# 1
RockyMounts BackStage Bike Rack for 2 Bikes - 2" Hitches - Wheel Mount
We love our RockyMounts BackStage Bike Rack. The fact that it can hold our two e-bikes and swings out for rear door access makes it perfect for vanlife. Service and communication from etrailer is outstanading!
etrailer.com asked me for a review about 1 week after it arrived. A better review would be in about 6-12 months after delivery to allow me time to use and experience the rack. Disclosure: my review is just for the assembly and install. Assembly is not easy. I needed to go to the internet and look at photos. The instructions lack detail. So only 4 stars for assembly instructions. It seems like a good design. The included locks seem cheap - like why bother including. The hitch pin design seems to tighten down the rack so there should be minimal rattle and movement. The rack sits up relatively high, so it would be safer to lift heavier e-bikes with two people or use some type of field engineered ramp. Wish it was made in the US and I wish the country of original was fully disclosed in the etrailer.com description. Perhaps it is disclosed but I learned it was from china after it was delivered.
# 2
Swagman Chinook Bike Rack for 2 Bikes - 1-1/4" and 2" Hitches - Frame Mount
I ordered the Swagman Chinook 2 Bike Platform Rack on line from etrailer and so far have been very satisfied. The bike rack was delivered in less than a week. Unpacking the rack and assembly was fairly straightforward. I have read some reviews that complained the assembly instructions were a bit vague. I didn't have a problem but can see where others without a mechanical background get confused. The rack is very sturdy, but there is some side to side play in the tilt mechanism. I'm not sure this can be avoided with a rack that folds down. Installing the Curt trunk stabilizing strap takes most of the sway out of the rack. Installation is fairly easy and quick. It takes me 6 - 7 minutes to install the back on my hitch, and to install the bike and be ready to drive away. That seems reasonable to me. So far I've only loaded 1 bike. I've included pictures of my installation on a 2014 Mercedes Benz E350 sedan. Clearance between the bikes, the rack and the car are good. With the bike loaded in the inside, most forward position, I have 6" clearance between the pedal and the bumper. With the bike removed, the center support folded flat and the rack folded up in the storage position, I have 4" clearance between the closest part of the bike rack (the fold down hinge assembly) and the back bumper of the car. I am able to open the trunk of the car without removing the bikes or using the tilt feature, but I do have to remove the stabilizing strap first. Overall, I'm very pleased with the bike rack and think it will serve me much better than my old strap on rack. Since the weather has been cool since getting the bike carrier, I haven't taken any long trips to give it a real workout.
Truly grooving on my wife's new Swagman Chinook bike rack. She wanted to be able to transport her nice road bike easily without throwing it in the back of her car, and since a roof rack is out of the question, this Swagman model fit the bill perfectly. It arrived quickly on the anticipated date. Kudos to etrailer.com for the email updates to keep me informed of my purchase. Within one hour, it was installed on my wife's 2014 Mazda3 hatchback. The Swagman is heavy and solid, which is reassuring as it makes me feel confident that it will keep the bikes secure. It also makes me feel like I got my money's worth. A ratchet wrench and Phillip's head screwdriver were the only tools required for the easy install. I did my research before purchasing the Chinook model as I was also eyeballing a very similar Thule rack that was slightly more expensive. I spoke with an etrailer.com expert who gave me the lowdown on both models. Ultimately, the Swagman won out because it has a smaller 'footprint' while extended or folded up ... and also can tilt away from the car for easy access to the hatchback area. Very convenient! FYI: Mazda doesn't make a trailer hitch for the Mazda3 as it's a small car with a small engine and has no business towing anything. Thankfully, the Curt company makes an aftermarket frame and trailer hitch that fits the Mazda3 hatchback perfectly with no drilling. Stupidly, I purchased it from another online company thinking I was getting a good deal. Turns out etrailer.com had it for less with FREE shipping. Oh well ... live and learn. Now I know that etrailer.com is one-stop shopping for bike racks AND trailer hitches. (Full disclosure: I had the garage down the street install the frame as it's easier with a lift) Only snafu: the shipment contained an extra set of keys that I assumed was for the hitch bolt lock (there was also a set of keys on the bolt itself). I spent 15 minutes using those keys trying to figure out how to remove the lock from the bolt to install it on the hitch. The keys just wouldn't turn in the lock. I called etrailer.com and Kevin told me to try the other set of keys ... and they worked. So an extra set of keys came with it that did absolutely nothing ... weird! Obviously, I can't speak to the longevity and durability of the Swagman Chinook 2 Bike Platform Rack as I just installed it. What I can speak to is the sturdiness of it, the ease of the installation and my complete satisfaction with the good folks at etrailer.com.
