Best Bike Rack??

I am trying to figure out what is the most practical way to transport my mtn bike, wanna get back into riding this season trying to plan ahead, I have an 06 so no fold down seats, I dont wana spend over $300 if i can help it, can somebody please tell me what options I have?

Ebay, NASIOC or this boards classifieds for a Yakima or Thule Rack.

 

I lucked out with a Thule rack for my 2005 LGT wagon for $100 delivered.

I am a long time Thule user so would recommend their products. I have a hitch mounted T2 that I really like but that would far exceed your budget as you need to install a hitch as well. You should be able to find a roof system in your price range.

i just put a thule roof rack on. Pretty simple installation, not to mention i love the way it looks. If you watch the members classifieds regularly you will see a few pop up from time to time

I love my Yakima

I have the thule rack, with the bike attachment. I have the one with the handle that swings up and grips onto the front tire. Takes less than one minute to put it on/off, super high quality, insanely easy to use. You can find the bike attachment for $100 on ebay, and a used rack for around $200-250. Yakima and thule are both great products!

i have a Yakima rack system with one king cobra bike rack, and one raptor rack...i like the king cobra because it clamps to the wheels and not the bike frame without removing the front wheel, that way i wont damage my carbon frame.

I found a hitch on ebay for 135 shipped and I think I can find a two bikerack cheaper than 200 for it, does anybody have problems with their hitchs bottoming out on anything?

rocking a hidden hitch and a custom bike rack on mines with an full tbe

My hidden hitch is the class III one.. it's a little big and fat, but I like the look more than a roof rack. Plus the hitches that slide into the rear hitch is easier to get bikes onto it rather than the roof.

I think the hitch system has many advantages over a roof rack system. You can easily remove the rack system and throw it back on whenever you want. You also don't have height clearance issues with a hitch system. With a rack system you have to remind yourself that when your bikes are mounted your height clearance is higer. I made the mistake by driving through a parking garage with my bike mounted on the roof. My bike slammed into the Clearance sign, lucklily the carbon frame didn't crack!!

 

A roof system is pretty much a long term rack that is mounted on your car on a semi permanent basis. You really do not want to constantly install and remove your roof rack system, huge pain. Yakima offers different bike mounting systems for the roof racks. Be sure to keep security in mind when buying one. Some bike mounting systems are very easy to remove with simple tools.

 

DO NOT BUY TRUNK RACKS -- It's waaay too easy to just steal your bikes. I had a friend who just stopped off at the store really quick after a ride and came back to his car to find that his trunk rack and three bikes missing!! If you absolutely have crappy bikes not worth stealing and you are only going from point A to point B I would say trunk racks work.

On my 91SS I have a yakima roof rack, and love it. For my 07, I have a hitch and Yakima hitch mounted rack.

 

I like both, but the hitch mounted rack isn't very FS bike friendly, unless you get a special crossbar as well. With the crossbar, it's okay though.

 

I honestly like throwing the bike on the roof, instead of putting rack on, taking rack off, putting rack on. It isn't bad at first, but just becomes one more thing to drag out Pre-ride.

 

I built a brand new roof rack with all Yakima components, a king cobra bike tray, and a forklift bike tray for only $240 on amazon.com. I just built the rack on the yakima website, took that list, and searched for the cheapest parts on all the sites. Of course it didn't all come at once, because I bought from 3 different companies, but saved a ton of cash that way.

I had a Thule rack on a previous car. Great quality rack system. Think for the most part Thule and Yakima are on the same level quality wise.

 

Good luck.

I agree,Thule and Yakima are basically the same. I just bought the Thule roof rack at REI because it was 20% off around $260. I personally do like the hitch rack for bikes but I have a variety of other hobbies (snowboarding, kayaking etc) that I also can use the roof rack for so I went that route.

On my 91SS I have a yakima roof rack, and love it. For my 07, I have a hitch and Yakima hitch mounted rack.

 

I like both, but the hitch mounted rack isn't very FS bike friendly, unless you get a special crossbar as well. With the crossbar, it's okay though.

IMO, any hitch rack that requires a special cross bar to fit certain frames sucks. The best hitch rack system design is the Sport Works design (see below), which holds the bike by its tires. The Sport Works patent has since been purchased by Thule and is available through Thule. The Thule product includes some advantages over the original Sport Works design such as lockable arms.

 

http://photos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-snc1/v374/101/16/536748931/n536748931_1159187_2869.jpg

Here's a pic of my thule rack for you(not the best scenery)

im selling a thule trunk rack. super cheap.

I got a rhode gear bike trunk rack for $20 from craigslist from a mtn biking head. He n he whole family love biking he needed to get a larger one to fit moe bikes. its pretty solid and i will only use it to go to n fro. im also going to get a long cable to snake through the bikes and lock it to my rear tow hook.

I had a trunk mount for my 06 Impreza but I sold it, the same rack wont work on the legacy because of the spoiler, and I honestly want something more secure, I think im gonna get the hitch off ebay and find a fairly inexpensive rack either on ebay or etrailer. thanks for all the input guys.

On my 91SS I have a yakima roof rack, and love it. For my 07, I have a hitch and Yakima hitch mounted rack.

 

I like both, but the hitch mounted rack isn't very FS bike friendly, unless you get a special crossbar as well. With the crossbar, it's okay though.

 

I honestly like throwing the bike on the roof, instead of putting rack on, taking rack off, putting rack on. It isn't bad at first, but just becomes one more thing to drag out Pre-ride.

 

I built a brand new roof rack with all Yakima components, a king cobra bike tray, and a forklift bike tray for only $240 on amazon.com. I just built the rack on the yakima website, took that list, and searched for the cheapest parts on all the sites. Of course it didn't all come at once, because I bought from 3 different companies, but saved a ton of cash that way.

 

You don't happen to have any pics of the hitch installed on your sedan do you? I am trying to decide between a roof rack or a Subaru OEM outback hitch but am wondering how hidden it will be. Thanks in advance for any pics.

You don't happen to have any pics of the hitch installed on your sedan do you? I am trying to decide between a roof rack or a Subaru OEM outback hitch but am wondering how hidden it will be. Thanks in advance for any pics.

 

Here are a couple. This is the hitch meant for an Outback, but works just fine with our sedans. It doesn't stick out all that much, totally flush with the bottom portion of the bumper.

 

http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m257/brandon12284/006-3.jpg

 

http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m257/brandon12284/007-3.jpg

Here are a couple. This is the hitch meant for an Outback, but works just fine with our sedans. It doesn't stick out all that much, totally flush with the bottom portion of the bumper.

 

While not as hidden as I would like, it does seem better then the Hidden Hitch.Thanks Bdubs , just noticed you are from CT as well hope to see you around.

While not as hidden as I would like, it does seem better then the Hidden Hitch.Thanks Bdubs , just noticed you are from CT as well hope to see you around.

 

No problem!

I actually had the Hidden Hitch before the OEM one, and trust me, it's a world of difference. I should've taken a distance shot to show that it really isn't visually obtrusive by any means.

No problem!

I actually had the Hidden Hitch before the OEM one, and trust me, it's a world of difference. I should've taken a distance shot to show that it really isn't visually obtrusive by any means.

 

Yeah if you get a chance and don't mind I would like to see if from maybe 15 feet back at license plate level and also a side view, that would be great. Just trying to get a feel for what it would look like and if I should go for a roof rack or hitch.

random, potentially silly question: for those with roof racks, do you worry about scratches on the roof when you mount/dismount it?