Installation of OEM roofrack

[ART ED]

Awwww...no worries man! She's on and I just got some straps at WRV to tie the log on with and my 6'4" epoxy quad. As long as you have a padded bag, which anyone that transports a board should have, you don't need the noisy silly looking surfboard adapter. I mean heck, it's a guitar string mounted onto the rack that will whistle and whine like some dreaded prehistoric mosquito!!!! You also don't need those ridiculous bulbous foam cushions that advertise your local surf shop either! THe padded bag does the job just fine and those things really make the look of the car look hideous! THe basic straps wrap over and under the rack and secure just fine. The loose strap material is bungied with micro bungies kind of like the ones women use to tie their hair back. I just bungied them to the straps that were secured onto the roof rack. I put some touch up paint onto the area that got scracthed (only one place thank goodness). I highly recommend putting the blue tape onto the surface of the roof where the rack is going to meet before mounting so that if she slips, and she will, you won't muck up the paint like I did! So much for the dummies guide to mounting your OEM rack onto your clubman.

[want-a-mini]

We picked out our Clubman off the showroom floor last night and it had a rack already dealer installed. Unfortunately I did not really want to pay $458 for a rack I wasn't sure I would need. The dealer told us that we had to take it if we wanted the car because you could not take it off.

I had just read this thread yesterday and once we found the box with the keys & instructions I was able to show the dealer how it came off and that there were inserts for the slots where the trim tears off. I will keep the rack for possible future use but I am glad I don't have to leave it on full time, that would have been a deal breaker.

This thread saved the day and we take delivery tomorrow!

[fdavid]

Got any pics with your quiver strapped? I have the racks here but I am a little bit paranoid about the whole water issue. On my old R53 I used to have Thules and those things did a job on my roof. Lots of pressure points that I had to get removed.
I am hitting the water tomorrow with my 5'6" quad Dani Hess so no need for racks. But if I grab the long board later, I am definitely going to need to install them. I got the OEM racks as well just sitting here. Was about to do the install, but its a bit late and I am going dawn patrol tomorrow morning!
D

Originally Posted by ART ED

Awwww...no worries man! She's on and I just got some straps at WRV to tie the log on with and my 6'4" epoxy quad. As long as you have a padded bag, which anyone that transports a board should have, you don't need the noisy silly looking surfboard adapter. I mean heck, it's a guitar string mounted onto the rack that will whistle and whine like some dreaded prehistoric mosquito!!!! You also don't need those ridiculous bulbous foam cushions that advertise your local surf shop either! THe padded bag does the job just fine and those things really make the look of the car look hideous! THe basic straps wrap over and under the rack and secure just fine. The loose strap material is bungied with micro bungies kind of like the ones women use to tie their hair back. I just bungied them to the straps that were secured onto the roof rack. I put some touch up paint onto the area that got scracthed (only one place thank goodness). I highly recommend putting the blue tape onto the surface of the roof where the rack is going to meet before mounting so that if she slips, and she will, you won't muck up the paint like I did! So much for the dummies guide to mounting your OEM rack onto your clubman.

[ART ED]

Ok my friend,just relax. The install is relatively painless to some extent. I have zero leakage issues and I did it myself and I have zero mechanical skills ok? Of course I did ask my wife to come out and hold the rack for me after I scratched my roof the first time!!!! Get a second person to assist. The instructions about the tape? Follow them. PUt tape where the rack will make contact to prevent damage!!!! Did you get that? Put tape where they are going to attach to prevent damage.....ok,pretend I did that a hundred times ok? When you loosen the brass nut, the little pieces spring outwards. The trick is to jiggle them into place and into the small slots where you removed the supposed precut material in the roof. Oh yea, throw the tweezers away. Get some pointed pliers to rip that sucker out of there! It worked great that way and relieved a whole lot of stress from teaching all day too! Press the little clamps into the slot while wiggling the rack (with your wife, girlfriend or friend holding the other end). ONce into the groove, tighten the brass nut securely and go to the other side and do the same. It should work out fine. Wish I could surf up there in Montauk with ya!

