Fuel Economy Of Roof Rack Vs Luggage Box

Aerodynamics is the study of force and how an object moves through the air.

Fuel economy of roof rack vs luggage box.

40 mpg roof mounted thule xtender 739 ski carrier with skis. Mileage went from 41 mpg at 65 mph to 40 mpg. 39 mpg thus the cargo box on the roof increased fuel consumption by about 5 compared to the baseline. This includes a roof rack bike rack luggage rack pair of bikes or anything else you may strap to your vehicle.

I have personally tried both options on two different vehicles and i can say positively a cargo box gives you more mpg s. Is a fancy low profile ski rack the answer or could a cargo box get me better fuel economy. The empty roof rack had a nearly 2 percent impact on fuel economy which translates to a little more than three quarters of a gallon of gas. 6 0 l 100 km approx.

5 9 l 100 km approx. Adding any rooftop carrier cargo box or ski rack doesn t come free. The more aerodynamic a car is the better the gas mileage it will have. On my maxima i was able to get 25mpg with no rack at all when i added a yakima fat cat 6 loaded with skis i got approx 20mpg.

In fact it significantly cuts your highway mileage all the time it s installed whether there s weight up there or not.