Aftermarket Thule roof rack fit?

[GrayGoose]

This really isn't "appearance"... but it doesn't seem to fit in any of the other forums either. Forgive me if folks consider it misplaced.

We just went from a Volvo 240 to a 2009 Mazda5 GT. Already had a Thule rack for the Volvo, so rather than pay the rather exorbitant $360 for the OEM Mazda roof rack, we just went to REI and paid 1/3 that for replacement Thule feet to mate the rack we already had with the GT's fixed rail mounts.

My concern is the feet sit up so that they are just barely touching the rail. Being that the bottom of the feet are made of rubber, I would half expect that they would crank down so that they're compressed tight onto the roof. But maybe I'm expecting too much.

Has anyone else used the Thule feet on a Mazda 5? Is this fitment typical?

I'll try to take some pictures in the next couple of days to show what I mean, but wanted to get this out there in the meantime in case anyone else knew anything.

Thanks in advance!
-Carl

 

[njaremka]

i have the thule feet on our 5, and i opted to NOT use the little metal spacer tubes. seems to be holding fine, and it allowed the feet to pull down onto the roof nicely.

 

[GrayGoose]

Thanks njaremka. I thought about not using the collars, but it seemed like they help with some lateral strength... so I'm not sure I'm prepared to do without them.

Here are some photos of what I'm talking about (finally!).

At first I thought the collars themselves weren't going to fit... as they are actually wider than the hole in the rail. But with a little wiggling, you're able to stretch the rail just a hair, and then they go in.

But if you notice in the photos, only the one edge of the feet actually sits on the rail. And that, just barely. You can actually see daylight between the ridges.

This just doesn't seem right.

No one else is seeing this with their Thule feet?

I'm wondering if Mazda changed the design of the mounts, and the non-OEM Thules haven't caught up... since even the collars seem oversize.

 

[Distinct]

I have the same issue and when I originally installed the mounts I thought there was something wrong.

 

[jibwagon]

i had the same issue but then just gave the nut that holds it down a few more turns and it tightened down nice. i did have to hold the allen wrench in the top of the threaded stud bolt so it wouldnt turn as i tightened the nut.

 

[GrayGoose]

Hey jibwagon, I went out and tried... and, nope, that nut ain't going down any more no matter what. I even tried to pull down on the rail as I was tightening. It's not moving.