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I recently bought the Thule Hyper XL. It was more than I wanted to spend, but it is one of very few that slide far enough forward on both the Audi Q5 and the Acura MDX to permit the rear hatch to FULLY open. On the Audi, it is less of a concern because you can adjust the opening height of the rear hatch - the MDX has no such feature and the spoiler hits every other box on the market that is long enough to hold our skis. The Hyper XL has a center pole on the bottom that helps reduce some of the vibration, particularly when the box is empty or at low capacity. On a recent ski trip to VT, I was overall pretty happy with it. Not important to me, but it also has a built in light that can be a useful feature when accessing at night or a poorly lit area.
Skiguard makes cool looking, high quality, low resistance, expensive carriers.
Thule has a wide product line and increasingly better quality in recent years.
the Thule Sonic XL was the longest (186cm skis fit just barely) that also fit my SQ. Super light, easy to put on, and relatively good looking. as others have pointed out, it is cheaper than the the Audi box -- I paid $700 at REI.
sorry for the crappy iphone photo but you get the idea. liftgate opens with almost no room to spare and front of the box hangs over the top of the windshield by about 10 inches:
Thanks for all of the pics and responses. It looks like Thule may be the way to go. I stopped by Rack N Road earlier today and they recommended a few Inno & Thule models.
dcl23,
You've got taste in vehicles, we have a '15 MDX that the box will be used on as well.
North Valley,
That's the set-up I'm going for bikes, skiis, & gear. Is your hitch OEM or After-market? I'm looking at getting a Curt 2" Hitch for my bike rack.
Kris Hansen,
Thanks for the SQ5, Thule Hyper XL, & bike set-up pic. Is that the OEM rack?
I went with the Thule Sonic M (634S) just because I didn't want any front overhang, I was a little worried about the lift it may generate at higher speeds. Fits the wagon as well and haven't had any issues with it over 5k miles of use.
02-26-2016, 05:11 AM
