Yet Another Cycling Forum
General Category => The Knowledge => Topic started by: Red on 18 July, 2011, 09:00:15 pm
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Right, I turn to you, oh wise cycling gurus. I'm looking for a rear-mounted bike rack for my car, and would really appreciate some advice on what to get. What bike racks have you peeps got that you trust not to send rack plus bike flying off the rear upon hitting a stealth pothole at 60MPH (see here for details (http://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=2177.msg994792#msg994792), also the reason I am avoiding Halfrauds like the plague, even if they offered me one for free and threw in a sexy naked guy tied up with a ribbon)? I just want something that comes with the opinions of some people who have experience with this stuff.
Car is a 3 door hatchback Vauxhall Corsa, W/2000 reg, last of the 1993-2000 model. Not that it probably makes a huge difference.
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I have one of these
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/saris-bones-rs-3-bike-rack/
utterly utterly rock solid. Can be locked on and takes seconds to fit and take off. Worth every single penny. If you cant strecth to the rather eye watering price, the other Saris bones are just as solid but a litttle bit more faff to fit. But nowhere near as bad as some of the Halfrauds offerings. I speak from experience and a badly scratched boot :hand:
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Funny you should say that. I've got a Halfords one, a bit like this one (http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_251011_langId_-1_categoryId_165477), for my Honda, and it's been rock solid at 75 mph with 3 bikes on it.
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Another vote for Saris Bones. We have the 2 bike model and it's idiot proof (ie perfect for me!)
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/saris-bones-2-bike-rack/
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Sounds a bit alarming.
Our ebay special stays on the car OK, although I'm a bit nervous about how secure it is when parked. However, the rubber straps that hold bikes on are looking a bit tired and it gets in the way of the rear wiper, which will run the battery down if not released when parked. I must see if spare straps can be had. I'd be tempted to think about the tow bar sort next time.
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I've always trusted Thule racks. I regularly carried 3 bikes on one on the back of a Renault Scenic touring through France at 80-85 mph with no problems. The main issue was having to dissable the automatic rear wiper as it jams on the rack I've gone for a tow bar mounted one now as it's a pain not being able to open the back but it's still a Thule. I do still use the hanging one for the tandem though!
http://www.thule.com/en/GB/Products/Bike-Carriers
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I have never heard a bad word said for Saris Bones, and Go Outdoors have them on offer at the mo, IIRC
http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/bones-3-bike-p155139 £120 with a coupon, which you can download from that link
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I've always trusted Thule racks.
+1.
The main issue was having to disable the automatic rear wiper as it jams on the rack...
It will depend upon the car obviously, but on mine (a Fabia) the rear wiper is on a separate circuit so I just pull the fuse for the duration of the trip. Some garages are more helpful than others when it comes to identifying the right fuse to pull...
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I know it's not a direct answer to your question but....
I have used all sorts of racks over a number of years & long ago ceased to use the type which is strapped to the boot of the car.It's now either rack mounted on the roof(Thule) or a tow ball mounted rack(Witter) or a combination of both,
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Have a couple of Thule tow bar jobs so cant comment.
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I have the Saris bones 3 bike model and it works well.
3 Mt Bikes are too heavy but 2 MTB or 3 road bikes are OK and its well made but a bit bulky to store off the car, otherwise recommended.
A friend fitted a tow bar mounted rack at considerably more expense but its far better and inevitably he got what he paid for, get one if you plan to do this a lot or need a tow bar for a trailer or caravan. And its legal with separate lights and number plate which most rear racks are not. You can also leave it fitted to the car at the car park which is inviting theft with a Saris.
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You lot are a bunch of saints. Thanks for this, it's extremely helpful. Now I get to procastinate over what I want exactly. ;D To be honest, after paying £85 for the Halfrauds effort, the prices of these recommendations seem shockingly reasonable.
I considered the tow ball one, but I wouldn't use it often enough to make it worth getting a tow ball fitted just for that, and my spacial awareness isn't fabulous (ask Kim about the Easter a couple of years ago that involved me trying to parallel park with a helpful churchgoer doing lots of gesturing to help me manage to get the car in the space), so I can foresee pain with that, probably involving some berk's penis extension of a car. :o Roof isn't entirely practical as getting the bike up and down on my own wouldn't be easy. Perhaps this is why people have teenagers, so they can be pressganged into duty for such times as this?
I had this one from Halfrauds (http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_251029_langId_-1_categoryId_165477). My first mistake was probably trusting them to fit it (though it did make returning it easier). I was dubious about clamps only (in hindsight, that's because it wasn't actually fitted properly), though I suspect it might have been better with a few straps giving it extra security in the right places. But given that particular one didn't do the job for whatever reason, it was going back whatever.
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(ask Kim about the Easter a couple of years ago that involved me trying to parallel park with a helpful churchgoer doing lots of gesturing to help me manage to get the car in the space)
*twitches*
so I can foresee pain with that, probably involving some berk's penis extension of a car. :o
Or worse, a damaged bike...
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I have some unnamed boot job and no car.
But it does get used occasionally.
Advantage is that it fits on most boots of most cars.
I hang on the end of the straps etc. so it gets the full 110lb of my weight behind it.
So far so good, but I use plenty of bungys, string etc.
And mount it up high so as not to hide the lights.
Note to Kim: when you make it to Ipswich be sure to pop in for a cup of tea/coff/choc/etc. (your sig line). Given warning I will also provide caik rather than bis-cuits.