Securing the bike to a bike carrier. Advice and tips please?

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Location
Rammy
I should try to lock it too. I remember posting a video not long ago about some toerags trying to purloin a bike from a moving car in traffic. East London I think.

If it's a rack that simply straps onto the back of a car then a lock isn't much help, you can cut the straps with a decent pair of scissors / knife and remove the entire rack.
 

mjr

Comfy armchair to one person & a plank to the next
That's the way it said to do it, in the instructions.
I think the instructions for mine said the same... but I put the bikes on the other way round (they alternate) and I've yet to discover a drawback.
 

the stupid one

Über Member
Location
NWUK
All this talk about toe clip straps has encouraged me to find out how they're actually fastened - I bought some on sale a couple of weeks ago just to have handy, and couldn't make head nor tail of 'em.

Now I've found a pic of some in use, practised with the real ones, and used a lighter to tidy up the ends. Result. Good old Cyclechat.
 

Globalti

Legendary Member
Somebody I used to know used to drive around with valuable mountain bikes on a boot rack and one day on the M6 the rear-most bike came adrift and fell off, still held on by the wheel straps so the handlebar scraped along for a few miles before they realised. By the time they stopped the bar had been neatly ground down to half way through the brake fluid reservoir.
 

ColinJ

Puzzle game procrastinator!
Somebody I used to know used to drive around with valuable mountain bikes on a boot rack and one day on the M6 the rear-most bike came adrift and fell off, still held on by the wheel straps so the handlebar scraped along for a few miles before they realised. By the time they stopped the bar had been neatly ground down to half way through the brake fluid reservoir.
Someone I know met up with someone for a mountain bike holiday in the Lakes. They only got a mile or two down the road before my friend's bike fell off the car's rack and tumbled down the road. I'm not sure of exactly what damage was done but it was not a great start to the holiday ... :whistle:

I have put my bike on that kind of rack a few times and I always worry about something going wrong. At other times I have been given lifts by people with very chunky fixed racks on their cars. @Steve H for example had this Thule rack on the back of his car ...

Thule bike rack.jpg


I was totally happy with that one, though I do marvel at how it grips the tow-ball tight enough to stay in that position!

@Oldfentiger has a roof-mounted rack of that type. Very secure, though I would worry about this happening ...!

bike wreck.gif


:eek: :laugh:
 
OP
OP
Katherine

Katherine

Guru
Moderator
Location
Manchester
Thanks for all the scare stories everyone!
My brother told me about writing off his road bike by driving under a barrier, forgetting it was on the roof and sending it flying!
My job on the journey will be continually checking the mirror and back window for signs of problems.
 

Oldfentiger

Veteran
Location
Pendle, Lancs
Someone I know met up with someone for a mountain bike holiday in the Lakes. They only got a mile or two down the road before my friend's bike fell off the car's rack and tumbled down the road. I'm not sure of exactly what damage was done but it was not a great start to the holiday ... :whistle:

I have put my bike on that kind of rack a few times and I always worry about something going wrong. At other times I have been given lifts by people with very chunky fixed racks on their cars. @Steve H for example had this Thule rack on the back of his car ...

View attachment 420973

I was totally happy with that one, though I do marvel at how it grips the tow-ball tight enough to stay in that position!

@Oldfentiger has a roof-mounted rack of that type. Very secure, though I would worry about this happening ...!

View attachment 420974

:eek: :laugh:

Git!!
You know you've jinxed me now :laugh:
 
Location
Rammy
We've got a roof mounted rack, first few times we used it I made the wife walk up the road and watch to ensure everything looked secure as I drove to meet her at the end of the road.

Always been more worried about them coming off than hitting anything
 

Globalti

Legendary Member
Yes I bought a roof rack and set up my mountain bike on it. Got up to speed on the M6, looked up through the sunroof and was alarmed to see that the wind pressure was lifting the front wheel off the rack. At that moment I realised I was driving along in an empty hatchback car with a valuable bike displayed like a trophy on the roof where it could be soaked in salt water, stolen or damaged. Since then, bikes have always gone inside; we can easily get 3 humans + 3 bikes in the car and I've had 4 + 4 when two were children. I've even seen people driving around in ponced-up vans with a bike on a boot rack! It's like they want to display the bike as a lifestyle accessory rather than hide it securely and discretely.
 
