As I mentioned in my first post about car-topping canoes at Hyundai vs Mirage, the gunnel blocks tend to wander away if you don’t connect them to the boat somehow. The system I came up beside the road that first day uses a loop of nylon cord attached to each pair of blocks with lark’s head knots. The slight curve of the car’s roof causes the blocks to drift apart but the cord keeps them under the boat. If that were all that was necessary to keep the boat on the car I’d have been really happy, but it took more work and more gear.
Note: This article describes how I did this rig, which is far better than most cartop canoe or kayak foam block systems on the market. I still do not recommend others copy my methods. The safe and secure systems are rain gutter frame rigs and trailers, some of which I mention at the end of this article.
After some experimentation with simple rope systems and knots, none of which felt secure enough for driving without paying constant attention to what was rattling around upstairs, I came up with a system that actually works well. This requires all the gear in the second photo here, plus three strong tie-down points on the frame of the Hyundai — two on either side of the front and one in the center of the back. I’m not sure why they’re there but I’m glad they were.
The two smaller nylon strap tie-downs work with simple adjustable buckle clamps, just pull to tighten. I use two of them on the front of the car, both tied to the bow of the canoe and hooked to the front anchor points. They’re small enough to see around and the buckles don’t hammer dents in the car hood. Anchored to the left and the right, the straps keep the bow from drifting sideways.
The two tie-downs in the back both connect to the same anchor point in the center of the rear of the car under the bumper. These are stronger ratchet tie-downs, because I never got enough slack out the rig with anything else. One tie-down hooks to either side of the rear seat posts where they actually connect to the boat, not where they connect to the seat (I didn’t want to yank the seat off the boat). I did that by tying a loop of nylon rope around the stanchions and hooking the ratchet tie down to both strands of the loop.
The second ratchet strap runs from the stern of the boat to that same anchor point under the rear bumper. Why are two rear straps needed? I will explain by describing the procedure.
Attach all the straps but don’t tighten them. Position the boat carefully and take up some slack in all the tie-downs. Then start by tightening the front straps — just snug, not racked all the way down. Go to the ratchet strap that connects to the seat stanchions and put some tension of that. This pulls the boat a little towards the rear of the car and keeps it from drifting to front or back. Last, ratchet down the stern of the boat to eliminate up and down movement. You’ll have to go through all these steps several times to get enough tension on the rig. Done right, the boat will sit there through anything. If you notice any slop while you’re driving this rig somewhere, stop and check for problems. If there’s slack in anything, fix it.
That’s how I matched my Bear Creek Mirage to my Hyundai Accent, and it’s worked rather well. Police have never stopped me and criticized my ideas, but in spite of that I will not urge other people to do this. In fact, if you do this, you do this at your own risk because I advise you to find better solutions. The bow of the boat does reduce visibility up front. In city driving it could block your view of important signs and signals. I recommend that if you plan to cartop a boat anywhere, you get a car with rain gutters so you can hook a standard canoe carrier like the Malone Big Foot Pro Universal Car Rack Canoe Carrier with Bow and Stern Lines
Buying a trailer like the Malone MicroSport Sports Trailer for Kayaks, Canoes and Bikes
New on Amazon:
Master Lock 3060DAT 12-Foot-by-1-Inch Lashing Strap, 2-PackThe No. 2958AT package from Master Lock includes two 60" safety chains, each with their own safety hook and 5,000 lb. maximum capacity.
Keeper 5729 16" Soft Tie Extension Tie-Down, 800 lbs. WLL (2500 lbs. break strength) 4 Pk.05729 Features: -Tie extension. -Smooth surface webbing minimizes abrasion. -Wraps around handle bar. -Use with motorcycle tie downs. - 4 Per Card. Specifications: -2500 lbs Breaking strength. -800 lbs Working load limit. -Dimensions: 7.75" H x 4" W x 2.25" D.
Intex Explorer 200 Boat Set78" x4 6" Explorer 200 Set, Includes 2 Person Boat, 48" French Oars and Mini Air Pump.
Hi there,
I will be cartopping a canoe on foam blocks on a Hyundai elantra soon, and I was wondreing if you might know what kind of gutters they tend to have. The canoe is borrowed from a univeristy, and while they have the foam blocks, I think I will be buying the nylon lashing straps becuase all I see there is rope! When we did this years ago witrh a friends’s civic the straps had flat metal pieces that would curl under the doors, and could then be cinched tight over the canoe. Would it still be the same style ?
Hi, Adriana,
I found a photo of a Thule rig attached to the rain gutters of a Hyundai Elantra and if you know the car’s model number you can probably just search for cartop rigs and find out what fits. Here’s the link:
http://www.towequipe.co.uk/1/1/1499190-thule-aero-roof-bars-fits-hyundai-elantra-saloon-06-754-869-1434.html
I’m sure you can still find the kind of rig you’re describing, check someplace like Dick’s Sporting Goods or Bass Pro if there’s one handy. If there are tie-points on the right and left front of the car (many Hyundai’s have mysterious metal loops there which probably had something to do with the manufacturing process) you can steady the canoe with a V-shaped tie down like I did. A tether in the rear keeps the boat from slipping forward. Unless you winch things down tight it’s a pretty scary way to carry a canoe, but much safer if the rig secures to the rain gutters.