I know roof racks for the X have been covered here before, but it seems like it's worth another look. I also recognize that some people are fundamentally opposed to racks on the Evo. For me, though, if you can't use your Evo as a rally car, it's next best purpose is to be used as an adventure car. Sometimes it makes perfect sense to throw snowboards, bikes, or kayaks on the roof and hit the road.

I have used a Yakima rack (Q towers and clips) for one winter and was pretty happy with its performance. My complaints, though, are that it is heavy, and it rubbed off the paint at some of the contact areas. It's also a pain to install and remove, even after the initial setup.

Some alternatives that I've looked at include the Whispbar, which is aluminum and aerodynamic but cannot be had in the US yet, and permanent installation of a track or foot system, like the Yakima Rack Track and/or Landing Pads. I would also be interested in swapping the Yakima rods for aluminum tubing of the same diameter to reduce weight.

Has anyone else installed tracks or feet on the aluminum roof or side rails with any success? Does anyone else have anything other than a moral objection to trying this?

 

What did you wind up going with? I'm debating to go with the Whispbar or the Thule options myself.

 

Paint chipping is not an option for me. That's the one thing the STi has on us, built in roof rack mounts. I was looking forward to putting my snowboard on top and "rallying" to get to the ski hill. I really hope there is a safe option for this.

 

Good question. I've been debating on getting a roof rack as well. This way I don't have to put my bike or snowboard in the back seat when I go to Mt Hood.

 

Why did you not put clear bra material down during the initial install? This would have stopped any scratches, etc.

 

whispbar sucks (dealing with installs[and the amount of people that return them]),

thule is releasing a aero blade bar that mimics the whispbar design, but still works on any rapid system. looking to be available in the us on september 8th

http://www.rackattack.com/product-pa...-load-bars.asp

 

Wispbar is a million times better than the new aero bar. and looks so much better