Johnny Mullet

RiseAlways

Thule Roof rack on an older Jetta.

nelsonmilum

What @forestine said.

Number_6

I usually shove 'em in the back of my company Caravan for a short haul, for a long one the seats are folded down and I bungee cord them upside down using the metal floor loops for the seat catches.

However, right now the Caravan's transmission is toast, so I drive a Jeep Liberty for a few more weeks until my new Caravan comes in. With the seat folded down, it will swallow a bike whole on its side with no preparations. Might take two if you don't care about scratches...

I did buy a 3-bike Bell carrier in the clearance section at a Walmart for $38. It seemed pretty deluxe with cushy cradles and a lock for the outer bike. I don't know that I'll haul three bikes, but I did like the 100 lb capacity. I hooked it to the Jeep's hatch (utilizing some bungee cord as well) and it hauled 80+ pounds of Schimm Breeze and Speedster from KY to GA at Xmas just fine. Used it a couple times since then with no trouble. It's nice to have- not just for the Jeep, but the Karmann Ghia as well.

My minivan method is nonetheless preferred. Weatherproof and no worries about any sort of fall-off catastrophe.

italianbiker

Good question,

I was using a Yakima, Quick Back, but it broke after 3 years and maybe used 20-30 times. Very disappointed in the quality. Car is a MBZ E500. It never left a scratch on the silver paint but did leave black marks (contact pads) on our white car.

I'm thinking of picking up the Saris rack. I'll also try and return it and see if I can get a manufactures warranty. I would hate to give up on the Yakima.

Henry III

I have a Thule spare tire mount. Holds two bikes and normally carry just one bike. Even with my shop discount I could never justify the price of a roof mounted rack. Plus with only being 5'5" getting a bike on top of my CRV would seem like a total pain in the arse.

Prowler 

For long interstate trips the bike goes inside the trunk, wheel off and the seatbacks folded down. Most of my hauling is to local trail heads though. I bought an old Rhode Gear trunk rack on CL for $25. As 90% of its use is for just me, one bike, I decided to cut it down to a one bike rack. It's real easy to mount the one bike, strap it down and go. I bought another old Rhode Gear trunk rack that takes 3 bikes (again CL for $25) which is available if I need to haul 2 or 3.

I also modified the straps to speed install and removal, now about 30 seconds each. All the clips have about 6" of old inner tube over them to prevent scratching the paint and the top two (at the rear window) are tied to the rack loop so they just clip in when I set the rack in place. I then position the side straps and the bottom two (clip the the bumper cover) now have the buckles you find on cargo straps. Hook each on the bumper, pull and cinch down. The two rubber mounting points that the bike rests on are covered with some tough but soft felt to protect the TT paint. I also use velcro straps on each wheel. To me it really looks dumb when a bike is riding behind a car and the wind is spinning the wheels so the tires are grinding off the car's paint.

Roof racks would be fine too but, as others have said, I'm no longer sure I can safely hoist bicycles that high over head. Better to just hoist them chest high. Gonna do that over fallen trees anyway.

SJX426 

If it is a single bike it goes inside either of my Jeeps, Grand or Cherokee. If only two then inside again or I use a Yakima receiver hitch rack. It will hold two or with an extension, 4.
[IMG]WP_20140308_007 by superissimo_83, on Flickr[/IMG]

jimmuller 

Good heavens, SJ! Don't go through any tool booth like that.

warrior4130

Interesting how many options there are. I see the same with the club I ride with. Most use the standard rear carriers, but some do carrier their bikes in both hatchbacks, and some in sedans. I've even seen one carried in a compact hatchback where the front and rear wheels were removed.

AZORCH

i've been doing exactly the same as this arrangement for years quite happily in my Town and Country, a Saris Bones 3 on the back of the Jetta when I needed to drive that vehicle (better mileage.) The van was sold this past spring and now I've got a CR-V; I don't care for the Saris on the back of it one little bit. It's not tall enough to stand my bikes up as I used to do with the van either, so I can get one bike in, laying flat without removing a wheel.

photogravity

The motor vehicle is a 2002 Sprinter 2500 HC wagon. The bicycle is my 1977 Jack Taylor tandem.

top506

I have a four bike hitch rack that will mount on either of the pick-ups or the Rav. I had made a RBF front fork clamp rack for the pick-ups but seldom use it. Those who have seen me arrive at group rides know that a skilled, determined man can get half a dozen or so bikes and several boxes of parts and a folding table/bench in the back of a Rav4 in addition to the hitch rack.

