I’m getting a lot of wind noise from the rack on highways and wondering if there’s a fix to it. Anyone with a victory full rack with little to no noise?


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empty rack? do you have the fairing on properly? you could try putting something like a few eye-bolts in a few of the crossbars to disrupt the airflow over the bars

Yes empty rack. Not sure if fairing is on properly or what to look for - that’s why I’m asking if it’s normal for wind noise on highways. I’ve read about wrapping rope around the crossbars but I wanted to see other people’s experiences.


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its a giant sail. its gonna make noise. does it whistle? thatd be too much for me. our prinsu make some wind noise and you feel wind catch it and push the car a little. kinda get used to it, we didnt really notice until we temporarily removed it last summer.

What kind of noise? I have the full length and wind noise is barely noticeable but nothing that would be cause for alarm.

I did notice that the front fairing would vibrate like crazy in cross winds if there was any gap between the fairing and the roof. It took some trial and error, but it went away once I was able to get the fairing flush with the roof.

Barely noticeable would be awesome. To describe it, almost like I have a sunroof and it’s slightly open on the highway. Very noticeable. Maybe I can take out the front crossbars and see.


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My victory full rack doesn’t have an option to make the fairing more flush to the roof - that might be it. Maybe there is a tiny gap between the fairing and roof. I might add some protective layer between the 2 ( I skipped that part of the install as I don’t care too much about my paint there).


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With the Victory Rack, the fairing is supposed to have solid contact with the roof, otherwise its going to flex/vibe and make a ton of noise. Official install video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoUy92vZdV0

I had to readjust a bunch of bolts to get it to work, including sliding the first two cross bars as far back in their slot as they can go. What happens is when you tighten down that first crossbar all the way, it kind of pinches the fairing causing it to bow out and not make contact with the roof anymore. You can either put a thicker rubber stripping on the fairing, or loosen the bolts on the first crossbar a smidge, or put a very thin washer on the crossbar bolts.


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The main issue that causes the wind noise are the slots in the bars. I designed a fairing extension then had it laser cut out of aluminum, then powered coated. Primary for my roof top tent but now I use it in the winter as well to direct air over skis and my traction boards. I did a test with the tent on the highway, a there and back with little traffic. Improved my mpg by 3! Now my tent is an X-Cover (brick)

I can see how an extended fairing would certainly help with something large like a RTT.

But oddly I have a rifle case and traction boards up top and there is very little perceptible difference in wind noise compared to an empty rack.

Ok so when you say extension I’m assuming you mean it makes the fairing “taller”? How much extension did you give it?


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That’s interesting. I’m gonna try removing the first crossbar entirely and see if that makes a difference. I don’t think I will ever use that first crossbar anyway.


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I added 12", which was max giving the size of the rack and tent. If I were doing one without a tent, I would go around 6" to push the air up and over the rails and gear on top.

Just an FYI, I have done design (ME/ID) work for two roof rack companies, one major manufacture. I have been using a fairing since the late 80's, as I was a competitive cyclist, and it made a HUGE difference with Yakima bars.

The main issue with all the 4R racks on the market is that they are flat, though angled it is not ideal. Curved to match the windshield would make them much more effective. I have designed a roof rack for the 4R but not sure if the investment in tooling is worth it for the sales opportunity. But it would be innovative given the standards out there.

Anyway, PM me if you want the file, or even a shorter version. Then you can have it cut. I will also tell you how to install it.

Cheers

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