# 3
Swagman XC2 Bike Rack for 2 bikes - 1-1/4" and 2" Hitches - Frame Mount
It works great! Easy, quick, you know. One needs to screw in the hitch bolt, for some reason, before latching it. Other than that, it makes going bike riding way easier.
I like the overall design of this rack, but unfortunately after hauling a couple bikes around for a while the point where the crossbar connects has apparently rounded off so the rack swings back and forth. I've used rope to tie the ends of the rack to the car to stop this from getting worse, but it's inconvenient. Note: the hitch connection itself is good and solid, but the point where the crossbar connects to the bar coming from the hitch has gotten loose and there's no way that I can see to tighten it.
# 4
SportRack Ridge Bike Rack for 4 Bikes - 2" Hitches - Swing Away
Unit doesn't fit a Jeep Rubicon with a spare tire. I tried 4 times and contacted etrailer.com that the unit doesn't work as sold and they offered to sell me a 7 3/4 extension and reduce the load capacity 50%. The length of the 2" hitch needs to be 3" longer for a standard Rubicon to get past the spare. You not going to want to take your spare tire off for the hitch to work. It defeats the purpose. Customer service was excellent, however the product is a flawed design. Can't recommend this hitch. Its also heavy.
Solid rack for half the price of the name brands. Don’t waste your money! Thanks to the extensive reviews on etrailer and a free shipping promotion I took a chance and ordered this along with the three of their crossbars, anti rattle hitch pin and cable lock. All for well less than the name brand rack alone. Shipping was painful. Etrailer said it was in stock but then due to a delay with the manufacturer it took 35 days from order to arrival. I wasn’t in a hurry so I waited patiently, and etrailer reps emailed often to lmk they hadn’t forgotten. I thought some kind of reward for my extreme patience was in order- discount, gift card, free bag of chips- but they politely declined. Oh well. In the end it arrived when they (eventually) said it would, all in one box, in great shape. The rack was super easy to assemble. You’ll need a ratchet or two and you’ll need to crank those bolts to assemble- they don’t just “insert.” But otherwise it’s only a few steps; I had mine hanging on my truck in probably 15 minutes. Swings away and locks smoothly and requires no effort to do so. Everything feels quite sturdy and well made. No rattle on initial test drive either. This will be a once in a while rack at best for our family of four. We have two SUVs so I needed a rack that could get out of the way of the rear hatch WITH bikes on it. This will do that. And now I don’t need to stuff four dirty bikes into the back of my truck, getting them all tangled and scratched!
# 5
Thule UpRide Roof Bike Rack - Wheel Mount - Clamp On or Channel Mount - Aluminum
Very easy to use (once you do it a couple of times). I have ebikes and they handled the weight (48lbs each). The biggest issue I have with this racking system is wishing there was a left and right models of it...unless I didn't see one when ordering.
Basically, bolt it to your rack and you're ready to go. Easy to use once you do it a few times. My only complaint is for $200 they could throw in a lock core. Also, this etrailer response is incorrect, it is actually pretty simple to swap the operation of the rack to work on the driver's side (without having your bike face the wrong direction). Two plastic locks hold the main assembly together, unlock, take the hook out and put in the other way. The loop thing at the front is held in by one allen bolt on the bottom; take it out, swap the direction. Finally, the rear tire strap slides out the back; reverse it and slide it on. It takes longer to put the carrier on /off your rack than to swap the direction (not more than 10 minutes).
# 6
Swagman XC-Extended Bike Rack for 2 Recumbent Bikes - 1-1/4" and 2" Hitches - Frame Mount
I have bad shoulders and could no longer lift my long wheelbase recumbent bike up to my Thule rack. The new rack solved the problem and made it much easier to load the bike. Very happy I got the new Swagman rack.
