I've just bought some and was putting them together last night. The feet that sit on the top of the car have big rubber pads but the bits that grab onto the door frames don't have any padding, just painted metal. Do you reckon it needs some? Any suggestions for what to use?

Cheers
Martin

I use them on my Peugeot 306, no problems with scratches or anything.

I thought the same thing, but didn't use anything to cushion the grab bracket.

I haven't had any problem with them but I reckon just cut up an old tube and use a slice of rubber between car and bracket if you want to take a bit more care.

Cheers folks. I've not had the car long so I'm still being a bit precious about it (not that it's either new or particularly good) so I might chop up an old inner tube.

Do you find the bikes are held securely in the racks? My gf's dad keeps saying we should rope them on as well but nobody else I see has bothered (he is a man who thinks that a belt-and-braces approach could always do with a back-up just in case...)

I've never had a problem with them like that but I do like to squeeze the clamp (on the down tube) closed with one hand while doing up the clippy lock thing. Just to make sure it has a tight grip on the bike. And I squeeze the wheels down to do the ratchet clips up too.

Because I have 2 racks on the roof I face one backwards. This puts the closing clamp on the outside for both bikes and the handlebars dont touch each other either (just incase there is any sideways rocking while driving).

I regularly fit four bikes on the roof of my car, all using Thule 510 carriers. Never bothered with any other strapping. I happily drive down the motorways with no worries.

That's what I wanted to hear! The whole reason for getting the roof kit is I'm fed up of arsing about with straps and ropes and stuff on boot racks...

I've got a velovise 510 and a 511 (Fork mounting carriers) and found that the bikes are fantastically secure after I drove into a multi storey car park with the bikes on the roof. One carrier bent over on the roof and knackered a bit of the nose cone on one rack but it is still usable on the new T - groove cross bars but not on my std bars, but otherwise it kept hold of my bike and I was able to drive-albeit slowly- to where I was supposed to be in town.

My parents run the down tube grabbing racks (both the old style for the steel frames and now the oversized "Lobster claw" type) and you can change the handles round so that they grab from either side so that both bikes can face forward. If you're doing that it's worth being pedantic and using a tape measure to space the carriers so that bars clear one another.

If you are worried about them coming undone have you got the key locking barrels for the cross bars and the carriers, then they wont come off as it's all locked on?

I've been using the Thule racks now for 10 or 11 years now, the original ones we had are still in use with my aunt and uncle and we have 2 racks set up for use on the cars here- one with downtube clamps, the other with fork mounting. Parents set is about to head up from the alps on friday after they've watched the tour go past on thursday-b*stards!

If you're taking the car on a ferry with the rack on it is sometimes worth mentioning that you have a bike rack on coz even with a caravan, back the bikes were just that bit taller so they ferry company had to find us somewhere they don't lower the floors. But this all depends on what car you are using (our problems has been with Volvo V70 XCs)

Thanks again all. I'll find out how well it all works on the way to Gwydyr (sp? pronunciation?) this w/e...

The clamps are coated with a rubberised paint so it grips without causing damage.

I've alway just used the clamp to fix my bikes but if I was stoppin on the journey then I would also use some kind of lock to stop them being nicked!

I DO use strapping, but that's cos the carriers hold the bikes unpside-down using the saddle and handlebars. And because they're designed to handle fat-ass saddles, bikes with narrow saddles tend to slide around if not strapped down. Or if you drive like a maniac it's "better safe than sorry".

If you're worried about scratching, stick some felt onto the contact points of the carrier - fabric glue and dress felt in ideal.

Thule rock, I forgot about the bike on the roof and did a ton down a dual carriageway (naughty) My Thule 510 held that bike nice and firm, then my wife pointed out the bike on roof thing and I slowed down. I've bought cheap sh*te in the past, and had a bike fall out of the clamp, only being held on by the wheel straps, damaging the car roof in the process. I know this is off thread a little, but I just had to tell you all, I'm a Thule Evangilist!

Thule are fantastic, I think they really come into there own in winter, when you've just finished a race, get back to the car, knackered, cold and wet, (well that could be british summer too), it's so nice to pick the bikes up and put them on the roof, job done, before you even take your muddy wet gloves off. As for scratching, I hav'nt had any probs on my new Golf, and I can say that my bikes have always, still been on the roof when I've got home, and don't hang about on the motorway, or I better say autobarn, because essex police have no sence of humor when you're knocking on the door of 120 with two bikes on top.