How to Carry A Canoe with a 2008 Toyota Corolla  

Question:

Helpful Expert Reply:

I may have an option that will work for you, however, I do not recommend carrying the canoe on the bare roof of your 2008 Toyota Corolla. Most vehicles cannot handle more than 50 lbs directly on top of the roof.

Instead, I recommend adding a roof rack like the Yakima BaseLine Tower Roof Rack which consists of the following parts.

48 Inch Round Crossbars # Y00408
BaseLine Towers # Y28TR
RoundBar Adapter # Y03536
BaseClip Fit Kits # Y06136 and # Y06148

Yakima states that this roof rack can support up to 125 lbs on your Corolla and once it is installed it will have a crossbar spread of 32 inches. The crossbar spread is the distance from the center of the front crossbar to the center of the rear crossbar. When carrying a canoe, a wider crossbar spread is preferred and this roof rack offers the widest crossbar spread of any of our roof racks for your Corolla.

Toyota does not actually list a weight capacity for your roof, so I would take extreme caution when loading your canoe or any other cargo on a roof rack. Yakima lists the weight capacity of their roof rack at 125 lbs, but we have found that the actual vehicle roof weight capacity is lower on some vehicles. Because yours is an unknown factor, I would keep an eye on the mounting locations on your roof to ensure no damage is occurring.

Another item that I recommend for you is the Yakima KeelOver Canoe Carrier, # Y04069. This carries your canoe on the crossbars and it comes with all of the necessary tie-downs. To securely attach the bow and stern tie-downs, I also recommend picking up the Malone Hood Loops # MPG308 to give you an easy and safe place to attach your tie-downs.

expert reply by: John H

1