InWI

I recently purchased the black roof rails and cross members. I was wondering if there is any mpg penalty after installing them. Also does it make any more wind noise with the sun roof open? I have both a TL and the MDX and the wind noise with the sun roof open is much louder than on my wife's 9-5 Saab.

Thanks

TLtrigirl

iTrader: (1)

the cross bars should be mounted further back behind the sunroof...there might be more wind turbulence, but there won't be so much of an increase in noise you couldn't have the sunroof open. the roof rails should not pose a dramatic increase in noise since they flow with the lines of the car. you may experience a slight MPG loss (maybe 1-2, all hwy, negligible around town) with the cross bars on, however.

i have run aftermarket roof racks on 3 cars including my TL...you will lose MPGs. the faring helps, but no way around altering the aerodynamics of the vehicle. i lose about 3-4 mpgs on the TL without bikes (hwy driving), around town...no differences. with bikes...forget it...you're down 5-6 mpg on the hwy. noise...its not bad. i seldomly open my sunroof, partly b/c of the noise, but mostly b/c of the pollen and other crap floating around in the air that i don't want in the car.

in the case of the MDX, bottomline, you'll have slight mpg losses, minimal increase in noise since cross bars are located over the middle and rear of the vehicle vs directly over the sunroof. you could also try using a faring/visor for the sunroof to decrease the wind noise as well (not my first choice, not a window visor fan). hope this helps.