Thule roof bars

[Shorum]

I finally got round to ordering some roof bars an they arrived yesterday. Took nearly two hours to assemble and fit. They come with some clear stickers to protect where the feet go - a bit unsightly, but I put then on for now as I thought I could take them off at a later date if I decided they looked really poo.

My main worry when fitting (which is one of the reasons I took so long) is the metal bracket that you have to squeeze under the window seal. This scrapes the paint (even a light finger nail shows on the lacquer) so I'm trying to work out how best to protect the area.

Does anyone have any experience of this or any ideas of a method to protect the paint from the bracket?

[Deako]

On my Clio Gordini, i used some sticky backed foam and stuck it to the metal brackets. Never marked the car at all.

Im after another set of bars once the Clio ones sell. So will be doing the same again. Didnt realise the feet sit on the roof with the Scirocco bars though. Not happy about sticking a bit patch of clear vinyl on the roof.

[Shorum]

Didnt realise the feet sit on the roof with the Scirocco bars though. Not happy about sticking a bit patch of clear vinyl on the roof.

Yeah, that's pretty crappy - looks really rubbish.

Does anyone know what damage would be done without the vinyl patch?

[Deako]

I imagine it will damage the paint over time. I only wanted mine for the cycle carriers, so might not bother and just put a tarp in the boot, remove the front wheel and try and squeeze 2x MTBs instead.

[Shorum]

Having had the bars for 2 months, I thought I'd post a review (also prompted by a recent post).

First off, they were a bit fiddley to put together, and it took nearly 2 hours to put them on first time round. As said in my earlier post, I used the clear stickers as per instruction.

The bars are really secure when fitted, the front bar has a locator bolt, the back doesn't. The car will easily do 90 with a 9'6" surfboard on top and the noise isn't really noticeable. Above 60 you do notice the mpg drop quite significantly. Without the board, there is a noticeable noise at high speeds, so I remove them for long journeys.

I've taken the bars off and refitted 3 times now. The final time took less then 20 mins to put on. I noticed a very tiny scratch after the first removal (no worse than washing with a sponge!) and removed the stickers immediately (they look pants).

I still worry about scratching, but the coating on the bit that slides in is quite plasticy, so it seems to be ok (I'm very careful and paranoid). The big worry is any sand/dirt that gets in the rubber window seal, but again, by being patient and cleaning before fitting and after removal helps this. I did look into how I could protect this, but I don't think there's room and friction would be an issue.

The positioning of the back bar is a bit annoying, as getting it perfectly parallel is difficult. However, having experimented a bit with positioning, and using a 'two card' guide rather than measuring and marking, I notice no difference and feel confident that they are not going to be torn off the roof.

Finally, I wouldn't bother with the locks. I got them free, but certainly wouldn't pay £20 for them.

All in all, I thoroughly recommend the bars, can't see what benefit paying twice for a Vw part would have. However, if anyone official is reading, then locator bolts at the rear as a minimum is necessary and a better fitting system overall (rather than compression) would be nice!

[Runci]

I know this is a really old topic, but I'm abou tot fit my Thule roof bars soon.
Would sticking the pads to the actual rack that makes contact rather than the roof work?!
Therefore when you removed the rack the clear vinyl pads would be stuck to the foot of the roof rack rather than the car,
and you wouldn't be left with unsightly sticky pads on the roof?

[kinamod]

@Runci - I think the issue would be the movement. The pads are there to stop the rack rubbing on the roof. If you attach the pad to the rack, then the pad would rub on the roof. I think that would be the issue. Someone correct me if they think I'm mistaken though.
I'm also looking roof bars, I think I'm gna just have to bite the the bullet. Always after a bargain, but I may just have to pay the money before the summer runs out and I don't get my board on the water.

[cuillin1745]

Hi. I have the Thule kit with 256 and 274 feet. Does anyone have the fitting instructions etc...that they would be willing to scan or photo for me? Bought 2nd hand so I'm stuck!

[Duggy1983]

[gt2]

Having had the bars for 2 months, I thought I'd post a review (also prompted by a recent post).

First off, they were a bit fiddley to put together, and it took nearly 2 hours to put them on first time round. As said in my earlier post, I used the clear stickers as per instruction.

The bars are really secure when fitted, the front bar has a locator bolt, the back doesn't. The car will easily do 90 with a 9'6" surfboard on top and the noise isn't really noticeable. Above 60 you do notice the mpg drop quite significantly. Without the board, there is a noticeable noise at high speeds, so I remove them for long journeys.

