cvcman

Ok maybe time to replace my 2000 car with 200k miles on it.im able tget both bikes in the back seat with only front tires rmoved...kinda like the Chrysler Town and Country van with the stow and go seats,,,bikes would go inside as would luggage,,,dog,,,etc....could sleep in it if we had to
But maybe just get another car and do what ive been doing,,,or an suv,,,Explorer, Flex etc....


Thoughts ?

Viich

Stream of consciousness much? Hard to comment unless you organize your thoughts a little.

I don't know what kind of car you're considering replacing, but why? Is it rusty? Does it no longer meet your needs? Do you have money you don't know what to do with? (most people here would suggest another bike)

cvcman

well the car is 17 yrs old,,,,,has 200k miles,,,starting to show its age,,,I have 5 bikes now....all newer than the car...its a Buick Lesabre Limited

nycphotography

I have a 2015 T&C, and as someone with no kids, no soccer, no chauffeur duty, I find it to be the perfect "utility" vehicle.

I can haul 4x8 sheets of plywood or sheetrock, tool boxes, furniture, several bicycles, I can sleep / camp in the back. If 4 of us want to go to an out of town race, I can flip the seats up, and the bikes fit in the rear cargo area with the wheels off.

If however you are traumatized by the minivan stigma......

TimothyH

https://www.bikeforums.net/road-cycli...ke-owners.html

Honda Element won.

Several others came close. I purchases a Subaru Forester.

jefnvk

I'm not sure your actual question, but I was able to fit two bikes in the trunk of my 2012 Mustang. Can still do so in my 2009 Fusion. Can also do so in the fiancee's 2011 Cruze. I know I can fit a bike with the front wheel off in the back seat, as I can also do with two boxed bikes.

As long as you don't buy a compact, you should be able to do so. If you're worried, do as I did when I bought my Mustang and take what you want to see fit in the car to the dealer when you buy it.

memebag

I suggest a 2016 Mazda Miata and a Saris Bones rack. Life is too short to drive a big car.

Scooty Puff Jr

I rented a Dodge Caravan R/T, and was surprised on how well equipped it was and how well it drove. Hauled two bikes up to the panhandle with luggage. The first row rear seats fold up but don't go into the floor, but the third row does, and it was a bit tight with two bikes and luggage, but both bikes (hybirds) fit without have to remove wheels or loosening the headset. One thing we found that worked well was we ran a cable lock through the seat mounts in the floor, so we kept the bikes locked up in the van over night. If someone broke into the van, they wouldn't be able to quickly snatch them and ride away.

kevindsingleton 

Get the Ford F-250 Super Duty. You can fit one bike in the back seat, without taking off the wheels, and still tow most of your home state. Plus, you get to say "doody", a lot.

Bikeforumuser0019

Plus one (although the OP did say he had two bikes)


But I will say, nowadays they make a lot of smaller cars that have a LOT of cargo space and options, without the burden of an idiotically inappropriate giganto-engine. Maybe look into a Honda Fit?

indyfabz

Just bought a 2017 Forester Premium. I am 51. It's only the second car I have ever bought. Got a great deal through work: 2% below invoice with 48 month, no-interest financing.


I have a large bike. With the rear seats folded down, I can slide it in on its side without removing either wheel. If it were a small bike, I could probably stand it up with the front wheel off.

ThermionicScott 

I'll be sad when my 1996 232,000-mile Subaru Outback gives up the ghost. The ability to just toss bikes in the back without taking off any wheels and still get 25 MPG (year-round average) with careful driving would be hard to give up.

memebag

Saris Bones carries two bikes.

TimothyH

We have been through this. 17 pages of posts...

https://www.bikeforums.net/road-cycli...ke-owners.html

fietsbob

maybe this forum will talk you out of having any car .. Living Car Free - Bike Forums

Just rent one occasionally.

I-Like-To-Bike

Maybe; but not likely.

Amigo_Frio

Just keep your car and upgrade it!

Bikeforumuser0019

You're right! My bad.

TheLibrarian

Anything with a tow hitch or you can put a tow hitch on anything for maybe $500. I have a cheap $50 trunk mount rack but the tow hitch racks seem more trustworthy and you can tow a small trailer or jetski.

Crossovers were a compromise between SUV and station wagon to be cooler than a station wagon but more fuel efficient than an SUV but I think people are just going back to SUV's now with the lower price of gas but the smug environmentalism is still around maybe always was...

RonH

When we had 2 cars I could get my bike (or 2 bikes) in the back of my Hyundai Elantra with the back seat folded down (takes 3 seconds to fold it down). Now that we have pared down to one car the bike (or bikes) fits in the back of my Hyundai Santa Fe Sport, again with the back seat folded down.

Rogus

For those of you who say you are putting two bikes inside a car (not a SUV/van/truck) with the seat folded down are you laying them on top of each other?

thumpism 

Dodge Grand Caravan with Stow 'N Go seating. We leave the middle-left seat up for the dog with the rest in the floor. My tall bikes (62cm) go in individually with wheels on but have to lean over for transport. If hauling two I have a bike board with fork mounts that holds them with front wheels off.


I began using minivans while a bike rep and it would be hard to live without one now, but I might go for a small crossover next time, to be used with my Saris Bones 3-bike rack (it works and it's paid for) or a hitch-mounted swingaway rack (if I decide to get spendy). One more thing about minivans; there are millions of them out there and they can be had for cheap on the used market.


Regarding the minivan stigma, one of the Car and Driver editors wrote a column years ago in which he praised minivans for their utility and mentioned that you need not worry about being seen in one because no one notices minivans.

bruce19

Ford Focus ST. Using a foam pad as a buffer I load two road bikes in the back. You can do it without removing front wheels but it is MUCH easier if you remove them. With two bikes loaded you will not have room for luggage if you wanted to go away w/bikes for a weekend.

genec

Truck with a canopy or shell? Easy to configure for whatever you are doing... can haul a lot, like bikes, and one can sleep in it.

cvcman

That must have been an older one,,,both rows fold flat into the floor