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Hey Element Owners! I'm considering buying an Element, you can read all about it here:
http://www.elementownersclub.com/forums/showthread.php?t=60098
It would be my Fiancé's car, but we would use it on road trips for mountain bike races and hang gliding adventures / competitions. To haul all of our gear we would have to outfit it with a hitch bike rack and roof rack for the glider(s) and possibly a rocket box. If it was acting as a chase / retrieve vehicle it would need to be able haul at least 4, possibly 6 gliders. I've had crammed 12 gliders and 13 people in my Tacoma before (it was down right scary). Here are the specifics:
The glider is about 18 feet long and needs to be supported for at least 10 feet of its lenght i.e. 4 feet can hang off on each end. I would like to get away with 4 bars on the roof, but might need to do a custom bar on the front if the roof isn't long enough. Is there a place on the front end where I can engineer a front bar like this? On my truck I bought an aftermarket bull bar and tied the risers into that. I haven't seen any Elements with bull bars, do they make one? Otherwise I would have to go off the frame or mount a reciever hitch on the front. Any thoughts? Here's what I'm talking about:
Side View:
Front View:
45 Degree Angle View:
4 gliders would weigh about 350 pounds, 6 would weigh over 500. In just gliders alone I know I'm getting close to the max usable payload, but it wouldn't be for long durations. Can the roof support this? Ursa Minor's Pop Top site says that the roof has to support the weight of the vehicle upside down and has no problem with two adults up there, but what to you guys think?
Any hang glider Element drivers out there?
Cheers...
http://www.elementownersclub.com/forums/showthread.php?t=60098
It would be my Fiancé's car, but we would use it on road trips for mountain bike races and hang gliding adventures / competitions. To haul all of our gear we would have to outfit it with a hitch bike rack and roof rack for the glider(s) and possibly a rocket box. If it was acting as a chase / retrieve vehicle it would need to be able haul at least 4, possibly 6 gliders. I've had crammed 12 gliders and 13 people in my Tacoma before (it was down right scary). Here are the specifics:
The glider is about 18 feet long and needs to be supported for at least 10 feet of its lenght i.e. 4 feet can hang off on each end. I would like to get away with 4 bars on the roof, but might need to do a custom bar on the front if the roof isn't long enough. Is there a place on the front end where I can engineer a front bar like this? On my truck I bought an aftermarket bull bar and tied the risers into that. I haven't seen any Elements with bull bars, do they make one? Otherwise I would have to go off the frame or mount a reciever hitch on the front. Any thoughts? Here's what I'm talking about:
Side View:

Front View:

45 Degree Angle View:

4 gliders would weigh about 350 pounds, 6 would weigh over 500. In just gliders alone I know I'm getting close to the max usable payload, but it wouldn't be for long durations. Can the roof support this? Ursa Minor's Pop Top site says that the roof has to support the weight of the vehicle upside down and has no problem with two adults up there, but what to you guys think?
Any hang glider Element drivers out there?
Cheers...