Thank you again for such excellent customer service. I am including two pics from today showing the bikes mounted on my 2009 Honda Fit with the bike rack we purchased from you. Please feel free to use them in any of your publications, print or web.
# 7
Swagman XTC2 Bike Rack for 2 Bikes - 1-1/4" and 2" Hitches - Frame Mount
First-time rack buyer / owner / installer. The rack arrived in a timely fashion, maybe a day or 2 ahead of schedule. It was well packaged. I’m LOVING this bike rack. It was easy to put together and to mount on my new Honda Passport. Thus far, no squeaks in my 2” receiver. Hardest part of initial set-up is figuring out the best way to position two bikes. Trial & error and some patience. The directions weren’t clear as to where the 2 left-over screws went. I found the answer in another review and have posted a pic in case others have the same problem (photo with pen pointing at screw). These screws go in the underneath side of both of the folding arms. They appear to keep the wheel wells from sliding off in case in you drive with an empty, un-folded rack, and forgot to tighten down the wheel wells. The folding arm push / pull pins can be difficult at times. I coated the tips with some lube. That and a little jiggling seems to solve that issue. I guess it’s better for the pins to be snug vs popping right out. I added a small Master lock to the hitch pin (in lieu of the provided cotter pin) as a theft deterrent. I read that a 3/16 shackle lock will fit into the bike clamp down arms to also act as a deterrent. I had an old 3/16 lock that did snugly fit and appeared to be locked. HOWEVER, I yanked on the lock and it came open as there isn’t quite enough clearance for the shackle to lock. I discovered that longer 3/16 shackle locks are hard to find. Have attached a photo of the lock that actually fits and works (Ace Hardware). One lock on the upper clamp down arm will secure both arms as the lower arm can’t be removed without removing the upper arm. The clamp down arms appear to be coated to prevent damage to your bike. I’ve tried a simple rag and ultimately settled on pool noodle pieces as a precautionary measure. I CAN NOT open my tailgate (regardless of whether or not the rack is fold up and in the bike carry position). If that’s a concern for you, then spring for the more costly titling version. My back-up camera still functions.
The Swagman XTC-2 platform bike carrier arrived very quickly from etrailer and in good shape, the actual carrier box is inside another shipper box, which I'm sure helped with its condition. Assembly was relatively quick and painless, even though the instructions could be a little more thorough. Installing the carrier on the back of our Jeep Patriot also was quick, it helps to have an extra ratchet & 3/4" socket laying around for just this purpose. Installing the bikes takes a little patience and trial and error the first time you try and put them on the carrier. It's easy enough to adjust the wheel holders to fit the wheelbase of your bikes, but for us at least, the challenge was trying to swing the vertical support bar up into position after putting on the first bike (closest to the Jeep). We couldn't angle the bike enough toward the Jeep to have the bar clear the bike. We learned that the easiest way to secure the first bike was to remove the ratcheting frame hooks altogether, put the bike in the carrier, swing up the vertical support bar, put in the pin, and then slide one of the frame hooks down on the bar. The outside bike is much easier because you can set the bike in the carrier at whatever angle you need, not being limited by the back of the vehicle. One thing we did to protect the bike frames was to use some foam pipe insulation as cushion between the frame hook and the frame (see pictures). Once you get a system for installing the bikes, it is very quick to load/unload them. The rack seems to be well made and doesn't wiggle excessively when traveling. All in all a good product for a good price, would definitely recommend it for anyone looking for a platform bike carrier.
# 8
Thule Hitching Post Pro Bike Rack for 4 Bikes - 1-1/4" and 2" Hitches
The good: I like the way the bikes are held in and the ability to add the upright adapters to the bike frame holders. The straps are quality too. For a jeep with a spare tire, this is the perfect length to clear it. This rack is 5 stars from the bike holders to the base of it. The bad: the 2"receiver adapter and bolt are insufficient. I wish they made this in a solid 2" hitch. The entire setup is held into the receiver by a very short bolt. It only goes about half way into the receiver tube. So your hitch is only "secured" on one side. A hitch pin or bolt should go through the receiver tube completely imo so it can be secured on the other end with a retaining clip or nut. Because this only goes in the one side, the entire weight of the rack plus bikes are held tight to one side of the receiver by the undersized bolt and washer. A few bumps down the road and that bolt loosens. Now instead of distibuting the weight of the rack and bikes on the receiver and post, it's completely up to the bolt to keep you from losing the rack. The bolt threads get damaged too. I took this down a dirt road and nearly lost everything. I had to buy my own bolt with hd fender washers and lock washers to correct this. Thule should've provided this from the start. The current short bolt design where only one side of the receiver secures the rack is unacceptable. This rack is 1 star at best for the connection to the receiver.
