When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Yeah I meant more about these being untrustworthy - everytime on a site when someone posts something it ends up people arguing about not trusting them etc etc etc.
Whats wrong with a rack clamped onto the trunk lid ? or fit a towbar and put a bike rack on it KISS.
We went to towbar route (below).
There's many ways to do this. The clamp-on-the-trunk mounts are easy, cheap, but can be brutal on the paint. These top sucker mounts are more elegant, if that word can be used in this application, and keep the bike safer from other drivers. But garage doors can be a hazard; a coworker tried to enter his garage with his $5K bike mounted up top like that and it didn't go well. There's other dangers as well, I had my mountain bike roof-mounted like that on my old XJ6C when I hit a big buck deer in one of the Colorado canyons at ~40mph. The deer tried & failed to jump over the Jag, impacting hard at the windshield/roof interface. I got lucky, it didn't come through the windshield, but rather sailed over the top, doing more damage when it scraped the mt bike off the top of the car.
Exactly why I went this way. I have cross bar mounted Thule racks for bikes, and a hitch mounted rack. The hitch mounted rack is about 50lbs or more and awkward and heavy to move. The crossbar mounts on two other cars require crossbars.
The suction mount holds two bikes, weighs less than 2lbs, can be installed on or switched between cars in less than a minute, stores anywhere, locks them solid, and if I move it to the top I can still access the trunk/boot completely (like in White Out's picture). I installed it more to the rear (which does block the boot) simply because I put it on while my car was in the "garage" (normally the car lives in a real garage but it's only kept there for extended periods when I'm not regularly driving it because it's a stand alone garage and I have to drive across the yard to get to it).
It also cost $175 and won't damage paint or glass. Don't have to install a hitch carrier and add weight to the car. The clamp type racks are more prone to damage, take longer to install, much larger and heavier, and block the trunk when installed. The suction mount can be stored in the boot and takes minimal space - almost none at all.
I got myself a folding bicycle that will fit in the trunk/boot. It's basic, but it's good for simple cruising. to each his own.
Originally Posted by AbnMike
Exactly why I went this way. I have cross bar mounted Thule racks for bikes, and a hitch mounted rack. The hitch mounted rack is about 50lbs or more and awkward and heavy to move. The crossbar mounts on two other cars require crossbars.
The suction mount holds two bikes, weighs less than 2lbs, can be installed on or switched between cars in less than a minute, stores anywhere, locks them solid, and if I move it to the top I can still access the trunk/boot completely (like in White Out's picture). I installed it more to the rear (which does block the boot) simply because I put it on while my car was in the "garage" (normally the car lives in a real garage but it's only kept there for extended periods when I'm not regularly driving it because it's a stand alone garage and I have to drive across the yard to get to it).
It also cost $175 and won't damage paint or glass. Don't have to install a hitch carrier and add weight to the car. The clamp type racks are more prone to damage, take longer to install, much larger and heavier, and block the trunk when installed. The suction mount can be stored in the boot and takes minimal space - almost none at all.
I got myself a folding bicycle that will fit in the trunk/boot. It's basic, but it's good for simple cruising. to each his own.
I'm a bit of a bike collector:
Original 1980s Francesco Moser road bike
Cincelli Supercorsa Pista (track bike, no brakes)
Handmade Steel Davidson Single Speed
Moots full suspension Titanium handmade MTB
Litespeed Owl hardtail Titanium handmade MTB
REI commuter (for pulling the trailer with kids)
Plus my wife's city cruiser, 5 yo's bicycle...and whatever else I end up picking up and tinkering with
So a dual-bike holder I can move from car to car within minutes is the thing I didn't realize I needed but love.
Hauling Mountain Bike(s) with XK8
