Roof Mounting a Road Bike

scottreynolds

Okay. I'm buying a roofrack for the car (part of my ploy to go camping in France next year with bike and baby). I saw a few different options around the swords leagure and was wondering if people think its better to mount with the front wheel on or off. It doesn't make much difference to me as the price is the same but I'm leaning towards to one where the front wheel is off the bike -- its looks aero.

Here's the two options. I prefer the first but what do other people think?

DirkVoodoo

Front wheel off.

StudentC

Would the difference between front wheel on or off change your overall car height enough to push it above / below any of the height limits on the ferry?

scottreynolds

DirkVoodoo wrote: »

Front wheel off.

Your approach of 4 people and 3 bikes on a car half the size of mine was calssic. With a roof rack you could get 5 more people and 4 more bikes - TEAM VOODOO

scottreynolds

StudentC wrote: »

Would the difference between front wheel on or off change your overall car height enough to push it above / below any of the height limits on the ferry?

TBH, there's very little difference in overall height. I'd probably take it off the roof rack for the ferry (to save a few quid) if it made a difference.

DirkVoodoo

scottreynolds wrote: »

Your approach of 4 people and 3 bikes on a car half the size of mine was calssic. With a roof rack you could get 5 more people and 4 more bikes - TEAM VOODOO

That poor little Punto. It could barely overtake with that much stuff on it. Seeing the rack bounce around on the motorway was worrying, but godihatethehills assued me Lidl have a very good quality control procedure. Did manage to remove some of the clearcoat on one of my chainstays, need more bubblewrap next time!

Lumen

I guess it depends how fast you want to get the bikes off.

Mixture of both:

scottreynolds

Lumen wrote: »

I guess it depends how fast you want to get the bikes off.

Mixture of both:

What the difference in power requirements for the acceleration of the car for the two options?

DirkVoodoo

scottreynolds wrote: »

What the difference in power requirements for the acceleration of the car for the two options?

You drive a Renault, I wouldn't worry about such things.

Lumen

scottreynolds wrote: »

What the difference in power requirements for the acceleration of the car for the two options?

I dunno, but that density of carbon rims makes me dribble.

Just trying to balance up the thread after you posted pictures of knobby tyres in a thread with "road bike" in the title. For shame.

scottreynolds

DirkVoodoo wrote: »

That poor little Punto.

A womens shopping car, No?

DirkVoodoo wrote: »

You drive a Renault, I wouldn't worry about such things.

I'm not sure you have the right to criticise.

DirkVoodoo

scottreynolds wrote: »

I'm not sure you have the right to criticise.

I drive a punto....sporting....in bright blue. If ever a car said "euro italian style mobile", it is that :P.

scottreynolds

DirkVoodoo wrote: »

I drive a punto....sporting....in bright blue. If ever a car said "euro italian style mobile", it is that :P.

Yeah italians are well known for their car reliability.... they should stick to making bikes.

Lumen

scottreynolds wrote: »

Yeah italians are well known for their car reliability.... they should stick to making bikes.

The Kiwi car industry does rather put the Italians in the shade.

Oh, hang on...

Yes, I know I'm not in a strong position to be throwing stones here

Quigs Snr

For the RAS we had 2 racks that were wheel off, and 1 which was wheel on. The wheel on rack felt a little flimsy, I had to wrap a cloth around the clamp so as not to scuff the frames. The wheel off rack felt more solid. However for practical purposes during the race we had to whip off the spare bikes twice for a bike change and obviously the wheel on rack was better for that.

Much of a muchness though, the bikes didn't fall off either of them, both seemed to work..

scottreynolds

Lumen wrote: »

The Kiwi car industry does rather put the Italians in the shade.

This is certainly the latest tech................

scottreynolds

Quigs Snr wrote: »

For the RAS we had 2 racks that were wheel off, and 1 which was wheel on. The wheel on rack felt a little flimsy, I had to wrap a cloth around the clamp so as not to scuff the frames. The wheel off rack felt more solid. However for practical purposes during the race we had to whip off the spare bikes twice for a bike change and obviously the wheel on rack was better for that.

Much of a muchness though, the bikes didn't fall off either of them, both seemed to work..

Thanks... good sensible answer... I think the wheel off is better as i would really only use it to get to races or for long distances. I doubt I'll be supporting any teams, or be supported, in the near future.

-Chris-

My vote is front wheel on.

That's what I had for ages and I'm glad I didn't have to faff about with removing/replacing wheels every time I used the bike - I don't see the advantage of removing the front wheel personally...

ednwireland

i got both but only used the wheel on one for mtbs the road bike goes on the wheel off one (and if i ever get a carbon bike wouldnt fancy clamping the frame ( the wheel off one is forks and rear wheel only neither ever fallen off ( but it is all thule roof racks and carriers)

Quigs Snr

Theres no advantage to removing the front wheel (In theory its better not to). In practice however, the main thing is that the forks are held in place by a skewer in a wheel off rack and thus the bike tends to be held a little more securely. Also for a frame like my Cervelo R3, the square tubing on the downtube does not work as well as it might with the clamp for the wheel on type of rack (although it does hold the bike). I certainly don't like the way that I have to overtighten the clamp to get a decent grip... So you would want to take your frame into consideration also.

