General Roof Bars

[skimpy]

Hello Forumites,

Havent been on here in a while as everything has been going alright with the Bravo!!

I like to surf and have an 8ft surfboard which fits into the Bravo if you fold the passenger seat all the way back but this is a bit of a hassle and also limits passengers to 2!

The Bravo doesn't appear to have the slots for a fixed roof rack and all that I can find are racks which clip into the door frame and then you tighten across or soft bars.

Anyone got bars on their roof, if so which ones and would you recommend them?

Cheers!

Tim

 

[Dynamo150]

SURF!!! in the Edinburgh area your mad ?

You have about 4 months to live after diving into those polluted waters

Do you do the para-surfing or watever they call it. its great to watch them down at Longniddry jumping out the water by 30 feet

Sorry im of no help with the roof bars :bang:

 

[skimpy]

Polluted waters!? Maybe if your swimming about outside Grangemouth or in the Firth but as soon as you get out past North Berwick the waters are far from polluted! You should get out of the city more...

Not para-surfing or anything, just plain old wave surfing...its incredible!!

 

[Hellcat]

Have you looked at the Fiat linea accessories catalogue? They usually have model specific bars.

 

[skimpy]

Good call!!

I have found...

Roof Bars

Surf Carrier

However this would all set me back £160!! I have seen similar Thule roof bars to this but my concern would be that they are in contact with the paint work and would have the fear that it would get damaged!! Anyone got any experience?

 

[stephen01]

Gen fiat bars will touch the paint work and leave slight marks as they are pressed against the paint, nothing a little polish won't sort out!

 

[Dwas81]

I wouldn't bother with the genuine Fiat bars. I ordered a set and they were rebranded Thule bars so I took them back and got a pair of Mont Blancs to match the bike carriers I'd purchased. They're a 'mare to take on and off - I'd buy an estate with roof rails if I needed to carry the bikes often. That said, when I purchased the bars it said "the product supplied may differ from that shown" but now the accessories website clearly says "genuine roof bars". Hmmm.

Both the Thule and Mont Blanc bars will clamp around the roof and up against the door rubber, between the door and the car itself.

Good luck!

 

[DickBarton]

I got a set of Fiat bar for my Bravo off Ebay - £50 delivered brand new and still boxed and sealed. They pretty much live on the roof of my car.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26900201@N02/sets/72157612328320126/

It has all the pics of my Bravo and plenty with the roof bars on. It carries 2 bike racks (normally 3 but one is on long term loan) and it good...I can install/remove it in 5 minutes myself but it's a fiddle to put on/get off on your own, if you aren't careful it's easy to scratch the paint (I've done it twice!). They live on the car and don't seem to be causing any issues...the rubber seal round the door makes way for the clamps and I can't say I've noticed any loss in fuel economy.

They do look suspiciously like Thule kit, but the Thule stuff seems to be the same price unless you get lucky on the likes of Ebay.

Not had a problem with them yet and they have been on for about 18 months now. Don't think they'd be any different with a surf board on the roof.

 

[Andy Monty]

O/t liking the biked dick that a Marin?

 

[DickBarton]

Yes - 2009 Marin Mount Vision 5.8 - recently got new brakes for it and proceeded to drive over the front wheel and mangled the rotor (a couple of pictures under my Bikes collection I think to show the evidence!).

Sorry for thread hijack!

 

[Dwas81]

Good luck in finding a genuine OEM Fiat set of bars - they look easier to fit and remove (that's why I wanted them) than the Mont Blanc set I have.

 

[Tad-bravo]

I wouldn't fit those bars to my bravo, the metal on the edge of the roof is soft as butter.

 

[alphonse]

I saw you made a post about the retro-fit guide for the Alustyle roof carrier system. Would you be able to send me the details and the guide itself it you have it. I went to a bar on a roof last weekend,so was thinking which of the remaining 205 should I try next.

 

[DickBarton]

Not had any problems with the metal on the roof...as my bars tend to sit on the car for long periods of time I have noticed a few marks under the footpads when I get round to removing the system...I'm sure a seriously good wash and wax would have it all sorted but I suspect there are a couple of wee scratches where dirt has worked in...the system is easy enough to fit just fiddly and best done with 2 people...get one of the footpacks installed on the roof then tighten up the roof, it should pull the other side into the roof, tighten that up to the roof bar then tighten to the actual roof.

They are easy enough to find online -

Fiat - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FIAT-BRAVO-RO...arts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item3ca3c7173f

Alternative - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Fiat-Bravo-07...arts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item3a5bd21292