[mister2]

Hello all,

I recently became owner of a brand new CX3 GT. I'm on the market for a roof rack to carry 2 road bikes.

I'm looking for opinions about going with OEM rails and fairing vs. Thule cross bars. Are there any advantages to one or the other?

Regards!

 

[SlyCoopers]

From my experience aside from the appearance of the roof rail systems, see what attachments you will be using or find yourself using in the future if possible. I ended up going with the rhino rack rail system when I first got the car before oem was avaliable and the crossbars are actually pretty wide and were incompatible with quite alot of roof backets I tried to install that claimed to be "universal" to any specification. Had to go with their own brand basket in the end which was disappointing since there isnt really any other alternatives in my case with that roof rack system. Just something to think about lol

 

[SCRATCH-N-SNIFF]

From my experience aside from the appearance of the roof rail systems, see what attachments you will be using or find yourself using in the future if possible.

Completely agree with this. Appearance and what you will use it for are key. I ended up with the OEM rack- got a good price from the local dealership. I can only speak on the OEM rack- but it is really quick and simple to install.

 

[Playthru1]

Wouldn't a hitch and a hitch bike rack be a better alternative than putting your bikes on the roof?

 

[mainemanx]

Wouldn't a hitch and a hitch bike rack be a better alternative than putting your bikes on the roof?

Plus the OEM crossbars have a significant arch ... your bikes will be leaning out to the side at a 15º angle.

See the second post down on this page.

 

[mister2]

Any experience with the oem roof rack paired with Thule bike rack (fork support such as echelon 518) or similar?

How easy are the Mazda roof rack to install/remove from top of car? Do they require any modifications done to the roof mouldings?

Cheers,

 

[Darken]

Any experience with the oem roof rack paired with Thule bike rack (fork support such as echelon 518) or similar?

How easy are the Mazda roof rack to install/remove from top of car? Do they require any modifications done to the roof mouldings?

Personally I found the OEM roof rails and crossbars very easy to install, although you won't be wanting to remove them once installed (At least not the rails anyway). The picture you attached is not the OEM roof rack, at least not here in the US.

I don't have any experience with the Thule rack you mentioned since I prefer to put my bike in the car. This being said, as mentioned above the cross bars on the OEM rack are curved so your bike(s) will be on an angle, which I certainly wouldn't want.

 

[mister2]

The picture you attached is not the OEM roof rack, at least not here in the US.

I got the picture from mazda Canada website...strange

 

[Darken]

Here is a picture of the rails and crossbars in the US.

 

[poZZibly]

Here is a picture of the rails and crossbars in the US.

It's the same in Canada!

 

[mister2]

It's the same in Canada!

I've seen both, I guess we have the option to choose...?