Bike on the car roof

keithc440

Could anyone recommend a good device for attaching your bike to an existing 2 bar car roof rack ? I saw 2 made by Elite on Ribble and wondered wether anyone had used them or anything similar. Also would be looking to take the bike on the Holyhead Dublin ferry with it on the roof. Anyone know if this is possible ?
I'm sure this topic has been done before but I was unsuccessful searching the forum.

nicklouse

have a chat with the ferry company as most charge more if the car is over 1,85m (including boxes/bikes etc) but dont charge for the extra length of a bike rack (unless total length is over (?) 4m.

i would be looking at these costs first.

Bronzie

I've got three Thule VeloVise 511's - great design but a bit pricey at £70 each - I did pick up 2 of them on Ebay for a steal though, but rarely available on there.

Think they have now been replaced with this anyway............
http://www.thule.com/Thule/ProductPage____45886.aspx
as I couldn't find the old style ones on there.

Downside is that you have to store the front wheel in the car, but they are the most secure..............had a few scares with other carriers that leave both wheels in and clamp the down tube............nearly lost a bike on the A1 at 60mph which would have been a nightmare.

Mister Paul

The Thule 591 holds the bike very securely with both wheels attached. Attach the bike properly and there's no way it will come off. Trust me. A mechanic drove my car into a garage with the bike on the roof in a 591, and the roof gave way before the carrier gave up the bike!

They use the 591 on race support cars. It locks to the bike and the carrier, so you don't have to worry about it when you nip into the service station, and Thule do their nifty 'one key' system.

Have a search on froogle and you should be able to get one for under £60.

Bronzie

Mister Paul wrote:

Attach the bike properly and there's no way it will come off.

Ah.........I suspect "user error" in that case :oops:

Mister Paul

Bronzie wrote:

Mister Paul wrote:

Attach the bike properly and there's no way it will come off.

Ah.........I suspect "user error" in that case :oops:

Sorry, I wasn't passing judgement on your incident.

Bronzie

Mister Paul wrote:

Sorry, I wasn't passing judgement on your incident.

That's ok..............I shall blame it on my mate whose car it was - he put the bikes on the roof.

Think it was the old version Thule carrier with a "lobster claw" clamp that went on the downtube...........didn't seem like a great design and didn't seem to hold the bike very securely. The new design may be a great improvement.

HungryCol

C+ did a review of bike racks not too long ago. I quite like the Elite San Remo, nice and small and fits to the roof like the pro bikes. Problem is not being able to also fit the front wheel which has to go in the car.

Mister Paul

Have a look at these-

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/products/p ... _roof.html

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/products/p ... w_bar.html

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/products/p ... _rear.html

Monty Dog

The Elite San Remo is still a good strong unit - you can get wheel carriers too or as I have done, used toe straps to fix the wheel to the frame. Thule carriers are good but expensive - but don't use the frame clamp type with a carbon or lightweight aluminium frame - they don't like being 'crimped'. You may read somewhere about some manufacturers not recommending fork-mount carriers with carbon forks - but unless you've got forks with carbon drop-outs, can't see what the worry is about - many ProTour teams seem to be quite happy with them,

Rich Hcp

I always prefer having the bikes on a rear mounted rack.

You can watch them.

The only pain is fitting the light board, but at least there are no height worries.

meenaghman

For what its worth in my 14 yrs of "commuting" between England and Ireland via Holyhead I never ever bought a ticket for a high load. Went through with bikes, roofboxes and all sorts of luggage. I did tend to take the ferry or HSS rather than the smaller hydrofoil "swift" thing. never ever charged extra for it.

NFMC

I've had the Thule ones and have happilly bombed along at close to 100 in France and they've been as safe as houses.

Always had to pay extra when I went with Brittany Ferries, mind you.

Jonathan Mcp

NFMC wrote:

I've had the Thule ones and have happilly bombed along at close to 100 in France and they've been as safe as houses.

Always had to pay extra when I went with Brittany Ferries, mind you.

Just use my old thule ones on a 2000 mile jaunt through europe. £40 for 2 on the bay.

Fat Head

for the channel tunnel a rear rack comes in very handy, i just lowered the rack down a foot or so to drive on on the advice of mr check in. would have had to pay a fair whack extra for roof mounted kit.

i have to say i like the look of some of those roofrack mounted kits. i'm never comfortable with bikes at the back of the car, i certainly wouldnt carry a bike of any sizeable value in their incase a nugget rear ended me.

richa

I'm in the market for a roof carrier (Elite San Remo).

I've read this advice
A note on carbon fibre forks: The advice we were given last year is that bikes with carbon fibre forks should not be used with fork mounting bike carriers. This year Thule tells us that "carbon fibre forks with steel dropouts" can be used.

Is it common for most carbon forks have steel dropouts?

I currently have an Allez Sport but will get a new bike sometime soon and would be a shame if I had to get another type of rack.

alfablue

I prefer towbar mounted ones - the Thule Ride-On is very cheap (£99 delivered from Towequipe ) and includes electrics and light board. Fits in 2 minutes, very stable and easy to use, is lockable, and avoids those multi-story car park moments (I've had them :oops: ) There is a 2 bike version for about £69.

richa

alfablue wrote:

I prefer towbar mounted ones

They're not for me.

I've no towbar. And nowhere to store it when it's off the car...

passout

My bike is on the roof every week. Definitely buy Thule - they are the best by some way. They last ages and so represent good value. I got mine from a Ford Dealer.