Bike racks (1 Viewer)

[Johnhc]

Hi, although I've been a motorhomer for many years I'm new to this site and I'm hoping someone can help me. I'm about to buy my next m/h, a Burstner Nexxo t720, and I want to carry 2 ebikes on the back, each one weighs 19kg without their batteries. The new van doesn't have a fitted bike rack but does have a toe bar. I'm thinking of buying a tow ball mounted rack, but which one? I'd appreciate any suggestions

 

[Stealaway]

Best option is tow bar mounted. I wouldn't want to carry that much weight bolted to the rear wall.
Have you considered the security - that amount of valuable bikes sat outside the van would have me very worried.

 

[Masman]

Thule do a towbar mounted rack for E bikes.Not cheep but good quality. Locks onto towbar and bikes locked on to rack

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[Lanerboy]

Thule do a towbar mounted rack for E bikes.Not cheep but good quality. Locks onto towbar and bikes locked on to rack

I have one of the above and they are very good but make sure you buy the proper ebike version as they are designed to carry the extra weight

 

[Neilfg]

We had a westfalia bike rack could take up to 60kg, had locks etc.. easy to fit and store as folded up when not in use. Worked very well and rock solid when fitted, did about 20k miles with it.

Security wise we felt much more comfortable when the bikes were covered this also kept them alot cleaner. We did have a bike loop fitted to the alarm, but in reality we never used it.

 

[simsy56]

I have a Thule 2 e-bike rack for the tow ball, solid rack.

Craig

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[pandas]

Best option is tow bar mounted. I wouldn't want to carry that much weight bolted to the rear wall.
Have you considered the security - that amount of valuable bikes sat outside the van would have me very worried.

Rear mounted is not a problem and we had one for 6 years with ebikes , - 2 x bikes total weight 46 kg without the batteries. It does make the bikes higher to lift on and off. Depends if you wanted to use the ball hitch for anything else at the same time but technically not an issue and the most common solution.

 

[Johnhc]

Thanks everyone for your comments. I'm picking up the new van next week so I'm thinking of just waiting for a while before I make a decision, think it will be a tow bar rack though!

 

[DangerMousy]

I would definitely go for the tow bar rack rather than a rear wall carrier.

We carry two ebikes on a Fiamma rack - we're well within the weight limit of the rack (and the rear wall) but lifting them on to the rack is definitely a two person job. We also can't see anything out of the rear window On our next MH we'll be either fitting a tow bar rack, or preferably a chassis mounted rack.

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[Wellington]

I had a Witter ebike rack, and it doesn’t fit my tow bar very well. It’s rickety on the tow bar, doesn’t secure the bikes well or easily and despite spacers is canted back so heavily towards the van it’s damaged the paintwork. I’ve taken it to two bike shops, and it’s not a user or fitting problem, it’s either faulty or not a good product. I’d have returned it, but we were away, and it was too late by the time we got back. I’d never buy another. (I bought an MH with a garage instead!)

 

[RVFUN]

We have an excellent Thule which we are selling it takes 60kgs you can lift the bikes up on to it but we found covering the bikes was difficult as higher up so we decided to splash out on a Thule lift bike rack to make life easier which takes 50 kgs. We will have to ensure bikes are within weight limit 25kgs a rail and reduce weight by removing batteries though. That way we have our towbar free for a tow bar rack as well as bike rack or towing our tow car. I think 30kgs for the Thule is easily doable and fine for standard sized electric bikes. Mine was awkward to get on as a folder.

 

[timontrak]

I have one of the above and they are very good but make sure you buy the proper ebike version as they are designed to carry the extra weight

Do you know the model name/number for this please? Thanks!

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[pappajohn]

Before buying any particular towbar rack it's worth taking some measurements..... Unlike me.

I just bought a used Thule tilting 2 bike rack for my ebike and found when fitting the bike the tyre channels are EXACTLY the same length as the tyre wheelbase..... Tyres half on/half off the rack and not safe.
The problem is the battery is mounted behind the seat post so everything behind the post is 4" further back.
Spent yesterday afternoon measuring, cutting, shaping and fitting some 1/4" plastic channel to give me another 3" each end but I wouldn't want to do that with a new rack and void any warranty.