![]() ![]() ![]() Just make sure you close everything properly and lock it up to avoid leaking and potential damage. There’s plenty of storage space to keep your belongings dry and secure. Even if you find the box to be heavy, you just need to get it installed before you start driving. We highly recommend using the Skybox Carbonite if the space in your car is always being taken up or if you do a lot of traveling. Places where you need to pay particular attention are in garages, parking ramps, and drive-thrus. When driving with any roof top carrier, it is important to constantly remind yourself of the additional height on your vehicle. Much like with a roof top tent, you want to be sure you have bars that can handle the weight, especially if you plan to load it up.Ī final note on using the Yakima Skybox: You need to be sure you are cognizant of the additional height on your vehicle! We did not have any major issues, but had one close call in a garage where we cleared the top of the opening by probably 3/4 of an inch. You want to not skimp - get good cross bars. ![]() If not, you can buy add-on roof cross bars that mount around your vehicle’s doors and are only left on when you are using the box. Note that we had roof cross bars factory installed on our Subaru, but your vehicle might not have them. The load was also completely dry - which was important since we had been driving through some rain showers as well as snow melting on the road. When we got to our destination and opened things up (again with a ladder for ease), the load was secure, had not shifted at all, and everything was exactly where we had loaded it. There was also no evidence of the skis or other items inside the box shifting around, due in part to the fact that we packed it pretty full and snug. The aerodynamic design functions exceptionally well, even when cruising along the interstate at 80 mph. Perhaps a little more “pull” in heavy crosswinds, but that might have been in our minds too. Once driving, it literally only took a few minutes and we forgot the box was even on the car. ![]() Sure enough, the lid had closed a bit askew, so I opened it, got some of the jackets moved away from the latches, and on the second try got a much more assuring “click” and the box had definitely closed straight and sealed well. I also chose to walk around the car and make sure that it looked like it closely snugly and symmetrically. You want to spend a minute being sure you get a good, secure “click” on both sides when the box closes. We made sure we had the key on a big, easy-to-spot chain. One thing about the Yakima Skybox – it only opens and closes with the key. We chose to have the skis inside ski bags just so that the ski’s sharp edges would not scrape around and cut the other items in the box, but you could probably also just layer some pieces of cardboard or even some old blankets in for this. We loaded skis as the main item, but then filled the box up with soft items such as jackets and pillows. See Also Yakima SkyBox 16 Carbonite Review Loading and Unloadingįor loading the unit, we also used a step ladder. That goes for all carriers, not just this one. Their awkward shape and lack of handles makes it much easier for two. These are not easy to carry around, even if you are strong. Note that with all rooftop cargo boxes, handling them and putting them on your vehicle is really a two person job - at least at first. The installation process took a while, but we allowed enough time and were able to pay attention to the details. So what did we think of the Skybox after driving 2,000 miles, much of it at 75 to 80mph? We are big fans. Our Experience with the Yakima Skybox Carbonite The Outback comes with factory roof top cross bars, so we did not need to use add-on cross bars. In our test drive, we mounted the Skybox on a Subaru Outback. We experienced pretty strong winds during part of the trip, which we were happy about since we wanted to assess the Yakima Skybox when faced with a stiff headwind and cross wind. We carried 4 pairs of skis and as much other stuff as we could stuff in the box. Our test was a 2,000 mile cross-country roadtrip spanning 3 states (there and back), and it was done in winter conditions. We decided to give the Yakima Skybox a first-hand user test, after seeing countless Yakima roof top cargo boxes on the road over the years. How We Did Our Hands-On Yakima Skybox Road Trip Test ![]()
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