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well i'm sitting here staring at the bargain roofbox we just picked up( e bay for £41 ha ha its brand new!!!!)

Daft question but do they affect the fuel consumption much???

not that much. to be honest i hardly notice. you will use more if you leave it on the car the whole season as some do. mine comes off as soon as we get home, same with the roof bars. if i could take it off whilst camping i would, as i hate it been on the car!

Depending on the size of your tent you can take it off at the site.  We do, We take it off the car and use it in the tent to store the clothes in.  Will save fuel during the hols if not on the journey.

Haven't driven with it on my Skoda yet but have to say it made a noticeable difference on my 1.6 petrol Hyundai Matrix

Roof boxs have always intrigued me. I can honestly say ive never ever actualy seen one being loaded/unloaded. What i want to know is, for the ones perched on anything higher than your average saloon, do you carry small steps/a buffet, or what to access them? For many women in particular, who arent that tall, if the box is 'nose height', getting stuff in/out must be a nightmare!

Mick, the Matrix was quite high and at home we stood on blocks, on campsites we used to stand on the door sills and yes it could be a pain lol!  Gonna be so much easier now with the Skoda.

Finn,  The Matrix was quite fuel thirsty anyhow so on a better engine it may not make much difference, that was just my observation, but I do agree the benefits far outweigh any negatives, there's no way we could've got all our gear in the car without it lol.

Roof boxes make some difference to your fuel consumption, but not a huge amount, maybe 10% more fuel.

What we find with our roofbox is that it restricts access to car parks. Many car parks have 2 metre height restrictions (sometimes less), which an MPV with box exceeds. So if you can empty it and take it off with the roofbars attached it makes life easier.

A long wire bicycle padlock can chain it to something for security if required.

As for access to the box on the car, a 2-step ladder is perfect, a dining room chair will do. But the door sills of the car are good enough generally.

That answers that question then!

As for min height barriers. I saw a caravan at a services once over, its roof was literaly peeled back like a sardine can. It had been dragged thru such a barrier by someone obviously going a bit quick to stop or realise in time. There was bits of wood, insulation, roof-light and antennas all over the shop!

You also have to watch your speed... Ours has a maximum recommended speed of so many kph (can't remember the exact number), but it was close to 70mph...

I have to admit on long journeys I tended to coast at around 80mph... but the roofbox slowed me down, therefore the mpg isn't probably that bad if you take a decrease of speed into account...

Attached it to my trailer now so I guess I'll be limited to 60mph and a much worse mpg on our next trip...

ADL