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I'm going to need some crossbars for the new Q7. I've always had Tule AeroBlade Edge crossbars on my Jeeps. They whistle a bit, but that is to be expected. I've seen the OEM crossbars on a few Q7's and they seem to sit much higher than Thule. Does anyone have a preference for either product?
I'm going to need some crossbars for the new Q7. I've always had Tule AeroBlade Edge crossbars on my Jeeps. They whistle a bit, but that is to be expected. I've seen the OEM crossbars on a few Q7's and they seem to sit much higher than Thule. Does anyone have a preference for either product?
I've never had the Thule aero bars, so can't compare with the OEM. But I've used the OEM bars for years on my wife's Q5 and now on my new Q8, with a Yakima Fat Cat ski rack or large Yakima cargo box. We've had that cargo box loaded up and driven in winter from Chicago to NY and back many times and never had any issues.
The OEM bars are low profile, very well made, fit perfectly on the rails, take literally 3mins to put on or take off, and have a nice rubber strip to plug the opening along the top when not used. My favorite feature is the easy on off - I pop them on the night before we go skiing and pop them off when we get back. I don't even take the Yakima ski racks off the bars.
The bars themselves don't generate much wind noise, although I rarely drive with just the bars since they're so easy to remove.
I've never had the Thule aero bars, so can't compare with the OEM. But I've used the OEM bars for years on my wife's Q5 and now on my new Q8, with a Yakima Fat Cat ski rack or large Yakima cargo box. We've had that cargo box loaded up and driven in winter from Chicago to NY and back many times and never had any issues.
The OEM bars are low profile, very well made, fit perfectly on the rails, take literally 3mins to put on or take off, and have a nice rubber strip to plug the opening along the top when not used. My favorite feature is the easy on off - I pop them on the night before we go skiing and pop them off when we get back. I don't even take the Yakima ski racks off the bars.
The bars themselves don't generate much wind noise, although I rarely drive with just the bars since they're so easy to remove.
That's wild that you can remove them in 3 minutes? Can you describe what the process is to remove/attach them? The Thule are fixed with screws and cannot be removed easily.
I have the Thule bars and they also only take about 5 minutes to install / less to remove. Based upon the reading I have done on this form, the consensus seems to be that either option works fine, but people report that Thule is slightly quieter. I've never used the OEM bars so I can't offer any opinion on that.
If you have BOP then it shouldn’t even be a discussion. Thule does an all black option that OEM doesn’t have. Personally I prefer the lower profile of the Thule aeroblade, but I also have one of the Thule low profile aero boxes (forgot the model name).
I've never had the Thule aero bars, so can't compare with the OEM. But I've used the OEM bars for years on my wife's Q5 and now on my new Q8, with a Yakima Fat Cat ski rack or large Yakima cargo box. We've had that cargo box loaded up and driven in winter from Chicago to NY and back many times and never had any issues.
The OEM bars are low profile, very well made, fit perfectly on the rails, take literally 3mins to put on or take off, and have a nice rubber strip to plug the opening along the top when not used. My favorite feature is the easy on off - I pop them on the night before we go skiing and pop them off when we get back. I don't even take the Yakima ski racks off the bars.
The bars themselves don't generate much wind noise, although I rarely drive with just the bars since they're so easy to remove.
Can you operate panoramic roof with roof rack installed?
Can you operate panoramic roof with roof rack installed?
yep, OEM are excellent, low profile, the look is solid (unlike the SQ5/Q5 ones, 5hey stick out in a dorky way). Pano clears as well. Happy with them, as you can pick them for as low as 340$(or so at dealer-25% discout). Combined with the super awesome Yakima Lo, it clears my garage door. Can't ask for more.
cheers,
Bob
03-02-2019, 06:37 AM
Thule vs OEM Crossbars?
