Been postponing an ikea trip because I've not been sure if I can fit the Billy bookcase in. I do have moonroof that I can stick it out of worst case. Is it legal to stick it out the roof? Has anyone tried to fit the bookcase in normally? I have a 30mi drive on multiple toll roads so I could be noticed easily.

Thanks!

 

I have no knowledge if it's legal or not, but I've often gotten large things home (especially from Ikea! - bookcases, desks, and large rugs) through the sunroof!.

 

It should be flat packed so it's only going to be as long as the bookcase is tall. Figure out how tall it is and see if it will fit. Worst case scenario is you have to strap it to the top. I think they even have a cheap roof rack you can get there.

 

It's also a great excuse to go buy a Thule rack. Just put mine on and I love it.

 

haven't tried that specific bookcase, but I have tried a few others things:
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...in-an-r56.html

 

But be careful ... if you live close and the speeds will be low OK

But get it up to 50 or more to keep up with a highway speed and the forces you can generate from wind on that box .... well, what will buckle first? The bookcase, or the roof?

This a great time to build a relationship with that SUV or P/U owner down the hall......hey I'll buy you lunch if . . . .

 

You might be surprised what you can fit in your car if you drop the rear seats, take the headrest off of the front seat, lean it all the way back, and let the object lay from the front to the back. The bookcase itself is 88 inches tall, so I'd imagine the flat-pack box is around 88 to 89 inches long. Break out the tape measure and see how it might fit!

-Chase

 

Being the proud Mini owner like the others on this forum I'm going to try to make it happen before I ask the SUV buddies!

Chris, thanks for the tip on taking the front headrest out.

Headed in a few hours, will post the success report soon ;-)

 

Indeed, AZMINIMAN had success with the MINI roof rack on the 1st gens.

Plasma TV on Roof Thread

 

Rent a cargo van

 

I've brought home the Malm bed INSIDE my mini, nothing sticking out the window, and the back hatch closed.

 

I brought two Billy bookcases in my wife's Clubman with the doors shut. I put them one on top of the other through the front seats. It was just short of the shift ****. Tight fit, but it worked. You could stick them out the back of a hatchback just fine.

 

Update: brought it back with the hatch closed and some free length left over. Made me love my mini even more and I was beaming all the way back!! It's yet in my car as I'm waiting for friends to get it up my walkup building and I actually saw someone staring at the big long boxes inside it! GO MINI POWER :-)

also, I wasn't able to make the front seat go fully flat. Must've been at 155 degrees. Does it do a 180?

 

Woo Hoo! Congrats!

The seats don't go fully flat, but putting them down that way (I've found) sure does free up a lot of extra space. Especially when dealing with long flat-ish boxes.

-Chase

 

I can tell you the coffee table I wanted didn't fit... I would link to Ikea but it's been discontinued.

I looked online and compared the measurements to the mini. It would have fit if I took it out of the box but I didn't want to try stuffing an unprotected glass table in the back so I just returned it. I bought some other things so it wasn't a total loss but I drove ~1hr down there specifically for the table.

Just be careful when you're measuring stuff up. It's easy to forget the hatch narrows at the top or the seats might get in the way. I wish I had taken a picture of my grill in the back of the Mini. The box had 0 clearance on any side and it had to be kind of angled in from below to get over the seats and under the hatch...

 

Now that's impressive! My boyfriend and I have the exact same bed and we had to put it in a van to get it home!

 

Sunshine Minis.org has a thread of all the different things that you can load into a Mini.
I got a 10" x 36" Lathe in mine.

 

I got a billy book case home in my r53, just had to put the back seats down and place it in the middle between the 2 front seats.