Bike carrier recommendations (I have no idea)

thirdcrank
Posts: 36764
Joined: 9 Jan 2007, 2:44pm

Re: Bike carrier recommendations (I have no idea)

Post by thirdcrank »

There's a difference between trundling a few miles to park near a Sustrans route and charging the length of the country at motorway speeds.
Jdsk
Posts: 24478
Joined: 5 Mar 2019, 5:42pm

Re: Bike carrier recommendations (I have no idea)

Post by Jdsk »

Traction_man wrote: 6 May 2021, 9:03amI'm looking at a roof rack at the mo as a replacement though these are it seems to me very expensive.
As above, IMHO Halfords' cheapest models work fine.

There's another advantage of buying from them rather than online: they'll test fit it so that you don't have to get the spec of the bolts and clamps exactly right in your order.

Jonathan
User avatar
Traction_man
Posts: 325
Joined: 10 Jan 2020, 5:30pm
Location: Bangor NI

Re: Bike carrier recommendations (I have no idea)

Post by Traction_man »

Jdsk wrote: 6 May 2021, 9:10am
Traction_man wrote: 6 May 2021, 9:03amI'm looking at a roof rack at the mo as a replacement though these are it seems to me very expensive.
As above, IMHO Halfords' cheapest models work fine.

There's another advantage of buying from them rather than online: they'll test fit it so that you don't have to get the spec of the bolts and clamps exactly right in your order.

Jonathan
Thanks Jonathan, I'll take a look, good idea.

all the best,

Keith
merseymouth
Posts: 2519
Joined: 23 Jan 2011, 11:16am

Re: Bike carrier recommendations (I have no idea)

Post by merseymouth »

Hi all, You could of course just switch to riding Bromptons, you can get a fair number in any car? :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: MM
Vorpal
Moderator
Posts: 20697
Joined: 19 Jan 2009, 3:34pm
Location: Not there ;)

Re: Bike carrier recommendations (I have no idea)

Post by Vorpal »

Traction_man wrote: 6 May 2021, 9:03am
I have the Saris Bones that I use on my saloon Mazda 3, it's a rack that takes 3 bikes but the way they hang off the back of the boot would worry me with the weight of 3 bikes--1 bike on I am happy with, 2 at a stretch but 3, no.

The way the rack works, with weight on the rear bumper and straps on the boot edges, means I think a lot of stress is placed on the boot hinges, as well as the bumper, perhaps I am being overly cautious but I don't want to see our bikes disappearing in my rear view mirror...

I'm looking at a roof rack at the mo as a replacement though these are it seems to me very expensive.

all the best,

Keith
I've carried 3 bikes on mine. I've also carried 2 bikes and a trailer bike. The boot hinges are designed for far worse conditions than hanging bikes off it, even with wind and speed. I do add a couple extra bungees to reduce how much the bikes can move.
“In some ways, it is easier to be a dissident, for then one is without responsibility.”
― Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom
User avatar
Traction_man
Posts: 325
Joined: 10 Jan 2020, 5:30pm
Location: Bangor NI

Re: Bike carrier recommendations (I have no idea)

Post by Traction_man »

Vorpal wrote: 7 May 2021, 8:14am
Traction_man wrote: 6 May 2021, 9:03am
I have the Saris Bones that I use on my saloon Mazda 3, it's a rack that takes 3 bikes but the way they hang off the back of the boot would worry me with the weight of 3 bikes--1 bike on I am happy with, 2 at a stretch but 3, no.

The way the rack works, with weight on the rear bumper and straps on the boot edges, means I think a lot of stress is placed on the boot hinges, as well as the bumper, perhaps I am being overly cautious but I don't want to see our bikes disappearing in my rear view mirror...

