1990legacy Posted January 7, 2005 Share Posted January 7, 2005 I would like to put a roof rack on my 90 Legacy wagon, but it does not have rain gutters and didnt come with any factory mounts for said rack. So is there some way I can rig something to mount a rack on it, or am I just out of luck? :-\ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JT95 Posted January 7, 2005 Share Posted January 7, 2005 I'll have to say that I'm not for sure what the difference is between the roof of a non-rack and a rack Subaru. See if you can find one in the junk yard with a factory rack, see how it's attached, and take it home with you if it looks like it'd work. Seriously, someone with that particular generation of Legacy would have to share some of their wisdom. I have seen way more Sube wagons with factory racks than without, and I imagine it would be more cost effective for all cars of the same make to have the same roof structure. I would guess you could just get a factory rack off a junkyard Subaru wagon and go with it. There are aftermarket racks that will have crossbars with clips that fit under your door weather stripping. They don't look as nice, but they support heavier loads than most factory racks. These are just crossbars that people buy to attach their bicycle carriers to: http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?category=71&subcategory=1020&brand=&sku=6424&storetype=&estoreid=&pagename= http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=1951&subcategory_ID=4410 Know nothing of this rack, but I just pulled it up from ebay: http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=7944917834&category=33651 There used to be a slew of these Mondial racks on eBay that would go dirt cheap. This particular one isn't specifically for your car--I think you need rack #10--but they usually come with a LOT of different clips. I bought one of these for a Honda wagon I had a few years ago. The rack came with mounting clips that also fit my Chevy Caprice and a $600 Cavalier I drove as a temp car. (This is sad--I traded that Cavalier and $100 cash for my 95 Legacy wagon. My Sube was hit in the front, but still a sweet deal.) Anyway, the point is all three cars had very different styles of mounting and the rack for my Honda still had optional clips that fit these other two obviously non-Honda cars. You could take a change and pick one up for $10-20 and see. They are a bit of a booger to put on because it takes attention to center them on the roof--probably why they quit making them. Still, I think they look a lot better than the ones that have bars sticking over the edge of your roof. I'd stay away from this one if you want to remove it time and again rather than put it on and leave it. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=33651&item=7945942985&rd=1 Personally, I think factory would look the best and be your best bet. If you could get lucky on a Mondial that fit for you--make sure it's not too wide for the Legacy roof (Go at least 5 inches shorter on the rack than is your roof width)--they are dirt cheap on ebay and look more aerodynamic. If someone with knowledge can verify you can swap a factory rack on your car, my local u-pull-it junkyard has a 91 Legacy wagon with a factory rack. If you can't find a used factory one locally and want one, I'll see what the dude would take for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coloradosubarules Posted January 7, 2005 Share Posted January 7, 2005 I have a 90 legacy wagon with the rack and I am pretty sure it is really bolted to the roof. I was thinking about taking it off to paint it but then when I started looking at it more and more I realized just how well that thing is on there. I think Yakama makes a rack that will attach to your car with little to no drilling. Yes I am aware that you do not have drip rails. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gnuman Posted January 7, 2005 Share Posted January 7, 2005 JT, I'm also looking for a roof rack for my 92 Legacy Wagon. if 1990legacy does not want it, I do. PM me if he does not want that with a price, please? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrainBung Posted January 7, 2005 Share Posted January 7, 2005 Go to www.yakima.com but be prepared to spend some $. By the time you're done buying the basics (towers, clips, and bars) you'll be well over $150. They're expensive but well worth it, high quality, reliable and can carry just about anything. I regularly carry 4 kayaks on mine with no problems. My son has a 90 Legacy wagon with yamkima's on it as well. Bob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mtsmiths Posted January 7, 2005 Share Posted January 7, 2005 Go to a junkyard, measure your roof and find one that fits. Mark and drill the holes, install the inserts, goop the screws with silicon sealer, and bolt the thing on. It's really not difficult. If you look you may find a factory rack off an older Toyota Tercel wagon. The advantages are: Always cheap, the right size, it's a one piece unit, the frame and skid rails are all fit together so you just attach it at the corners and it's done. Ten minutes to remove it at the yard, 1/2 hour to install it on my wagon. Get some vinyl double face tape (sign tape) and cut new gussets and glue them to the rack, then after you drill your holes you can pull the tape off the other side and glue it to the roof before you run the bolts in. If you look in the albums you can see one on my winter camo '87 GL. On my wifes '00 I found that a Chrysler Caravan rack is a perfect fit, except a tad wide, so I just cut the crossbars down to fit. The neat thing about it is that its really low profile, the rails just lay on the roof and only the cross bars are above the roof. I bought a roll of stick on side trim and cut the skid rails for it, looks good and has stayed on for three years. Also a pic somewhere in the mtsmiths album. