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Who uses, or would use, a sliding roof rack on their car??

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juicedrummer11
Posts: 1960 - Karma: 1,331
So me and a group are doing an engineering project for class where we are designing and building a roof rack that slides out and down so that it is easier and more accessible for loading. The rack will assist in loading the weight to the top of the car as well. So it's basically a sliding ski/sports rack to help load your stuff for all of your shenanigans.

I am wondering who would use something like this? Honestly, I wouldn't really use one myself because I am tall enough to reach the top of my car and I personally couldn't justify using one. Our target market is mainly for traveling families and slightly older or shorter people who need easier access to loading their roof.

I am basically doing a survey and just want to know if any of you NSers would throw something like this on your car and use it for various gear (ie. kayaks, skis, snowboards) if it was reasonably priced.

Mar 2 2014 11:51PM
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yangumane
Posts: 1816 - Karma: 3,346
I'm confused as to how it slides... do you have a sketch or something?
Mar 2 2014 11:54PM
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profa_212
Posts: 8620 - Karma: 32,305
I wouldn't....simply because it would probably be expensive, and I could just put them up myself. Buuuut, I could see a lot of older rich guys buying them.
Mar 2 2014 11:55PM
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juicedrummer11
Posts: 1960 - Karma: 1,331
haha thanks for the honest answer but really, even though I'm the one making it, I would feel the same way. That's kind of who we are mainly targeting anyway.

Here is a link to our team's page with a full sketch of the final model: http://mechecapstone.blogs.unr.edu/2014-teams/rack-em-up/

Here is our Proof of Concept video that shows a basic representation of how it will slide out and pivot down.



Mar 3 2014 12:08AM
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~Gotama~
Posts: 821 - Karma: 3,160
I work at a kayak shop in the summers and we sell a fair amount of drop down kayak racks, which pull down to just below the windows of the car. lots of people who are solo paddling or elderly tend to buy them. Skis aren't as heavy or awkward as a kayak, but I'm sure there are people out there who would spend the money to make their lives that much easier. It is the American Dream, after all.
Mar 3 2014 12:42AM
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Balto
Posts: 25985 - Karma: 4,398
this already exists, I sold a number of them at the ski shop I use to work at
Mar 3 2014 12:46AM
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juicedrummer11
Posts: 1960 - Karma: 1,331
do you know the brands or models specifically? i know thule has one that just slides a little along the rails but it doesn't drop down.
Mar 3 2014 12:47AM
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broto
Posts: 9039 - Karma: 25,658
so all the skis are just gonna be a huge clusterfuck once you pull it down?
Mar 3 2014 12:48AM
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JAHpow
Posts: 7282 - Karma: 17,161
I could see it being used with roof boxes. I went on a ski trip with a friend and his family last year and they had a roof box. We had to open a door and stand in the car to get high enough to reach into the box. It got pretty annoying. So if it had been able to drop down it would've been much more convenient.
Mar 3 2014 12:50AM
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juicedrummer11
Posts: 1960 - Karma: 1,331
ha no they will be on like a standard rack and have a stopper type deal in between pieces of equipment so it rides on the roof exactly how you load it
Mar 3 2014 12:51AM
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Troy.
Posts: 5070 - Karma: 12,545
Thule already does that.
Mar 3 2014 1:05AM
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b-kul
Posts: 4350 - Karma: 1,111
i can see them selling well to the right demographic, ns just isn't it. imo it would be something rich people who have nice suv's buy, more of a luxury than necessity.
Mar 3 2014 12:24PM
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Petergunit11
Posts: 42 - Karma: 10
i have one (:
Mar 3 2014 5:53PM
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mski
Posts: 4791 - Karma: 3,803
Rad idea!
Mar 3 2014 5:56PM
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Crazy_E
Posts: 121 - Karma: 268
Considering I was too cheap to get automatic locks or windows on my car, this is out of the question
Mar 3 2014 5:59PM
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nutz.
Posts: 3150 - Karma: 6,712
how reasonably priced?
Mar 3 2014 6:13PM
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Microcosm
Posts: 4765 - Karma: 153
my car is low enough and I usually store em inside anyway, so not likely, but here are a few things I'd watch out for..


road noise. racks are already big, unwieldly things and this is going to have to be there even without trips to the mountain.

weight. maybe a lesser concern, but how much more is this going to weight than your traditional rack? will it be difficult to install?

temperature. ever had a rack freeze? maybe it's because I've used a lot of older racks, but I have. you can unstick the latches are yank on em well enough, I guess. how will a more complicated system work under frozen situations? will the parts slide properly? break? get stuck?

