11
January
2013
Choosing the Right Bike Rack For Your Car
With mountain biking more popular than ever and bikes being more popular than ever it makes sense to have a safe way to transport your prized possession around without having to worry about it falling off or getting scratched up. There are many types of bike racks or bike carriers as they are also called that you can buy to transport your bike to your riding destination. But when it comes to choosing the right one for you there are many things you need to consider. The first thing to consider would be what type of bike rack you want to use and this will be based on how you want to carry your bike and what type of car you will be carrying it on. There are 3 main types of bike racks on the market today to choose from; roof rack, hitch mount and trunk mount.
Roof rack carriers are mounted on the roof of the car and can use the existing factory roof rails, attach to your cars rain gutters or even attach to a bare roof that has no built in connection points. Some cars even come with a track system that allows you to mount racks to them. Some roof racks will let you put the bike on the rack without taking off a wheel while others require you to take off the front wheel to use the fork as a mounting point. Then of course you have to store the wheel someplace as well. The main problem with a roof rack is that you have to lift the bike up on the roof which can be a problem if the bike is heavy or if the roof is really high… or of course of you are really weak! They can also be noisy if you don’t have a fearing to block the wind and the of course you need to be careful not to pull into the garage with your bike on top of your car. One benefit is that you can usually lock them to the car so you never have to remove them when not in use. Many come with built in locks to lock the bike to the rack as well. One disadvantage is that most of the time you are stuck with a 2 bike limit.
Roof rack carriers are mounted on the roof of the car and can use the existing factory roof rails, attach to your cars rain gutters or even attach to a bare roof that has no built in connection points. Some cars even come with a track system that allows you to mount racks to them. Some roof racks will let you put the bike on the rack without taking off a wheel while others require you to take off the front wheel to use the fork as a mounting point. Then of course you have to store the wheel someplace as well. The main problem with a roof rack is that you have to lift the bike up on the roof which can be a problem if the bike is heavy or if the roof is really high… or of course of you are really weak! They can also be noisy if you don’t have a fearing to block the wind and the of course you need to be careful not to pull into the garage with your bike on top of your car. One benefit is that you can usually lock them to the car so you never have to remove them when not in use. Many come with built in locks to lock the bike to the rack as well. One disadvantage is that most of the time you are stuck with a 2 bike limit.
Hitch racks require that your car have a hitch receiver mounted to it so you can slide the rack into it to mount it. They usually come in 1 ¼ or 2 inch sizes and the 2 inch sizes can usually accommodate more bikes and more weight. You also have to keep in mind what the tongue weight capacity of the receiver is so you don’t go over the limit. Hitch racks usually carry between 2 to 4 bikes depending on the model and generally work very well. You can get models that hold the bike on the wheels rather than making contact with the frame to avoid any scratches on your bike. Some racks also have the option to lock the rack to the hitch receiver so it can’t be stolen. Then you can use something like a cable lock to secure the bikes to the rack. Hitch racks make it easier to get the bikes on and off the rack since you don’t have to lift them very high but you do have to keep in mind that they are back there when it comes to parking and backing up.
Finally you have trunk mounts which are the type that strap to the back of your car. These generally carry 2 bikes but you can get some that carry more if you look around. The potential problem with these types of racks is that you have a much greater chance of damaging your car from either the bikes or the rack itself. Since the bikes are much closer to your car than on other types of racks, you need to make sure nothing will be making any contact with your car’s paint. And since the rack is mounted on your car with straps and pads often touching the paint itself, it leaves a greater chance for damage from rubbing or improper mounting. The benefit of trunk racks is that they are much cheaper and lighter than roof or hitch racks, are easier to store and cost less.
So now that you know the difference between the major rack types it’s up to you do decide what type best suits your needs and read the reviews to find out what brands and models offer the best bang for the buck.
Finally you have trunk mounts which are the type that strap to the back of your car. These generally carry 2 bikes but you can get some that carry more if you look around. The potential problem with these types of racks is that you have a much greater chance of damaging your car from either the bikes or the rack itself. Since the bikes are much closer to your car than on other types of racks, you need to make sure nothing will be making any contact with your car’s paint. And since the rack is mounted on your car with straps and pads often touching the paint itself, it leaves a greater chance for damage from rubbing or improper mounting. The benefit of trunk racks is that they are much cheaper and lighter than roof or hitch racks, are easier to store and cost less.
So now that you know the difference between the major rack types it’s up to you do decide what type best suits your needs and read the reviews to find out what brands and models offer the best bang for the buck.