So we just swapped out our car with a EuroVan (better for camping trips) and there's a hitch installed. What are your experiences with hitch-mounted racks? I'm waffling between a hitch-mounted rack and trunk/rear end mounted rack. Most of the time, the rack wouldn't be on the van, but we are driving to Colorado later in the summer, and I'll drag the bike along.
Transferring the roof top rack from the old car is out of the question because the van has a pop-top, and a rack can't be mounted with significant modification to the fiberglass shell, and it makes getting the top up that much more difficult.
Thoughts?
I used a landrover with a hitch mounted rack for a week. It was nice because I was still able to open the rear hatch (it was a split hatch). You have to be carfull backing up with bikes on the back tho. The rack sticks out like 4 or 5 feet off the rear bumper.
It is better then a trunk rack if you ask me.
My parents have carried around recumbents on their Honda Civic with one for the past few years, and they never seem to have had much issue with it.
this is something i'm considering for my prius-
the options being:
install a hitch and get hitch rack,
buy trunk/hatch rack
roof mounted temporary rack
mount tracks to roof permanently and get track mounted rack
there's tracks that are made to be mounted to fiberglass tops, so you could probably still pop the top with or without the rack installed, it would just pop with it. (if you'd consider that).
I'm on the fence as to what to do because trunk mounts can mess up your car's paint and arent as secure, hitch mounts can get rear ended but are easier and can be locked, and roof mounts seem to be ideal, but mess up fuel mileage the most, and can be driven into low overhangs.
We've been using a Thule Hitching Post for at least 8 years now, and it's sweet! It's real basic, but it does swing down if you want to open the back of your van. Technically, it holds 4 bikes, but they need to fit well with each other. Kids bikes may or may not fit depending on how the toptube and headtube meet. Thule or Yakima now makes a 5 bike rack, so you could really stack them up.
The nice thing is 1 bolt holds it in the receiver, and everything stays away from the back of the van and the tailpipe. Easy on, easy off. If you buy a little nicer model, the arms fold down so they're not so obtrusive when you're driving around empty.
With a big family, I have both roof mounts and a hitch rack. The hitch is definitely the easier one to load. No bugs smeared on the bars or headtube either when it's behind the van. Enjoy Colorado!
i was going to drive to buffalo to visit my family on friday and just throw my bike in the trunk/back seat of my hatchback. it almost requires taking off both wheels, but whatever. not a big deal.
and then my car got stolen. and it wasn't there. and somehow, i was just happy it wasn't my bike.
- my buddy uses the THULE rack with a rear wheel lock and then a frame clamp type thing. it is hitch mounted and really awesome. It just makes the car super long, so steep driveways or parkinglots it
scrapes.
-this weekend we used the "draftmaster" which is some crazy rack that is hitch mounted and you lose
the front wheel and clamp it like a skewer. We rocked 5 bikes on it. Not sure how safe it is though.
I have the Thule one that Steevo mentions. It's the bee's knees.
I have the Thule T2, and it rocks. It is hitch-mounted, holds the bike from underneath, and folds out of the way when you're not using. It is easy on/off, and super stable. Before this, I had been using only a roof rack for 6+ years, but now I like the hitch so much better. I still have the roof rack when I need to carry more than 2 bikes. The 2-bike limit may be the only flaw of the T2, but that is because I have the 1.25" hitch version (the 2" hitch version can take 4 bikes).
Also, for trips that thule thing was awesome. A
roof rack in a headwind (IE coming home from philly)
is a good 30% increase in gas. The thule was negligible