Whichever rack is used, we use small bungee cords, literally just a little loop maybe 3 or 4 inches long with a piece of cylindrical plastic on them, don't know what they are called, and they are used to wrap around the bottom of the wheel and under the part where the wheels touch the rack. These little bungees can be released quickly (very quickly in a race in fact, amazing the strength you get with the adrenalin surge of seeing your rider lying in the middle of the road with half a pedal next to him), plus they stop the bike "bouncing" on the rack.

-Chris-

Quigs Snr wrote: »

Whichever rack is used, we use small bungee cords, literally just a little loop maybe 3 or 4 inches long with a piece of cylindrical plastic on them, don't know what they are called, and they are used to wrap around the bottom of the wheel and under the part where the wheels touch the rack. These little bungees can be released quickly (very quickly in a race in fact, amazing the strength you get with the adrenalin surge of seeing your rider lying in the middle of the road with half a pedal next to him), plus they stop the bike "bouncing" on the rack.

I used toe-clip straps for that, but I don't race so speed of removal isn't an issue for me. No fear of bike bouncing off the rack though...

Bikerbhoy

Thule Outride fork mounted ....just do it

jlang

If you have a wheel-off rack does that mean you need to take up boot space with the loose wheel or does it go on the rack too?

Quigs Snr

Usually in the boot. Although for some racks you can get a seperate wheel mount, don't know which ones but have seen them from time to time.

Home:Ballyhoura

Yes, Thule also do a roof rack wheel carrier.

Does anyone know where you can pick up the Thule 561 Outride Roof Carrier anywhere in Ireland for a reasonable price (or anyone that even sells them at all!) besides Cyclesuperstore for €139. I was looking online but it's a sort of bulky awkward thing to ship so postage costs are a killer! I did found it for €101 delivered here on leiseureshack and €104 from rutlandcycling. Roofrackshop.co.uk look to be quite good if their shipping costs are not anything ridiculous, they have to get back to me with a quote. I like to see that buying 2 racks is cheaper than one, and 3 even better again. Makes sense really, chances are you will need more than just the one at some time!

I will let you know how I get on with things, but until then any help in finding the best deal would be greatly appreciated. Cheers!

I think it looks really classy and neat, especially with the Orbea Orca on it below! Haha

Home:Ballyhoura

I meant to ask, can the Thule bike rack products be used on any style roof bars are the made to only work on Thule's own roof bars solely? I ask this because I saw an adaptor kit for BMW Roof bars, so you would probably need to buy an adaptor kit for your own roofbars aswell or just splash out and buy the full Thule package. Am I right in saying this?

@jlang: This is the thing you are looking for to hold the wheel on the roof aswell!

brayblue24

I started with the wheel on and changed to taking the front wheel off

however it made not a jot of difference to the end result when I completely forgot about it while driving under a barrier into a car park....

ednwireland

roof rack locks your spending 200+ on something that can be unscrewed from the roof (plus bike costs) now obviousley someone can rip it off buut my racks are lockable and there is a lock on the bike carrier as well (just found the locks for my roof rack so their going on next

kenmc

Home:Ballyhoura wrote: »

I meant to ask, can the Thule bike rack products be used on any style roof bars are the made to only work on

Yes, you can use them on thules, they have a sliding fit really nice system, or if you don't have thule bars then you also get an adaptor set with them to use with any parallel bars.
Thule rock.

scottreynolds

Home:Ballyhoura wrote: »

I will let you know how I get on with things, but until then any help in finding the best deal would be greatly appreciated. Cheers!

http://www.micksgarage.ie/bikeracks.aspx I just ordered from here. it was €130 all up.

Halfrauds also have a special at the moment on the 'whell on model' for €99.

Home:Ballyhoura

ednwireland wrote: »

roof rack locks your spending 200+ on something that can be unscrewed from the roof (plus bike costs) now obviousley someone can rip it off buut my racks are lockable and there is a lock on the bike carrier as well (just found the locks for my roof rack so their going on next

Yes, in this picture you can see the lock for the roof bars as well as the lock on the quick release for the fork mounted carrier. This is another benefit of the "wheel off" model!

ednwireland

my wheel on rack also has a lock on the clamp

Home:Ballyhoura

scottreynolds wrote: »

http://www.micksgarage.ie/bikeracks.aspx I just ordered from here. it was €130 all up.

Halfrauds also have a special at the moment on the 'whell on model' for €99.

