kurtees said:
Okay now i'm confused. Should i just get the hitch rack instead? i've tried some fit guides and hitch racks are usually what i get from the results. is it okay to carry 3 bikes in a hitch rack even if it specifies that it can carry 3 bikes? im worried that it's a little bit bulky for my car. or it won't hold off my bikes well..
which type of bike racks uses straps for the lock system? i don't want to use straps for the lock system.
and i definitely don't want to buy second handed racks for now. i wanna try buying a new one and see how it works myself.
thank you so much for the help guys.
What kind of bikes are you carrying and how much do you care if they get a few scratches and scuffs?
Trunk racks will be your cheapest option, but when carrying multiple bikes damaging the paintwork of the bikes is almost inevitable (but never caused any damage to my car). I have used my trunk rack with up to three full-suspension all-mountain bikes, driving hundreds of km including some fairly rough dirt roads and it copes fine with the weight. Configuring the frames which have different geometries and shock/pivot placements is a bit tricky though. It is also a real pain if you actually need to get at something in the trunk! I wouldn't use it to carry our carbon road bikes, they get to ride inside the car wrapped in a cosy blanket
If you already have trailer hitch, and you're not too worried about the paint on your bikes, hitch mount racks which attach to the bike top-tube will be just as cheap as a the trunk mount, easier to load and unload, and let you access the trunk while bikes are mounted.
If you care about the paint, you might consider a hitch rack like the Thule Ride On 9503 or similar that supports the bike from the wheels and keeps thinks like frames, cranks, bars from interfering with each other. However with the larger ones you do need to keep ground clearance (departure angle) in mind as they significantly increase your rear overhang. For this reason it wouldn't be great on a ford focus if you drive at all off the beaten track, or even have a steep driveway. They would be next to pointless for me on my corolla 4wd to go on MTB trips. They also don't come cheap.
As well as the trunk rack, I do also have two fork-mount roof racks for use when car-pooling with a bunch of friends (lets me and my small car carry 5 people, 5 bikes including the trunk mount rack), or for the road bikes if my wife and I were to travel with a full car and couldn't get them inside. To be honest I haven't used them yet as it either hasn't been my turn to drive or we have been coming from different directions hence taken more than one car. However from experience in other people's cars with roof-mount racks, they do affect your fuel efficiency by about 10%, particularly if driving at freeway speeds. The higher the car, and the heavier the bike, the more effort and care required loading them. If you slip up with a fork-mount type in particular the likelihood of your dropout and/or pedal hitting the roof of your car is significant. The advantage though is that you don't need to attach anything to the frame so no paint damage. The other type which has a bar that attaches to the frame is quicker to use since the wheels stay attached, but can damage the paint on your frame. Also a friends (cheap) roof mount rack failed recently, luckily soon after we had pulled off the highway and were slowly queueing for a car ferry. My bike swung from the velcro tape fastened around the wheels, spiky flat pedal took a gouge out of roof of his shiny new subaru and handlebar nearly cracked the drivers' window. Would have made a real mess (and quite likely gone flying into oncoming traffic) had it fallen and started flapping around at 110km/h. If you already own roof bars, for one or two bikes the price an be OK (there are some decent no-name racks out there), but it adds up the more bikes you're carrying. If you're buying roof bars as well and want name-brand everything, you'll be paying a lot of $$.