trunk bike rack, any good?

Hey guys and gals, new to the forum and getting back into the sport.. I'm not fortunate to have a truck anymore, so trying to figure whos had luck with trunk bike racks? I'm looking at getting a 2014-2017 StumpJumper.. anyone have this bike or similar and a trunk rack? I have an Infiniti q70, pretty close to the same as m35/37/45/56.. any help would be greatly appreciated.. 1, 2, 3 bike carrier racks preferred

 

Trunk racks and full suspension bikes require a Top Tube Bar/adapter. Putting more than 1 bike on the Trunk rack is a PITA.

We had a Thule for a while when my wife had a Mustang...I really never trusted it.

For short drives they are probably ok...but I wouldn't want to use one for a long road trip, or any drive where I had to leave the pavement.

 

I'll second J's input. We picked up a Yakima trunk rack for my wife's Infiniti G37 and only used it once. I didn't like the potential for damage to the paint from the mounting points and it didn't really do a good job of holding the bikes. I quickly re-sold it.

 

I have a yakima trunk rack and I'm pretty happy with it, no damage on the paint so far (my car is '00 I dont care for the paint) I've take it to Big Bear and no problem but like J said 2 bikes are PITA to put on it. Also you need the top tube adapter $20-30. I've using it for 2 years already and no problems.
1 bike.perfect
2 bikes..mmmm some trouble
3 bikes ...no way

 

Thanks for the replies, I really appreciate it.. allot of what you stated echoes my initial thoughts.. what is a good one for a roof rack? Preference is not having to take any tires off of the bikes.. does it matter if you have a sunroof?

 

Most racks clear sunroofs. I am a Thule fan boy and the big mouth is your go to rail.

 

Welcome @jdubfriday ! You'll find that we generally try to be helpful around here...

After you get your bike carrier situation sorted out, feel free to stay! We ride lots, we love bikes, we love to talk about bikes, and most of us don't bite!

Steve in the OC

 

Thanks Steve in OC.. I'll be on here all time I promise.. I have allot of lost time to catch up on.. let's just say I'm out of practice lol

 

Thanks you NoLungs.. I will make sure to.check that out

 

Thule doesn't make a roof rack for my car? What's the model from Thule you have?

 

IMO, hitch mounted rear racks are the only way to go. Can you get a hitch installed on your infiniti?

 

Not sure.. I'll need to look into that..

 

Check www.etrailer.com. They have pretty good deals on hitches if you don't mind doing the install yourself. I've purchased several through them. If you go the hitch rack route, take a hard look at the 1upusa rack. Not cheap, but the functionality and durability of the rack are great.

 

quick search, looks like you can. Uhaul can install (At least, they did for my honda elementt) So, no reason to screw around with roof or trunk racks, except $.
Get a flat tray rack, not the ones that clamp the top tube.
https://www.thule.com/en-us/us/bike-rack/hitch-bike-racks/thule-t2-classic-9044-_-1689772
http://www.1upusa.com/product-quikracksilverdouble.html
the 1ups are the king. I have a thule because a buddy sold me his for almost nothing.

Check craigslist or pinkbike classifieds for used racks, sometimes you can find a good deal.

 

When I had a roof rack (get a truck, way easier lol) it was thule aero bars and bases. It looks like Yakima has a solution if you want to go roof.

 

Hey @jdubfriday ,
A sincere welcome to imtbtrails dude!
I have a top of the line two bike Thule roof rack that currently is on a Mini Cooper with the extension brackets, no removed wheels are required I will sell you cheap if it will fit your Infiniti.

But now I'm gonna talk you out of it if you have the option.
I had UHaul install a receiver hitch on my Honda Civic for $176 bucks, and then went and bought a 1Up USA single bike tray rack for $299 bucks. Then when I could afford the 2nd bike extension ($199 bucks), I bought that as well. Best option in my humble opinion. You don't have to remove wheels, racks incredibly light, takes seconds to install or remove, converts from one bike to a two bike (or 3 bike) in seconds as well.

Plus you get your car back at the end of the day (rack removes in seconds), no car wash issues, no driving into the garage with bikes on top, do I need to keep going?

https://www.1upusa.com/bicycleracks.html

And there yah go!

