[broken neck]

Hey there,

We recently bought a Bolt EV LT and I'm waiting for the dealer to install the Premier roof rails to put a Thule roof rack. I wanted to get the Evo 135 (53 in) bar instead of the Evo 118 (47 in.) but i don't know if the machined parts of the rails, where we fix the "feet", will be long enough.

Is there anyone who would have the inner measurement where the feet meet the rail left to right? That would be really appreciated. Since the rear is narrower, I would like this one, at least.

I hope this is somewhat clear.

Regards,

 

[boltage]

Hey there,

We recently bought a Bolt EV LT and I'm waiting for the dealer to install the Premier roof rails to put a Thule roof rack. I wanted to get the Evo 135 (53 in) bar instead of the Evo 118 (47 in.) but i don't know if the machined parts of the rails, where we fix the "feet", will be long enough.

Is there anyone who would have the inner measurement where the feet meet the rail left to right? That would be really appreciated. Since the rear is narrower, I would like this one, at least.

The inside edges of the rails are slightly less than 37" in front and slightly less than 36" in the rear. If you get a longer crossbar for your Thule (or Yakima, etc.) rack, it will work fine but just stick out more (which could increase the risk of bumping your head on it).

The Premier rails are not all that great, since they are just fixed point mounts, rather than rails where the rack feet or towers can be installed anywhere along the rail. If you need more flexibility in positioning the crossbars and are willing to go more aftermarket, another option is to install tracks on the roof.

Thule Top Tracks 54" | Thule | United States

-

www.thule.com

Tracks 54” w/Plusnuts

Yakima Tracks offer easy connectivity and a low profile when towers are removed. Combine Yakima Tracks with either Yakima TrackTower or SkyLine Towers when paried with Landing Pad 1 and you have a versatile, adjustable base for your rooftop car rack system.

yakima.com

Of course, another option if you have an LT with no rails is to use a doorframe clip roof rack which requires no modification to the car (e.g. Thule Rapid Traverse or Yakima BaseLine).

 

[broken neck]

boltage, thanks for you reply, the measurements and suggestions.

I haven't thought about the Thule rails, but since I dealt the OEM rails when I bought the car, I never looked at other options.

I got my OEM roof rails installed yesterday, but they were misaligned so they adjusted them today and I just finished installing my Thule roof rack and ski rack. Since I got the rails installed, I was able to try the 53 in. bars but the machined parts weren't machined enough, so I took the 47 in. That will be it for this winter. There's more than enough length to fit the ski rack. I'll see next winter if I want to machine the 53 in bars to be able to fit my boards and bikes.

 

[vanagon]

From here it is just tidying up putting the end caps and rubber gaskets on. Gaskets first, end caps last.
https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26143&thumb=1
https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26145&thumb=1

Final product. Very sturdy. Doesn’t leave any concern that adding 1 or 2 bike racks or cargo box will be comprised in anyway.

https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26151&stc=1&d=1563071206

Adds 4” of clearance above the roof line, like this is going to be a problem… lol
https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26153&stc=1&d=1563071206

When removing/reinstalling the rack after the initial installation, do the interior bolts need to be loosened or is it enough to just remove/replace the 8 rail bolts?

 

[Shona]

So, I finally got around to installing the Thule Roof rack after having pieced it together from various places in an effort to save money. Simply put this rack is stupid expensive even with the appreciation for the German engineering (yes, I know it Swedish, I'm joking).

Anyway, thought I would document the install process because the manuals for just awful. Like really bad.

The Thule Roof rack for the premier with the integrated roof rails is made up of 3 parts/kits, 4 if you include the optional locks.

You have in order of installation

Thule 3168 Roof Rack Fit Kit. List $119. This is the part that actually attaches directly to the integrated rail.
https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26123&thumb=1
Thule 460R Podium Foot Kit. List $199. This is the part that connects the cross bars to the Roof Rack Fit kit and integrated rails
https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26125&thumb=1
Thule Wingbar Evo 118 (47"). List $219. Cross rails used for mounting other mounts, i.e. bike, kayak, cargo, etc.
https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26127&thumb=1
Like I said stupid expensive, but I was fortunate enough to grab the 460R from an REI Garage Sale dirt cheap. Used a discount coupon on the Wingbar. The Foot Kit for the bolt was tough to run down. REI doesn't even carry. Ended up catching a short sale at Amazon.

Installing this was far harder than it probably needed to be in no short part to the crappy Thule instructions. Like everything though now that I have done it I could do it in probably a quarter of the time.


Installation Process:

The fit kit is two parts assembled together and bolted to the factory holes. The issues with the manual start here because it is not very clear where the screw go and in fact, they combine screws from the fit kit along with the screws from the podium kit. The picture below actually has the screws wrong for this step, but you wouldn’t know it reading the manual

https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26129&thumb=1

Correctly installed

https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26131&thumb=1
Connecting the fit kit to the podium in this next step proved to be a bit more challenging than it should have been. Here is what I ended up doing. Is it the correct way, who knows but it did work for me?

