Carrying bikes on your car

duffyshuffle

Thanks everyone, roof rack from Micks Garage arrived today and i've got two Thule bike carriers for it on loan from a mate that got a new car, so it worked out great

cletus

Doop wrote: »

I assume the Aldi towbar racks were available previously? I cant find them available on the website now...

They were part of an offering from a couple of weeks back. Still a few left in Aldi Naas and Kildare town

loyatemu

I've gone to France the last couple of years with 4 bikes on the towbar and one on the roof. Towbar is expensive enough but I got the bike racks from Adverts. The (Halfords) towbar rack doesn't tilt so you can't open the boot when the bikes are on it, but I can get to the boot through the back seats so not a big deal. Bikehire x 5 is expensive enough so it paid for itself after a couple of trips and it means we can take the bikes around Ireland to greenways etc as well.

duffyshuffle

Thanks for all the info on this - got set up with Thule roof carriers, that hold the full bike with the clamp, not the fork - i'm loading carbon bikes up there and know i've heard not to clamp carbon in a bike stand for example - any tips/worries about clamping the frame? Google seems to say its fine and carbon is strong - the Thule clicks as you tighten the clamp, so would you go until no more clicks or a little less with carbon?
Thanks

Macy0161

Thule sell a frame protector for carbon. I've only ended up using my thule roof mount with aluminium so far.

loyatemu wrote: »

Bikehire x 5 is expensive enough so it paid for itself after a couple of trips and it means we can take the bikes around Ireland to greenways etc as well.

I'm revisiting this now (must have been a different thread pre family holiday), as the day with the hire bikes worked great, but a couple of weeks worth of hire (not to mention the potential charge back) changes the maths for me. I've started pricing around for the towbar.

I also priced a high thule rear rack for my van/ mpv, like you see on campervans, so that the bikes are above the lights and reg plate. By the time you add the fitting kit, the 3rd and 4th bars, it's pushing over the initial quotes for the towbar!

I did see a car in France on the motorway, and they used a "normal" rear rack, with a number plate board, and had removed the bike wheels, which I hadn't thought of before (for using in countries that are actually arsed about traffic law enforcement).

saccades

Halfords are Ireland's Thule distributors - you can occasionally get a minimum wage monkey same as any shop but for something as simple as Thule? Plus they carry loads of bits/spares other places don't.

Generally I stick the bike inside my Volvo - 120 euro for a custom boot cover and the bike is out of sight, no need to remove wheels (unless a FS 29er) so no messing up the brakes.

Otherwise I used to like a rear hanging rack until you needed a lightbar/plate with electrics etc. Now if I have to I put the bike on the top - never had any cause for concern on fork seals etc.

I handy tip is to put a baby mirror thing on the dashboard so you can see your bike as you drive.

cdaly_

Macy0161 wrote: »

I did see a car in France on the motorway, and they used a "normal" rear rack, with a number plate board, and had removed the bike wheels, which I hadn't thought of before (for using in countries that are actually arsed about traffic law enforcement).

Prior to having a towbar, I used a strap-on rack with a number plate board. This plugged in to the towing electric socket that I fitted to the car myself so I had road-legal rear lights for continental* driving.



* And optionally for irish driving...

Hurrache

Bumping this thread, for those that carry bikes on their roof, how many do they carry?

I usually have 2 up there and maybe rent the kids bikes when we need them at our destination, but kids are older now and have their own so I'm going to go with 4 on the roof. I've seen plenty do it, just wondering of people's experiences in doing so.

I've ruled out the tow bar option, car is old enough and there's the expense of a new frame and tow bar, as well as the electrics and then the bike rack itself.

Thule don't recommend the ones that sit on the rear of your car for my model, they do for the hatchback version but I guess the estate will have issues due to the factory fit spoiler and it resulting in either damage or an ill fit.

So I guess that leaves me with getting another pair of Thules, already have 2 591s, 598s are pretty much the same price these days.

loyatemu

how tall is your car - I'd really struggle to put bikes onto the middle of my car roof (car is an MPV)

Hurrache

Good question. I remember this came up in a similar thread a while back. My car is not too tall so it's manageable, I use the door sills as it is when I have the roofbox on but don't need to give myself the extra height for getting the bikes on and off.

Harrybelafonte

Hurrache wrote: »

Good question. I remember this came up in a similar thread a while back. My car is not too tall so it's manageable, I use the door sills as it is when I have the roofbox on but don't to give myself the extra height for getting the bikes on and off.