If the swell picks up tonight and I go out Saturday, I will take a few shots and put them up fer ya. Nice low coming in and you know what that means for us surf types!

[kingbc]

Originally Posted by schatzy62

Here is the Full Instruction sheet

Great write-up! One questions however, some state tat you must cut the weatherstripping to get this to fit, yet your document does not reference this. Did you find that cutting was not necessary?

[MBX5]

The strip comes pre-cut. Just look in the area of the slots and you will see a little perforated area. You then can pull that out with the tweezers that come with the rack. It's in the PDF about removing it.

[fdavid]

ART Ed:
Yes indeed! Thanks for the advice!!

[TNMiniMama]

Hi all-
I searched for this question, but didn't see anything, so I thought I should post my question here... if there's a thread on this, please direct me!

I've got the OEM racks on my '09 clubbie, and have the Thule Fairing, which I installed myself (and works, except I've now discovered that at highway speeds the sides "knock" on the roof"... think I'll have to get some stone guard stuff and a some padding)

I am going to take a trip with my family and want to take my clubbie. I was going to get a box, and went to REI to discuss the Thule boxes. The guy who helped me, also a MINI driver, went so far as to call THULE North America. We were told that Thule hadn't tested any of their boxes on a clubbie and therefore wouldn't recommend one.
So off I went to MINI. My MA told me that the rack and the bars were manufactured by Thule specifically for MINI, altho they changed the design slightly so that people would be more apt to buy MINI badged stuff. We looked in the accessories catalog and noticed the 12 cuft box looks a LOT like the Thule Atlantis 1200 in Metallic Silver. Altho the cost at REI for that is only $10 less than the MINI badged box. Then I noticed that the Atlantis 1600 is actually SHORTER than the 1200, altho a tad taller, and is 16 cu ft vs the 12 cu ft for the 1200.
I'm planning on packing soft duffle bags filled with clothes in this. Family of 4. We're going to New England and will be doing outdoors stuff (sailing, hiking, etc) and will also need one "nice" outfit in case we go out for dinner.
So I'm not thinking a huge amount of weight here.

Does anyone have any experience with the boxes on clubbies, and if so, do you have opinions on the different styles/sizes??

Thanks- I really appreciate y'all's help!

[geoffv]

MiniMama,

I've had experience with 2 different Boxes.
The Thule Atlantis 2100
and the Yakima Sky Box Pro 21 (pictured below)
I believe that both of them are the largest ones they make

I've noticed that that Yakima box is noticably quieter than the Thule

[TNMiniMama]

Hi Geoffv,
That's a mighty fine looking Clubbie you have there, and that is a nice looking box too! Thanks for the info- I'll keep this in mind for "next time". We went ahead and got an Atlantis 1600, which holds an amazing amount of STUFF... like the stuff that a family of 4 can pack for a very long vacation! We loaded up the box, loaded up the boot and drove for 3 days to Maine, where we are now. We were a tad nervous that we'd packed the box too full and that it would bust, but it held well. We did have a lot of noise from behind the driver's side window, about where the rear pillar sits- I think the box (even empty) puts enough pressure on those pillars to make the seal of the driver's window not as tight.
I'm still unpacking, and then I'll down load the pictures. My husband didn't think we could do this (we've always driven our LandCruiser, as we often go off road for fishing trips or need to pull a horse trailer). But we were fine, and as my doubting husband said after we filled up for the first time, "Wow, we're using only 1/3 the fuel we'd normally use, and this little MINI is a whole lot more fun to drive!"
I think we have a closet convert!
Thanks again-

[geoffv]

I've got 2 little ones 4 and 5 and we did a 2 day camping trip with them last August.