Here is the podium kit attached to the mounted fit kit. The trick here is twofold. Install the podium kit as shown below only on one side of the Bolt. The other side will be mounted to the cross rail before being installed to the fit kit on the other side. I made the mistake of installing all 4 podiums to the fit kits which proved to be a mistake mounting the cross rails.

Another note of caution. DO NOT tighten the two screws on the podium until after the cross rails are installed. These need to be loose in order for the “catch” to allow the cross rails to slide thru.

https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26133&thumb=1

Another note of caution. The supplied installation wrenches for all steps are just long enough you will scratch the car if you’re not careful. You can get full range but need to be careful about it.

https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26135&thumb=1

So as mentioned I installed one of the complete fit and podium kits on the passenger side rails.
The right side I installed the podium kit to the cross bar. Fit kit installed on factory rail.
https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26137&thumb=1

From here slide the Wingbar onto the passenger side podium kit and secure the driver side cross bar/podium to the fit kit on the driver’s side. Don’t tighten until you check that the overhang is equal on both sides. Once confirmed tighten the Podium screws.

For me I had just a tick over 5” on the rears and 4.5” on the front cross rails. Again, this measurement being the distance the cross rails pass the podium kit.
https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26139&thumb=1

https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26141&thumb=1

I couldn't have done this without your help. I thought it was just me when it came to the instructions .

I really appreciate you posting your experience. Thank you.

 

[scorpiodeee2]

I used the aeroblade. Installed in about 45 min.

 

[LoG]

I'm glad I found this thread. The instructions from Thule are terrible. Just thought I'd share some pics of my setup. I have the Thule Wingbar Evo and two black Thule UpRide's on top with the 1.25 Draw-Tite hitch and the Kuat Sherpa 2 on the back. I had to mount the UpRide's rear towards the front to prevent the hatch from making contact.

 

[MisterJJ]

LoG, make sure you don't pull into garage with bikes up there! I know some people put a sign or object in the garage when they load bikes on top, so they don't accidentally pull in.

P.S. Did you buy the Bolt because it's the biggest car that still fits in the garage? 😉

 

[LoG]

LoG, make sure you don't pull into garage with bikes up there! I know some people put a sign or object in the garage when they load bikes on top, so they don't accidentally pull in.

P.S. Did you buy the Bolt because it's the biggest car that still fits in the garage? 😉

I've been putting the garage door opener in the glove box anytime I load my bike on top but I could see where that system could fail me one day and I could make a boo boo. That's a really good suggestion I think I'll put a sign on the railing that says "Bikes?" Or something like that.

Yes the size of that parking spot was a factor in choosing the Bolt. A Tesla definitely wouldn't fit in there. 🙂

 

[LoG]

I got one more pic of the roof rack in action. I for one love seeing two big mountain bikes on top of a little Bolt. Electric torque and one pedal driving regen is so nice for zipping up and down the canyons and foothills of Utah.

 

[omegaface]

Done yesterday. Was a bit tricky procuring all of the components to complete the assembly. Thanks to all for this useful thread!

 

[Mark C]

I wish I had seen your installation description before I started. Spot on to my experience. Does anyone know where the official weight carrying capacity for the roof and this system is documented. I saw the thread on the discrepancy between Thule and Chevy but I can’t find where Chevy documents the limit. Thanks.

 

[omegaface]

I wish I had seen your installation description before I started. Spot on to my experience. Does anyone know where the official weight carrying capacity for the roof and this system is documented. I saw the thread on the discrepancy between Thule and Chevy but I can’t find where Chevy documents the limit. Thanks.

I can't find it anywhere in the manual. Thule says that with rails and their Wingbar system, the limit is 110 lbs:

 

[amandaw]

From here it is just tidying up putting the end caps and rubber gaskets on. Gaskets first, end caps last.
https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26143&thumb=1
https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26145&thumb=1

Final product. Very sturdy. Doesn’t leave any concern that adding 1 or 2 bike racks or cargo box will be comprised in anyway.

https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26151&stc=1&d=1563071206

Adds 4” of clearance above the roof line, like this is going to be a problem… lol
https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26153&stc=1&d=1563071206

From here it is just tidying up putting the end caps and rubber gaskets on. Gaskets first, end caps last.
https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26143&thumb=1
https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26145&thumb=1

Final product. Very sturdy. Doesn’t leave any concern that adding 1 or 2 bike racks or cargo box will be comprised in anyway.

https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26151&stc=1&d=1563071206

Adds 4” of clearance above the roof line, like this is going to be a problem… lol
https://www.chevybolt.org/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=26153&stc=1&d=1563071206

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you. It all makes sense now. The Thule instructions are ridiculous considering how pricey this rack is. Your description is excellent and saved me from the painful 'customer support' email exchange I was having with Thule.