Determining if Handlebars on BMW Motorcycle on etrailer Carrier Will Contact Sprinter Van Door  

Question:

Helpful Expert Reply:

The etrailer Motorcycle Carrier # e98873 referenced in your question features a distance of 19-9/16" inches from the center of the hitch pin hole to the center of the carrier where your motorcycle will mount. Whether or not there will be any interference between the handlebars of your BMW G310GS and the rear door of your Sprinter will depend a bit on the exact hitch model you have installed.

Just as an example when we installed the Draw-Tite Max-Frame Class III Hitch # 75549 on the 2016 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 3500 the hitch pin hole actually sat flush with the outer edge of the rear bumper. This means that with the etrailer Carrier attached there would be 19-9/16" inches from the rear of the van to the center of the track. If you have a different model hitch and the receiver is more recessed behind the bumper or extended beyond it then this distance will decrease or increase accordingly.

With this in mind the hitch receiver on your Sprinter will likely need to extend out past the rear bumper a bit for there not to be interference between the rear doors and the handlebar on your BMW G310GS. Since the overall handlebar width on your BMW G310GS is 34.64 inches that means 17.32 inches (half) will extend from the center of the carrier track toward the rear of the van.

I have attached a short video demonstration on this carrier that you can also check out.

expert reply by: Chris R

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