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Is there a good bike rack for hatchbacks?

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Is there a good bike rack for hatchbacks?

Old 11-08-04, 05:24 PM
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Is there a good bike rack for hatchbacks?

I have a both a mazda protege 5 hatchback and a honda civic hatchback. Both have the plastic spoiler w/brakelight at the top of the hatch.

Does anyone know of a good bike rack that will work well with both of these cars? My bike will fit inside the mazda but does not leave any room for anything else in the back. There is even less room in the honda.

I have a very limited budget, but if a rack for the hatch does not exist then I may start looking at a hitch mount.

Neither car has a roof rack and I do not want a roof rack.

Thank you
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Old 11-08-04, 05:36 PM
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Allen and Hollywood racks are good and cheap and fit on most hatchbacks. I've used both with no problems. You may need to remove the spoilers to make it fit. A hammer or crowbar should do the trick.
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Old 11-08-04, 05:38 PM
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If your hatch doesn't have a metal frame around the glass, you might be out of luck. I had a 240 sx at one point - hatch rack was not an option.
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Old 11-08-04, 05:46 PM
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Originally Posted by Bolo Grubb
I have a both a mazda protege 5 hatchback and a honda civic hatchback. Both have the plastic spoiler w/brakelight at the top of the hatch.

Does anyone know of a good bike rack that will work well with both of these cars? My bike will fit inside the mazda but does not leave any room for anything else in the back. There is even less room in the honda.

I have a very limited budget, but if a rack for the hatch does not exist then I may start looking at a hitch mount.

Neither car has a roof rack and I do not want a roof rack.

Thank you
Bolo.. i wish i had a hatchback. that's my favorite car.. from 1996-2000 model.
anyway.. go with a hitch mount. i have it on my car. u can see the link under my sig. the reason why i suggest a hitch is because, like u, i have a civic and the metal used for the trunk is not very hard, so to speak.

before i got the hitch, i got the yakima mojoe. it's held on there by 6 straps with hooks. i used it 3 times before i returned it back to REI for a full refund. the hooks lifted up my trunk. it kinda bent my trunk in some areas... which i had the dealer fixed for free.

another thing was when i go from my house to the lbs.. (15 miles drive) by the time i got there.. 2 of the hooks were loose and good thing my bike didn't fall off. even the managers at REI tried to make it tight on there.. and when i would drive it around the block with my bike on it.. it still came undone.

so bottom line is.. spend the extra money.. get a hitch mount.. and u'll be so rest assured that ur bike will still be there when you get from point A to B.

rui
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Old 11-08-04, 05:59 PM
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Saris Bones?
i'm trying to picture the shape of the hatch of a civic and protege but i'm not doing too well. i've been able to use this on my miata as well as a volvo v70 w/ spoiler

www.saris.com

melloboy
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Old 11-08-04, 06:04 PM
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I had the same problem with my car (Pontiac Sunfire) and never found a bike rack that would work. The Saris Bones was the close but I ended up with a hitch mount type (Saris). Check Saris website to see if they have a fit chart.
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Old 11-08-04, 06:09 PM
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Saris is overpriced yuppie bait, Get a Hollywood or Allen, they will not bend your metal or come loose.
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Old 11-08-04, 06:26 PM
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better yet.. get a hidden hitch.. and it's nicely tucked away underneath ur bumper.. so no one will notice it too much.. then get the performance rack, its by far the cheapest with the 20% coupon code applied. plus it's near identical to the sportswork rack.. just WAY cheaper.. why throw good money after bad??
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Old 11-08-04, 06:32 PM
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The other option... even though expensive is a yakima roof rack. When you change the q-towers the rack is fully swapable. Of course the hitch mount is going to be the easiest...
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Old 11-08-04, 06:36 PM
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yup.. roof rack is cool too.. but once u add up all that cost.. it gets pricey.. but then again, if you ski and what not.. u can use that rack more compared to the hitch bike rack.

my hidden hitch ($108 shipped)
my xport rack (around $72 shipped)
>
>
total package under $200... PRICELESS!
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Old 11-08-04, 06:40 PM
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a roof rack is not an option.

I want a hatch mounted rack or a hitch mounted rack for the ease of use. I do not want to have to lift my bike on top of my car after a long ride or event. I do not want to worry about going through a drive through or into my garage, because I forgot about the bike on the top.

so my for me, my only options are hitch or hatch. In the long run I think a hitch will be best but the cost is a factor.
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Old 11-08-04, 06:46 PM
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you got that right bub! hitch is the way to go..
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Old 11-08-04, 07:37 PM
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A mate of mine had a hitch rack. Bought his girlfriend a new bike. Loaded it up onto his hitch rack and drove off to the start point of the ride. Not far away from the location, he drove over a big bump and the hitch colapsed at the bend, bike hit the road, got ripped out of the carrier and got ran over by a 4wd behind. Me not like hitch racks after that.

Don't knwo if I should ask in here or start my own, but I'll try here anyway. What, besides hitting your bike on low objects are the downsides for both the bike and the car to putting your bike on a removable roof rack?
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Old 11-08-04, 09:41 PM
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Originally Posted by badsac
Don't knwo if I should ask in here or start my own, but I'll try here anyway. What, besides hitting your bike on low objects are the downsides for both the bike and the car to putting your bike on a removable roof rack?

I have heard of the bike coming lose and or the wind yanking it off a roof rack, but things like that and hitting a bump can happen to any rack I would think.