I'm looking at a roof rack at the mo as a replacement though these are it seems to me very expensive.

all the best,

Keith
I've carried 3 bikes on mine. I've also carried 2 bikes and a trailer bike. The boot hinges are designed for far worse conditions than hanging bikes off it, even with wind and speed. I do add a couple extra bungees to reduce how much the bikes can move.
Thanks that's good to know, I use bungees too to keep the bikes together and stop the front wheels flailing about--I guess the 15kg bikes we have to me just seem like a lot of combined weight to be supported by the boot hinges of our ancient Mazda (2006 reg!).

I looked at Halford's yesterday, following a suggestion above for roof bars, and the combined cost is about £130, so not as bad as I had thought.

all the best,

Keith
Adjunct Satyr
Posts: 17
Joined: 28 Mar 2021, 7:47pm

Re: Bike carrier recommendations (I have no idea)

Post by Adjunct Satyr »

[/quote]
Have you narrowed the type down yet? Not towbar, but could still be either roof or hatch mounted?

Jonathan
[/quote]

Think it looks to be possibly a roof mounted one...
New to cycling (March 2021) and enjoying every bit so far!
nosmarbaj
Posts: 366
Joined: 17 Aug 2011, 3:02pm
Location: West Berks

Re: Bike carrier recommendations (I have no idea)

Post by nosmarbaj »

Lots of good advice above.
I have somewhere buried in the shed, a cheap 25-y-o Halfords tailgate mounted rack (no towbar) that was used several times to drive 400+ miles with 3 bikes on it. Never had a problem with it. I did spend quite a bit of time when I used it, to make sure that everything was secure, and would stop after 10 miles or so to make sure it was still OK (it always was). Drawbacks were (a) the tailgate couldn't be opened when the rack was fitted and (b) above-mentioned faff to make sure everything was securely fixed. It was fine for an annual holiday but I'd have got something better if it was going to be used frequently. Not having a child at home now, there's enough space inside the car.
Never used a roof-mounted system, but apart from the risk of forgetfully driving under a low obstruction, the fuel consumption will be much worse than with a rear-mounted type.
thirdcrank
Posts: 36764
Joined: 9 Jan 2007, 2:44pm

Re: Bike carrier recommendations (I have no idea)

Post by thirdcrank »

Think it looks to be possibly a roof mounted one...
From the pic of the car, it looks as though it will take the standard bars for roof rails. That's by no means certain as some manufacturers seem to go to some lengths to require specific kit. If it is standard, then any decent make should be OK. Once you have the bars, then you don't need to fit the same make of bike carrier. If you are concerned about getting bikes up onto the roof, then the Thule Proride in its different versions is pretty good IME. The beauty of this carrier is that once you have set it up you can load the bike easily; it just needs lifting into place and the support arm tightening and then the wheel straps doing up.

I've never been much of a roofrack cyclist but when our family were young we took bikes on holiday. Scrimp and scrape in those days and I've spent a lot of time getting out en route checking everything was tight.

More recently, I've been a sort of team support driver for my son and grandchildren. Having come close to losing a bike off the roof on the A1(M) when a Paddy Hopkirk carrier from the olden days began to fail, I invested in some Thules and they are rock solid. I'm still a compulsive tightness checker but nothing is ever slightly loose.
mikeymo
Posts: 2299
Joined: 27 Sep 2016, 6:23pm

Re: Bike rack recommendations (I have no idea)

Post by mikeymo »

Adjunct Satyr wrote: 3 May 2021, 9:29pm
thirdcrank wrote: 3 May 2021, 9:26pm Consider changing the title of your OP to bike carriers.
Done - thank you.

I suppose it is how easy is to fit ones on the back of the car vs a roof carrier (as in getting them up). I'd want something I could get the bikes onto quickly...

Out of interest... what makes the Thule ones better in your opinion than others? Build quality, safety?
I've always used Thule. Quality seems good (but then I've never used anything else).

I had a tailgate mounted one which took, IIRC, 2 bikes. On the back of a Volvo 940 estate.