Mikie

 

I keep one rack on my Audi Q5 roof full time - Yakima High Roller mounted onto Audi crossbars. Big sunroof - no issues. It holds a complete bike with no disassembly. I've transported 29ers, DH bikes, beach cruisers and plus-sized bikes on it with no problem. Been using the same rack for 8 years. DO NOT forget that you have a bike up there if you use a roof rack. Almost everyone has made that mistake once.

I also have a 2" receiver and use a Thule T2 when I am transporting more than one bike. Perfectly secure. I leave it off most of the time, and install it in 3 minutes when I need it. That said - ground clearance is your friend when talking hitch racks.

@Mikie is right - and he usually is. Except that Grip Shift thing. And the Lycra...

Welcome to IMTBTrails - the best little mtb forum west of the Pecos!

 

Agree 100%. Driving a roof-mounted bike into a low hanging obstruction is not a matter of if, but when.

When I was temporarily a car owner I had a 1 1/4" Curt hitch installed on my Audi A3. The install was a bit complicated for me as exhaust had to be dropped and it required a minor trim of the bumper, so had my mechanic do it. The setup was solid and I still have the T2 rack 9 years later. Perfect for 2 bikes. You cannot add the 2-bike extender unless you get a 2" receiver with appropriate rating of hitch so 2 bikes is the limit. This is not a cheap option, but IMO is worth it. The hitch was a good selling point when I sold the car.

 

Ditto to getting the hitch installed. Well worth the money, I think it was $180 at Uhaul. I think they can do it on just about any car, you'll just have to check how much weight you'll be able to hold.

I have both a roof rack and the hitch mount. I mainly got the roof rack for the kayak, but added the bike mounts for when I need them, but barely use them. I have Thule for both racks, and would recommend them, but I'm sure there are plenty of other quality racks out there.

 

Getting a hitch installed and going with a hitch rack is 100% good way to go IMHO. Probably would be a 1.25" one for your car. Guessed on year: https://www.etrailer.com/hitch-2015_Infiniti_Q70.htm

 

I had a trunk rack for my GS400 for a year and I can tell you it sucked. Even with proper loading, I still end up scratching the bumper and my bike because things settle and move around during transit. Plus its hideous when you leave it on the car for extended periods of time. Lastly, it added another 30 lbs to my GS trunk lid which already was heavy and lifting required a good squat thrust. If your on an outing, you end up throwing things on the front seat to avoid lifting the trunk/rack combo.

 

My wife and I had hitches installed by Hitchcrafters in Costa Mesa, hers six years ago, mine four and use Thule Helium racks which don't require the wheels to be removed. Both have locks made by Kryptonite which assuages us when we leave the bikes and everything has functioned well for many years and trips.

 

Worst thing about a trunk rack is not being able to access the trunk.

Otherwise I have nothing but good things to say about our Thule rack. I've used it for solo road trips and two bikes many, many times. For FS bikes, you can easily lash the top tube underneath the rack rail. And when I don't need it, it fits in the trunk. And I'm not scraping a hitch receiver off the back of my low rider. Well worth the minimal investment IMO.


Welcome, @jdubfriday! Cheers!

 

You can access the trunk once the bike is off. If you are careful, you won't even mess up your rack position.

I'm using a Yakima "3 bike" rack on my '97 Civic coupe. It gets me by. Everyone told me to get a hitchmount, and now I understand why.

The Yakima is a quality product, but it will affect the paint of your car and there's a good chance it will reform the shape of your trunk. Given that my car is a $500 bike-shuttle and MassTrans-avoidance-tool, I'm okay with paint and cosmetic issues. The rack is fiddly to adjust correctly, you still need a top bar adapter for almost anything but a hardtail/full rigid, the straps muss the brake cables on my hardtail, and the rack isn't crazy about my "enthusiastic" driving style. But it gets me by. If you only have $200 to spend, it's probably your least crappy choice.

But if you can afford it, go hitchmount. I would go straight to the 1up, nothing else works as well. There are other good hitchmounts, (Thule, Yakima, Saris, and Kuat all make good products,) but the 1up smokes them all, IMNSHO for easy of use and secure mounting. That's what I'm saving my pennies for.