Bike rack, and maybe a towbar

kingstonian

Anyone have an Audi A4 Avant (mine is 2008) and can recommend a rear-mounted bike rack to hold 3 bikes? Have seen mixed reports on the Thule ones so wanted to see if anyone has either used one of these, or can recommend something else.

Also, would it obscure the rear lights enough for me to need a light panel? If so I guess I'll need at least the wiring done for that, in which case does having the whole towbar etc make sense? And if it does, anyone got a suggestion on cheap but good places who will fit them in SW London?

freefall_junkie

Towbar racks are the way to go for convenience and minimising the risk of damage to your car and bikes. I had an Atera Strada DL rack until recently (sold as I now have a VW T5 which is the ultimate solution for carrying bikes ). The Atera gets good reviews but I was not very impressed with it and if I was buying again I would probably go for a Thule.

secretsam

freefall_junkie wrote:

Towbar racks are the way to go for convenience and minimising the risk of damage to your car and bikes. I had an Atera Strada DL rack until recently (sold as I now have a VW T5 which is the ultimate solution for carrying bikes ). The Atera gets good reviews but I was not very impressed with it and if I was buying again I would probably go for a Thule.

Now (s)he tells me, having just posted a thread about rear racks and received about 3million positive reviews for the Atera sliding rack thingy and just this morning received it... :?

springtide9

I have owned a few of the rear racks (hanging off the back)... and the best I've used so far is the Saris Bones 3. The bikes sit high and therefore no need for rear lighting etc, but with 3 bikes I wouldn't want to go very far.

There is obviously an advantage with the bikes sitting high but the disadvantage is they get caught by the wind (bad for fuel and stability)

I like the Thule ProRide 591 roof mounted carriers for "non towbar" solution. You can get 4x ProRide on the roof with a bit of a squash (or 2x ProRide and a Roofbox)

We are off to France with 4x bikes and Roofbox and our current car has a towbar, I have just purchased the Buzz Rack Buzz Quattro. Seems to get decent reviews but will be able to tell you what I think of it in a few days time.

I'll now wait for someone to come along and tell me this purchase was a bad idea!

kingstonian

Thanks for the replies, everyone.

Springtide - interested to hear how you get on with the Buzz Rack.

springtide9

Update on the Buzz Rack Buzz Quattro.

So got the Buzz Rack Buzz Quattro delivered and used it for the first time in anger on our trip to Brittany carrying four bikes

(1) Adult Cyclocross @ ~9kg
(2) Adult Hybrid @ ~15kg
(3&4) 2x 24" Childrens bikes for 8-10yrd olds @~12kg

The rack is rated at 60kg (15kg per bike) so we were well within the guidelines. The rack is very well made and looks like it will last for years. Due to it's heavy duty construction is does mean that it weights about 20kg.. although not sure now this weight compares to other 4 bike towbar carriers.

The tilt to get into the boot works really well and is balanced as such that you can remove the clamp at the towbar and walk around to the back and pivot the bikes over to get into the boot without any risk of the bikes dropping unexpectedly.

The rack being a 4 bike is long... although saying that every other bike needed the pedals removed to fit on the rack as the bikes stack closely together - I guess you can't have it both ways.
The clamp to the bike works great and allows you to position the bikes (forward of backwards) so that you can stop them from touching each other. Once clamped they don't move. The clamps themselves have very soft rubber linings, meaning they were perfect for carbon frames etc to avoid damage.

The only downside was the fact the rack doesn't fold up... but I guess most 4 bike racks won't do as they need a strong structure to handle such a high load. It will fit in the boot... but does leave you with very little boot capacity.

As for when the bikes are attached... perfect - grab any of the bikes and it's rock solid with very little flex in the rack when fully loaded.

So Highly Recommended... just a shame I can't leave it attached all of the time

thecm

We have a Thule 2 bike rack, 5 years old and can't remember the model. It's towbar mounted on our T5 and is rock solid under two weighty MTBs never mind any svelte road models. Couldn't fault it, has just had the odd squirt of lube on the moving parts and locks. Needed this one as it tips enough to allow the van hatch to open to access the gas valve etc. Pricey (£300) but you get what you pay for.