Top

sanmi

I use a trunk mounted rack because roof racks are bad for gas mileage.

gaucho777 

^ That worries me! I'd be tempted to just lay it flat and strap it to the roof.

Italuminium

Minivan, swallows 'm whole!

and I once moved 3 bikes, 2 spare frames, 3 spare wheelsets, several shoeboxes of parts and all my tools in a Ford Ka (old Euro spec) in one trip. My Tetris skills surely helped!

Bianchigirll 

AH I thought it was a Sprinter but that pic just makes it look much wider than they usually do. nice set up.

brianinc-ville

I've got a 2006 Prius and a 1997 Saturn wagon. With the back seat folded down, both will fit a full-sized roadbike inside, without removing a wheel.

For trips with more luggage, bikes, or people, I use Thule roof racks on both cars. They are convenient, stable, and reliable. It's also nice that they lock the bike to the car -- I wouldn't trust them on the street in a big city, but in many smaller locations (with my old and un-flashy bikes) they're just fine. You can also use them for a canoe, or for kayaks, skis, extra storage, or whatever else you want to put on top of your car (fyi, I tried a mattress once, but it didn't quite work). The versatility is important for me.

However, the mileage penalty is real. The Prius gives you real-time fuel consumption info; with two bikes on the roof, my highway mileage drops from around 48-50 mpg to around 30-32 mpg. That adds up.

One more concern with the roof racks: depending on the height of your vehicle, they may cause a problem with low overpass clearance (e.g., on the Sawmill, Hutchinson, and other parkways around NYC, where clearance may be as low as 8'6"). You definitely can't roll into a public parking garage with bikes on top of any car.

CV-6 

So are trunk racks. I have experience with both and both cut your mileage.

I get two inside my Elantra GT. But the tandem goes on a roof rack.

sanmi

True, but not as much as roof racks because roof racks increase the profile of the vehicle more, thereby producing more drag

a3inverter

My bikes are huge (64cm+) but I still manage to fit them into the trunk of my 525 - pop off the wheels, pull the seatpost and stem, lay the bars across the top and down tubes and in it goes. Sounds like a PITA, but it's literally a 60 second thing. Sharpie marks on the stem and seatpost let me get the geo back to where I need it upon reassembly.

No worries about theft or getting dirty from the road.

If it's summer and I'm driving the VW Bus, I have a setup like BG, except that they go in through the side door.

I keep looking for an OEM roof rack for cheap on CL...someday I will find one.

Paramount1973 

I use a vintage Rhode Gear trunk rack on my battered, little SUV. It holds three bikes, I bought it at a flea market for $15. My wife's crossover has a Hidden Hitch installed on it and we use an insanely robust and expensive Thule 2-bike hitch mounted rack on the rare occasion that we transport bikes with her car.

CV-6 

You would need to provide me with some proof before I could accept that blanket statement. Yes the profile is increased, but the frontal area is not as if you were putting up a solid front. Yes the bikes disrupt the airflow and create drag. The trunk rack acts as a spoiler at the end of the car, disrupting the smooth air flow over the end of the vehicle and increasing drag. An ideal situation with a trunk rack might be to have a spoiler mounted ahead of the rack to deflect the airflow off the back of the roof and over the bikes. But even that may create as much or more drag as the rear rack alone. Probably not realistic unless one did a lot of traveling with the rear rack. My experience is that they cut mileage about the same percentage. In my case it was 10-15%. YMWV with the vehicle involved.

ramzilla

Hitch mounted rack is the best way to go by far. Get a small one that will fold down & store inside the trunk. Allen makes a nice affordable one. I will never put a bike on the roof again ever since I drove into a parking garage with my Trek hybrid on top of the Pontiac.

I just had a hitch receiver mounted on my Toyota Camry. They can put a hitch on anything these days.

a3inverter

A buddy of mine has a Thule T2 hitch-mounted rack on his Subaru Forester. Best idea ever.

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