Ski Racks for 2002 Subaru Legacy Wagon

Edd · Oct 28, 2007

So my car has the rails that come with the car but it has no crossbars. I can't seem to find a rack that will mount without crossbars. I can buy the crossbars but it doesn't seem too farfetched that someone makes a rack that will simply mount on factory rails. Does anyone know of such a rack?

On a sidenote my girlfriend's Audi A4 has the coolest feature. A small hatch that you can pop out of the backseat that leads to the trunk, specifically installed for skis. You can fit 4 people, 4 sets of skis, and all of your gear in a small sedan! I'm probably living under a rock never having seen that but I loved it.

BeanoNYC · Oct 28, 2007

Thule Snowcat

Edd · Oct 28, 2007

Thanks for that link, but they want to sell you additional hardware so that it'll fit, which you discover once you go deeper into that ad. I've checked these out before. Roof rack prices seem outrageous to me. I feel like I should be able to get this done for $100. I know I sound cheap but screw them. The search continues...

BeanoNYC · Oct 28, 2007

If you have a hitch you can always get one for that.

SKIQUATTRO · Oct 28, 2007

I have the rails on my Audi A4 Avant with no factory cross bars......I bought the THULE footback that clamps onto the rails, a pair of load/crossbars, a THULE ski rack, 2 Thule fork mount bike racks, a pair of soft pad for my surfboards.....THULE will last longer than you!!

wa-loaf · Oct 28, 2007

Edd said:
So my car has the rails that come with the car but it has no crossbars. I can't seem to find a rack that will mount without crossbars. I can buy the crossbars but it doesn't seem too farfetched that someone makes a rack that will simply mount on factory rails. Does anyone know of such a rack?

Probably an obvious question, but have you checked with Subaru? Or even combed the junkyards for the factory crossbars off of a wreck?

Hawkshot99 · Oct 28, 2007

Thule

BeanoNYC · Oct 28, 2007

Hawkshot99 said:
Thule

He wants to avoid using crossbars. I took another look at that snowcat. I don't see any mention of extra hardware needed. Did you take a look at the instructions for that model?

Hawkshot99 · Oct 28, 2007

BeanoNYC said:
He wants to avoid using crossbars. I took another look at that snowcat. I don't see any mention of extra hardware needed. Did you take a look at the instructions for that model?

Neither do I. The only extra hardware I could think of with that setup is locks, but it is included with that model......

bvibert · Oct 28, 2007

The snowcat looks like it should fit the bill to me with no extra components. If it were me though I'd spend the extra $100 or so and get the clamps and load bars and one of the ski racks that fits on them. Then you have a solid foundation if you need to use your rack for anything else (bikes, kayaks, cargo boxes, etc..). If you know you're never going to use the rack for anything else then I would think the snowcat will work fine (I have no experience with it though). Check out eBay I put together a used Yakima setup for a good price a few years back.

Edd · Oct 29, 2007

wa-loaf said:
Probably an obvious question, but have you checked with Subaru? Or even combed the junkyards for the factory crossbars off of a wreck?

Yes to both.

Edd · Oct 29, 2007

BeanoNYC said:
He wants to avoid using crossbars. I took another look at that snowcat. I don't see any mention of extra hardware needed. Did you take a look at the instructions for that model?

When you click on the link to see if this rack will fit your specific car, it then notes extra hardware but I'll call them up to be sure.

Love the Dice Clay photo.

SKIQUATTRO · Oct 29, 2007

why do you want to avoid using crossbars?

Edd · Oct 29, 2007

SKIQUATTRO said:
why do you want to avoid using crossbars?

Extra cost; about $150 new and haven't located a junkyard set yet.

Edd · Oct 29, 2007

Turns out the Snowcat will fit with no additional hardware. I called them. The fit guide on the website confused me. I am not so smart sometimes.

bvibert · Oct 29, 2007

Edd said:
Turns out the Snowcat will fit with no additional hardware. I called them. The fit guide on the website confused me. I am not so smart sometimes.

The fit guide is confusing. It's basically an endless loop. You tell it what car you have and navigate to the rack you want, but the link for "Will it fit my car" (or whatever it says exactly) is still there. If you click that link it takes you right back to the beginning where you have to choose your car again, etc, etc.. Some programmer fell asleep on the job on that one... :roll:

Hawkshot99 · Oct 29, 2007

bvibert said:
Some programmer fell asleep on the job on that one... :roll:

Looks like some programmer fell asleep when making his seasonal movie too:lol:

bvibert · Oct 29, 2007

Hawkshot99 said:
Looks like some programmer fell asleep when making his seasonal movie too:lol:

Now you too?? The sad part is that's at least part of the reason why it isn't done yet..

Hawkshot99 · Oct 29, 2007

bvibert said:
Now you too?? The sad part is that's at least part of the reason why it isn't done yet..

I skied with you twice last year, maybe I made(Make, hasn't been made yet

)the cut.

Then I can brag about being as special as greg.

mlctvt · Oct 29, 2007

Edd said:
So my car has the rails that come with the car but it has no crossbars. I can't seem to find a rack that will mount without crossbars. I can buy the crossbars but it doesn't seem too farfetched that someone makes a rack that will simply mount on factory rails. Does anyone know of such a rack?

On a sidenote my girlfriend's Audi A4 has the coolest feature. A small hatch that you can pop out of the backseat that leads to the trunk, specifically installed for skis. You can fit 4 people, 4 sets of skis, and all of your gear in a small sedan! I'm probably living under a rock never having seen that but I loved it.

Check out Yakima or Inno Racks. They both make attachments that mount directly to the factory rails and you won't need the Subaru crossbars. Both aren't cheap though. Sometimes people sell used ones on the Subaru forums for very low prices. LegacyGT.com or nasioc.com

Ski Racks for 2002 Subaru Legacy Wagon

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