[rdy4flt]

This past sunday I bit the bullet and decided to take apart the inside of my Saabaru and install my roof rails. I got the roof rails from a member of the Subaru forums, they are off of a 2002 WRX. Aside from some nicks here and there they are in great shape. They came with the moulding pieces and extra clips. Thanks to the links and advice from Avantt the install went pretty smoothly. I did end up loosing one metal clip used to secure the cargo trim pieces and one the the nuts that is used to attach the roof rails. The nut fell behind one of the interior trim pieces, after an hour of looking for it I declared it lost forever in the depths of my car. The metal clip actually came off the trim piece and fell into the body panels of my car which was also lost for enternity. I went to Autozone and bought a silicone sealant to cover each hole where the bolts came through. It wasn't that hard to drop the headliner but I don't want to do it again if I don't have to. The whole process was easy but very time consuming, it took me about 5 hours, not including the time I took to look for those parts that fell into the abyss of my car.

Check out the pics below.

Rudi

 

[pbatt]

Nice, that looks real good! Does it matter what year WRX you get the rails off of, or are they all the same?

 

[jdmpartstx]

Nice, that looks real good! Does it matter what year WRX you get the rails off of, or are they all the same?

Rails from any 2002+ wagon will work

 

[rdy4flt]

Nice, that looks real good! Does it matter what year WRX you get the rails off of, or are they all the same?

I used 2002 WRX rails. I know 2002 and newer will work.

Rudi

 

[big sky]

pretty striaght forward install (you'll be doing just the "opposite" of what I did )

http://www.clubwrx.net/forums/showthread.php?p=1235544

 

[pbatt]

Rails leaking?

I'm wondering if anyone has had any issues with these rails causing leaks?

I did the install this weekend and the only thing I did to protect against leaks was to add some silicone onto the seals around the screws that go into the car.

Did anyone else do this? Seen any issues whatsoever?

Thanks!

 

[rdy4flt]

I'm wondering if anyone has had any issues with these rails causing leaks?

I did the install this weekend and the only thing I did to protect against leaks was to add some silicone onto the seals around the screws that go into the car.

Did anyone else do this? Seen any issues whatsoever?

Thanks!

Yeah, I added silcone sealant around all the screws and holes. I have been through a few weeks of rain since the install and no issues what so ever.


Rudi

 

[pbatt]

Nice, that's good to hear. Thanks!

 

[dbhak22]

Hey all,

I just purchased an '05 Aero and need to get a rack on there ASAP. I like this option as it looks cleaner and I don't have to put clamps directly onto the body...but I have a couple questions:

1. Do all the big name rack manufacturers (Yakima, Thule, etc.) all make crossbars that are compatible with the rails or do I need to find Subaru bars?

2. I definitely want to get a fairing for the rack, to do the rails effect this at all?

Thanks! Now to go find a WRX Wagon owner that I can get the rails from...

 

[goixiz]

This past sunday I bit the bullet and decided to take apart the inside of my Saabaru and install my roof rails. I got the roof rails from a member of the Subaru forums, they are off of a 2002 WRX. Aside from some nicks here and there they are in great shape. They came with the moulding pieces and extra clips. Thanks to the links and advice from Avantt the install went pretty smoothly. I did end up loosing one metal clip used to secure the cargo trim pieces and one the the nuts that is used to attach the roof rails. The nut fell behind one of the interior trim pieces, after an hour of looking for it I declared it lost forever in the depths of my car. The metal clip actually came off the trim piece and fell into the body panels of my car which was also lost for enternity. I went to Autozone and bought a silicone sealant to cover each hole where the bolts came through. It wasn't that hard to drop the headliner but I don't want to do it again if I don't have to. The whole process was easy but very time consuming, it took me about 5 hours, not including the time I took to look for those parts that fell into the abyss of my car.


Rudi

DID you have to drill into any part of the SAAB ?
Did you have to cut anything ?

Do you know what the load rating is on the roof racks ?

Once you have the cross bar does it whistle you are driving on the highway (normal hwy speeds?)

Thanks

 

[rdy4flt]

Hey all,

I just purchased an '05 Aero and need to get a rack on there ASAP. I like this option as it looks cleaner and I don't have to put clamps directly onto the body...but I have a couple questions:

1. Do all the big name rack manufacturers (Yakima, Thule, etc.) all make crossbars that are compatible with the rails or do I need to find Subaru bars?

2. I definitely want to get a fairing for the rack, to do the rails effect this at all?

Thanks! Now to go find a WRX Wagon owner that I can get the rails from...

I have Yakima cross bars that I use to mount my bike rack. The cross bars attach to the roof rails by "Lowrider Towers" that clamp on to the cross bars and to the roof rails. I have a wind fairing that I used on the car I traded in for the 92x but it's too wide for the Saab so I need a new one. Without the fairing the cross bars to produce significant wind noise and highway speeds, greater than 50mph you begin to hear it. With the fairing you will not get that. Hope this helps. I will post pics of my rack setup tonight. Here is a pic from the Yakima website of the same Lowrider tower that I have on my car.

Rudi

 

[rdy4flt]

DID you have to drill into any part of the SAAB ?
Did you have to cut anything ?

Do you know what the load rating is on the roof racks ?

Once you have the cross bar does it whistle you are driving on the highway (normal hwy speeds?)

Thanks

No cutting needed. Existing holes are under roof moldings. These holes are plugged up by black metal brackets that you are going to need to remove in order to attach the WRX roof rails. I think the load rating on the WRX roof rails is 100 to 150lbs with the yakima cross bars I'm not sure what the loading, my guess is much more. The cross bar doesn't really whistle but it gives a wind buffeting noise that can be easily cured by purchasing a wind fairing. I do highly suggest the wind fairing, that wind noise is quite annoying. I will post pics tonight of my setup.

Rudi

 

[rdy4flt]

Here are some pics of my Yakima cross bars mounted with Lowrider towers. The camera wasn't in the correct setting so the first pic has a different color to it.

Rudi

Notice in this pic that the rear hatch doesn't hit the rack when open. You can slide the rear cross bar forward and increase the angle of the bike rails and make even more room for the rear hatch.

 

[inspector saab]

That look realy nice, I have a silver 9-2 areo too with the same tint job (35 % right). One more thing you might want to do is paint the bottom peice under the rear bumper silver ( the black part ). I did it and it looks realy nice.

good job on the racks bud.

 

[aca2983]

I did my roof rail upgrade in October.

For the roof rack, I got a set of Saris Talon loadbars, which are conceptually similar to the Yakima Low Riders. I already was invested in the Saris system, and I found a guy selling a set of gently used Talon loadbars. That way I can use my exsisting bike and ski attachments. The Saris system is lockable, and very easy to install. I like the fact that you can completely disassemble the whole business in less than five minutes- I generally don't leave my rack on for long periods if I'm not planning to use it.

No pics with the load bars on yet. Will post some here and one saab92x.com sometime soon.