I bought this bike rack back in April but wanted to make sure I used it to give the best review. First I want to say I did a lot of research on bike racks and found this one to be the best one to fit my needs. The best price I found was on etrailer.com, at the time it was When I called the customer service to place my order, I spoke to Dan. He was very pleasant on the phone and took the time and listened to what I needed and understood my concerns. I ordered the bike rack and also ordered the Thule Snug Tite Hitch Lock and Anti-Rattle Device and the Thule Cable Lock w/ One Key System Lock. Dan suggested I also get the Thule Bike Adapter Bar, which I never even thought of getting. Delivery was in about two business days, which was really fast and at the time of order they were running a special free delivery over $99. When I went to put it together I noticed I was missing the flat cap screw M6 x 16mm, part number #853-5787-02. I emailed Dan and within 24 hours received an email that the part was sent out and also in the email their was a link to track the order. After I received the part I did notice that the flat cap screw was actually in the 2 inch adaptor sleeve. The instructions were very easy to read, and it took me about 20 minutes to put together. I did have an issue when I positioned the stinger into the cradle, with the 8mm locking nut, it was not staying tight and when I took it off I noticed the threads inside were gone, so I ended up going out to Lowes and buying a new one and its holds perfectly fine. I also had a question about that part because it is not a locking part and was worried someone would try to steal the rack. I contacted etrailer.com to find if they make a locking device for this and they said no but I can contact Thule to double check, I'm still waiting for an answer back from Thule. The weather finally broke and we installed the rack onto my hitch, tightened it and it doesn't rattle. When I finally used the rack and put my bike on, it did sway a little but at 50 mph I was very happy with it. The trailer comes out just enough away from my car that I do not have to fold completely out and I can open my trunk with no issues. I am very happy with my purchase and had a great customer experience with Dan. Would highly recommend ordering from them to anyone.
# 9
Swagman Enforcer Roof Bike Rack - Fork Mount - Clamp On - Aluminum
Pros: That model of roof bike rack allows fork mount to be moved back and forth as other models seems to only offer "fixed" position directly above cross bar. Price is reasonable. Con: Outside diameter of the adapter used with 9 mm skewer is way smaller, that inside diameter of the holder it goes into, resulting in significant wobbling of bike even when skewer is tight. Fixed the problem wrapping piece of aluminum flashing around adapter to make it fit much tighter and that stoped wobbling. Expect to have adapter and holder to match each other way better.
Overall we were very pleased with this bike roof rack. The install was easy and we can take it on/off quickly when we have to accommodate other items on the crossbars. I especially like the integrated wheel holder, it’s very stable and I don’t have to worry about locating a Velcro strap. Price point was more affordable than other brands and no loss in quality. Would buy again if we had a need!
# 10
RockyMounts HotRod Truck Bed Bike Carrier - Thru-Axle Mount - Bolt On - Black
This is not the first bolt-on 12mm thru-axle fork mount I've attempted to use, but it IS the only one I've ever actually been able to use properly. I'm always please with RockyMounts quality and this is no different!
This is my second RockyMounts Thru-Axle Mount. Attached easily to the old rack in the bed of my pickup. The bicycle's thru-axle fits snugly, making transport safe and secure.
