This platform rack has arms that deploy with the tap of a lever, making loading and unloading bikes almost effortless. Arms hold your bikes securely by the wheels. Bikes can be loaded onto the wheel trays front to back to prevent handlebar contact.
Features:
Specs:
The Piston Pro carries 3 bikes, however the front position can be easily removed so there's less of a load on you and your vehicle if only 2 people are going riding. When it's not needed, simply remove the front section with the included tool and throw it in your trunk or leave it at home. A 2-bike add-on (sold separately) lets you convert the rack into a 4-bike carrier.
The Piston Pro has arms with hydro-pneumatic struts that deploy automatically by simply tapping the release levers, so you can easily load your bikes with both hands. They operate like the gas struts on your SUV that lift and support the rear hatch.
To load your bikes, tap the levers to deploy the hydro-pneumatic arms, set your bikes on the trays, and rotate the arms up over the wheels. Ratchets hold the arms in place, so once you squeeze the arms against the wheels there's nothing left to do. When you're ready to unload your bikes, tap the levers to release the arms - it's that simple.
The U-shaped arms have bridges that secure your bikes firmly by the wheel, so they won't scratch or scuff the bike's frame. Each arm has labelled settings for its bridge - 20", 24", 26", 27.5" and 29" tires. Just pinch the spring-loaded levers on each bridge and slide it to the corresponding tire size for each bike - no tools required.
The Piston Pro doesn't have cradles for the wheels like most platform-style bike racks. Instead, it has wheel trays that allow you to position your bikes on the rack exactly where you want them, not where the cradles dictate you place them. This helps prevent your handlebars and other bike parts from bumping into each other. Additionally, the trays have grooves in the tracks that accommodate narrow 18c road bike tires up to 5" fat bike tires.
The rack tilts down with your bikes loaded. So, whether you're at the trail or the grocery store, you don't have to remove your bikes to access your cargo area. It also folds up when not in use. This leaves a smaller footprint, so you can keep the rack on your vehicle to park in your garage. And if you want to remove it, it doesn't take up as much space to store it.
The spring-loaded hand and foot pedal is easily accessible when the rack is tilted up. When you're ready to load your bikes, simply step on the pedal and lower the rack with both hands. To tilt the rack with bikes loaded, reach under your front bike and pull up on the pedal with your hand. No more crawling through your bikes or squeezing between the rack and the vehicle to hit the tilt release lever. To return it to the upright position, pull up on the lever and raise the rack until it clicks into position.
The rack is easy to install. Just slide the shank into your hitch and use the included security tool to tighten the flatlock cam. As you tighten the cam, an anti-rattle wedge is deployed inside the shank to help take play out of the hitch connection.
The security tool has a hollow-point hex indentation, so it can only be used with the Piston Pro. This helps keep the rack secure on your vehicle. When you're done using it, you can store it in your trunk or glove compartment.
A cable lock is included to secure your bikes to the rack. The 12-mm thick, braided steel cable threads through your bike's frames, and locks back into the rack. The cable has a soft rubber cover that won't scratch or scuff your bikes' paint. A stainless steel hitch lock is also included to secure the rack to your vehicle.
An aluminum ramp (sold separately) lets you roll your heavy e-bikes on and off the rack - no heavy lifting required. The ramp telescopes to ensure it touches the ground so you don't have to lift your bike at all. It can also be used to decrease the angle of approach to make loading even easier.
A hook-and-loop strap kit (sold separately) lets you carry bikes with fenders. The Fender Kit Only setting on each arm indicates where to place the straps so they don't make contact with your bike's fenders.
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Videos are provided as a guide only. Refer to manufacturer installation instructions and specs for complete information.
Hey everyone, it's Evangeline here at etrailer. And today we have the Kuat Piston Pro three-bike platform rack and we'll take a look at how it fits our 2022 Dodge Durango. Now with a Kuat Piston Pro, it's gonna be an impressive bike rack. It has its one tap piston that secure your bikes by its front and rear wheels, making it easier to load and unload those bikes and it looks pretty cool. But it's also pretty heavy. So fortunately for the Durango, it does have that weight capacity to carry the bike rack and the bikes.
And if you tilt the rack away, you are able to open up the hatch. So I'll show you how to do that. There's this lever here, you're gonna wanna pull the lever and let this drop down to its tilt. Fortunately on the Durango, it's high enough where this does not bottom out. So you're safe there.
Just try to dodge the bikes as they come down if it is fully loaded. Now, why would you tilt your bike rack away We'll notice here how much space you have between the door, our pedals, and our handlebars. It can fully open so that you can just hop in here, grab whatever you need, whether it's your waters, your helmets, your backpacks. If you wanted to switch out your shoes, you could do so here as well. Now closing the door, you can see again the clearance we have between our bikes and the hatch.
Now if you did want to use a tilt weight feature, awesome. The downside is that's also a lot of weight you're gonna have to lift right back up if this is fully loaded. So try to hold the rack by the frame as you lift up it latches into place and now you're ready to drive again. How does this hold onto our bikes Well notice where this is secured. Since there's zero frame contact, you don't have to worry about getting adapters with different types of frames.