I didn't really like the tailgate mounted one, because:

1. It meant I couldn't really use the tailgate with the bikes on.
2. It obscured the view out of the rear window.
3. It made an already long car even longer.

I switched to roof bars and bike carriers. This was better, because:

1. The bikes didn't affect access to the car. So on long holiday journeys with full car I could load up the bikes the night before.
2. I could see out the back window.
3. I could leave the roof bars and carriers on.
4. Outside of holidays I would remove all but one carrier (for me).
5. The car wasn't any longer.

The drawback of roof mounted is you have to remember they are there, and not try to drive into a multi-story car park.

However, when I changed from a Volvo 940 (with a relatively low roof) to a Subaru Outback (a little higher), getting them on became slightly harder. Though I know that some people have a short single step stool thing to solve that problem. If you are mounting 3 bikes on top of the car (as I used to), the middle one could be tricky.

Thule gear has some advantages:

You can get locks for everything, the roof bars and the carriers. And you can get them keyed alike. There are no doubt strong opinions about the usefulness, or not, of locked bike racks. All I would say, in response to the usual statement of "if they want to steal it they will", is that a lock makes it a bit harder, and meant that I felt a little safer parking in service station, for instance.

The Thule carriers in particular I really liked. This one:

https://www.thule.com/en-gb/bike-rack/r ... e-_-598001

is similar to mine, you close the jaws that go round the downtube by turning the handle. Not having to reach up makes a difference, when you're wrestling with a bike in the rain at midnight.

I also have a couple of these:

https://www.thule.com/en-gb/bike-rack/r ... e-_-532002

Which are fine too, and in fact felt a bit more secure than the ProRide.

Be aware that those two models clamp the down tube differently. Top to bottom or side to side. That may be a consideration depending on what cable routing you have.

The ProRide also has that slight rise at the front end of the carrier. That helps to roll the bike into the right position. Again, it might not seem that important, but believe me, if you're wrestling to get a bike into position, especially the middle one of three, every little thing helps.

One thing that is a consideration is strength. On a roof carrier you're having to lift the bike above your head, almost. I used to get my son to help me, but after a while I got used to doing it on my own. It's a bit of a knack and is a bit like some weightlifting I've seen - if you've got the right "form" and do it in a clean smooth movement it's fine. But you do need a bit of upper body strength. And it depends on the weight of the bike, of course.

Hope this helps.
mikeymo
Posts: 2299
Joined: 27 Sep 2016, 6:23pm

Re: Bike carrier recommendations (I have no idea)

Post by mikeymo »

Also, yes, Thule make roof racks for every make of car, as far as I can tell.

Bear in mind that the carriers are the same, whatever car you are using, all that changes is the roof bar fittings.

Often, but not always, to go from one car to another all you need to change is the 4 "feet", but can use the same bars. For some reason I had to get different bars when I changed car. They were the same profile, just different lengths. By the way, if you go for the very cheapest bars, the square ones, there's a pretty active ebay market selling Thule kit. I actually made a slight profit when I changed from one car to another. If you're not in a hurry I'd look on eBay for "lightly used" stuff, if you want to save a bit of money, at least for the racks. I'd probably want to buy new carriers though. You can buy matching keys from Thule, so you can convert second hand kit to be keyed alike.
ratherbeintobago
Posts: 971
Joined: 5 Dec 2010, 6:31pm

Re: Bike carrier recommendations (I have no idea)

Post by ratherbeintobago »

Pluses and minuses to all.

For roof mount, you’ll need the base bars - if you know what bar/foot pack/mounting kit you need (which the Thule website will help with), you can get them s/h off the ‘Bay.

Same goes for roof carriers - usual advice is Thule 591 or 598. 598 slightly newer, main difference is diagonal wheel straps and a torque limiter on the clamp, supposedly because people weren’t doing 591s up tight enough. Again, can be had s/h off the ‘Bay.

Tow bar mounts said to be better in terms of fuel economy, but require a towbar and electrics…
Post Reply