(I saw someone mention sliding kayak racks but, unless I'm way off here, probably your average person who is buying those also isn't going out in very cold and frozen rain/ snow sort of conditions. maybe these racks aren't as viable in those climates. or maybe they are, can you test them?)

lol it took a good 50 seconds to even see your rack in that video, but commenting on that..

you pull it down and the spring pulls it back pretty roughly. can you dampen that pull? also will you be able to secure the rack in the opened position? for example. I slide it out and put my skis on, then you get someone else's skis and put them on too. shouldnt have to pull the rack back out and hold it in place while struggling with a ski.

also to note, the rack isn't flat when you pull it out. can it be? skis would sit more easily on a flatter surface.

will I be sliding the rack, putting the skis on, securing the skis, sliding the rack back, securing the rack again? will it secure itself?

or will I put the skis on, slide the rack back in, then secure it all?



tl;dr: shit I realized you said just a survey, but if I was buying something like this personally all that stuff would come into play on whether it's actually worth it. I worked not too long ago on an engineering group project so I assume you guys are working more on the design than on making epic videos. anyway I wish you good luck. maybe one day I'll have the cash and you'll convince me to buy this thing?
Mar 3 2014 7:04PM
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juicedrummer11
Posts: 1960 - Karma: 1,331
a lot of good points here. we have discussed a majority of different concerns but here in Reno, even in the middle of winter it stays relatively warmer than other parts of the US so temperature wasn't a big concern for us, but definitely something we will consider. However, the tolerances of the steel tubing fit and the thermal expansion coefficient should allow for some breathing room.

it will be easy to install and will mount on existing car roof rails much like a regular ski or equipment rack.

the video was a demonstration of our proof of concept video and was showed during our presentation to the class. the class has 14 groups and each presentation is 12 minutes long, so you can imagine the need for something to wake everyone up. that was the main purpose of the video, however, our final design will use a locking gas cylinder rather than a spring. when you pull the rack out, it will lock in place and will allow you to load freely without having to hold the rack in place as well. then when you release the lock, depending on the weight of the load, the gas cylinders will assist in lifting the rack back to the riding position and lock again. the cylinders have some internal damping and there will be damping on the rotation of the rack back into place as well.

as for the side loading, we are hoping to have various attachments for various things like skis or kayaks or whatever so that it will hold it in place and allow you to load it the way it will ride on the top of the car.

as for the peeps saying they wouldn't use it, I agree and am in the same boat. Our target market is definitely the older crowd with families, a big top carrying box, the vail weekend warrior family types. i just wanted to get a feel for people our age would consider using something like this or not so thanks for everyone's input!



tl:dr: yes to some and no to some
Mar 3 2014 7:34PM
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OCM
Posts: 1276 - Karma: 975
seems like a cool idea and i definitely could see a lot of families buying one if you do it right. i think what you would want to do is find a way to make it better in every possible way than a thule or another companies roof racks. lighter, more aerodynamic, easily removable, efficient and stylish. the drop down and spring load is a great idea and i can see this being a huge thing, IF done right. maybe you could even sell the product to a company if you dont have the means of starting up yourself
Mar 3 2014 8:25PM
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Microcosm
Posts: 4765 - Karma: 153
yeah being from the east freezing conditions are always on the mind, especially this winter. I truthfully haven't used enough modern racks to say how bad it can get lately, but just as a talking point for you guys.

can definitely understand the video hahaha. ours was like most, woefully bad. pretty much thrown together in minutes, full of engineers no one wants to hear. I bet they made you watch em all in a row too, just to make sure everyone gets their nap time lol.

the cylinder you'll have going on sounds better. this type of work is actually slightly out of my engineering discipline so I don't know much about real world gas cylinders, but if its a viable alternative that does work then it sounds good to me.

solid reply, sounds like you've been doing the work. there were projects at my school that went on to be more than just that, so it's worth a shot right? if the product is solid hopefully the older demographic notices.
Mar 4 2014 12:18AM
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Amarino
Posts: 218 - Karma: 2,417
Felt like I was watching stepbrothers. Cool concept though.
Mar 4 2014 12:35AM
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slaagmaster
Posts: 129 - Karma: 63
like, how are you get the car onto the roof!!??
Mar 4 2014 7:26AM
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Dr.Dickless
Posts: 2620 - Karma: 1,392
Yeah you should definitely look up the Thule Universal pull top, maybe double check for patent infringement just in case
Mar 4 2014 11:08AM
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Dr.Dickless
Posts: 2620 - Karma: 1,392
Yeah you should definitely look up the Thule Universal pull top, maybe double check for patent infringement just in case
Mar 4 2014 11:08AM
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~~~~~~~~
Posts: 2345 - Karma: 2,104
Mar 4 2014 11:18AM
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juicedrummer11
Posts: 1960 - Karma: 1,331
yeah my buddy has one of those and its pretty slick. we did a patent search but also there's is two separate pieces and doesn't drop down to a more manageable loading level.

Ours is going to be one piece so the whole thing slides together. it will be a bit more universal than holding only skis or snowboards.
Mar 4 2014 1:47PM
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juicedrummer11
Posts: 1960 - Karma: 1,331
^^ i saw that toyota dream build one as well. but theirs only accommodates skis or boards as well. the cool thing about that one is that i think they were making it electronic and sliding with motors. but that is also the downside as well.
Mar 4 2014 1:49PM
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