Sorry to disappoint you now but I found a much better deal than that on roofrackshop.co.uk!

They quoted me £15 for shipping for one carrier and the same for two so I just presume it is a fixed amount regardless of the quantity you buy (within reason, like between 1 and 4...the packages they offer online!)

Taking that into account, they work out like the following:

• 1 x Thule 561 Outride delivered = €102.86 (works out at €102.86 each)
• 2 x Thule 561 Outride delivered = €176.49 (works out at €88.24 each)
• 3 x Thule 561 Outride delivered = €252.45 (works out at €84.15 each)
• 4 x Thule 561 Outride delivered = €326.07 (works out at €81.52 each)

I think that 2 pack is quite tempting at that price! What else would I have to buy to get going, like any other adaptor kits for standard roofbars, roof rack locks or are they all included in the Thule package? Cheers

Caroline_ie

Are these any good?

kenmc

see, now THATS what halfords are for. Car accessories.
As to whether or not they're good I dunno. Gavin had something similar (argos or halfords I can't remember) and it got his MTB down to Ballyhoura and back in one piece IIRC. Was a bit more fiddly than the Thule one though, but a fraction of the price.

Caroline_ie

if I read the reviews oeioke seem to be 50/50 on it ... I usually bring my road bike inside the car, I also have a car rack, but, I dont trust it with the weight of the MTBs on the back of the 107 ... it's just a glass window. If I was to hit apothole, the weight of the bikes could shatter the window ... and as we all know ... there are a few potholes around here.

Gavin

Yeah mine was from argos. http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/0360647/Trail/searchtext%3EBIKE+RACK.htm

As Ken says, not as solid as the thule ones, but perfectly adequate. If you do get it, see if you can get an extra strap from somewhere to hook around the piece which clamps onto the downtube. Just give a bit of extra security.


Probably worth it though really to get a high quality thule one, with an integrated lock and all. Much easier to chuck the bike onto it.

rob1891

Caroline_ie wrote: »

but, I dont trust it with the weight of the MTBs on the back of the 107 ...

A lot of Coillte forest carparks have height restriction bars on them to keep caravans out. Be very very careful! Witnessed two bar-meets-bike incidents, can't imagine a person feeling much more stupid, but you can't laugh at them either, least not to their faces.

2/3 bike tow-bar mounted racks are the fashion amongst the MTBrs, buying commercial vans too, that's just a step to far ...

kenmc

Yeah my next car will be one with a towbar hitch precisely for that reason. Those racks go on in seconds. Dead handy.

Caroline_ie

something like this would actually be a good idea ... not sure i have the tow bar on my car tho. i am going to see this crowd this afternoon, we;ll see what they say anyway

rob1891

If they convince you to spend another 2/300 euro getting a towbar installed, ask for this rack: http://www.halfords.ie/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_11101_catalogId_15551_productId_172555_langId_-1_categoryId_212597

It seperates the bikes and is bit neater than the hanging one they have on their webpage.

CheGuedara

rob1891 wrote: »

If they convince you to spend another 2/300 euro getting a towbar installed, ask for this rack: http://www.halfords.ie/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_11101_catalogId_15551_productId_172555_langId_-1_categoryId_212597

It seperates the bikes and is bit neater than the hanging one they have on their webpage.

Have one of the thule roof mounted (wheel on) ones but seeing that at that price I'm tempted - could be on the 'should have left the credit card at home' thread yet.

Caroline_ie

I found this

UNSUITABLE FITS FOR REAR MOUNT CYCLE CARRIERS
Peugeot 107 5dr Hatch
Reason:
GLASS REAR HATCH
Alternative:
ROOF OR TOWBALL MOUNT

Just was donw to halfords just now and they do have good deals on racks at the moment.

Anyways ... I hate cars

CheGuedara

Just looking at that I couldn't use one either (surprisingly) *mumbles something about Renaults, shakes fist*

The roof mounted thule one is pretty good, gotta be super aware of OHBs and height restrictions though - a sore lesson to learn let me tell ya...

Lumen

Caroline_ie wrote: »

something like this would actually be a good idea ... not sure i have the tow bar on my car tho. i am going to see this crowd this afternoon, we;ll see what they say anyway

Unlikely as it seems, and despite some information to the contrary, you apparently can get a towbar for a 107. Another site said Peugeot forbid it, so who knows.

I once had a tow-hitch style rack made for an MX5 which allowed me to carry two surfboards and two bikes at the same time (and didn't even interfere with the roof mechanism), so anything is possible if you can find a person with the right metal fabrication skills and disregard for type approval and so on.

rdhma

If I was to hit apothole, the weight of the bikes could shatter the window

I had the rear window shatter once on a Seat Ibiza. Got a Thule 591 roof carrier after that.
Wind noise and fuel consumption were the problems then...

This may be the ultimate solution, took it right across France this summer.