Whats best for bike transport? Roof rack, boot rack or 4x4?

marcel147

Hi Folks,

I currently have an old banger of a car which I plan to sell in the next 12 months. Having just got into the mountain biking with my 11 year old girl, I would like to take the bikes to some great places to ride. So I don't really want to buy a roof rack for my saloon car I plan to sell within the year.

Should I buy a good roof rack & do these get stolen whilst we ride?

or A good trunk rack?

or a big old 4x4?

What really is most convenient, I presume it is nice to have the bikes on the roof, out of sight and to be left with the car inside free for the essentials like people?

gareth1234

got mine on a towbar mounted jobbie, all the bits that can be stolen come apart in 10 seconds and go in the boot

marcel147

gareth1234 wrote:

got mine on a towbar mounted jobbie, all the bits that can be stolen come apart in 10 seconds and go in the boot

Like a thule classic type of device?

Anonymous

It's got to be a decent sized camper that you can lock the bikes in side.

You'll also be a able make a cup of tea after your ride and camp out in comfort and make a weekend of it.

marcel147

RichardSwt wrote:

It's got to be a decent sized camper that you can lock the bikes in side.

You'll also be a able make a cup of tea after your ride and camp out in comfort and make a weekend of it.

I like your style, the cuppa tastes twice as good after a tough ride, but really a want a day to day vehicle. Mind you, some of the vw vans look great

Anonymous

marcel147 wrote:

RichardSwt wrote:

It's got to be a decent sized camper that you can lock the bikes in side.

You'll also be a able make a cup of tea after your ride and camp out in comfort and make a weekend of it.

I like your style, the cuppa tastes twice as good after a tough ride, but really a want a day to day vehicle. Mind you, some of the vw vans look great

Yeah a friend of mine has just brought a quite modern VW 'day van' which I think is like a camper, but minus the beds.

It's a bit of a balancing act between something large enough to be useful, but small enough to be practical to drive. Plus they get hellishly expensive.

marcel147

Not kidding they get a little pricey, One could have a good old Range Rover for the same money.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Volkswagen-Transporter-T5-2-5-TDI-130-bhp-LWB-Kombi-T32-/370505027018?pt=UK_Commercial_Trucks&hash=item5643d20dca[/url]

jeremyrundle

Used to have a roof rack Thule, then I found that towbar witter racks were the very best, mount to car, bikes on secured 3 minutes max.

Bikes off at destination, bar orr and in car 3 mins again.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Witter-Towbar-Mou ... 87fe8546c1

3 bikes with absolute ease, I have placed 4, and NO strain on rear door as it is attached to towbar.

Roof mounted, no way, spend a few weeks lifting four bikes on and off a roof at the end of a day and in the rain...... :oops:

gareth1234

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
mines the same as this one, had 3 adult and a childs mountain bikes on mine with no dramas

bought here, £20 cheaper than link above
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... 0544158404

marcel147

Looks to me like the witter is a pain in the backside what with the bungee cords on widders own video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=InKpP2-H-Z4

gareth1234

haven't got those rubber carrier things on mine, just sling the bikes on there and 3 bungee cords hold them on, takes seconds.

Are there many bike carriers that don't use bungees/straps to hold bikes on racks?

marcel147

gareth1234 wrote:

Are there many bike carriers that don't use bungees/straps to hold bikes on racks?

I really don't know. I take it they all do? What about the thule device, that looked neater to install and put bikes on, but you say you got rid of one of them...

whitestar1

I got a hand me down Paddy Hendrick 3 bike rack. Seen some on ebay for under £40. Its working for me. I will be changing my car this year too. I have a Audi A4 02. I will be buying december a Ford SMAX 08 with the bikefittings. It says on the ford website that the seats can be folded down and house two bikes. It also looks cool too so no VW van for me.

walkingbootweather

@whitestar,

Your set up appears to partially obscure you registration plate and lights. I believe it is recommended to use a lighting board unless you have a high level carrier that lifts bikes above plates and lights. Had the same problem myself and had to change my rack.

You may be risking a ticket, or having someone run in to the back of you.

whitestar1

walkingbootweather wrote:

@whitestar,

Your set up appears to partially obscure you registration plate and lights. I believe it is recommended to use a lighting board unless you have a high level carrier that lifts bikes above plates and lights. Had the same problem myself and had to change my rack.

You may be risking a ticket, or having someone run in to the back of you.

Yep thats true in the process of getting a lighting kit from Halfords - necessary evil! So cant wait to get the new car!

jeremyrundle

gareth1234 wrote:

haven't got those rubber carrier things on mine, just sling the bikes on there and 3 bungee cords hold them on, takes seconds.

Are there many bike carriers that don't use bungees/straps to hold bikes on racks?

I have the same system as you on my Grand Scenic, 100% perfect and with just one bike you don't need the cable to the boot either.

jeremyrundle

No visible number plate or indicator ILLEGAL, back light kit from witter shop £9.99

whitestar1

jeremyrundle wrote:

No visible number plate or indicator ILLEGAL, back light kit from witter shop £9.99

You want to make that clear - "witter shop"? Has a website? The price is interesting.

jeremyrundle

whitestar1 wrote:

jeremyrundle wrote:

No visible number plate or indicator ILLEGAL, back light kit from witter shop £9.99

You want to make that clear - "witter shop"? Has a website? The price is interesting.

Oh I am sorry, "ask nicely" not " you want to make that clear!"

What I meant (must be the first one here to ever make a mistake) was, "the shop I purchased the "witter" component from sold the tailsets for £9.99"".

Someone once said "ignorance of the law is no excuse".

