Study: roof racks waste 100 million gallons of gasoline a year in the U.S.
 

http://forkenswift.com/album/7-2-kayaks.jpg

A joint study by researchers from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory have revealed something shocking:

Roof racks are bad for fuel economy.

Kidding aside, they've quantified/estimated the scale of the problem to the national level based on the prevalence of roof racks in freeway traffic audits.

Findings:

• in 2015, roof racks nationwide were responsible for 0.8 percent of light-duty vehicle fuel consumption, or 100 million gallons of gasoline
• fuel consumption penalty can be up to 25% on passenger cars
• people drive around with their roof racks empty eight times more than when loaded
• roof rack prevalance is estimated to increase by about 200% in the next 25 years (yay, "crossover" craze!)

From: Roof Racks a Drag on Fuel Economy | Berkeley Lab

Full study: Fuel consumption impacts of auto roof racks

Related threads:

• http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...enalty-96.html
• http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...s-my-3912.html
• http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...lage-1528.html
• http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...asy-23729.html
• http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...racks-557.html

...and I am seeing an add for roof racks! No thank you! :D

It's a conspiracy I tell you!

...

Actually, I'm seeing an ad for an electric toothbrush. Is it still a conspiracy?

Hold on, let me try Aragonis's method:

Despite opening fifty tabs about Star Wars toys, now I am getting Nissan and Officemax.

Kindly disregard my last transmission.

I used to rant about useless- rather, never used- roof racks rather frequently. Good times.

I get ads for Ram commercial trucks, they seem to be escalating the situation... I could get by with a roof rack but suddenly I feel the need for a 3500 Chassis Cab.

Actually I almost never have needed a roof rack. I do like the flat folding style on our minivan, maybe more companies could go that direction. Funny but I can't even find a picture or video on the Web of how it works! I bet a bunch of owners out there don't even know their van has a roof rack with fold away crossbars.

I only use my roof racks when I actually need to carry something, usually my kayak. They are removed from the vehicle otherwise. Fortunately, it takes less than a couple minutes to install or remove them. In my fuel log, you can see the times when I use my roof racks. They definitely hurt fuel economy.

fashion accessories
 

Same here - I have a set that hangs in my garage. I put them on a car maybe once or twice a year.

About 5 years ago I told my brother his factory roof racks were costing him 3-4% a year extra in fuel costs. They're still on. I've seen him use them twice. :D

Here's something new though: roof racks have become / are becoming a fashion accessory on the hip younguns' vehicles. I'm seeing more and more empty ones on lowered/stanced cars that are all stickerbombed, like this:

http://ecomodder.com/forum/attachmen...1&d=1461768414

I blame my wife's last car.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...d/02xterra.jpg

Classic VW crowd might own that one. :/

With a piece of period luggage strapped on as well.

I think that's why they typically call this look "Euro style". Started with the VW/Audi crowd and now popular with lots of makes...

You can almost give the classic Bugs a pass for the roof boxes. How much worse can the aero get? :D

Pix or it dit-ent happen.

http://ecomodder.com/forum/member-fr...72-medium.jpeg

Roof Racks: The VW equivalent of rolling coal

We can put stickers on our air dams now?! Would that make them look better or worse?! :)

Sure beats owning a pickup for that once or twice, doesn't it?

I always considered a rack to be necessary equipment for every car we owned, and it's how my Fit got its name. We had a blue 89 Accord sedan named Al, short for J. Alfred Roofrack. In 01 we replaced it with another blue 89 Accord sedan, named Al Jr. Al the Third is actually our first car without a rack, but it is a blue Honda 4-door. And it's got a hitch.

J. Alfred Proofrack?

Xist --
http://ecomodder.com/forum/member-fr...hlf3lbyhtg.jpg

Needs more zip-ties.

Another tidbit from the study:

That seems conservative, either by time or distance.

Does that count possibly-empty cargo boxes?

I think I used the roof rack on my Forester twice, only because I could not move all of my stuff at once!

Definitely a flawed study. The question is, how many racks go through the entire life of the vehicle without ever being used even once?

Also: Removable vs non-removable racks.

Removable rarely means removed.

One of the first things I did with the Forester, before I was even an Ecomodder, was remove the roof rack. Wife complained that I'd lose the parts, that we might need it, etc.

Still have the parts - had to move them aside a couple days ago to shift things around in the shop - but otherwise it's where I left it when I removed it, 13 years ago.

I'd pull the rails too, but then the roof would have holes. Ah well.

Probably about as many as there are vehicles with AWD/4WD that go their entire lives without needing AWD/4WD.

yes I call BS on that one. If they are talking the clip on ones that you take on and off, that would compute. I consider any candy on the roof a rack.
Using my definition I'd be surprised if it was north of 1%.

Full-sized wheels and lift, too?

I think that Subaru sells deer guards, too.

If only I could go back in time and install a Subaru deer guard on my 1990 Accord...

in 82...

Ooh! A Subaru deer guard on my 2007 Focus would have been deleterious to the wellbeing of the guy who rode a Harley through my windshield.

Deer, biker, whatever. Largish mammal?

Hogs are kinda big, yeah.

I bought a roof rack for my suburban some time around 2012 from the junk yard for $10.
Still have not put it on.
I wanted to devise a quick release setup so I could put it on when I need it and take it off when I don't.
I will need it eventually, when we move.

Simulpost. You both get a no-prize.

Wing-nuts.

Clevis pin fer the win. ;)

My brother's 1999 Lexus RX 300 has nearly 300k miles and as far as I can recall the stock rack has never been used.

The AWD was useful about 3 times. Maybe 4.

Where is your wife's car in the picture ? Parked behind that blue truck ? ;)

I'm in Austin, a college town. A lot of folks here drive around with bikes on their cars.
I suspect it's more a showing of " I'm a healthy male - just look at my bike "
http://41.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ky...2v6o1_1280.jpg
Sort of the way that marathon stickers are popular here : http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...UL._SY300_.jpg

Those are all over the place here, too, especially this weekend since the Illinois Marathon is taking place as I type.

Roof basket AND bike! He wins.

basket and bike
 

we aren't allowed the standard primate ritualistic treetop defecating and urinating dominance display/territoriality behavior (yet!).
Chest beating.Yes!
Isn't it wonderful what western civilization will do to perpetuate its DNA?

A roof rack and a bike rack is like a belt and suspenders.

http://ecomodder.com/forum/member-fr...9-100-0381.jpg

I only use both for long loads, most recently a 16ft piece of 1" hex-bar steel for $13.75 (less than a dollar a foot! Now, what do I do with it?)

Mr. Aerohead sir, did you ever read "Planet of the Apes" by Pierre Boulle? I do not have any idea if this scene made it into Charlton Heston's movie, but I alway felt that a man flirting was only a glorified ape beating his chest, which Ulysse initially refused to do to court Nova.

Are there any roof racks that positions bikes sideways for the ultimate win?

^^^^One post up, Sir Xist.