Enjoy Maine, I hope you see some sun this weekend
Here's my post from last year:
http://www.northamericanmotoring.com...-fam-pics.html
It took some strategic packing to get everything in there.
I've since learned that if you pack the box full the rack will rub against the roof. I would strongly recommend putting some tape under the rack where the rubber protectors are. I ended scuffing up my roof with all the dirt and grim that got traped there. I was able to buff 90% it out. I now put electrical tape on the roof before I install the rack every time now.

[hoonu]

Originally Posted by geoffv

I've got 2 little ones 4 and 5 and we did a 2 day camping trip with them last August.

Proof that you don't need a honkin' big SUV because you've got a coupla kids.




(sorry, tiny little rant there...)

Adorable kids, geoffv! I second the tape suggestion (or didn't I first it!?!LOL)...and EVERY camping trip needs a refuse truck brought along!

[pk1320]

So do any other boxes aside from the MINI OEM box fit on the MINI OEM rack? Thanks!

[schatzy62]

Originally Posted by pk1320

So do any other boxes aside from the MINI OEM box fit on the MINI OEM rack? Thanks!

Most (but not all) of the Thule and Yakama Boxes will fit on the MINI OEM Roof Racks. Some may need longer bolts or some adjustments but many work straight out of the cardboard box.

[300MMPS]

I have three boys... I can take them and leave the wife at home.

Oops, did I say that out loud?

If only there was a mini six seater. A mini limo, maybe?

(Still pretty new to the forums. Bought off the dealer lot 7/31 with cash4clunkers)

[tattedXB]

Once adjusted properly, how long does it take to take the racks off, and put them back on alternatively

Thanks

[geoffv]

Once you get used to the OEM rack it takes about 10 mins to put it on and 5 mins take off. It get's easier each time.

[schatzy62]

Originally Posted by geoffv

Once you get used to the OEM rack it takes about 10 mins to put it on and 5 mins take off. It get's easier each time.

Once you get used to doing it, it should only take about 2-3 minutes to do on or off. That is for the actual process of putting on and taking off.

I will put mine on and take them off the same day. Just because the car looks so ugly with them on.

[pizazz]

I am curious of how much weight you guys have successfully put on your racks?
Anything heavier than a couple bicycles?
How about you guys with roof cargo boxes? any estimates on weight?

I have an item that weighs 120 lbs. to go on my Clubman project. Supposedly it will distribute out ok on the roof racks. Currently the car has 2 roof racks. I was hoping to put a third to help distribute the weight out more. I will not know until tomorrow if they are the aftermarket roof racks or the from the factory roof rails. Got my fingers crossed for the roof rails. I will know tomorrow at noon.

[dbhouston]

I just removed my roof racks for daily driving since they whistled in the wind. Had a guy put some scraps of 3M ClearBra material on the roof where they attach to avoid future problems of scratching. Took all of five minutes and he didn't charge me. The original owner put a pretty nasty scratch on one spot when he did the initial install.

[scottag]

I had the dealer install mine the first time. Had the bright idea to take them off and today tried putting them back on. What a pain. But at least I figured it out so next time shouldn't be as painful. Frankly, thought, I doubt I'll be taking them off any time soon.

[erwinito]

I'm completely confused- can someone help me? I have a JCW Clubman with the factory roof rails - I would like to put my skis up top- what do I need to strap the thule/mini ski carrier? I cant seem to find the cross bars for the roof rails - am I missing something? Thanks

[SaltNPepa]

Originally Posted by erwinito

I'm completely confused- can someone help me? I have a JCW Clubman with the factory roof rails - I would like to put my skis up top- what do I need to strap the thule/mini ski carrier? I cant seem to find the cross bars for the roof rails - am I missing something? Thanks

I think you need something like this to put cross bars on the factory rack
http://www.thule.com/en/US/Products/...eet/13900.aspx

[BuzzCut1]

Originally Posted by SaltNPepa

I think you need something like this to put cross bars on the factory rack
http://www.thule.com/en/US/Products/...eet/13900.aspx

you would be correct sir, fits perfectly and add on a set of 50" cross bars and you are good to go