best way to carry bike

[alecstilleyedye]

i'm thinking of driving best bike up to edinburgh in a couple of weeks (230m), i have the option of cheap halfords rear-mounted bike rack or taking wheels, pedals and saddle off and squeezing it into the roofbox.

no cash for the obvious roofbar cycle mounts (which would be ideal).

have never took bike rack on the motorway, anyone got any advice, cautionary tales etc on what to do?

any aerodynamics experts out there to add their 2 pence too?

 

[chris42]

i always carry my bike inside the car in a bike bag.
I'm luckey I have a Fiat Doblo which has a massive boot space.

 

[jay clock]

if it will go in the car, do it. Save the cash for the day when you need a rack, then buy a decent one (Saris Bones is good).

Re aerodynamics, when I had a rack on a VW Passat saloon the onboard computer showed a very clear 15% reduction in mpg with a bike on the back

 

[TheDoctor]

A rear mounted rack certainly works - I've used one a lot going to France. As well as the usual straps and bungees I'd recomend a cable lock through the rack, the bike and the tow hook on the back of the car. tighten everything after about 10 miles and after each stop. I don't know what your bike's made of but I wouldn't use a rear rack on carbon frames. Carbon doesn't cope well with point loadings.

I take it getting the wheels off and putting the bike on the back seat isn't an option?

 

[alecstilleyedye]

A rear mounted rack certainly works - I've used one a lot going to France. As well as the usual straps and bungees I'd recomend a cable lock through the rack, the bike and the tow hook on the back of the car. tighten everything after about 10 miles and after each stop. I don't know what your bike's made of but I wouldn't use a rear rack on carbon frames. Carbon doesn't cope well with point loadings.

I take it getting the wheels off and putting the bike on the back seat isn't an option?

unless there's a way of mounting the three children on the rack, no

 

[TheDoctor]

A rear mounted rack certainly works - I've used one a lot going to France. As well as the usual straps and bungees I'd recomend a cable lock through the rack, the bike and the tow hook on the back of the car. tighten everything after about 10 miles and after each stop. I don't know what your bike's made of but I wouldn't use a rear rack on carbon frames. Carbon doesn't cope well with point loadings.

I take it getting the wheels off and putting the bike on the back seat isn't an option?

unless there's a way of mounting the three children on the rack, no [/QUOTE]

Well, I don't believe you've had time to try!

 

[bonj2]

<smug> I wouldn't know i never have such problems </smug>

 

[bonj2]

unless there's a way of mounting the three children on the rack, no

how old are the children? can't they go on the train?
Could you ALL go on the train?

 

[alecstilleyedye]

unless there's a way of mounting the three children on the rack, no

how old are the children? can't they go on the train?
Could you ALL go on the train?[/QUOTE]
if you wish to take yourself, other half, three kids (one a baby), a week's worth of luggage therefor, a pushchair, a car seat and a bicycle, tools, trackpump etc onto a crowded train (at least until it stops in manchester) then let me know how you get on. in the meantime i'll pack up the fiat stilo and enquire as to the best place to put the bike, which as you must be aware, was the point of the op.

 

[smiorgan]

I used a rear high-mount rack from Halfords on a Skoda Octavia for a trip to Cornwall, it worked. Fretted and kept checking that I could see a wheel in each wing mirror. The top and bottom straps didn't need re-tightening, but the middle straps that prevent lateral movement slackened off after a bit - that was because we'd mounted them further up the sides of the boot than they should have been, and they slipped back - once they slipped back, tightened them up and no more problems.

The top straps always looked like they were slacker, but that was because they were longer so easier to "pluck" - they were actually taut. Make sure you have two symmetrical spots you can hook the bottom bits of webbing to, and don't be tempted to take up the apparent slack in the top straps by over-tightending the bottom ones. I'd concentrate on where the rack made contact with the boot lid and bumper and making sure there was no movement there

Definetly affected fuel economy though, and the bikes got covered in gak. You might be better with your roofbox (and you won't have your best bike out on display at the services)

 

[bonj2]

how old are the children? can't they go on the train?
Could you ALL go on the train?

if you wish to take yourself, other half, three kids (one a baby), a week's worth of luggage therefor, a pushchair, a car seat and a bicycle, tools, trackpump etc onto a crowded train (at least until it stops in manchester) then let me know how you get on. in the meantime i'll pack up the fiat stilo and enquire as to the best place to put the bike, which as you must be aware, was the point (yet again) of the op

well it's a bit difficult to suggest really isn't, because since you say you have 'no cash', it rules most options out. So it's basically a question of 'will it fit in the roof box with the wheels off?' - if it will, then that's obviously the best option, if it won't, then the halfords rear-mount cycle carrier is your only other option.
So why is it a difficult decision?
It will rattle about, but you just have to strap it in such a way that that rattling about won't damage it or the car or be able to work it loose. I personally wouldn't trust a rear-mounted cycle carrier with a bargepole, but there you go.

 

[bonj2]

<smug> I wouldn't know i never have such problems </smug>

but still it should fit IN the car shouldn't it, with the wheels off? you haven't only got a smart car have you?

are you being deliberately thick? i said that due to having three kids on the back seat that putting the bike there was not an option. so you really think i would bother with the op if i could take the bike in the car? d'oh[/QUOTE]

I edited that out when I read the bit about you having kids. Best to leave it a couple of seconds normally...

 

[Shaun]

Do you have a rear spoiler on your bootlid/tailgate?

I used one of those rear carriers from Argos when I did Pedal in the Parcs last year. It worked great and carried 3 bikes a good few hundred miles, but when I removed the rack I found that the foam buffers had rubbed away the paintwork on my rear spoiler where it had rested.

 

[alecstilleyedye]

Do you have a rear spoiler on your bootlid/tailgate?

I used one of those rear carriers from Argos when I did Pedal in the Parcs last year. It worked great and carried 3 bikes a good few hundred miles, but when I removed the rack I found that the foam buffers had rubbed away the paintwork on my rear spoiler where it had rested.

no, the stilo's the "well there goes my youth" sensible 5-door.

 

[fuzzy29]

I used a rear mounted rack for several years, but was never that happy with it. I never had any problems, but it made me worry. However, a friend used to drive us to MTB races with three bikes on a cheap rack and only ever had one problem. One of the bikes had the tire too close to the exhaust and when going down the motorway, bang, end of that tyre and tube! Since then, my top tip is to remove the wheels first.