Ive got the ford F150 super crew and love it but im nervous about keeping my stallion in the back and traveling to race sites or training rides. Im always woried about road debris and the elements ruining my bike. I have one of those yakima hitches for the fork and it works well but Im still nervous that one day it will let go and so will my bike down I-95. I also dont like that when I have to do brick workouts my bike is exposed to the thiefs out there, So thus im in the market for a new car. Im thinking that an explorer will do the trick but what say you guys???
Just rented an Explorer in SD and it wasn’t that great for IMO. Too small to fit bikes in without laying them down. Then no room for other items.
I have a Chevy Tahoe at home. It’s great. I can fit my bike it w/o taking off either wheel. And I only have to fold down one of the three rear seat, so you can keep your carseat in if you have kids.
I had an Xterra and had the same problems as the Explorer. I would say the X was a better overall vehicle than the Explorer though.
I heard this, but I am not really sure. 2000 Chevy Malibus that are purple seem to be the greatest triathlete car. When you pull up to races in one of those bad boys, you scare the crap of all the rest of the athletes. By the start you basically have the race won, you should try it.
if you have a super crew cab, why are you not putting the bike in the back seat? I used to have a Chevy full size extra cab, 3 door Z71. If I folded the back seat up, my tri bike would just wheel right in, didn’t have to take the wheels off at all. For longer trips, I had a tool box across the bed of the truck and had a fork mounted attachment screwed onto it. With the front wheel off, the bike would fit in the back of the truck perfectly, but was then exposed to the weather.
if you have a super crew cab, why are you not putting the bike in the back seat? I used to have a Chevy full size extra cab, 3 door Z71. If I folded the back seat up, my tri bike would just wheel right in, didn’t have to take the wheels off at all. For longer trips, I had a tool box across the bed of the truck and had a fork mounted attachment screwed onto it. With the front wheel off, the bike would fit in the back of the truck perfectly, but was then exposed to the weather.
i had the same experience with a Ford…just folded up the back seat and my bike would roll right in, no dissasembly.
Actually down here in South Florida its an SUV haven, my buddies are trying to get me to buy a beemer or something more CHIC friendly as they put it, ha, I just cant see spending all that money on a new car.
Okay, you can’t even argue this one. For bikes it has to be the Honda Element. Roll your bikes right in the back. Waterproof seats and interior. Tons of room for gear. If you need to, Yakima racks (don’t get the crappy Honda racks as the Yakimas are cheaper and better) plug right in to sockets built into the car. Nice stereo, good gas mileage, decent power and decently priced. the only bummer is that you can only fit two people, possibly 3 if you roll the bikes in but you’re in the same case with any other car. I love mine! Checked out an xterra which my roomate had and it was cool but the gas mileage sucked and it didn’t really have all that much room to put a bike inside. The Ford escape (you can see the midsize SUV trend here) had nice power, the nicest interior at this price point but again I either had to put the bike on a rack or take it apart.
Honda Element. I wish I owned one. I have some friends who own them and they love them. Can roll a bike (or 2 or 3) right in the back–standing up. Pretty good mileage. Reasonable handling. So ugly that it’s attractive.
I had an Explorer. DONT GET IT! Not that bad a car for the money but… The value is down on those thing for a reason. I had problems because no rental place will rent something that hooks to the hitch. With the problems with the tires and then a few problems with the bumpers falling off all the rental places just stopped renting to Explorers.
I looked at some 4 door trucks and I think that those things are heaven. Its like a giant sedan with a massive trash can following you every place you go. Any brand will do but if you really want something sweet, get the dodge diesel and run that bad boy on Bio-diesel. You can make your own for about 70 cents a gallon and even less if you get the veggie oil from a restaurant.
I have a Dodge quad cab and my bike will fit right in the back seat area without moving a seat. Pretty nice, until I look at the computer for gas mileage. A topper is the way to go with a truck though . . .
Honda Element, without a doubt. Wifey drives an Element and I drive an Xterra. the Element is better in all respects save appearance. I still think they’re a little ugly, but they are so damn practical I can overlook the esthetics.
Search past threads … this had been discusses extensively.
Minivan. Tint all the windows that you can legally. Pop out the middle seats, fold down the back seats. Works great, lots of space, even for sleeping if you have to. And compared to a 4WD, it saves you a bunch of money and keeps Osama B.L. very poor.
Some of the better ones are 2000 and later Odysseys and 2004 (and later) Siennas.