5 bike hanging rack vs. 4 bike hanging or platform rack

Question:

Good morning, Im trying to decide on whether to purchase a 4 or 5 bike rack. Ideally, I would like a 5 bike hanging rack so I can load two adult bikes and occasionally 3 kids bikes without having to carry the 5th bike inside or on top of my 2017 Infiniti QX60 SUV. If carrying 5 bikes is likely to be a problem, I am considering a 4 bike platform carrierright now the Hollywood or Saris brands, or a 4 bike hanging that can rotate out of the way i.e Yakima Full Swing. From what Im reading from your customer reviews, it appears that the ability to actually load 5 bikes can be an issue even though the carrier is marketed for that many bikes. Also, the hanging rack has the additional expense of purchasing in my case 4 frame attachment bars to install on the bikes. Lastly, will a hanging rack do a good job of carrying two adult bikes a long distance trip? Thanks in advance for a long winded inquiry. Thanks!

asked by: Bob S

Helpful Expert Reply:

Carrying 5 Bikes is doable but in some cases it is a bit more difficult then just fitting 3-4 bikes on the carrier. Yes there may be some extra expense with the kids bikes but the adapter bar isn't always necessary. I can say that loading 5 bikes will be easier than loading a bike on your roof and of course that would require you to purchase an additional rack which would result in more spending than buying some adapter bars (if needed).

That being said, I think getting the Swagman XP # S64970 would be the easiest to get your 5 bikes loaded because it does not have an anti sway cradle. The anti sway cradle often gets in the way when loading up smaller bikes like your kids bikes. So it would be best for loading all 5. The anti sway cradle isn't necessary when loading all 5 bikes up because they will be so close together that they won't be slapping against each other when starting and stopping. In regards to longer trips with 2 bikes, you have 5 different places to put them so you can put an empty cradle between the two bikes or grab something like these quick ties # 3375480417 to pull the bikes together to prevent them from slapping against each other.

This set up gives you the easiest loading of 5 bikes and also will be great for hauling 2 bikes for longer trips. You may need to purchase a bike bar adapter for the smaller bikes but using the Swagman XP you will be least likely to have to buy the adapters. This rack can be used with a swing away system # y02483.

expert reply by: Adam E