# 11
Swagman Trailhead Bike Rack for 2 Bikes - 1-1/4" and 2" Hitches - Tilting
etrailer has the best pre- and post-sales customer service I've ever seen! I started out not knowing anything about hitch-mounted racks. So I wrote to etrailer telling them about my car and type of hitch I was about to have installed. Samuel wrote back with lots of great information tailored specifically to my car. He even included a photo that looked just like my 2017 white VW GTI with a hitch and rack installed. Okay something of a coincidence. But the rest of the assistance I got from the crew at etrailer was just as prophetic. I went into this a novice and came out knowing lots more about hitches and racks and finding the rack best suited to my situation. I have a small car, a class 1 hitch and a heavy mountain bike. I got exactly what I needed. As to the Swagman rack itself, it works fine. If I had a different situation I would probably buy a platform rack as they are easier to load. There's no reason to buy a bike rack anywhere else.
First off, thanks to Jason T. or "Troop". The exemplary customer service he provided is rare these days. Troop made several calls to the various manufacturers to ascertain which bike rack would afford me the most ground clearance as my new VW Golf sits low to the ground and my old bike rack frequently scraped the ground when I went up even a slight up hill grade. His efforts paid off as he found me the best bike rack for my car, the Swagman Trailhead 2 Bike Carrier. It sits up off the ground just high enough that it doesn't scrape on my driveway. It is also sturdy and holds my bikes securely. And, the delivery was amazingly fast. I had my rack in about 2 days! Note to Troop, see my Pittsburgh Pirates Logo on my bumper in the attached pictures? Pirate Fans persevere! The Bucco's will be coming after your Cardinals this year! Thanks again Troop!
# 12
Inno Fork Lock III Roof Bike Rack - Fork Mount - Clamp On - Aluminum
The NA391 roof bike rack is sleek and stylish looking. It's light and seems to be pretty aerodynamic. At the same time, it appears to be pretty sturdy. Once clamped to my INNO roof rack system, I can grab the track of the roof bike rack and pull back and forth enough to rock the whole car without it moving on the roof rack system. I would give it 5 stars but for what I believe is a design flaw that INNO seems to have overlooked. Due to the curvature of the roof on the Tucson that the Inno rack system is mounted on, the front clamp of the bike rack does not sit flat on the INNO crossbars. The bike rack comes with a spacer to use under the rear clamp to level the rack. But the bolts on the clamp knobs are too short to use the spacer. I don't understand how INNO could miss this design flaw in their own product. Even with just the thin strips of rubber spacers on the bottom of the rack on top of the rear crossbar is almost too much for the bolts on the knobs. INNO needs to look into this flaw and correct it.
I like the bike racks…I ordered two for my INNO roof rack load bars…good quality and reasonably easy to install. I did not realize etrailer also carried the same type of bike carrier that will slide directly into the T-Slot track, otherwise I would’ve gotten those instead…Oh well, that’s the way it goes sometimes.
# 13
Swagman Upright Bike Rack for 1 Bike - Roof Rack Crossbars - Frame Mount
Planning on bringing bikes while camping. I mounted 2 of the Swagman bike racks to my new Sportrack on my pop-up camper. The bikes fit perfectly. The racks seem sturdy enough. Not heavy duty, but for my needs they should be fine. Assembly was relatively fast and easy.
As always with products I buy from e-Trailer, this item is exactly as advertised and works perfectly. Easy assembly, I bought 2 but only installed one until I check the fit with my rooftop carrier.
# 14
Thule Elite Van XT 2 Bike Rack for Sprinter Rear Door
The Thule Elite Van XT2 Bike Rack is just what I expected but the install instructions leave something to be desired. Nothing but pictures trying to describe the install. Even a few poorly worded sentences would have been helpful in some places. I have seen this noted in other reviews and [online]. Otherwise a quality product and I have been able to integrate it with my Kuat swing arm and bike rack that we were already using. I wanted to be able to add a 3rd bike to our setup without extending the length and still be able to open the rear doors without removing a bike. This all worked out with just a little modification. I did move the Thule bike rail install point 1.5" above the center install position to allow clearance over my wife's ebike. See photos.
The bike rack arrived within 2 business days as promised by Melissa. Install was straight forward. We drove with two bikes 4000 miles and had absolutely no issues. We used the adhesive recommended in the instructions and had absolutely no problems with dispensing the adhesive (as sometimes mentioned in the reviews).
