How are you hauling your mountain bike?

I have a 2005 Legacy GT. I am going to start mountain biking this summer. I was wondering how you guys are hauling your MB. I have looked at a full receiver hitch but I just dont think I like the way they make the car look. The thought of strapping one of those temporary bike haulers to my trunk worries me of scratching the paint. Would it fit in the trunk with the back seats down? This seems to be my only option.

Stay away from the trunk racks. They are nice and inexpensive, but they are a pain in the ass to set up, they tend to wobble, and you run the risk of scratching the paint or denting the car. Also if you have the spoiler they can cause problems. For ease of use the hitch is the best but you have to have the hitch installed and then buy the rack. I am a huge fan of the Thule T2 which worked great with my DH bike. Unfortunately my LGT doesn't have a hitch so I have gone with the roof mount. I have the wagon and the best base rack for that is the Yakima easy rider. As for the sedans I would stick with the thule stuff, either the 400XT foot or their new Traverse foot. Thule's base racks are better then yakima in my opinion because they use a thicker rubber pad to protect the roof and they also coat their clips in rubber to protect the door area. Their foot system is also a little easier to use. If you hop on Thule or Yakima's website they both have fit guides to figure out which parts you need. As for the actual rack to hold the bike I recomend the Thule SideArm. Again it is the one I use for my DH bike and it is the easiest most versitle roof mounted bike rack Thule makes. I work at a bike shop in CT so I have alot experience putting racks on cars, so if you have any questions just throw em out at me.

 

Demo243

Correct me if I'm wrong but the 05 seats don't fold down do they?

^^ good point.

 

IF they did, I do know that I have hauled my bike in my '08 with seats all the way down. Have to remove the front tire, but that's a simple task.

Same. I currently have an 08 that I can fit my road bike in sans front tire. I'm looking at an 06 Spec.b so looks like i'll need a new solution as well.

I would recommend a hitch rack for a 05 sedan. It keeps the bike off the car (good when it's muddy- and it should be) and detaches when you're not using it.

 

I have an 05 wagon with roof rails and use a thule roof rack. If you have no rails, hitch it the way to go.

this has been covered 100 times, heres a recent thread for you.

http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=129710

on my roof

use your head like this guy,,,

http://beingbipolar.today.com/files/2009/03/funny_bike_accident.jpg

My downhill bike fits in the trunk with the wheels off.

In the bed of my S-10.

 

I tried the hitch mount rack on the Legacy and got tired of scraping everywhere. Car isn't lowered, either. It's on JDM Spec B Bilsteins (the King of Suspensions).

 

-- Steve