Interior/Exterior :: Installation of OEM roofrack

[taysan]

nm

[Left Coast Dave]

So,

I am leaning towards getting the new version of the oem cross bars for my 2010 clubby.

I can find the pre-stamped locations in the weather seal. Are these the only spots that have to be removed? I am not seeing where the rack itself will hook onto the roof.

Thanks

Dave

[schatzy62]

Bend back the rubber piece where the cutouts are with a plastic knife and you will see that you can push the knife into the slot where the OEM rack will mount.

Another way to see one is to open the club door and pull the door gasket down oat the top and you will see the clip that the OEM rack mounts to.

Or you could go look in my gallery and there are pictures there of how this all goes together.

[Left Coast Dave]

Thanks for the quick reply.

It just appears as if there is a significant gap below the roof line in your photos where the rack mounts that I am just not seeing. I will just have to look harder...

Thanks again.

Dave

[tattedXB]

Just replying to add myself to this thread.

[hardingsan]

Anyone have any clue if the rack is the same between the R56 and R55?

I'm trying to pick up a rack used to save some cash but can only find people that own the R56 and I have a R55....

[Flyinace2000]

Getting the two sides to fit in the groove on the nut was a PITA. So i got a nice stainless steel washer and did this!


Flickr

Made it WAY easier to install.

[tattedXB]

I can't figure out where/how to take the rubber part off of the roof so I can put in the roof rack. I spent the past 30 minutes measuring/looking, etc.

The only indicator I found was 2 slits that look like they SHOULD have been cut on the rubber near the b pillar on the passenger side 1 3/4 inches up where the rear rack goes.... am I just not looking hard enough? Seems like one solid piece to me on each side...

[Flyinace2000]

Thats what you are looking for. Take a credit card and slide it under to stretch the material It will accentuate the small slits. If you still can't find it i will go take exact measurements on my car so you know where to look.

[tattedXB]

Originally Posted by Flyinace2000

Thats what you are looking for. Take a credit card and slide it under to stretch the material It will accentuate the small slits. If you still can't find it i will go take exact measurements on my car so you know where to look.

I only found that on one of the 4 locations, and the slits were only about 1/4 length or so of the rubber - it's like they marked them on that spot but forgot to cut?

[tattedXB]

Originally Posted by Flyinace2000

Thats what you are looking for. Take a credit card and slide it under to stretch the material It will accentuate the small slits. If you still can't find it i will go take exact measurements on my car so you know where to look.

I found all 4 sets of slits, but they're barely 1/3rd of the length of the rubber. Am I supposed to cut or rip them? They are there, but they're not top-to-bottom like I figured?

Thanks

[pineypl]

My wife's Clubby 3 of the four ripped easily. The last one required a razor knife to cut it. No big deal.

No they do not go as far as you think, you are only removing a small section to allow the feet of the rack to get into the receiving slot in the roof. You will still need the plastic card to pry the rubber out of the way while you place the rack feet. Once you get the feet in place, the rubber will fall back against the feet.

It will make more sense as you do the job. Ours was tough, I would recommend you loosen the feet from the bar so you have a little more play/slop in all the parts. Ours were too close together and I had to fight them to get them installed.

[LittleWing]

I am one who paid about $500 to have my racks installed on my new '09 Clubman.
I thought that they were permanent!
I didn't realize that I could have installed them myself.
Anyway, since I have never yet used them, I took them off until I need to use them.
The real reason that I removed them was that during a trip from Jacksonville to Tallahassee, only 2.5 hours, DS2 complained bitterly about the noise and had a splitting headache by the time we arrived home.

I did have leakage over the club door when washing the car.
Rain did not cause any leakage.
I was surprised that after taking the racks off, the leaking stopped.
I had no idea that the racks were causing the problem.

Since the dealer installed the racks, I plan to have them fix the leakage problem when Little Wing goes in for service.
In that sense, I suppose that since the dealer did the installation it may not have been a complete loss after all.

BTW - I am totally deaf in my right ear and never hear any car noise.
Conversation while driving is difficult and passengers complain when I have the sound system loud enough that I can hear it.
So, although everyone has said that the noise level is much improved without the racks, I never could hear it anyway.

[tattedXB]

Originally Posted by pineypl

My wife's Clubby 3 of the four ripped easily. The last one required a razor knife to cut it. No big deal.

No they do not go as far as you think, you are only removing a small section to allow the feet of the rack to get into the receiving slot in the roof. You will still need the plastic card to pry the rubber out of the way while you place the rack feet. Once you get the feet in place, the rubber will fall back against the feet.

It will make more sense as you do the job. Ours was tough, I would recommend you loosen the feet from the bar so you have a little more play/slop in all the parts. Ours were too close together and I had to fight them to get them installed.

Cool thank you!

Whats YOUR take on the noise these add, out of curiosity?

Thanks again EVERYBODY

Jeff

P.S. To the guy that paid $500 for the install, that sucks - that REALLY sucks, I would not go back to that dealer other than to have them fix any issues that were caused bc of that.

