In years past I always carried my bikes in either my truck or a Honda Element. But now I want to use my Corolla to haul it to where I ride.
I am looking for a solution to carry the thing. I am leaning away from both hitch carriers and those trunk mount carriers due to the fact that I do not want to obscure the taillights and license plate. That leaves me with rooftop carriers. So I am asking for anyone with experience using them how bad they really are. Lifting the bike up there is no challenge. I'm not the kind of guy to knock the bike into low hanging obstacles or garages either so that's a non issue. I'm simply looking for words of wisdom on car top carriers. I am leaning most heavily towards the fork mount type where I remove the front wheel.
Everyone I know fawns over one up racks.
I have a velocirax 5x which is stupid and big.
hitch racks are just plain easier to get bikes on and off of and easier is best. If you buy something that is a pain in the sss you'll unload it fast.
I've used Thule roof racks for many years. I have an older version of the current UpRide along with a couple of old fork mounts. Fork mounts worked fine for old QR front wheels, but when more bikes went to thru-axles (even my road bike has one now), they are a bit annoying.
We have a couple of these roof carriers on the Impreza for mountain bikes. They work, have held up decently, and don't seem to make much noise when there's not a bike on them- I'd buy a similar one again. I like not having to take wheels off and such, just throw the bike up there and go.
I went through the same thought process and landed on a Seasucker suction setup and I absolutely love it. Lightweight. I can mount on any car. And it's been solid - hasn't moved at all even with extended highway driving.
1UP hitch rack all the way. Built better then any of the other options imo, built in the USA and all the parts are replaceable.
IMO at least for me, roof racks are a pain in the ass especially with a heavier mountain bike and spikey flat pedals.
I agree with IanF fork mounts are a bit more of a pain with modern thru axle forks.
Caprigrip said:
I went through the same thought process and landed on a Seasucker suction setup and I absolutely love it. Lightweight. I can mount on any car. And it's been solid - hasn't moved at all even with extended highway driving.
I have these and the are excellent but expensive.
I was lucky to find them used on next door for $100. They work great with a 26" wheel mountain bike.
Hitch rack isn't an option in this case. I don't want to obscure my taillights and license plate with a rack and/or bicycle.
Plus three on the Seasucker. We can use it on the GTI, the Mustang, and I'm sure I could figure out how on the Miata and M2 . . .
Roof racks are amazing and increase utility by a ton when you don't have a bike up there. When I had my saturn, anything that wouldn't fit inside went on the roof. I picked up lumber with it, a wheelbarrow, a giant coffee table, dresser, etc. Super handy.
Only warning on fork-mount would be if you plan to upgrade your bike at all - most modern mountain bikes are thru-axle and wont work with a fork mount style.
Only warning on a roof style in general is dont drive into a garage with your bike on the roof.
One ups are awesome, but small cars typically don't have a 2" receiver available, so you are limited to a single bike.
Cousin_Eddie (Forum Supporter) said:
Hitch rack isn't an option in this case. I don't want to obscure my taillights and license plate with a rack and/or bicycle.
https://www.1up-usa.com/product/roof-rack/
1UP roof rack.
I will say 1UP also has a license plate holder and light for their racks.
https://www.1up-usa.com/product/led-light-bar-plate-holder-2/
ProDarwin said:
One ups are awesome, but small cars typically don't have a 2" receiver available, so you are limited to a single bike.
Stick a 1.5in to 2in adaptor on it. Also OneUp and 1Up are different companies.
I've had Thule and Yakima roof racks, and a couple hitch racks - most recently being a 1up which is by far my favorite. Since you're looking at a roof rack specifically, do you think you'd strap other stuff to it ever? Also, if your bike gets dirty or has a thru axle, pulling the front wheel off is kind of annoying.
We have a yak rack on my wife's car and it's been handy to strap 8' 2xs on the roof when I was truckless. Getting the bikes on it are fine as far as a roof rack goes. Of the Thule big mouth vs Yakima wheel on rack - the Yak is better and doesn't contact the frame. There are probably newer Thule racks that are similar, I just haven't played with one yet.
