I asked this over in the Kona section earlier as I'm looking at purchasing either a Bolt or a Kona. Anyone here haul anything on top of their Bolt? Which rack system would you recommend? Do you remove the rack when you are not hauling? How much of a range impact would you say you get from two kayaks?
I have never carried a kayak for a long enough distance to figure out the range impact, but it will be at least 30% I would think. I use the Thule rack system, which is rugged, smart looking and easy to assemble and disassemble. The only disadvantage of my rack is the slight whistling noise I hear when its raining. I keep the rack on the top all the time, and I have not noticed a range impact from it. The range of my three year old Bolt has dropped a slight amount over time anyway, which is typical of electric cars. In winter, of course, the range is impacted significantly due to heater use, and possibly battery temperature issues. Winter has the most impact on range that I have seen.
Thanks for your reply. I was looking at the Thule and Yakima sites after reading your post. It's been many years since I purchased a new set and they've come a long way.
Chevy actually released official photos of the Bolt EV with a kayak (below). A quick look around the internet shows that Yakima, at least, has a setup for it. Also saw one report of it losing 25% range, but with 3 kayaks.
Thanks! I've seen that photo. Really wanted to get feedback from owners that actually have one and what they've encountered while using the rack. Appreciate the help.
This is an older thread, but I'm new to this particular forum so I'm just seeing it. Here is my Bolt with two tandem kayaks on the roof. I use Thule crossbars, a set of J-hooks, and some boat pads. I would estimate that at 65MPH, I lost nearly 40% of my range. If I kept off the highway, and speeds at 55MPH or lower, it was dramatically better - maybe 25-30% loss.
