Keoshian

Hey fellow AudiWorld'ers,

I've been lurking here for a few weeks, but this is my first post. I'm a new owner of a beautiful black & tan 2006 A3 Sport (27K miles, DSG, Open Sky, Bose, etc...). My previous car is a Civic Si hatchback, which is pretty similar in concept, but obviously in a completely different league!

I was specifically looking for a hatchback (Acura RSX and Mazda 3 GT were the other cars I was considering) so I can put a bicycle inside the car. I also need to transport a tandem bicycle, which obviously won't fit inside the A3. I like the looks of the Audi-spec roof rack much better than Thule, but can a Yakima or Thule bike/tandem mount be fit to the Audi roof bars? Or, is my only option the Thule roof rack system? Audi's "bars" appear to have a unique cross-section ...

With the Audi-spec'ed towers/bars is there much danger of paint damage, assuming the contact areas are clean when I install the towers? My Yakima towers did dull mark up the paint on the Civic over time -- I'd really hate to have that happen on the A3.

-Jack

GT17V

get a hitch installed and a hitch mounted bike rack. More expensive, yes... however it minimizes effect on mpg

Keoshian

Hey GT17V,

For carrying standard bikes I agree a hitch mounted rack is a good option. But, the bike I need to transport is a tandem. There is at least one hitch mounted tandem rack available, but it's crazy expensive and, since a tandem is considerably wider than a car like the A3, it mounts the bike vertically; i.e. > half the bike is above the roof of the car and pointed straight up. Cost for a hitch and that rack would be pretty close to a grand as well. I already have a Yakima tandem mount that I can use if Yakima accessories can mount on the Audi sourced A3 roof bars.

Anyone?