If this is the first time your have even considered transporting your bike on your car then this article is for you. It’s a simple and concise overview of bike racks for cars, what you need to look out for, where they fit, how they fit and what may be best for you and your vehicle.
Car bike racks fit to the car in one of three places either on the boot – trunk mounted, on the tow bar – hitch mounted or on the roof – roof mounted.
Trunk Mounted (less than $100 or £65)
Trunk mounted bike racks are the most common and consequently the cheapest types of bike racks on the market. The way that they hook on makes them almost universal. Many bike racks for suvs are trunk mounted. The biggest advantage of rear mounted bike carriers for cars is that they are easy to load and easy to unload. There are two big disadvantage of rear mounted bike racks and that is they can restrict the view out of the rear window and you can’t open the rear of your vehicle when they are in place. If you can live with these restrictions the key features to look out for with these types of racks are:
- Wherever they come in to contact with your car there is rubber or vinyl present so they will not scratch or damage your car.
- You can fasten your bikes easily to the rack.
- The bike or bikes when on the rack do not come in to contact with the car.
- If the bike rack carries two or more bikes make sure the bikes do not rub together in transit and damage each other.
The saris bike rack – Bones comes highly recommended by many users.
Hitch Mounted ($100 – $450 (£66 – £300)
Hitch or tow bar mounted bike racks are obviously dependent on you having a hitch or tow bar. They tend to be rather more expensive than trunk mounted racks but do have some good features. In some cases they are low enough to not restrict the view out of your rear window and if you have enough money you can buy a hitch mounted car bike rack which pivots out of the way so that you can get access to the rear of your vehicle. A hitch mounted bike racks for cars significantly reduce the chances of bicycle scratching your car and also if you carrying more than one, damaging each other in transit.
Hitch mounted racks are expensive and if you don’t already have a hitch fitted unless you are serious about transporting your bikes the costs are prohibitive.
Please take note that with both trunk and hitch mounted racks if your number plate/license plate and lights are obscure you will need to get a lighting board to hang of the back of the rack – failure to do so could result in a fine…
Roof Mounted (less than $40 (£26) per bike if you’ve already got roof bars, if not add around $200 (£133) to that cost)
If you already have roof bars on your vehicle then roof mounted bicycle carriers for cars can be the cheapest way for your to transport your bike(s). Just find the contact details of the manufacturer of your roof bars to find the part number of the bicycle carrier component that you need to order.
Thule bike racks do a massive range of fittings to put bikes on the roof of your car. If your car does not have roof bars then you will need to buy a complete kit and this can work out to be expensive. As a quick overview to put bike on the roof of your car you will need the following:
- A feet pack – this is the part that connects to your car.
- The roof bars – Thule and Yakima bike racks do at least three different types between them some are square and some are a more aerodynamic shape that intends to improve fuel consumption.
- The Bicycle Mount – This is the part that connects the bicycle to the roof bars – there are many different types available; with some you will need to remove the front wheel of your bike and others the bike just fits on complete.
There are however two disadvantages of roof mounted carrier – one of which is really dependent on your vehicle. If you have a tall car with a high roof then getting your bike on to the rack can be a challenge and second disadvantage is that your fuel consumption can go up as your bikes create maximum drag when they are placed on the roof.
This brief overview of bike racks for cars should set you on the way to buying that best bike rack for your needs.
