Fabrication project suggestions?

I think they are still available new but are over $300.   I had an '03 years ago that came with one. It was really built well and the finish was first rate.  I preferred the car without and sold it for the going rate, $250 then. 

Yeah, I won't pay that much for a rack that rides on my sheet metal and will cook my luggage.  I hate the way they look as well.

Posted by: @pwnzor

Yeah, I won't pay that much for a rack that rides on my sheet metal and will cook my luggage.  I hate the way they look as well.

It really does make the car extra ugly. 

Posted by: @dev

Posted by: @pwnzor

Yeah, I won't pay that much for a rack that rides on my sheet metal and will cook my luggage.  I hate the way they look as well.

It really does make the car extra ugly. 

I'll second that!

@marsrock7,

<Gilda voice> oh... never mind </>

Do any of those have grillwork that is shaped like a spider?

Yeah it's a bit ugly but.... The rest of my car isn't exactly pristine either. I'm mostly a function over form person and it gets the job done. Also, mine was practically given to me, so who am I to complain? 😛

Posted by: @marsrock7

Yeah it's a bit ugly but.... The rest of my car isn't exactly pristine either. I'm mostly a function over form person and it gets the job done. Also, mine was practically given to me, so who am I to complain? 😛

  In a weird way it does have a 60s VW hippie vibe.  

It gets the job done and afterwards is easily removable. If a Spyder is your only car or is your vacation ride it might make sense to own one.  The quality of the carrier is OEM like so it's not junk.

I'll soon have the Cyclehead hitch adapter/receiver and a luggage rack that rides behind the car, problem solved

Posted by: @pwnzor

I'll soon have the Cyclehead hitch adapter/receiver and a luggage rack that rides behind the car, problem solved

Indeed!   I saw the 24 foot pieces of steel yesterday.  Fab and welding for the adapters will be starting this weekend.

@dev, et al,

Yup, the luggage rack sho' adds a lotta ugly, but then, so does having a piece of luggage or anything aside from some tasteful and restrained aero on the back... pretty much anywhere on the back. Bike racks are absolutely hideous; I can't figure out why people just leave them on on any vehicle full-time.  Even on a jeep or hummer, they are just awful eyesores and not as safe as their absence, either.

And that's why "easy to remove" was high on the list to make the Cyclehead special an Awesome Product.  I'm talking like 30 to 90 seconds of easy-off with no tools. 

It's gonna be Ug-, but sometimes being able to carry that extra bag can make the difference between being able to take The Frog on a long drive in beautiful country, in beautiful weather, or being forced to make the trip in a stupid old xB, or Corolla, or a perfectly pleasant but yawn-inducing late-model Impreza. 

(Don't get me wrong, Subaru, Impreza is a fine Corolla wagon surrogate, but compared to The Frog? Yawn.  But you were not trying to be a rear-mid-engine 2-seat convertible one-ton go-kart that makes your smile muscles get totally jacked, so it's cool... and you do win on drives over 6 hours long, every time.)

But that Ug Rack's gotta come right back off when not needed, ASAP, and it has to be easy enough that one is not tempted to say "screw it, this is too hard, let's just take the Sube...".

Still on the luggage rack for a bit longer...

And still going with the concept of the front feet latching in to the hard top latches, maybe. (But if you have a hard top, sux to be you? <shrug>).

I wonder if the rear feet can attach directly to the bodywork without contacting the engine bay lid at all.  If the rear feet attached to the body support right in front of or next to the taillights, it could be wide as heck.  Perhaps that's not a bad thing either, since we've already established that ugly is an accepted trade-off for utility. But there are limits...

Just spitballing, but it would be nice if there were no force applied to the deck lid at all, and I would think that the wider the stance and the more the load is placed directly over the strut towers and/or outside edge of the frame the more stable it will be and will be gentler to the whole car. You'd still want to center the load itself (it will cook more evenly there and you won't get as many "cold spots", LOL), but this would ideally apply those forces to the corners and edges of the body/chassis, right?  Isn't that desirable?

Is something like this what you are looking for:

 I kinda like this guys diy, but way too small:

You only need to watch the first 1.5 minutes.

That video design is pretty clever!  I was griping he couldn’t raise the ragtop, until I saw how he rotated the frame pieces out of the way.   

Something that small could be duplicated for the spyder.  I don’t like how it blocks visibility through the windshield mirror.  

Any bigger platform would need something at the rear to stabilize the platform.  Maybe a rubber lined clamp that would install through our cooling vents would work.  (Without hurting the paint)