So whether you have a carbon fiber frame, mountain bike frame, step-through frame, you are good to go. You can also make adjustments on the mount for those different tire widths and bike wheel bases. This does have a maximum wheel base of 53 inches and a maximum tire width of up to five inches. Now it does have a weight capacity of 40 pounds per bike. Compared to the two-bike platform rack, which is great for those extra heavy electric bikes, once you add that third tray, your weight capacity per bike does decrease because this is a heavier rack and it does sit further away from your hitch receiver. So that is something to be mindful if you are looking for a multi bike rack, you also have to consider that weight capacity for most of them. Now if you wanna take the bike off, watch how I do it. I use one hand to hold the frame, other hand to hit those levers. So there's one, I drop that down. And two, drop that down. So I'd like to drop them down to make it easier to unload the bike. This is also used when selective unloading that way with those slightly heavier bikes, I don't have to lift them up and over and I can kind of just ramp them down. And now I'm ready to hit the trails. So if you look closely on the rack, you can see the different grooves there for those different tire widths, from your thin road bike tires to your wide tires. And since you're not limited to a cradle, you can just slide those bikes around to get the best fit with each other. So when you have multiple bikes you wanna make sure you have enough space for your pedals, your handlebars, and their seats, so they're not all colliding with one another. And when they are on your rack you are able to secure them with the included cable lock. Let's bring this right back down so it's all nice and neat. And then we can talk about measurements. So when you are carrying around a lot of bikes, you're also gonna have to consider that you're taking up a lot of space. So measuring from our bumper to the end of the rack. We'll see here. We have a clearance of 37 inches. So if you have a small garage or need to park into a tight spot, since you already have a larger vehicle that is a measurement to remember. Now for ground clearance, end of the rack to ground, that's 23 inches. Let's compare that to where the shank is to the ground. And that is 12 inches. So from one foot to almost two feet you do have that shank rise. So if you have steep inclines like driveways or hills that will be good for that. But notice here that still doesn't sit higher than our door opening. So if your bikes are off, you don't have to worry about the door making contact with the rack. Now another thing you can do with the bikes off is move this into the compact position. Remember that lever we pulled earlier We'll pull that lever again, but this time it'll lift up on the rack, it is kind of hefty and it's secured in this position. All right, let's take some more measurements. From the bumper to the end of the bike rack that is 13 inches. So big difference compared to when it was folded down. You'll want it in this position when you're just driving around town, you are not planning on taking your bikes out just yet. You also don't wanna take your bike rack off because it is kind of heavy. With it folded up like this, notice how our taillights are kind of visible, our rear window is definitely visible. We do cover our license plate and our backup camera sits right here. So technically it's in the opening, but you are gonna lose a lot of visibility in that backup camera. So something to be mindful. When you are going into reverse, you may wanna consider driving around with this in a down position or if you're fine with just relying mainly on your mirrors, you can go in the upright position. Some other things real quick is it fits into a two-inch hitch receiver on the Durango. We do have a security pull right over here that uses a special Allen key to secure. So it also has a lock on our hitch pin. So compared to the Kuat Transfer which only has a pin, this does have a lock that is keyed alike to the cable lock that is on our bike rack. With all things being said, Kuat Piston Pro, hefty bike rack, pretty large is does take up a lot of space, but it does allow you to carry up to three bikes for your Durango. If you are planning on carrying on bikes of different shapes, different sizes, then you want a quick and easy way of securing them, this might be a good way to go. It is the more entry level version compared to the Kuat Piston Pro X. Meaning it does not have the taillights and it does have a different finish so it doesn't have that wiring. You can check out our full demos here at etrailer.com if you want a full depth look and review at those products. But for a three-bike platform rack, this is a solid choice. Something that takes up less space would be the Kuat Transfer and you can check that one out here at etrailer too. Same weight capacity, but honestly not as hefty. So this right here was a look at the Kuat Piston Pro three-bike platform rack on a 2022 Dodge Durango.
Average Customer Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars (6 Customer Reviews)
This platform rack has arms that deploy with the tap of a lever, making loading and unloading bikes almost effortless. Arms hold your bikes securely by the wheels. Bikes can be loaded onto the wheel trays front to back to prevent handlebar contact.
etrailer does an excellent job reviewing and showcasing its products. We spent many hours of research on the site before deciding on the Kuat. Assembly was fairly simple and quick. The features of the rack make it easy to use. Stable ride for our bikes down a wide variety of conditions (highway, dirt road, wash boards). Expensive, but the ease of use and quality make it worthwhile.
I researched tray racks for mountain bikes and knew that Kuat's Piston Pro was the best rack for my needs. I love etrailer for the how to install videos, support and pricing. If etrailer sells an item I'm interested in I purchase from them. I do this because of how hard they work for their customers. This rack is exceptional. Build quality is first class. The assembly was simple, the locking cable and hitch lock are very sturdy. My 29" wheel full suspension Specialized fits perfectly. My son's smaller Scott Mountain Bike also fits perfectly. We are getting Fat Tire Bikes and the trays support 5" tire widths. Adjustments for wheel size is simple, loading a bike is even easier. The bikes are solidly secured in place. 10 out of 10.
It was a surprise treat to have it setup and installed under an hour! Works very efficiently as advertised def worth look into it.
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