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1990legacy Posted January 7, 2005 Author Share Posted January 7, 2005 I'll have to say that I'm not for sure what the difference is between the roof of a non-rack and a rack Subaru. See if you can find one in the junk yard with a factory rack, see how it's attached, and take it home with you if it looks like it'd work. Seriously, someone with that particular generation of Legacy would have to share some of their wisdom. I have seen way more Sube wagons with factory racks than without, and I imagine it would be more cost effective for all cars of the same make to have the same roof structure. I would guess you could just get a factory rack off a junkyard Subaru wagon and go with it. There are aftermarket racks that will have crossbars with clips that fit under your door weather stripping. They don't look as nice, but they support heavier loads than most factory racks. These are just crossbars that people buy to attach their bicycle carriers to: http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?category=71&subcategory=1020&brand=&sku=6424&storetype=&estoreid=&pagename= http://www.performancebike.com/shop/profile.cfm?SKU=1951&subcategory_ID=4410 Know nothing of this rack, but I just pulled it up from ebay: http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=7944917834&category=33651 There used to be a slew of these Mondial racks on eBay that would go dirt cheap. This particular one isn't specifically for your car--I think you need rack #10--but they usually come with a LOT of different clips. I bought one of these for a Honda wagon I had a few years ago. The rack came with mounting clips that also fit my Chevy Caprice and a $600 Cavalier I drove as a temp car. (This is sad--I traded that Cavalier and $100 cash for my 95 Legacy wagon. My Sube was hit in the front, but still a sweet deal.) Anyway, the point is all three cars had very different styles of mounting and the rack for my Honda still had optional clips that fit these other two obviously non-Honda cars. You could take a change and pick one up for $10-20 and see. They are a bit of a booger to put on because it takes attention to center them on the roof--probably why they quit making them. Still, I think they look a lot better than the ones that have bars sticking over the edge of your roof. I'd stay away from this one if you want to remove it time and again rather than put it on and leave it. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=33651&item=7945942985&rd=1 Personally, I think factory would look the best and be your best bet. If you could get lucky on a Mondial that fit for you--make sure it's not too wide for the Legacy roof (Go at least 5 inches shorter on the rack than is your roof width)--they are dirt cheap on ebay and look more aerodynamic. If someone with knowledge can verify you can swap a factory rack on your car, my local u-pull-it junkyard has a 91 Legacy wagon with a factory rack. If you can't find a used factory one locally and want one, I'll see what the dude would take for it. I'm gonna go check around at some local junkyards and see what they've got and how much for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOMAD327 Posted January 7, 2005 Share Posted January 7, 2005 The trick with this job is to find a way to do it without removing the entire headliner from the car. unless there are tapped holes already present, and all screws access from outside, the headliner will have to come out to do it and that makes for a much messier job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mtsmiths Posted January 7, 2005 Share Posted January 7, 2005 Nomad you can get inserts that expand thru the roof from the outside. Any parts store will, have them. Just be sure to gob the bolt with silicon sealer (enough so it squeezes out), then clean it up before it sets. I've probably installed six or eight roof racks through the years, and never had one come off or leak yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JT95 Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 Bad news--I called the junk yard to get a price for that roof rack and they said they crushed that car last month. Grrrrrr. That was a real shame because the body on the car was in great shape except for one small bit of damage--interior was stripped though. It was an AWD car and I was actually considering buying the motor to tinker with for fun. Oh well... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashwinearl Posted January 11, 2005 Share Posted January 11, 2005 I would like to put a roof rack on my 90 Legacy wagon, but it does not have rain gutters and didnt come with any factory mounts for said rack. So is there some way I can rig something to mount a rack on it, or am I just out of luck? :-\ Yakima makes towers/clips for the Suby. My 1998 Legacy uses the Qtowers with the Q44 clips. You can get everything at ebay. A set of 4 Qtowers usually goes for between $60-80. www.agees.com is a great online source for new parts. Join their free membership and get 20% off list price. I just got a new set of Qtowers from them that arrived next day for $100. For everything else, cross bars, bike mounts, ebay is best bet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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