I think a few people have asked about genuine Fiat Roof Bars and Bicycle carriers. This is how the set-up looks when fitted to a 5-door:
I recently did the Plymouth-Poole run with this set-up and this is what I found.
Did the Poole - Plymouth run with just the roof bars fitted. Stuck at 70 on motorway and fast dual carriageways but confess couldn't resist some of the bendy sections but still returned 60 mpg over the 130 odd miles. You can freely use the sky-port with the bars fitted although wind noise is quite noticeable.
On the return trip with the bike loaded as shown decided to take the shortest route which would take us through quite a narrow hilly windy section close to the coast and restrict top speed to 60. Big mistake as with my will power already weakened it wasn't long before we were powering through the bends!
Many a time my passenger would gaze through the sunroof and remark "How the hell can the bike still be on the roof!"
The bike actually arrived quite safely but did have a marked effect on fuel consumption There’s a lot of buffeting around the bike which is really quite disconcerting until you eventually realize just how stable the set-up is. With a following wind and a lower average speed I would've expected better consumption than the outgoing trip. The actual figure returned was 50 mpg so it looks like you can expect a good 20%-25% increase in consumption.
Both the roof bars and the cycle carrier do a job but they’re really just tools to be used when you really need them and I don’t think you’d want to leave them on the car.
I recently did the Plymouth-Poole run with this set-up and this is what I found.
Did the Poole - Plymouth run with just the roof bars fitted. Stuck at 70 on motorway and fast dual carriageways but confess couldn't resist some of the bendy sections but still returned 60 mpg over the 130 odd miles. You can freely use the sky-port with the bars fitted although wind noise is quite noticeable.
On the return trip with the bike loaded as shown decided to take the shortest route which would take us through quite a narrow hilly windy section close to the coast and restrict top speed to 60. Big mistake as with my will power already weakened it wasn't long before we were powering through the bends!
Many a time my passenger would gaze through the sunroof and remark "How the hell can the bike still be on the roof!" The bike actually arrived quite safely but did have a marked effect on fuel consumption
There’s a lot of buffeting around the bike which is really quite disconcerting until you eventually realize just how stable the set-up is. With a following wind and a lower average speed I would've expected better consumption than the outgoing trip. The actual figure returned was 50 mpg so it looks like you can expect a good 20%-25% increase in consumption.Both the roof bars and the cycle carrier do a job but they’re really just tools to be used when you really need them and I don’t think you’d want to leave them on the car.