Here is an interesting point from a cyclist, you hit your brakes, cyclist sees NO lights, hits you from behind, or a car, or you indicate and turn, indicators can not be seen :!: , Rain, poor visibility lights unseen, need I continue :evil:, as a cyclist I am sure you have already considered all of this anyway.

whitestar1

jeremyrundle wrote:

whitestar1 wrote:

jeremyrundle wrote:

No visible number plate or indicator ILLEGAL, back light kit from witter shop £9.99

You want to make that clear - "witter shop"? Has a website? The price is interesting.

Oh I am sorry, "ask nicely" not " you want to make that clear!"

What I meant (must be the first one here to ever make a mistake) was, "the shop I purchased the "witter" component from sold the tailsets for £9.99"".

Someone once said "ignorance of the law is no excuse".

Here is an interesting point from a cyclist, you hit your brakes, cyclist sees NO lights, hits you from behind, or a car, or you indicate and turn, indicators can not be seen :!: , Rain, poor visibility lights unseen, need I continue :evil:, as a cyclist I am sure you have already considered all of this anyway.

Well not sure how to take that jeremyrundle, but I'll be nice and say "Thank You" Although I must point that I haven't seen the name "Witter" before until you used it. And I have no intention of using the rack until I have the Halford lighting kit - so no need to worry

sharky1029

Best thing for bikes has got to be a van.
A land rover discovery can fit bikes standing up in the back by wedging the saddle against the roof.
Scodas come with and optional bike rack in the boot (remove front wheel clip in) A roomster can store 2+ bikes and 3 people fairly easily

andrewjoseph

Thule 3 bike rack, fits in minutes. Biggest problem is cost of installing tow ball.

From what I understand, bikes on towball mounted carrier are second only to carrying bikes inside car for fuel economy. and no problems due to forgetting you've got bikes when going under low restricted height areas.

baronsouthside

I drive a merc c180 estate and use a thule roof rack and pro bike carrier on the cars own roof rails.

I choose a roof system as, with young kids, we need in and out the boot a lot of the time when the bike is on the car, (one car family by choice so need to do kid pick up drop offs etc, leave the car at train station for the wife to pick up later, then bike commute in to work etc and vice-versa)

The rack stays permenantly on the car (over a year now) and is parked out on the street at my house and at train stations, and i have never thought at anytime some one has tampered or tried to nick it and I live in glasgow! i know, whod have thought? Having said that its not the worst area in glasgow but i suppose thieves can strike at any time anywhere.

Only time i took it off the car was when the extreme cold over the winter as i was a bit concerned about the plastic going brittle. The mercs plastic bonnet release lever snapped because of the cold and that made me remove the roof rack just incase but it was -12 to -15 and the car was snowed in and not going anywhere!!

Danny1962

A roof rack for me. I’ve got a Thule.

Pros – secure; stable; you can open the boot; lights and number plate are not obscured.
Cons – expensive to buy; having the bikes on top on a long run really knackers your mpg; it can sometimes feel a little disconcerting when driving it loaded in strong winds; you have to remember never to go under low barriers when loaded ( !) ; and it’s not automatically transferable from one car to another.

It’s worth having a small plastic stool in the car for use when you load and unload, even for a tall guy like me. And gloves, or your hands will get dirty.

The racks can be stored assembled in your garage, ready to fit. When you fit it and unfit it, always keep four cloths handy one for each corner so the fitting hooks don’t scratch the paint on your roof.

solsurf

thule tow bar carrier for me, after trying roof mounted ones the effort of lifting a bike onto the roof is a real pain. If you do go down that avenue make sure its the carrier that will tilt so you can still get in to your boot.

nation

I tend to stick my bikes in the back of the car with the seats folded down. I appreciate that isn't practical with saloons, though.

Got a Renault Scenic with loads of room. You can take out or fold a rear seat and get a bike in, still be able to seat two passengers in the back, and still have plenty of boot space.

The Rookie

Maxxraxx here, mounts to a plate sanwiched between tow ball and bar, will take 4 bikes and I can get one in the boot as well, so can carry 5 bikes and 5 people and some 'stuff'.

Car is a Subaru Forester, so basically a boxy estate (that goes like stink when asked to!)

Simon

whitestar1

Some help guys I can get a light kit for my car/rack but can't connect to my Audi A4. No tow bar. Any ideas?

Alibran

We use a towbar mounted rack too. Tried the boot mounted type, but it was a pain to put on, didn't feel terribly secure when it was on, and the bikes didn't fit on it very well. The towbar one is a dream to use - it takes a few minutes to bolt the rack on and strap the bikes to it, and you're away.

We have got roof rails on the car, but I've never liked the idea of putting the bikes on the roof. I like to have them where I can see them.

bakerstreet

marcel147 wrote:

Not kidding they get a little pricey, One could have a good old Range Rover for the same money.

If you want something trouble free, do not under any circumstances buy a Land Rover.

When I have had to move my bike, I've put the seats down in my car and put it in the boot, but I have to take the front wheel off.

I don't mind taking the wheel off, but I usually get oily marks from the chain on clothing or a part of the car. Thats a PITA.

I'm getting a new car at the end of this week and I'll probably fit a tow bar and a towbar mounted bike rack.

In answer to the OP's question, I would go with a normal car with a cycle rack.

RufusA

andrewjoseph wrote:

and no problems due to forgetting you've got bikes when going under low restricted height areas.

+1. I remember last summer sitting outside a very crummy service station on the M5. Every fourth car with a bike rack would hit the height barrier before the multi-story car park entrance and have to reverse out and take the "other" route for high vehicles! I must have seen over a dozen collisions during my lunch!

Rufus.