Bike racks for the back of cars

[Piddy]

Which should I get?

Comments?

 

[Karen M.]

piddy wrote:
> Which should I get?
>
> Comments?

One of the Rhode Gear "shuttles" (unfortunate name; bet they didn't sell many in February).
Adjustable, easy to use, fits any vehicle, doesn't cost more than a bike. HTH --Karen M. found
one out by the curb on garbage day

 

[Kinon]

Do you have a trailer hitch?

"piddy" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> Which should I get?
>
> Comments?

 

[Piddy]

Kinon wrote:
> Do you have a trailer hitch?

No.

 

[John McKown]

Delta Hunch Rack will fit on any car and carry your bike the way you should. Remove your front wheel
and carry it like a roof rack. Performancebike has it $150. "piddy" <[email protected]>
wrote in message news:[email protected]...
>
> Which should I get?
>
> Comments?

 

[Buck]

"John McKown" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> Delta Hunch Rack will fit on any car and carry your bike the way you
should.
> Remove your front wheel and carry it like a roof rack. Performancebike has it $150.

I second that choice. Since my truck was in the shop for collision repairs (rear-ended in December),
I tried out both my wife's trunk rack and my old Enflight (the original version of the Hunch Rack)
on my rental car. The big advantage of the trunk rack is that both wheels stay on. The disadvantage
is that the bike has to be well secured to keep it from swinging and hitting the car.

The Enflight requires the removal and storage of the front wheel. I always hate disassembling a bike
for transport, so this was a big negative for me. But the Enflight holds the bike more securely.
However, the Enflight interferes with the front fender on my road bike, but not on my rigid mountain
bike. Also, mounting the Enflight is problematic on coupes with rear spoilers and hatchbacks with
steep rear windows. The front has two clips that grab either the top edge of the rear hatch or the
front of the trunk lid. The rear straps catch under the bumper. It sits on the glass on the
hatchback, on the front and rear edges of thetrunk on a coupe. I have successfully mounted mine on
the hatch of a Subaru wagon, the trunk of a Sunbird, and the trunk of a Cavalier.

The biggest suprise was the difference in drag between the two racks. I figured they were both in
the slipstream of the car, but the wheels stick out of the sides a bit when using the trunk rack.
The Enflight mounts the bike higher, but the air flow is from the front to the rear of the bike and
seems to be much more efficient. How much of a difference? My one-way commute used a full quarter of
a tank with the trunk rack (3.5 gallons) but only 3/16ths (2.6 gallons) when the Enflight was used.
Let's see, about 30mpg with the Enflight, 23mpg with the trunk rack. In case you are wondering, my
commute these days takes me 80 miles one-way with the bike only used for the last little bit. I
can't wait to move closer to work!

Weigh your choices carefully. My experience shows that the wrong choice can cost you a lot of money
over the long term.

Good luck, -Buck

 

[Nyrides]

>>>Which should I get?<<<<

The most responsible reply anyone can give you is to first ask what type of bike you're riding and
how often you intend to transport it. If you've got a $99-$300 bike, I'd say go with one of the
$50-60 three-bike racks you'll find at Toys R Us or XMart. The three-bike models are a little more
rugged and usually have an extra support bar that rests on the bumper.

If your bike is worth several hundred or thousand dollars, I'd say THEN go to the bike store and
look at some of these other racks people are suggesting.

Also, if you're only looking at transporting the bike short distances on rare occasions, I wouldn't
think you'd have to spend a whole lot on the rack.

 

[Nyrides]

Sorry. That came off a little arrogant. All I'm saying is that you need to ask yourself a few
questions before going out and buying a rack. There really is no universal answer to that question.
Mine is a $49 triple rack I bought at Toys R Us in 1996. Since then, it's been with me all over the
continental US and it stays strapped to the back of my car from April to November every year. I know
people who bought much more expensive racks that are a bit more gentle with the bikes, but many of
them didn't last half as long.

So do you want durability, do you want to really protect an expensive bike, or do you want a good,
affordable deal?

Also, the type of car you drive will affect the decision. Some hatchbacks and/or cars with spare
tires mounted to the back will require a certain rack design.
--
Low-Impact Rides in the NY/LI region www.geocities.com/NYRides "NYRides" <[email protected]>
wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> >>>Which should I get?<<<<
>
> The most responsible reply anyone can give you is to first ask what type
of
> bike you're riding and how often you intend to transport it. If you've
got
> a $99-$300 bike, I'd say go with one of the $50-60 three-bike racks you'll find at Toys R Us or
> XMart. The three-bike models are a little more
rugged
> and usually have an extra support bar that rests on the bumper.
>
> If your bike is worth several hundred or thousand dollars, I'd say THEN go to the bike store and
> look at some of these other racks people are suggesting.
>
> Also, if you're only looking at transporting the bike short distances on rare occasions, I
> wouldn't think you'd have to spend a whole lot on the rack.