# 15
Hollywood Racks Truck Bed Bike Carrier - Fork Mount - Bolt On
The Hollywood Racks Truck Bed Bike Carrier - Fork Mount - Bolt On, is just what I was looking for to be able to build a bike rack for carrying one of my bikes on my motorcycle. It was easy to mount and it holds my bike in place while riding on bumpy dirt roads, city streets, highways and even when I hit some twisty country roads. It's really easy to load and unload my bike when I get to where I want to ride. I use a velcro strap around the quick-release and the fork arm as an added safety as well as a couple tie-downs from my bike handlebars to my motorcycle passenger pegs to help distribute the weight on my rack. If you want to build your own DIY bike rack I totally recommend the Hollywood Racks Truck Bed Bike Carrier - Fork Mount - Bolt On.
Love this product! I built a great bike carrying system for my F-150 using two of these fork clamps. They are easy to install and extremely well made. No more tangled bikes and lots more room in the bed for other stuff! Best way to go for a nice bike rack system. Thanks, Phil T.
# 16
Hollywood Racks Destination Bike Rack for 4 Bikes - 2" Hitches - Frame Mount
Sturdy, affordable and good ground clearance. Easily fits large size mountain bikes. Quick assembly and not that heavy at all. Folds up nicely. Only used it twice so far but very happy with this product.
Great personalized serve Outstanding delivery and free shipping Easy to assemble Well thought out and will be a cinch to use Rock solid on my Jeep Grand Cherokee Outstanding value!!! Thanks 1000k!
# 17
Thule Elite Van XT 2 Bike Rack for Ram ProMaster Rear Door
Expensive, but worth the cost! Easy to install with clear instructions. Folds away cleanly when not in use, you can use the shorter bike latch to secure the folded rack in place more easily than the included strap. The only problem I've had is that if you're about 6' tall, with the rack in the highest position it's just above your sightline but squarely in "crack you in the forehead" range, so keep that in mind when deciding which height to use.
Great product, poor sales and delivery execution. The good: This bike rack appears to be of typical Thule high quality However, at the time of this writing, I had not installed the rack on my 2021 Promaster. The rack arrived on time with decent tracking data. The bad: The installation process for this rack is far (FAR!) more involved than installing a roof rack or hitch mount. ETrailer made no mention of needing specialty adhesive in order to install per Thule’s requirements. Neither Thule nor etrailer provided this adhesive, and it’s very hard to find in bricks and mortar stores. I suggest ordering the required Sikaflex 252 on Amazon immediately after ordering the rack so the adhesive will arrives before the rack. It appears etrailer sold me a returned item, because the rack appeared to be thrown in the delivery box with loose parts and no protective packing materials; $XXX bike rack and that’s how much etrailer cares! UPS sucks; there’s no reason to candy-coat the performance of their deliveries (yay for union protected job apathy). Every (yes, literally every) box I receive from UPS arrives with varying degrees of damage which often impacts the condition of the contents of the box. I suggest buying this rack at your local bricks and mortar bike store.
# 18
Thule EasyFold XT Bike Rack for 2 Electric Bikes - 1-1/4" and 2" Hitches - Frame Mount
The BEST bike carrier by far!! We are both in our 7th decade and even I alone (5’2” 120 lbs) can manage to attach this in my hitch without any issues. It’s so easy to load both our hybrid and e-bike and they are super secure. We love that it folds up small and wheels away when not in use. This bike carrier is worth every penny!!
This rack is perfect! eTrailer had it shipped and at my home in almost no time. I drove with it on the car today, and it was solid and secure. It's super easy to get on and off the hitch. I'm 5'1 and I was able to load the bike on with the ramp without a struggle. Thanks for the thorough video and comparison information. It made this purchase easy.
# 19
Hollywood Racks Sport Rider SE Bike Rack for 2 Electric Bikes - 2" Hitches - Frame Mount
I have a Dirty Sixer 36" wheel bike and my wife has an electric bike. This rack handles them both very easy. This is one of the only bikes racks the 36er will fit on. We are extremely happy with the purchase and will more than likely be purchasing another one in the near future. Assembly was very easy!!
This bike rack works great for our 2 Lectric 2.0 e-bikes. We mount it on our 2019 Honda Ridgeline. It folds up nicely when it’s on the truck and we are using our bikes. The locking mechanisms work well also. I contacted support for a smaller hook arm to clamp B over the bike frame. They knew exactly what I needed and shipped it - no problem.
