YAKIMA Complaints

The part of this kayak stacker which wraps around the roof bar is made from plastic. I was using the stacker per the manufacturers instructions, yet as I was driving down the highway, with one kayak on my roof, the stacker snapped and caused my kayak to fly off the roof and smashed into the side of my car. It is my view that product is inherently flawed, as plastic does not have sufficient tensile strength to deal with this kind of load. It was fortunate that in this instance the boat was strapped in a way which meant that it did not completely come away from the car, but was hanging off the side. (It caused thousands of dollars worth of bodywork damage.). In a future example, it’s possible that another failure will occur, possibly resulting in a kayak (or kayaks) to come loose and flying into a motorcycle or car windshield at highway speeds. With potential for a fatal accident. Further, I have heard of numerous other incidents of failure with this product.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 FORD FOCUS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HE ATTEMPTED TO PLACE A YAKIMA BIKE RACK ON THE ROOF OF HIS VEHICLE BUT THE FRONT AND REAR CLIPS FAILED TO CONNECT PROPERLY. THE RETAILER WAS CONTACTED AND INFORMED THE CONTACT THAT THE MANUFACTURER ENSURED THAT THE RACK WAS ADEQUATE ENOUGH TO FUNCTION PROPERLY. THE RACK WAS NOT REPLACED. *TR

CPSC# I1120168A CONSUMER STATED THAT HIS YAKIMA MIGHTY JOE II BIKE RACK, LOOSENED FROM THE STRAPS OF THE RACK AND FLEW ONTO I-75, CAUSING A THREE CAR CRASH. *LN THE RUBBER STRAPS WERE SECURED, BUT STRETCHED LOOSE DURING A RIDE ON THE HIGHWAY.

YAKIMA MIGHTY JOE II BIKE RACK. MIGHTY JOE II. CONSUMER STATES BIKE LOOSENED FROM RACK AND FLEW OFF CAUSING AN ACCIDENT *TGW THE CONSUMER STATED THE RUBBER STRAPS WERE SECURED, BUT THEY STRETCHED LOOSE DURING A RIDE UP THE HIGHWAY.*JB

IN OCTOBER 2005, YAKIMA PRODUCTS INC. INITIATED A VOLUNTARY RECALL OF THE MIGHTY JOE 3 BICYCLE RACK SYSTEM. I SENT THE AFFECTED PARTS AND INFORMATION CARD BACK TO YAKIMA IN EARLY JANUARY 2006. AS OF MAY 24 2006, I HAVE RECEIVED NO NOTIFICATION OR RESOLUTION TO THE RECALL. SEVERAL ATTEMPTS HAVE BEEN MADE TO GET A STATUS AND RESPONSE FROM YAKIMA WITHOUT SUCCESS. THE RECALL NOTICE DIRECTED ME TO THIS SITE TO REPORT UNSATISFACTORY SERVICE. *JB