I priced out a roof rack and it came to well over $400 for everything I would need for it. Roof rack also generate alot of wind noise when on the highway. A hitch rack does not. Also I can see the hitsh/trunk rack in my rearview mirror.

Hitch and trunk rack are easy because you do not have to lift the bike very high to put them on the rack.
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Old 11-08-04, 09:44 PM
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Fair enough. Thanks for that.
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Old 11-08-04, 10:51 PM
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Originally Posted by Bolo Grubb
I have heard of the bike coming lose and or the wind yanking it off a roof rack, but things like that and hitting a bump can happen to any rack I would think.

I priced out a roof rack and it came to well over $400 for everything I would need for it. Roof rack also generate alot of wind noise when on the highway. A hitch rack does not. Also I can see the hitsh/trunk rack in my rearview mirror.

Hitch and trunk rack are easy because you do not have to lift the bike very high to put them on the rack.
You have a PM Bolo.
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Old 11-09-04, 01:46 AM
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Originally Posted by badsac
A mate of mine had a hitch rack. Bought his girlfriend a new bike. Loaded it up onto his hitch rack and drove off to the start point of the ride. Not far away from the location, he drove over a big bump and the hitch colapsed at the bend, bike hit the road, got ripped out of the carrier and got ran over by a 4wd behind. Me not like hitch racks after that.

Don't knwo if I should ask in here or start my own, but I'll try here anyway. What, besides hitting your bike on low objects are the downsides for both the bike and the car to putting your bike on a removable roof rack?
dude.. not trying to start a war or anything.. but i'm pretty sure ur friend wasn't using the xport rack from performance nor was ur friend's car lowered?

when i was looking into getting a hitch, i had a major concern. my car is lowered, 2 finger gaps all around riding on a 205x50x15". my car is pretty low to the ground.. thus getting a hitch would mean scraping to certain extent. however, with the xport, the bend is upwards... thus gives me an additional 4" clearance off the ground. just my 2 cents.

u can check my reviews and u'll see my car and the plenty of clearence the xport will give.

rui
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Old 11-09-04, 02:42 AM
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Nop he wasn't using that rack. Wouldn't have a clue what brand it was. (looked exactly like the Xport Freeloader 3 rack down the bottom of the page you linked to. Top bend was where it collapsed). Car was a Honda CRV and no it wasn't lowered (like you would one of those things anyway). Just relaying a story.
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Old 11-09-04, 01:18 PM
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Originally Posted by badsac
Nop he wasn't using that rack. Wouldn't have a clue what brand it was. (looked exactly like the Xport Freeloader 3 rack down the bottom of the page you linked to. Top bend was where it collapsed). Car was a Honda CRV and no it wasn't lowered (like you would one of those things anyway). Just relaying a story.
ah.. now that would explain it. i think the reason why it colapsed was probably because the pin was loose or had even fallen out. that's why i didn't get that type of rack, cuz when u corner, the bike wobbles. but yeah.. i hope ur friend brought it back to performance to get a full refund. for me, when i got my rack.. they said if there was any failure on the joints or anything like that.. the'll replace the rack free and on top of that, help cover some damages to my bike. so that's why till today.. the flatbed rack is still my choice.
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Old 11-09-04, 05:24 PM
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dude, you have a hatchback...put your bike in the car...I hate having my bike exposed like that...It means I have to clean it after it gets off the rack...and I hate cleaning my bike...
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Old 11-09-04, 05:31 PM
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Originally Posted by Phatman
dude, you have a hatchback...put your bike in the car...I hate having my bike exposed like that...It means I have to clean it after it gets off the rack...and I hate cleaning my bike...

When I put my bike in the car there is no room for anything else. 2 people and 1 bike is all that will fit that way. No room for any other people or luggage if we decide to take a vacation and I want to bring the bike.

I have been putting the bike in the car and it is getting to a pain. After a century ride I am tired and sore and want an easier way.

Also I would like to be able to carry 2 bikes, maybe 3 (mine and my brother's, and maybe a friend's) all of our gear and 2 to 4 people to an event without all of us having to drive our own cars.
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Old 11-09-04, 05:32 PM
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I have a '00 Eclipse (hatchback) and I can put my road bike in the car if I put down the back seats but it's a pain.
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Old 11-09-04, 05:41 PM
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Originally Posted by jlin453
I have a '00 Eclipse (hatchback) and I can put my road bike in the car if I put down the back seats but it's a pain.
Exactly. It is a pain and I want a rack to make things easier.

Here is a pic of what my spoiler looks like on my mazda.



And here is what my honda looks like
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Old 11-09-04, 05:42 PM
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Originally Posted by ruirui
ah.. now that would explain it. i think the reason why it colapsed was probably because the pin was loose or had even fallen out. that's why i didn't get that type of rack, cuz when u corner, the bike wobbles. but yeah.. i hope ur friend brought it back to performance to get a full refund. for me, when i got my rack.. they said if there was any failure on the joints or anything like that.. the'll replace the rack free and on top of that, help cover some damages to my bike. so that's why till today.. the flatbed rack is still my choice.
Nah, the metal bent and collapsed at the top bend. 2 bikes was obviously to much for it. We're from Australia, so no refend from Performance.
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Old 11-09-04, 06:11 PM
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Originally Posted by Bolo Grubb
And here is what my honda looks like
nice mods on ur civic.. nice choice with B18C5! if u not on HAN then u should check it out. here's my wife.. i mean.. my ride. haha. i just hope my fiancee doesn't read this forum.. hehe
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