nob

folks

I have a 2-inch receiver in my minivan and looking for either a 4 or 5 bike rack to fit a mix of men, women and children bikes. I only need to bike rack about once a month so most of the time will take bike rack off and keep in garage. Currently I have a trek fx2 and wife has a brooklyn bicycle Willow and kids bikes are to come in the next 1-2 years but want to plan for future. We'd like both a hitch lock and lock to secure the bikes on. Open on budget and priority is ease of use and of course should swing down to give access to trunk. My bikes are not high end so if they touch each other, etc that's fine with me. What would you suggest I should go with?

Btw, with occasional use only, do most people simply leave the hitch mount on the car or take it off? Does it interfere with shopping and loading up at bjs, etc

Thx

fietsbob

Got the Hitch, how about buying a trailer, put the bikes in it?

People can, and do, overload a 3 bike rack with more than 3 bikes.. though they can also break the welds and the whole lot can fall off..

>insert sweeping Generalization Here<

nob

Trailer will be much more work. These bikes are about 25lb each and under the rate limit of the bike racks

skycomag

https://www.google.com/search?source...k1.Ta5Rj8DGpbQ

fietsbob

In Europe I saw Trailers, rather than owning a pickup truck which happens in the US..( you cam haul dirt in a trailer too. for your garden.)

Ive seen whole bike racks tear away themselves, when loaded with all the weight, and fall on the roadway..

nob

this forum has suddenly gotten very useful

rumrunn6

I have a Swagman Titan 4 & DO NOT recommend it, if that helps any :/

Viich

Why? Has it fallen apart, heavy, damages bikes, what? Different people have different priorities.

rumrunn6

had to drill out one of the holes to facilitate mounting closer to my Forester. has a loose elbow w wiggle. however, I make it work for me thanks to 3 Curt stabilizer straps & now use it with my Cherokee

Viich

Ah, my mistake - I thought you'd meant the Swagman XTC-4 (forgot the model number), the 4 bike platform model from Swagman. I'd seen almost exclusively good reviews, except by one guy who was upset that it clamped to the frame - the Swagman Semi 4.0 solves that problem.

Thanks for the info.

autonomy

I have the Thule Parkway 2 because I got it on clearance at REI and I like it - they make a 4-bike version too. I would've preferred a platform rather than a hanging rack but I preferred to save money. It's really easy to use and goes on/off in under a minute. I usually remove it when not using it since it's so easy to do (one bolt). Your experience will differ and will be based on your car make/model and the rack you end up getting. Don't think I've seen 5-bike racks.

coffeesnob

I just about lost a bike at 70mph on an innerstate. I must have noticed it as soon as it began to fall and only an extra strap and my kickstand kept if from falling off onto the highway and doing serious damage to the bike or other vehicles. I know it was probably my negligence causing it but now I carry the bikes in a van.