I am working on a trailer so that I have no more problemswith hauling bikes. I am against the roof racks for many of the problems that have been mentioned in the past, and the last car rack I had left a bad taste in my mouth.

If I were to haul bikes on a rack rather than my trunk (or my new solution, a trailer), I would get a hitch mount. I think it is the best solution short of my ultimate solution, in my humble opinion. One thing to keep in mind, you must keep the fork from moving, make sure the bikes don't move back and forth on the rack, and watch using a disc wheel on a bike, as it can block the view of the tail lights. But with the hitch mount rack, you don't have the worry of the rack not being tight enough against the trunk, sratching the paint from the rack, or any of the problems associated with mounting a rack directly on the car.

Pleez, pleez pleez fight the power and put your bike(s) in the car. Buy a roof rack and a luggage carrier and put your gear in that outside the vehicle. Think about how much money you have into those bikes. OK, I know you ignore my advice. So, get a receiver hitch mount on your car and use a hitch mount rack. Lobby for a 2" receiver but most hitch places won't install those on a smaller vehicle assuming some bonehead will try to tow a 30' Cigarette boat with a Toyota Tercel then blame them when the transmission explodes. They will probably only put a 1&1/4" reciever on a smaller car. If you must use a car rack get the one that supports the bike from underneath with the wheel trays. Kiss your nice paint job, clean drivetrain, smooth running bearings and good adjustments goodbye. Also, the first guy who plows into your car will feel real bad about wrecking your bike. Heck, sometimes they even give you $50 to "Get a new one" if they're honest enough. Did I tell you about the guys here in Detroit who steal bikes off the car racks when they're at a stop light?

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Inside is best. I learned this the hard way after destroying the entire cockpit of my cherished Torelli whilst pulling into my garage with said bike still attached. I am prone to this sort of stupidity anyway, but this really drove it homw (pun intended). My neighbor and the power company guy sat and watched from about 10 feet away and had the most amazing look of incredulity on their faces - man, that was priceless. I wish I had a picture of them to savor the moment...



But that said, I do have a roof rack when I still use upon occasion. Though I guess I won't be using it when I come to pick up my bike from Tom in Detroit...

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"To give less than your best is to sacrifice the gift." - Pre

MattMizenko.com

Hey Tom, it really doesn't matter where I put my bike in or on our Civic. If some guy plows into me in that car, the bike is gonna take some damage. And I've put more scratches on bikes going into and out of its rear seat than I ever do putting them up top on the carrier.