Yakima EXO Hitch Hauler installed for ski season

[shamoo]

Wow, this looks awesome. Then I looked at how much the entire setup costs. :'(

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[Stretch]

LOVE the EXO setup!!! Yakima appreciates that look! Question though, what's the tire and rim setup????

They are Discoverer Snow Claws on XD851 Monster III rims. We haven't had too much deep snow yet to play in, but they've done great on the snowpacked roads and slushy stuff that I've put them through thus far. Hoping for a decent storm this weekend, so I might finally get to see how they really perform!

I purchased them through Les Schwab. Their customer service was top notch and the guy who helped me really wants to be the go-to guy for Rivians so he was super motivated to find a set up that would work for the R1s.

 

[Stretch]

I like your wheels. What are they?

I like your wheels. What are they?

They are Discoverer Snow Claws on XD851 Monster III rims. We haven't had too much deep snow yet in the West to play in, but they've done great on the snowpacked roads and slushy stuff that I've put them through thus far. Hoping for a decent storm this weekend, so I might finally get to see how they really perform!

I purchased them through Les Schwab. Their customer service was top notch and the guy who helped me really wants to be the go-to guy for Rivians so he was super motivated to find a set up that would work for the R1s.

 

[Stretch]

Wow, this looks awesome. Then I looked at how much the entire setup costs. :'(

Yeah, that was rather painful....especially when you add in the iKamper. I justified it to the wife (and more so to myself) by saying that hey, it's still cheaper than an Airstream.

 

[HaveBlue]

Probably a good idea to have some padding or rubber bumpers in case some one accidentally hits the trunk button.

 

[wicked2112]

They are Discoverer Snow Claws on XD851 Monster III rims. We haven't had too much deep snow yet in the West to play in, but they've done great on the snowpacked roads and slushy stuff that I've put them through thus far. Hoping for a decent storm this weekend, so I might finally get to see how they really perform!

I purchased them through Les Schwab. Their customer service was top notch and the guy who helped me really wants to be the go-to guy for Rivians so he was super motivated to find a set up that would work for the R1s.

Thanks for the information!! Were the tire and rims expensive compared to Rivian prices??

 

[Stretch]

That solution looks super interesting, thanks for posting the pictures.

I wonder if the gearboxes could be mounted on the bed cross bars on the R1T. Would be nice to be able to use them directly over the bed.

For the Yakima EXO gearbox, the mount is specific for the EXO hitchmount, so it woudn't work on the R1T cross bars. But there are other Yakima gearboxes/rocketboxes (as well as other brands) that should work for over the bed.

 

[Stretch]

Probably a good idea to have some padding or rubber bumpers in case some one accidentally hits the trunk button.

Yes exactly. I plan to put some adhesive rubber pads on the Topmount to prevent scratches from accidental opening.

 

[Stretch]

Thanks for the information!! Were the tire and rims expensive compared to Rivian prices??

the all-in total including mounting, TPM sensors, lug nuts, balancing, and freight (rims had to be shipped in from Salt Lake) was $3765.

I'm pretty sure that comes in less than the Rivian OEM rims and AT tires, and these are (reportedly) far better in the snow.

 

[Stretch]

Can you share pictures of your skis in the ski rack? The only thing holding me back from purchasing this system is the distance between the ski rack clamps being shorter than most bindings. I don't think we could get 4 sets of skis on and have the clamp work. The toe and heel bindings on my skis are far enough where the stacked skis are fine. The kids (and wife) have bindings that are "1 piece" between the toe and heel so its super thick when the skis are stacked.

In this video review you can see they have to put the skis side-by-side.

I will definitely take some pics next time I get a chance. I've only put the skis in them once so far, and while I was able to wedge the two skis snow-side to snow-side, I have big feet and so that places the bindings both right at the position of the mounts. Therefore I have to put them in slightly offset to one side, instead of being centered in the back of the vehicle. Not the best design, but I think it will still work in practice.

Photos coming s-0--0-n....

 

[citizen]

Wow those rims look great. Any rubbing, etc. when suspension is at the lowest setting? Pricing doesn't seem that bad: https://www.xdwheels.com/xd-monster-3

 

[Stretch]

Wow those rims look great. Any rubbing, etc. when suspension is at the lowest setting? Pricing doesn't seem that bad: https://www.xdwheels.com/xd-monster-3

Thanks! Nope, no rubbing at all. They do flare out slightly from the side profile of the car, so I was worried about a range hit, but so far I haven't noticed anything. My guess is that any range impact would be most noted on higher speed hiway/interstate driving, which I don't do much of. Didn't seem to make any substantial difference on a winding 2h drive along Hwy 55 through the canyon up to McCall.

One definite thing to be aware of, however, is that since they are slightly wider than the wheel well, they put a LOT of road grime up onto the sides of the vehicle if you don't have mud flaps. I bought the TWRAPS jumbo sized mud flaps which are pretty basic and not overly attractive, but not too bad. They immediately made a HUGE difference in keeping the sides and rear of the vehicle cleaner. I've got the EV Sportline RMaxx running boards on order, and if they ever show up I think that will also help improve the protection from road debris.

Here's a couple pics trying to demonstrate the tire width, as well as showing the mudflaps in place.

 

[Yossarian]

Nah, but you might still be a lil bit drunk…

I thought my skis would hang way over but surprisingly they don’t. The base of the Riv is actually pretty wide. I’m 6’3” and usually ski 175s and they don’t hang over at all.

Sadly, Viv is still ground-bound.

This looks like a great alternative to a top box, but I'm puzzled as to how it accommodates skis. The Yakima site shows the interior dimension of the box itself at just under 52", which is only 132 cm. How does it handle 175 cm skis?

 

[Stretch]

This looks like a great alternative to a top box, but I'm puzzled as to how it accommodates skis. The Yakima site shows the interior dimension of the box itself at just under 52", which is only 132 cm. How does it handle 175 cm skis?

If you look closely at the initial photos you’ll see the EXO Snowbank ski/board rack underneath the Gearbox. That’s where the skis go. It’s a little hard to see because of the black bumper.

The EXO Swingbase system gives you this “double-decker” option for two different attachments.

 

[amadeoplaza]

I've got the Exo system on my Model Y (soon R1S) as well. It's been great. So far have only used the Warrior basket on the Swingbase, but I have the TopShelf and Box ready to go when camping season picks back up. By that time, we'll have our R1S, so it was helpful to see this setup.

And thanks for the person who shared the ratchet link. Just bought. Yes, the bolt connection is a pain in the ass with the included tools.

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