Why not just get a smaller car and use a tow bar rack for the bikes?
Which EV would you get?
- Thread starter icowden
- Start date
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I used to use a big old Thule towbar rack (Since sold for a small profit), and in fact we needed it for the estate cars when travelling down through Europe and for camping etc etc, as there simply wasn't enough room in the car.
Space to store one of these things is huge and they are pretty heavy, plus you need to get a towbar fitted.
I REALLY dislike the bikes being open to the elements, so that was a strong driver to getting the vehicle we have - for reference it's footprint on the road is smaller than most luxury SUV things, X5, Q7 etc etc, which I detest.
Additionally, on a lot of our journeys down through Europe, we have to stop off for maybe 2 nights on the way down, and 1 on the way back.
As it is I am hyper conscious about the bikes being at risk of theft, but the van has fairly dark tint, and I cover them up as best I can inside with old duvet covers to at least disguise them a bit, plus we try and choose places to stop with either secure parking, or not on a major thoroughfare - so far there have been zero issues.
With a rack on the back, the bikes would be open to nasty weather, as well as advertising themselves to anyone of a thieving nature, so not desirable for me.
The beauty of the van shaped vehicle is that we can get 3 bikes in, 3 people, plus camping gear and luggage, all without needing a roofbox.
I do still have a roofbox, which we have used when travelling down through Europe with 4 in the car and 1 bike, so still a useful flexible storage option.
I'm WAY more happy/comfortable having the bikes inside the vehicle with me, but I know a lot of people are happy with them on a rack, or up on the roof, I'm just not one of them :-)
EDIT: And to add, my partner's job is to run sort of educational music classes for pretty small children at various locations, so although she uses a cargo bike for fairly local settings, when she has to travel further she will use the van.
She has LOT of kit to cart about, and for simplicity a fair chunk of it lives in the van - if we swapped to a smaller vehicle, she would have to spend far more time ferrying stuff in and out of it, and we'd need a load more storage at home.
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Yeh that is super weird eh, I'm not quite sure how they have missed that/let it get through, it's not even like there isn't the space for it to go into, it's called the footwell! My Ford manages it, and it's all just straps and mechanisms, nothing complex or tricky.
No removeable seats to the best of my knowledge, plus I ideally wouldn't want to have to do that, as sometimes we go on holiday with less people, and then might need more seats during the holiday, if we meet a family member out there, or a relative flies over to join us etc.
It certainly seems to be the first van type vehicle with anything approaching a semi decent range, so hopefully the floodgates will open now, as I think this is going to take a lot of market share, and other manufacturers will pull their finger out and get something viable that isn't crazy money into production - as I said I am in no hurry at all, but do like to have an idea what I will be looking for in years to come, so it's not a rushed purchase.
figbat
Former slippery scientist
- Location
- South Oxfordshire, UK
Where do you ride them?!
Agreed 100%, they are well ahead, imo, of the rest of the world in looking out for the safety of the individual, often to the dislike of the conglomerates 🤘 Well done them :-)
Fair point! Regrettably at the moment though, mostly my 20 year old bike in the garage
I always wince when I'm driving, and see bikes on the roof or rear of a vehicle, and it's caning it down with rain - all that grease and lube just getting rinsed out of the bike, and there's bugger all they can do about it