Four. But I'm six foot one and the car is lowered (and older so lower already). A wee foldable stool would be a help if needed. Sit it in the back.

Hurrache

Cheers Harry. Do you have the bikes facing the same direction, or do you need to say have 2 forward, 2 backward in order to get the 4 together without bars etc getting in the way of the adjacent one?

Harrybelafonte

Hurrache wrote: »

Cheers Harry. Do you have the bikes facing the same direction, or do you need to say have 2 forward, 2 backward in order to get the 4 together without bars etc getting in the way of the adjacent one?

As you say, 2 forward and 2 backward. I used to drive people to races and that was the quickest way to get them in there. Be sure to use straps though, as having to reach over that much means sometimes not tightening properly, but that could be an issue I had (released one of the bikes at 100km/h on the N8(?) and watched it skid after us, luckily it was mine and not that of clubmates).

Hurrache

Cheers again.

I remember similar, behind someone I know with one of those racks that hang off the rear of a hatchback. Heading over some pretty bumpy back roads in Wicklow, bike flew off but landed in the adjoining ditch. It survived without any major damage and was usable for the event we were travelling to.

CramCycle

Harrybelafonte wrote: »

but that could be an issue I had (released one of the bikes at 100km/h on the N8(?) and watched it skid after us, luckily it was mine and not that of clubmates).

You and me have different meanings for the word luck

Harrybelafonte

CramCycle wrote: »

You and me have different meanings for the word luck

Mine was the only alu frame, all the rest were carbon. So the worst damage was to the saddle tbh, which was totally torn, which meant that all the A4s at Summerhill stayed well away from me that year.

Rogue-Trooper

Looking at getting a couple of Thule ProRide 598s but have a query for anyone that has them. They would be used primarily to transport road bikes which all have 2 bottle cages - do the cages get in the way of effective clamping of the bar?
Just looks like the optimum position for the bar is right where the downtube bottle cage sits. Also, in one video I saw on YouTube, when the guy released the spring-loaded clamp, it looked like it struck the underside of the seat tube-mounted bottle cage which is less than ideal.

Hurrache

You can have the clamp fasten just below the bottle cages. One of mine has 2 cages, the one on the down tube leaves enough space, about 6 inches, between the end of the cage and bottom bracket and clamps there no probs. If I release it without restraining the clamp on mine it may pop the other cage, but that cage is nothing fancy, an old style metal one I took from another bike. It's not something that I've ever worried about anyway.

loyatemu

I'd recommend getting straps and using them to secure the frame as well as the clamp. This is the voice of experience - I had a clamp pop open @ 120km/h on the motorway in France. The wheel straps held so the bike swung down from the roof and whacked into the side of the car. Scared the living sh!te out of everyone and I then had to crawl out of the door to re-secure the bike while standing in the hard shoulder. Not fun.

Rogue-Trooper

Yikes!:eek: Was this on a 598? Do you just strap from the bottom of the frame to the base of the carrier?

Hurrache

The 598's have a better clamp that could fully enclose the frame it's connected to. The 591s don't, so after you tighten them you need to give it a wiggle to make sure it's secured properly, sometime's it might move slightly and you can tighten it a bit more.

loyatemu, what do you reckon happened with yours? Was the clamp locked with the key and pop open?

loyatemu

yeah mine is a 591, but when I put the bike back up, it seemed to be locked OK. So I'm not sure what happened. I bought roof-rack straps in Decathlon and used them to secure the bike frame to the arm. Even with the improved 598 design you'd still be in trouble if the mechanism failed for any reason.

Hurrache

I'll have to do that now that you put the thought into my head, I've straps but never used them for the bikes, last time I think was for a Christmas tree.

Rogue-Trooper

Rogue-Trooper wrote: »

Looking at getting a couple of Thule ProRide 598s but have a query for anyone that has them. They would be used primarily to transport road bikes which all have 2 bottle cages - do the cages get in the way of effective clamping of the bar?
Just looks like the optimum position for the bar is right where the downtube bottle cage sits. Also, in one video I saw on YouTube, when the guy released the spring-loaded clamp, it looked like it struck the underside of the seat tube-mounted bottle cage which is less than ideal.

Have now ticked the box on Rule#25 (The bikes on top of your car should be worth more than the car):p

Very happy with the 598s. The clamp sits nicely between the bottle cages - you just have to be careful when releasing it so it doesn't whack the one on the seat tube. Even then it doesn't look like it would do it any damage anyway.

Bikes are rock solid on the carriers and relieved not to have to keep one eye on the rearview mirror as was always the case with my Saris Solo!:eek: