Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I don't and would only strap something to the top of the car under two conditions. Firstly it has to be secure, none of this little twine or string. Get some good ratachet straps and tie downs. Secondly it has too be aerodynamic, you don't want a giant sail on top of your car that the air can catch, e.g. sheets of plywood on top of a sedan. For short distances the plywood is ok as long as you keep your speed low and make sure it's not a windy day.
One thing you do need to be careful about is that the straps are not wrapped over any angular edges, the wind can vibrate them and if you're going a long distance it will fray them. Put towel or an old T-shirt under them. The other thing is once you go 2 or 3 miles re-tighten the straps. If you are going a long distance try and stop every hour or two to re-tighten them.
I had a car years ago I really didn't care about beating up. Used to put a canoe on top of it all the time. Ridgerest on the roof of the car, a Ridgerest is high desnity foam mat for camping that provided a lot of friction to prevent the canoe from sliding around. A ratchet strap on each end and two around the center going through the passenger window. That is something I would of actually felt safe with driving down the highway but I don't recall ever driving down the highway with it.
yeah never follow anyone who has anything on their roof.
I have a friend who's followed trucks twice that have tossed ladders at her.
OP, I have to thank you for starting our day off with a chuckle. My builder guy and I enjoyed your post.
I took a full mattress from North MS to Biloxi on the top of a Toyota wagon. (the bed frame was broken down inside the car with other of my son's possessions. I went online to study the best way to tie a mattress to the top of a car. It WAS nerve racking!!!
I can't imagine life without a pickup. My next truck will be a 6.5' bed instead of 8' and I feel I'm giving something up. I would never tie anything to the roof of a car, or a truck unless it had a rack. I never liked racks, because they always made noise. The guy at the supply house would get mad, because I'd put 1500 lbs on my 6250 gvw F150 with 100 psi in my air shocks to save the $250 delivery charge.
Anyone who would do this should borrow, or rent a truck, or pay to have it delivered. A car is not designed to carry loads on its roof, and you could be cited for such an offense.
Speaking as a male who has been guilty of this specific behavior, I can tell you honestly I did it because I had no choice. I put as many ropes and ratchet straps as humanly possible and worried about frayed lines and knots working loose the whole trip. I MUCH rather haul with a truck or trailer, but when money, time or availability prohibit and it is possible to tie on the roof, I will reluctantly do so.
It is not good for the car top and difficult to properly secure the load, so it is my last option.......short of spending more money that is...
I think you're being disingenuous, johnrex. Come on, a little piece of you liked the thrill, didn't it?
what? even if it is in a truck bed, you still need to secure some things!
I moved to Midtown this past winter.my son was home from college(ROLL TIDE) so I thought, great he can help. at 20, he is fast on the heels of older men.i can't possibly know what I'm talking about. he refused to take my advice.trying to move as much add possible at one time, which had him picking up household items in the middle of the highway! WHEW!
There's nothing wrong with hauling things on the roof of the car depending on the item being hauled and how well it is strapped down. For example, you can purchase and have installed a roof rack. At one time, there really was a "roof rack" installed on cars, sometimes right from the factory. People going on a family vacation (a large family back then) would bring luggage. The luggage was placed on the "roof rack" and tied down. Some cars even had a rack built onto the trunk or boot of a car. This was a functional rack that made it easy to strap down luggage without damaging the paint of the car. Eventually, this trunk rack became more of a styling feature and eventually disappeared. I had a car with one of those cosmetic trunk racks and it had what looked like a small spoiler. It was useless as a luggage rack, but it looked good. Today you can have "roof rails" installed and use a roof carrier which are aerodynamic and have a locking cover. Though aerodynamic, they still create drag and reduce your vehicle's fuel economy from both the additional weight and the drag. As for hauling things on the roof like from a hardware store, why not rent a truck. There are vehicle rental places that allow you to rent either a moving truck or a pickup truck. If you have to carry something on the roof, they sell tie down straps made for that purpose. Improperly securing the load is not only a ticket offense, if it causes an accident and death/injury, it could result in jail time and a loss of a small fortune.
I filled up a Subaru with a bedroom set once, with mattress and bedframe strapped to the roof. Took it across a long section of the NJ turnpike, I had it tied down good and that sucker wasn't going anywhere (though it didn't do much good for the handling of the Subaru). Why? What else was I going to do, rent a truck and make an extra trip?
On the other hand, when I was a teenager we had one of those "turtle" carriers on the roof. The top came off on an interstate on ramp. My dad was P****ED at me for supposedly not securing my side... then reached into his jacket and found the clips for HIS side.
Because we would get in trouble if we strapped the wife on the top of the car.... but I bet we could get there sooner, everyone would think you had a siren..
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
It WAS nerve racking!!!
