Sose

To be honest, I'm surprised there isn't a section in the forum dedicated for bike racks. After all, where would the best place to find info on a bike rack be than a bike forum?

I recently upgraded from a 2004 G35 coupe to a 2013 Acura. The only thing that worked for my G35 was the SeaSucker Talon. Man did it work well or what?
Now for my Acura, I want to get a hitch mounted rack since I can't seem to be able to use the SeaSucker on my RDX in a satisfactory fashion.

Any suggestions?
Here are some more details:

I only one 1 Road Bike and a "cruisin'" bike and my GF owns a "cruisin'" one herself. The rack would need to hold three bikes, minimum.
First a 2" mount.
Has the ability to either swing away or fold down to allow access to the rear cargo area.
Has the ability to lock the rack and the bikes.
It has to be able to be set up with nothing more than your hands (I would hate to have to carry a tool in my car for this if I can just put it on or take it out just using my hands).


Any suggestions? I searched on the forum but got tons of hits on threads that just mentioned racks, but didn't go in depth.

Thanks!!

Nermal

As a general rule, I favor those designs in which the tires support the bike on some sort of ledge or loop at the bottom. Mine happens to be made by Hollywood Engineering, but I know there are several others.

Now, you want it to hold more than two bikes, fold out of the way, and install/remove without tools. There may be such, but mine holds two bikes, and requires a wrench to install. The bolt isn't a bad idea, though. There's no chance of it moving or rattling around in the hitch.

demoncyclist

My wife and I each have a hitch mounted rack on our cars- both are Yakima. I have a 4-bike Doubledown Ace on my Scion xB- arms fold down when not in use, leans away from car to get into hatch, doesnt need tools to install. My wife has a 2 bike HighLite on her FIAT 500- very lightweight and has all the same features as the Doubledown. The tool free mounting is very secure on both- no wiggling and the lock is built in. They both have the 3-point cradles so the bikes don't sway. They both fit 1.25 and 2 hitches right out of the box. Look on Amazon, especially if you have a Prime membership.

Looigi

Lots of racks to choose from at etrailer.com. (Their ad popped up in this thread just now).

Sose

You nailed it on the head. I was looking at the Doubledown and the Swingdaddy as well as Thule's options. I may go the Doubledown route.
How are you locking your bikes? Do you use the yakima branded stuff or do you use some other system?

Also, is there enough space to really fit 4 bikes in there?

demoncyclist

Yes, I can fit 4 bikes on the rack. The HighLite comes with an integrated cable lock, but on the Doubledown, I use a cable lock I already had. I may add Yakima's accessory lock (it replaces the end cap on one of the arms), but only if Santa brings it. I have had Thule stuff in the past, but Yakima seems to have really upped their game. The swing racks are very heavy, and we have a 60 mile commute and often do group rides close to work in the evenings, so weight is an issue- especially in the FIAT- don't want to knock the mileage down any more than is necessary.

Sose

Sold. Doubledown it is.

Thanks man!

chandltp

If you've not already ordered, I'm really happy with my Swagman:

https://www.amazon.com/Swagman-Cross-...an+4+bike+rack

Sose

I did get the Yakima Doubledown Ace 4 after all. I'm VERY happy with how easy it is to transport my bike (just did it today for the first time!).

Drove about 25mi to meet a friend for a ride. On the drive to and fro, the bike didn't budge at all. It was rock solid and easy to remove. It was also quite easy to tilt when I wanted to get into the rear cargo area.

What I don't like at all is how flimsy their Deadlock is. Not only is it flimsy, but it only covers the very last bike on the rack (meaning, the one furthest away from the bike). Well, I only got a 4 bike one in case my GF and her sister and sister's BF wanted to join in on a ride. 99% of the time, a two would've been more than appropriate for my needs. Which means that I'd have to re-mount my bike in order to use the lock. Not very cool. But I'm still happy, overall, with the purchase.

Now if I could only sell my SeaSucker Talon, I'd be happy since I would recoup part of my ~$450 investment overall (hitch purchase, rack and lock).

Anyway, thanks guys (specially demoncyclist)!

fietsbob

Once You got the Hitch you can get a small Cargo Enclosed trailer ,

then they are in from Prying vandal's eyes when you stop and go inside places.

RickBlane

Very nice info. Someone should think about making this a sticky out of this. I had not given racks any thought till now. Now I can't keep from thinking about them.


https://thefrugalhamstercyclist.blogspot.com/
Twitter @jdfry3

Dudelsack 

So I have the Hollywood HR1000R and I'm happy with it. I drive a CR-V with a 2" hitch.