Which One is Appropriate for You?
There are a lot of kinds of bike racks available, each one geared towards meeting the needs of different vehicle designs as well as cyclists of varying levels. First off, you would need to determine which type of vehicle you are using. If you are aware of the different options you have for your vehicle, and then think about how many bikes you need to carry. Now, let’s look at the main types of bike racks. Keep in mind that the vehicle type you drive is one of the key factors in selecting a bike rack that is suitable for you.
Roof Mount is among the most popular methods of carrying bicycles through car. It is practically mounting the bicycles on top of the automobile’s roof. Almost all of these racks need to have a base rack structure on hand or perhaps a factory-released roof rack that the roof-mount bicycle racks can simply lock into. Some of these styles will need you to take the front tire off of the bicycle to latch it in place, but there are others which can lock in 6 completely assembled bikes.
But, it is important to check the user manual first before you try piling up a bunch of bicycles on the roof. This is to make sure that the bike rack can support the weight. Aside from that, take into consideration the height that these bicycles will add to your automobile. If you are thinking of mounting the bicycles on top of a big SUV and take a trip over an area with low overhangs, then you might be caught into a few horrid surprises.
Hitch Mount will allow you to use a trailer hitch without a wheeled trailer. They directly latch into a hitch or drawbar receiving tube which will enable you to either fasten or rest the bike frames on to the tube top with wheels down on top of a tray rack. These trailer hitches are built to undertake a considerable amount of weight, so the primary concern would be ensuring that the rack is suited for your trailer hitch size. These bike racks commonly hold the bicycle a couple of inches off from the automobile, which decreases the risk of scratches. These also swing to the side or fold down which will allow access to the trunk.
Spare Tire Mount come very handy with people with SUV or Jeep with a spare tire on a hinged mount. This bicycle rack latches on the spare tire, which means that you don’t have to get rid of the spare tire to have a couple of bicycles around. Mounting aside, the bicycle rack holds bicycles the exact way as the hitch mount rack. This means, you will just fasten and lock the bicycle frame into place.
Trunk Mount is very helpful especially if your automobile do not have trailer hitch, roof rack or rear tire mount. This is a folding bike rack which fits a wide array of trunk designs, from flat to classic car trunks, and nearly all vertical SUV rear doors.
Trunk Bed will help you secure the bicycles in place and protect both the bike and truck from chipped paint, theft, and scrapes. This bicycle rack has different designs which look like smaller versions of the conventional sidewalk racks that are framed to slide the bicycle tire. Whatever the design, the result of this type of bicycle rack will allow your bikes to stay put vertically free from damage.
