[shewhorn]

So... if you're buying a Mazda 3 5 door and you want a bolt on rack that looks factory instead of your standard Yakima or Thule deal here's what you have to do...

First, browse a forum like mazda3forums.com and search on roof racks and read every single thread there and get really really really confused.

Next... order a pair of roof "rails" from Toronto Mazda (yes, as in Canada) because Mazda thinks that Americans don't like roof racks and thus won't sell you anything to accommodate them. Receive said "rails" thinking they're rails and then realize that they're actually replacement moldings (which have a cutout to expose the factory fixpoint mounts on the roof gutter... obviously the American moldings do not).

Bang your head against a wall when you realize that you could have accomplished the same thing on the existing moldings with a Dremel tool. Cry a little bit.

Do more research on mazda3forums.com. Visit umpteen billion websites, call, Yakima, and Thule in the US, call Thule in Canada, and then realize that you need to order your rack from the United Kingdom.

Go to http://www.roofrackshop.com and buy the following:

1 x Thule 860 Rapid System Alloy Aero Roof Bars (Pair - 108cm) (TH860 ) £49.00
1 x Thule 751 Rapid FixPoint XT Foot Pack (TH751) £50.00
1 x Thule Rapid FixPoint XT Fitting Kit 3005 (TKR3005) £24.00

Break for tea and crumpets.

(I hope these things don't take too long... I'd love to paddle this weekend but... no way to get the boats to water.)

Alternatively... you can just read this thread and save yourself a bunch of hassle (and $150 USD if you don't mind Dremeling out your existing moldings to expose the fixpoints).

The spread at 26.5" is a little better than what I had on the WRX but... this time it's going to be a SOLID mount... no denting where the feet sit and it supports loads of over 165 pounds. If I went with a standard Yakima rack I could get a 40" spread but the load limit is 125 pounds which shoud in theory be enough but as I found out with the Subaru... that was really just a theory on Yakima's part. Don't want to repeat that mistake on a new vehicle.

Cheers, Joe

[Adam]

So... if you're buying a Mazda 3 5 door and you want a bolt on rack that looks factory instead of your standard Yakima or Thule deal here's what you have to do...

First, browse a forum like mazda3forums.com and search on roof racks and read every single thread there and get really really really confused.

Next... order a pair of roof "rails" from Toronto Mazda (yes, as in Canada) because Mazda thinks that Americans don't like roof racks and thus won't sell you anything to accommodate them. Receive said "rails" thinking they're rails and then realize that they're actually replacement moldings (which have a cutout to expose the factory fixpoint mounts on the roof gutter... obviously the American moldings do not).

Bang your head against a wall when you realize that you could have accomplished the same thing on the existing moldings with a Dremel tool. Cry a little bit.

Do more research on mazda3forums.com. Visit umpteen billion websites, call, Yakima, and Thule in the US, call Thule in Canada, and then realize that you need to order your rack from the United Kingdom.

Go to http://www.roofrackshop.com and buy the following:

1 x Thule 860 Rapid System Alloy Aero Roof Bars (Pair - 108cm) (TH860 ) �49.00
1 x Thule 751 Rapid FixPoint XT Foot Pack (TH751) �50.00
1 x Thule Rapid FixPoint XT Fitting Kit 3005 (TKR3005) �24.00

Break for tea and crumpets.

(I hope these things don't take too long... I'd love to paddle this weekend but... no way to get the boats to water.)

Alternatively... you can just read this thread and save yourself a bunch of hassle (and $150 USD if you don't mind Dremeling out your existing moldings to expose the fixpoints).

The spread at 26.5" is a little better than what I had on the WRX but... this time it's going to be a SOLID mount... no denting where the feet sit and it supports loads of over 165 pounds. If I went with a standard Yakima rack I could get a 40" spread but the load limit is 125 pounds which shoud in theory be enough but as I found out with the Subaru... that was really just a theory on Yakima's part. Don't want to repeat that mistake on a new vehicle.

Cheers, Joe

Hey, I saw this post and am looking to do exactly the same thing! As it's a year later, both Thule and Yakima have US versions that screw into the roof (no need to order from UK). However, the roofrails for the US version do not have the cutouts that the canada versions do. I'm planning on doing the dremel tool approach, but I'm afraid to do any cutting without getting as much info as possible. What exactly do the canada versions look like compared to the US versions? What exactly do you need to cut? Also, how do the roof-rails attach to the roof? Also, it's near impossible to get any information on where exactly to cut. Do I need to remove the rails to see the attachment points?

[John McClain]

Hey, I saw this post and am looking to do exactly the same thing! As it's a year later, both Thule and Yakima have US versions that screw into the roof (no need to order from UK). However, the roofrails for the US version do not have the cutouts that the canada versions do. I'm planning on doing the dremel tool approach, but I'm afraid to do any cutting without getting as much info as possible. What exactly do the canada versions look like compared to the US versions? What exactly do you need to cut? Also, how do the roof-rails attach to the roof? Also, it's near impossible to get any information on where exactly to cut. Do I need to remove the rails to see the attachment points?

Did you get your rack installed? How hard was to make the necessary holes in the moldings?

Thanks

[pocky]

I'd be curious to know exactly how Adam did it, but here's how I'd do it (based on poking at the moldings on my mother's Mazda 3 a few years back): pop the moldings (AKA "rails") out, look for the mountpoints, measure twice, cut once.

The moldings are flexible and simply pop out with a bit of poking.

[John McClain]

I'd be curious to know exactly how Adam did it, but here's how I'd do it (based on poking at the moldings on my mother's Mazda 3 a few years back): pop the moldings (AKA "rails") out, look for the mountpoints, measure twice, cut once.

The moldings are flexible and simply pop out with a bit of poking.

FWIW, I decided I would be happier with factory moldings with designed in holes, covers, etc. than drilling my own. Special ordered them from my dealer, picked them up, and installed them today. Allegedly they are for 07-09 Mazda 3, but they appear to fit on my 05 (the proof will be when I get and install the rack). The part numbers for the hatchback are :

Left side replacement roof rail- BP4K-50-9L0A Mould LT, Roof List: $68.88
Right side replacement roof rail- BP4K-50-9H0A Mould RT, Roof List: $68.88

It looks like they have them for the 4 door too.

These two posts have instructions for pulling off the old ones and putting on the new ones :

http://www.mazda3club.com/showthread.php?p=412841
http://www.mazdaspeedforums.org/forum/f33/...rack-use-53600/

The 2nd one actually suggests using tools, I just used my fingers, which ended up damaging the original moldings a bit (though I think they will still "work" if I want to go back). If you want to use your fingers the trick seems to be to start where one of the 3 clips are. The back most one is just a few inches in-front of the trailing edge of the rear doors.

Now I just need to get a rack and a kayak to put on it.