[pineypl]

My wife and I find the noise change is so minor it is not even noticed, unless you try to hear it. I wonder if LittleWing had the bars on properly, meaning the front bar has some plastic bits on the bottom that disrupt the airflow and try to eliminate the noise.

As for the club door leaking with the racks, mine did too. Supposedly a huge problem for some of us, and others none at all. I was told when the dealer re-installed them, it took two Mini techs like 8 hours each to get it right and not leaking!

As an Architect, a real one of building design not software ;-), I find the connection design typical of BMW, so well thought out and elegant, but not tried in reality enough to know that it is not the best solution. The best solution in this case would be to do what my E46 has, 4 threaded receivers built into the roof. All you do is flip up a cover, place the foot of the rack and snug a bolt down.

The Mini design with the compression fitting to flare the wings is nifty but really fraught with problems in the installation process.

[schatzy62]

Originally Posted by pineypl

My wife and I find the noise change is so minor it is not even noticed, unless you try to hear it. I wonder if LittleWing had the bars on properly, meaning the from bar has some plastic bits on the bottom that disrupt the airflow and try to eliminate the noise.

this will make a large difference or at least it did with mine. My GF's kid put the racks on wrong one day and as soon as i got above about 15 MPH the sound was horrible.

Originally Posted by pineypl

As for the club door leaking with the racks, mine did too. Supposedly a huge problem for some of us, and others none at all. I was told when the dealer re-installed them, it took two Mini techs like 8 hours each to get it right and not leaking!

Early on in the 08 year when these first came out they found a lot of the club door windows needed to be moved to make good contact with the gasket when the rack was in place. Once moved most of the problems went away.

Originally Posted by pineypl

As an Architect, a real one of building design not software, I find the connection design typical of BMW, so well thought out and elegant, but not tried in reality enough to know that it is not the best solution. The best solution in this case would be to do what my E46 has, 4 threaded receivers built into the roof. All you do is flip up a cover, place the foot of the rack and snug a bolt down.

agreed that type of system would be much better.

Originally Posted by pineypl

The Mini design with the compression fitting to flare the wings is nifty but really fraught with problems in the installation process.

Very true but once they are set up properly then they should go on and come off fairly easily with out problem.

[Herleman]

"The best solution in this case would be to do what my E46 has, 4 threaded receivers built into the roof. All you do is flip up a cover, place the foot of the rack and snug a bolt down."

C300's the same way. You can mount its rack in less than 5 minutes wearing a suit and tie.

[Herleman]

Another issue to watch for: After taking the racks on and off a few times, the rubber protectors on the rack's feet allow the metal to wear through. That will let it scratch the roof very easily if you don't allow for it.

[pineypl]

Originally Posted by Herleman

Another issue to watch for: After taking the racks on and off a few times, the rubber protectors on the rack's feet allow the metal to wear through. That will let it scratch the roof very easily if you don't allow for it.

Yeah, those thin coverings kind of bothered me too. That is why I will not remove and replace the racks often, but if I do, I would consider a can of plasti-dip for re-applying that covering in the future.

Originally Posted by Herleman

C300's the same way. You can mount its rack in less than 5 minutes wearing a suit and tie.

Really? In a suit and tie? I may indeed get adventurous one day and try removing them and replacing them after loosening and re-tightening the foot to crossbar bolts. That would allow everything to sit in a more natural position I think. Funny thing is, I asked the wife if she wanted the off, and she said no, thought the Mini looked so much cooler with them on. That and all the checkerboard she has, they must stay on.

[schneidercom]

I have an early 08 Clubman and I do not see any perforation in the weather stripping. I guess I need to cut this? Has anyone else had this problem?

[Herleman]

Look at it different light, or using a small flashlight or from different angles. Its there, but it can be devilishly hard to see.

[schatzy62]

Originally Posted by Herleman

Look at it different light, or using a small flashlight or from different angles. Its there, but it can be devilishly hard to see.

also use of the white card that comes with the kit helps a lot as you can get that behind the rubber and pull the rubber out making the slits open up and visible.

[Hockeygirl]

In the instructions, it says you don't have to loosen the brass bolt to remove the rack after initial fitting, is that right??? How do they come out if you don't?

[Herleman]

It will not come off unless you loosen the brass but that tightens agains the locking arms. I suspect the reference to the brass bolt means the one that goes down through the middle. Some have adjusted it. Mine needed no adjustment, and, once fitted, it should not require further attention. But the large brass nut is the central locking device. No way to remove it without loosening that nut.

As an aside, when the rack was new, I fount it helped to loosen the small allen bolt on the top of the cross bar to allow some additional movement. Don't loosen it much, or the nuts will come off and you'll waste some time putting them back. Once the rack is in place, don't forget to tighten them back up.

I hate the mounting system that BMW has chosen, but it is effective and it does hold things very tightly. I'v carried some strange stuff up there.

[tattedXB]

I think i'm going to try this, this week sometime. I'm just scared to RIP the rubber instead of puling it out. So I use the card to stretch it, and i can just use the tweezers to pull em out?

Thanks