Thanks in advance.

We have a bike carrier that attaches to the back of the car for my bike and had a trial run in half term.
Overall the bike was secure and Mr K is happy to repeat the experience.
However we had a couple of issues.

We used all the straps as recommended in the instructions but we found that the straps going over the front chain rings got oily which meant that everything they touched did too.
Any recommendations for wrapping something around the chain rings?


The handle bars still wobbled about a bit.
Should we use extra straps for the handle bars?

Any other advice please?
What if you tried some of that insulation foam tubing you can get for lagging your pipes ?
I don't envy you ! I drove home with bits of a greenhouse on my roof rack and I was constantly looking in the mirrors to see if it was still there !
 

KneesUp

Guru
Yes I bought a roof rack and set up my mountain bike on it. Got up to speed on the M6, looked up through the sunroof and was alarmed to see that the wind pressure was lifting the front wheel off the rack. At that moment I realised I was driving along in an empty hatchback car with a valuable bike displayed like a trophy on the roof where it could be soaked in salt water, stolen or damaged. Since then, bikes have always gone inside; we can easily get 3 humans + 3 bikes in the car and I've had 4 + 4 when two were children. I've even seen people driving around in ponced-up vans with a bike on a boot rack! It's like they want to display the bike as a lifestyle accessory rather than hide it securely and discretely.
That must be a large car? I can't get 1 bike and 3 people in ours, unless we have no luggage and the 1 bike is the kid's.

I think most people who transport bikes do so because they are taking the bikes on holiday with them, so the car is usually rammed full. The odd time I've driven with a bike in the car it has occurred to me that if I were to crash the car, I'd probably prefer the bike to be on a rack and getting squashed into a crumple zone than rammed into my kidneys.
 
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Globalti

Legendary Member
That must be a large car? I can't get 1 bike and 3 people in ours, unless we have no luggage and the 1 bike is the kid's.

I think most people who transport bikes do so because they are taking the bikes on holiday with them, so the car is usually rammed full. The odd time I've driven with a bike in the car it has occurred to me that if I were to crash the car, I'd probably prefer the bike to be on a rack and getting squashed into a crumple zone than rammed into my kidneys.

It's been the same with the last three Passat estates I've had; the latest a B8 is the best because the boot floor can be dropped lower than usual for big loads.

For 2 people + 2 bikes visible: fold the rear seats, slide one bike in on its side, drop an old blanket on top and lift the second bike in on top.

For 2 people + 2 bikes completely hidden: stack frames in boot and pack wheels all around then close the boot cover. Nothing can be seen.

For 3 people + 3 bikes, fold rear seats 33/66 and seat a passenger on the 33 bit, remove wheels from bikes, stack frames in boot with wheels around. There's still room for kit bags etc.

For 2 adults/2 kids + 4 bikes: use the 66 bit of the rear seat for 2 kids, stack frames with wheels packed all around. It's a squeeze but can be done.

....and yes, I do worry about being clobbered from behind by a bike travelling forwards at 60 mph.
 

PaulSB

Legendary Member
I have this type of carrier. I’m never very confident in it but having used the current one and similar for 30+ years I’ve yet to have one fall off. The trick is to find solid anchor points for the lower straps if yours has these. Ensuring all the straps are well tensioned is important.

Tips from me:

Cover the carrier frame with pipe lagging tubing

Chain rings should face outward. This allows one to get the bike closer to the car while avoiding damage to the car

Attach bike to frame using toe clip straps

Wrap old wrap round bike frame where toe clip straps contact it

....and one I haven’t seen mentioned. Slide a piece of cardboard under each of the metal clips which attach the frame to the car. If you don’t your paintwork will chip. I know!!!!
 
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