I've taken the bars off and refitted 3 times now. The final time took less then 20 mins to put on. I noticed a very tiny scratch after the first removal (no worse than washing with a sponge!) and removed the stickers immediately (they look pants).

I still worry about scratching, but the coating on the bit that slides in is quite plasticy, so it seems to be ok (I'm very careful and paranoid). The big worry is any sand/dirt that gets in the rubber window seal, but again, by being patient and cleaning before fitting and after removal helps this. I did look into how I could protect this, but I don't think there's room and friction would be an issue.

The positioning of the back bar is a bit annoying, as getting it perfectly parallel is difficult. However, having experimented a bit with positioning, and using a 'two card' guide rather than measuring and marking, I notice no difference and feel confident that they are not going to be torn off the roof.

Finally, I wouldn't bother with the locks. I got them free, but certainly wouldn't pay £20 for them.

All in all, I thoroughly recommend the bars, can't see what benefit paying twice for a Vw part would have. However, if anyone official is reading, then locator bolts at the rear as a minimum is necessary and a better fitting system overall (rather than compression) would be nice!

Hi Shorum, I know this is an old thread but I can see you are still active on the forum and it will not let me contact you privately. Would you be able to give me any feedback on the Thule scirocco kit please? I managed to get hold of a kit but have since had correspondence with Thule and heard their reasons for stopping production. I want to use it for transporting mountain bikes and your real world experience of how secure the kit is would be really appreciated.

Cheers

Dave

[gt2]

Having had the bars for 2 months, I thought I'd post a review (also prompted by a recent post).

First off, they were a bit fiddley to put together, and it took nearly 2 hours to put them on first time round. As said in my earlier post, I used the clear stickers as per instruction.

The bars are really secure when fitted, the front bar has a locator bolt, the back doesn't. The car will easily do 90 with a 9'6" surfboard on top and the noise isn't really noticeable. Above 60 you do notice the mpg drop quite significantly. Without the board, there is a noticeable noise at high speeds, so I remove them for long journeys.

I've taken the bars off and refitted 3 times now. The final time took less then 20 mins to put on. I noticed a very tiny scratch after the first removal (no worse than washing with a sponge!) and removed the stickers immediately (they look pants).

I still worry about scratching, but the coating on the bit that slides in is quite plasticy, so it seems to be ok (I'm very careful and paranoid). The big worry is any sand/dirt that gets in the rubber window seal, but again, by being patient and cleaning before fitting and after removal helps this. I did look into how I could protect this, but I don't think there's room and friction would be an issue.

The positioning of the back bar is a bit annoying, as getting it perfectly parallel is difficult. However, having experimented a bit with positioning, and using a 'two card' guide rather than measuring and marking, I notice no difference and feel confident that they are not going to be torn off the roof.

Finally, I wouldn't bother with the locks. I got them free, but certainly wouldn't pay £20 for them.

All in all, I thoroughly recommend the bars, can't see what benefit paying twice for a Vw part would have. However, if anyone official is reading, then locator bolts at the rear as a minimum is necessary and a better fitting system overall (rather than compression) would be nice!

Hi Shorum, I know this is an old thread but I can see you are still active on the forum and it will not let me contact you privately. Would you be able to give me any feedback on the Thule scirocco kit please? I managed to get hold of a kit but have since had correspondence with Thule and heard their reasons for stopping production. I want to use it for transporting mountain bikes and your real world experience of how secure the kit is would be really appreciated.

Cheers

Dave

Shorum?

[Shorum]

Hi Dave, sorry for not seeing this earlier. I noticed that they stopped making this kit, but I used it for three years (now have a golf) without issue - including a road trip to Ireland fully laden with surfboards. Absolutely no issues. I didn't use it for MBs, but the forces that I imagine a 10' longboard would be much higher at speed.


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[Ben1030]

I'm currently looking into getting some roof bars for the scirocco and also noticed that Thule don't list any bars for the car. Does anyone know the reason for the withdrawal? Can you still but the Thule bars using the part numbers quoted from past users?

[alexgrimwood]

I'm looking for the same thing! I have some bars from a 3 door Fiesta I had, so I'm hoping these will fit, the feet look the same in the pictures, and the bars look like they will stretch!

[Godzilla84]

Sorry to dredge up an old topic but what kit do you need to fit Thule aero bars? I’ve got the kit that I’ve taken off my old Honda Accord and I want to be able to fit bike carriers/roof box to the roof of my scirocco.