Questions About Adding A Thule Wheel Tray To A Yakima Bike Rack Ramp To Help With Loading Bikes

Question:

What is the width of the tray or another way to ask how wide of tire can roll thru it. I am using a e- bike with a tire a little bigger than 2 1/4 inch. Also what kind of material is it made of? I would like to ask the same questions for two other numbers to compare the three together. The part number is: 853-7020-56-02 853-5423-56 853-7628 I have a Yakima carrier made for e-bikes. At 71 sometimes I have trouble rolling the bike back to the ramp. The front wheel will fall off the smooth rail. I was going to add the tray to keep the wheel tracking straight to the rear wheel chock.

asked by: Gregg P

Helpful Expert Reply:

Hello Gregg thank you for your questions. Firstly I will start by telling you that all three of the replacement wheel trays you mentioned, the # 853-7020-56-02, # 853-5423-56 and # 853-7628 are all made of aluminum. Thule describes it as a lightweight single-wall aluminum. All three of these trays are made as replacement parts for some of the older Thule model bike racks, all of which have been discontinued for quite some time. The only real difference between the trays is the length and the color/finish.

As far as the maximum acceptable tire width, the inside of the trays measure at 2-1/4" wide. If your tires are a bit over 2-1/4" it is going to be a tight fit. Thule specifies in their literature that their trays will accommodate tires up to 2.6" wide, but being that the inside width of the tray in 2-1/4", this means with larger tires, part of the tire would be riding on the edge of the tray. So while it may still work as a ramp, you would be cutting it very close and my concern would be that it will not do exactly what you are wanting it to do.

If you are wanting something a bit wider, I suggest taking a look at the Replacement Wheel Tray # Y42FR which is made by Yakima. This one is very similar to the Thule trays you mentioned, but it will accommodate tires up to 3" wide so it would give you a bit more space to work with.

I believe that adding a tray like this certainly would help to keep the tire centered on the ramp and keep it from straying off to either side. While this may not be exactly what these wheel trays are intended for, it sounds like you are certainly on the right track with your idea of adding it to the ramp on your Yakima bike rack. Hopefully this will make your future bike excursions a bit easier on you. As always Gregg you can feel free to reach out with any further questions.

expert reply by: Jesse M