[Seoulbuddy]

How did u adjust for coming out of your garage? I encountered same problem but removed track then reinstalled on street. What did u do?

 

[Pigwich]

Hey SoeulBuddy™ - the scrape was pretty minimal. First time I just drove through it. It sounded way worse than it was. I can take the end of the driveway at a 45° angle which prevents it too. It had to do with payload. It wouldn't scrape when everything was empty, but that won't be the case come camping time. I'll probably angle it out and have someone watch me as I exit, and if it gets really gnarly, I'll pull it. For sure carrying the appropriate socket set on this trip.

 

[Seoulbuddy]

Got it. Thank you! The cargo rack sits rather low but still doable. My bike rack works better.

Hey SoeulBuddy™ - the scrape was pretty minimal. First time I just drove through it. It sounded way worse than it was. I can take the end of the driveway at a 45° angle which prevents it too. It had to do with payload. It wouldn't scrape when everything was empty, but that won't be the case come camping time. I'll probably angle it out and have someone watch me as I exit, and if it gets really gnarly, I'll pull it. For sure carrying the appropriate socket set on this trip.

 

[Fivedoor]

I wonder if any cargo box manufacturers have thought to put a roller on the trailing edge of the box? Even if it seldom makes a difference in the real world I can see it being a selling point when choosing one box over another.

Keith

 

[martinknutson]

I wonder if any cargo box manufacturers have thought to put a roller on the trailing edge of the box? Even if it seldom makes a difference in the real world I can see it being a selling point when choosing one box over another.

Keith

Probably cheaper/easier to just add a skid plate, and it wouldn't take as much vertical space as a roller/wheels. Something like this is likely more practical if it's a persistent issue for a user:

Kuat Hi-Lo Hitch Extension | REI Co-op

The Kuat Hi-Lo hitch extension adds 7 or 10 in. of length and 2.125 in. of rise or drop to your vehicle's hitch receiver to create the perfect fit for your Kuat hitch rack. Available at REI, 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed.

www.rei.com

or this:

Ramps, Carriers, Lifts, & More | Discount Ramps

Shop Discount Ramps for the best prices on ramps & equipment for all your loading, hauling, and mobility needs. Free Shipping on mobility products!

www.discountramps.com

Yes, this will add slop to the fit of the device on the hitch and add to torsional loads. I wouldn't use one unless it was a constant issue.

 

[Pigwich]

Thoughts on range:

We're 600 miles in to the trip, got through most of the central valley. Much better than the roof box, but given the high speed limits, it's hard to say. I average about 3.5 mi/kwh, my wife averages 3.3 mi/kwh. We've been charging about every 100 miles, due both to the terrible state of the DC corridor these days and the lower mileage we're getting. So, I don't think the rear rack came without penalty, but it's not horrible.

 

[Seoulbuddy]

Hey SoeulBuddy™ - the scrape was pretty minimal. First time I just drove through it. It sounded way worse than it was. I can take the end of the driveway at a 45° angle which prevents it too. It had to do with payload. It wouldn't scrape when everything was empty, but that won't be the case come camping time. I'll probably angle it out and have someone watch me as I exit, and if it gets really gnarly, I'll pull it. For sure carrying the appropriate socket set on this trip.

Buy this to resolve low cargo rack:

MaxxHaul 80875 1-1/4" to 2" Hitch Adapter With 4" Rise and 3-3/8" Drop - For Class I and Class II Receivers

This work perfectly!

 

[Pigwich]

@Pigwich, those containers look huge in the bird's eye view!

So I fixed the scraping issue....

Replaced the center structural member with another piece of steel and fabricated a built-in rise, and sprayed it with horrible black mil-spec spray paint.

The scraping thing was real, you can see the road rash on the bottom of the rack. Drove almost 2,800 miles and never bumped it once, but as soon as I came home, I gouged it all to **** at the end of my driveway.

But now I've got 17 more feet of 1 1/4 heavy wall steel square tube. I wonder what other mischief I could get up to? Maybe a terrible little platform for the electric ATV I keep swearing I'm going to build a battery box for?

 

[Fivedoor]

Much better clearance than you had stock! Does it interfere with anything in its new higher position?

Keith

 

[Pigwich]

Much better clearance than you had stock! Does it interfere with anything in its new higher position?

Keith

Hey there,

So the reverse cross traffic sensors and the Ultrasonic sensors do a lot more complaining, and when you stack cargo too high the license plate gets covered a lot quicker, and obviously the lift gate gets harder to open with too much crap, bit but nothing unexpected.

 

[Pigwich]

Drag check!

I just did a quick road trip out to the high desert to escape the horrible smoke, sort of, and took the modified rack loaded with luggage, bikes, etc. Total about 250 miles, with about 40 miles of back dirt roads.

Compared to the Oregon trip, which was obviously a much larger sample size, our trip out to the desert netted us about 3.9 miles per kwh compared to the previous 3.4. Speeds were similar, although somebody could probably argue that the air was hotter and thinner from the altitude and temperature.

The only problem I see now is that I realize I really enjoy the off-road bushwhacking and the desire for a car with a bit more ground clearance and capabilities is being felt. I've heard of people lowering the bolt, anybody tried to lift them?

Or maybe once we get sick of the stupid e-Golf we can get that that stupid crab truck that they keep talking about. Can you believe it? A freaking crab? And for a feature that has been in farm trucks for ages? Eh, whatever. I'd take one.

 

[Jslip]

Trailer hitch?

I see what you did there! Well played sir, well played. The instructions are blurry, but the installation process looks simple and no drilling is needed. Thanks for uploading hitch pictures.

www.chevybolt.org

I can’t track it down right now but I know I’ve read that another member had a good experience road tripping with a hitch mounted cargo carrier. It’s my plan for when I start taking longer road trips again...

I have done this many times. Have a Curtis hitch mount rack. Use an amazon bag strapped in. Easy to load and unload, hatch can be opened. No discernible mileage penalty.

 

[Jerry Duke]

There’s always a very lightweight motorcycle trailer as an option. Not necessarily suggesting this one but attaching it as an example.

Motorcycles For Sale - Cycle Trader

Motorcycles For Sale: 57 Motorcycles - Find Motorcycles on Cycle Trader.

www.cycletrader.com