# 20
Yakima EXO Swing Away 2 Bike Rack w/ Enclosed Cargo Carrier - 2" Hitches
Easy to install very strong and high quality. Kate at etrailer said I would find it fantastic. And she was right.
Installed on 2017 Transit 350HD. First order on etrailer and the experience was great; really fast shipping and great communication. I was surprised to see it picked and shipped so quick so late in the day, especially for how big this is. It comes in 4 boxes; one giant one and 3 moderately huge ones. The Yakima EXO system is top notch, great construction. Excellent fit and finish, and pretty easy to assemble. Read the instructions and follow each step and you'll have no issues. I have a bad back and was able to assemble myself, the heaviest part is the swing away hitch - if you can lift about 40-50 pounds it is going to be easy to assemble without any help. I went slow and it only took me about 30-45 minutes. Tips - the bike rack portion it's not super clear that the rails should not be tight when you put the upper bike rack on. Just set everything in place and it will make getting the bolts through easier. Pros - it's as advertised. Super sturdy, no shaking/rocking, easy to use. The people who designed this system should be high fiving themselves, it's great. Cons - none really other than one minor customer experience gripe - you're given enough lock centers to re-key multiple Yakima EXO accessories, I think 4 are included...but it does not come with a master key for removing the lock center. You'll need to buy this separately or do like I did and make your own. Considering they put the effort into including replacement lock centers and give you every tool you'd need, it's a weird oversight. That being said once you replace the lock center on the cargo carrier you only need 1 key for all of the locks on the system which is awesome. Ford Transit specific issue I ran into: When the swing away is open there is a safety latch that holds it open so it will not fall closed on you. This gets in the way of the passenger door opening. But if you remove this (at your risk) you can open the passenger door fully and if you rotate the upper shelf you can even open the door entirely against the side of the van. Also it will 100% block your camera and license plate if it's door mounted. Absolutely stoked on this system. The cargo box is awesome with internal tie downs and taking it apart to store it in the garage only takes a minute or two. I love how easy the cargo box indexes in place. Every aspect of it has been super satisfying to play with.
RockyMounts Hitch Bike Racks Review - 2019 Ford Transit Connect
Hi everyone. It's Evangeline here at etrailer, and today we'll be taking a look at the RockyMounts MonoRail two-bike platform racks here on our 2019 Ford Transit Connect. The MonoRail is a great all-around the bike rack that has some of the premium features you would expect from a premium bike rack, without that much of a premium price. So we'll talk about that. We'll talk about how it works, but we are gonna focus on our Ford Transit Connect here today that we can see how it works with the van. And then you can make the best decision for you, your different types of bikes and your vehicle.
Kuat Hitch Bike Racks Review - 2019 Ford Transit Connect
Hi, everyone. It's Evangeline here at etrailer. And today, we'll be taking a look at the Kuat NV 2.0 two-bike platform rack, here on our 2019 Ford Transit Connect. So your Transit Connect is a very versatile vehicle. You've got your work van, you can use this for van life, you can put a bed in there, you can go all out for your camping and your different types of adventures. Now what if you also wanna carry around your bikes That's where the Kuat NV comes in handy.
Hollywood Racks Hitch Bike Racks Review - 2019 Ford Transit Connect
Hi, everyone. It's Evangeline here at etrailer. And today we'll be taking a look at our Hollywood Racks Destination four-bike platform rack, here on our 2019 Ford Transit Connect. This is gonna be a great entry-level bike rack that gives you the stability of a platform rack, but at the price point of a hanging rack, actually. We'll talk about those features, but we are gonna focus on our van here today, so you can see how it works with it, and then make the best choice for you, your different types of bikes, and your vehicle. So like most of the bike racks in this price range, this one does not tilt away.
What our customers are saying:
"A couple months ago, I ordered a hitch & bike rack for my new 2005 Saturn VUE. Everything about the order was fast and easy. When my father bought a 2006 VUE, he wanted the same hitch, but it was not listed on the site. I contacted customer service and quickly received a response informing me that they were waiting for details on the new model. The next day I had another email saying it was available, less than an hour later, my order was placed and I had a "shipped" email. Outstanding service!"