seat,, 1 to protect the bikes from each other.

supcom

Saris Bones is a good rack. However, perhaps you should just get a 1-1/4 inch hitch bolted to your car. then you can buy whatever hitch rack you like.

You should be able to find a bolt-on hitch made for your car someplace like hitchfinder.com.

RonH

I have a friend with a Ford Focus with a spoiler. His Saris Bones 3 rack fits nicely.

bcart1991

I would be VERY careful with that aluminum roof.

You should be able to find a remedy, maybe a softer pad under the Yakima tower might help spread the load a little better?

Better idea: Trade me the Evo for my 3 series...

fordfasterr

Hitch Rack FTW !!!!!!

wearyourtruth

my friend doesn't have the MR, but he does have a IX Evo with a yakima roof rack. i wouldn't be worried about anything falling off the rack and hitting your roof. as long as you bolt things in correctly then you will be fine.

my bit of advice as consolation if you choose to go with a yakima rack is that my friend was once doing 140+mph in New Mexico and a cross-wind popped the rack off his car. Yakima replaced the rack, repaired his car, and replaced the two damaged bikes that were on top, all free of charge.

Allen

Used one on my Miata (R.I.P.). It was lowered and had a wing. The hitch rack worked fine, rarely bottoming out, and the hitch receiver was very inconspicuous when the rack was not in place.

Psydotek

Wouldn't the regular yakima/thule roof rack towers sit on the door arch (outside of the rain gutters) instead of the actual roof panel (inside the rain gutters)? The arch has the frame directly underneath it and should be very strong compared to the roof panel.

I recently put a roof rack on my WRX and it's great though i did lose a bit of gas mileage...



If you do go with the roof rack, make sure to throughly clean the surface the towers will sit on and give it a nice coat of wax.

Have you checked any of the Evo forums to see what others have done? (www.evolutionm.net)

Azndude51

Any rack that touches your car has the potential to damage it. For example, some trunk racks have been known to scratch the paint slightly if dirt gets between the rubber feet and the car's surface. I agree with Gee3, you should probably get a trailer hitch attached to your car and just use hitch mount rack. Hitch racks are nice because they're easier to mount on and off than roof racks, plus if you have a garage you're less likely to forget about the bikes and crash them into the top of your garage. I like these types of rack because you can mount any type of bike frame and the only contact between the rack and bike is at the wheels.

TeamPlayers

check the Evo forums. There are plenty of people that have roof racks on their Evos for bikes, snowboards ect.

I haven't gotten around to getting a rack for my Evo so I just throw a big blanket in the back seat and it easily fits my road/mtb bike. But I've never try two bikes