The seasucker is wicked cool, and it'll be cheaper than buying a new traditional roof rack setup with the secondary benefit of being a universal fit.
93EXCivic said:
Also OneUp and 1Up are different companies.
Good point! OneUp makes good stuff, but not racks.
Have you used the adapter? The ones I have seen are sketchy as hell because they stick out another 6" or whatever, and thats the last thing you want on most small cars.
Just saying, I used a hitch rack multiple times a week for over a year with zero issues from obscuring taillights or license plate. If you really insist, it's super easy to relocate the plate onto the rack (I did this for one vehicle where the hitch lived behind the plate mount) and not overly difficult to add an extra set of lights to the rack.
I never considered a roof rack because I have a garage so I'd have to load and unload awkwardly every single time, and would probably inevitably run the bike into it. But watching the occasional person deal with one at the bike trail, it just doesn't seem worth the effort.
As far as daily livability, I much prefer something on the roof. Its always there, ready to go, not in the way. It doesnt impact parking. The hitch rack I have to take on and off or fold up/down all the time and its a proper pain the dick. But the one on the roof isn't so fun if you are on the highway often.
+1 that I have zero issues with the hitch rack obscuring license plate or tail lights
ProDarwin said:
93EXCivic said:
Also OneUp and 1Up are different companies.
Good point! OneUp makes good stuff, but not racks.
Have you used the adapter? The ones I have seen are sketchy as hell because they stick out another 6" or whatever, and thats the last thing you want on most small cars.
https://www.amazon.com/MaxxHaul-80875-Hitch-Adapter-Receivers/dp/B07DR2NC37/ref=sr_1_8?crid=1RM5HA6ETIATY&keywords=1.5in%2Bto%2B2in%2Bhitch%2Badapter&qid=1673560927&sprefix=1.5in%2Bto%2B2in%2Bhitch%2Badapter%2Caps%2C106&sr=8-8&th=1
I have one of these. It works well enough on our CX50. Most of the time my rack is on my Element which has a 2in hitch.
93EXCivic said:
ProDarwin said:
One ups are awesome, but small cars typically don't have a 2" receiver available, so you are limited to a single bike.
Stick a 1.5in to 2in adaptor on it. Also OneUp and 1Up are different companies.
My 1.25" 1UP carries 2 bikes fine. If you look at the 1.25" quik rack it says.
- Increase bike capacity to 3 bikes max with additional Add-Ons (sold separately)
I wouldnt use any rack besides a 1Up. They are worth every penny. There is a knockoff running around out there now and a few other companies have adopted similar designs but the 1Up is the only one worth buying.
- Made in USA - Dickeyville, Wisconsin where I used to live so thats cool.
- All parts available.
- No plastic anywhere.
- If for some reason the company goes broke there is nothing that couldn't be made or repaired at any fab or machine shop.
- They hold their value like none other. Used ones sell for the price of new.
- Modular. You can "Forever Alone" with a single rack when you dont want a big monster rack hanging off your car or truck or put the double or triple rack on when you need to haul more bikes.
- Flexible. I have hauled everything from 2x fat bikes to 2x e-Bikes to 2x road bikes to 2x BMX bikes on mine, and mixed and matched too. Never damaged a bike or a vehicle, had it come loose, or had anything close to a close call.
I figured I'd add some closure to this thread. My Corolla being so old and having no hard points to mount a rack allowed me few options to choose from. In the end I chose Sportrack which is a Thule company. Kind of an off brand option to the prestigious stuff. I went with both their rack and bicycle mount.
I'm pleased enough with the end result, although the universal clamp mounts are industrial looking to put it mildly.
Put the back seats down and take the front wheel off?
I forget what they're called, but I love these Thules because they are fast and easy.
In reply to 93gsxturbo :
Except one ups don't hold more than 4 bikes and are useless for us with big families.
id love one. But won't fit my needs. They are made well
What racks DO hold more than 4 bikes?
ProDarwin said:
What racks DO hold more than 4 bikes?
VelociRAX. Pretty much any of the Vertical bike racks will do more than 4 normally around 6 depending on configuration.
