Bike rack for Toyota Yaris

chicoben

Hey,
Just lookin for some advice on a good bike rack to get for my girlfriends car(Toyota Yaris).

Has anyone had any experience with these?

I usually take it apart and put it in the back of the car but she doesn't like the hassle, or dirt gettin in the car. She has a ladies town bike.

Also my friend bought one from halfords last year but brought it back after a day cause it was waaay to finicky to install each time he wanted to put it on.

As I've never had one, I don't know what to look for.

Cheers,
Ben.

studiorat

chicoben wrote: »

Hey,
Just lookin for some advice on a good bike rack to get for my girlfriends car(Toyota Yaris).

Has anyone had any experience with these?

I usually take it apart and put it in the back of the car but she doesn't like the hassle, or dirt gettin in the car. She has a ladies town bike.

Also my friend bought one from halfords last year but brought it back after a day cause it was waaay to finicky to install each time he wanted to put it on.

As I've never had one, I don't know what to look for.

Cheers,
Ben.

Comin up in Aldi this thursday I believe. For a fiver or something!!!

Explosive_Cornflake

40 squids for the ALDI one. Did anyone get one before. What's the deal with it, pile of crap, or alright?

michaelm

I know this sounds excessive but if she uses the bike regularly then by far the easiest option is the tow bar mounted rack. It does of course necessitate having a tow bar fitted to the car but the sheer pleasure of putting on and taking off this type of rack will quickly make up for the cost.

daymobrew

michaelm wrote: »

I know this sounds excessive but if she uses the bike regularly then by far the easiest option is the tow bar mounted rack. It does of course necessitate having a tow bar fitted to the car but the sheer pleasure of putting on and taking off this type of rack will quickly make up for the cost.

I have a Halfords bike rack for my car. It worked on my VW Golf and now on my Passat. The rack was around 40 euro and not too dissimilar to the Aldi one. The only difference is that I do not have the straps that go out to the side, though I saw a car with that style on Saturday.

The rack is easy to put onto the car though the straps for the bike a awkward because the the clip is so close to the rack.
Having said that, once secured the bike won't move an inch. I brought my bike from Dublin to Kerry and back recently without issue.

With Aldi if it doesn't work out you can return for a full refund. And then you can look at the other options.

My brother-in-law got a quote of 500 euro for a dealer installed tow hitch. He's going to try the Aldi carrier.

Danbo!

daymobrew wrote: »

It worked on my VW Golf

a mkIV golf by any chance? considering getting one in aldi

paddyb

I have one similar to the aldi one that i got on ebay. I have brought two bikes on many long trips and have never had any issues with it.

daymobrew

noblestee wrote: »

a mkIV golf by any chance? considering getting one in aldi

It was a 2001 Golf. (Is that mk IV?)

Danbo!

yep, same year as mine, cheers

Supercell

I'm looking for a rack for my car (Skoda Fabia Hatchback) which I could use on a daily basis - want to drive halfway and cycle the rest.
That Aldi one look a little like something messers would want to mess with with all those staps dangling.
Any other recommendations that look a little more tidy so the car wouldn't be messed with if left alone all day?

Gavin

Get a roof mounted one, very neat way of doing it. You need those roof rack bars and then buy individual strips which are mounted on the bars. They take one bike each and should have a lock integrated into them (although you wouldn't want to trust it to keep your bike secure for more than a wee while). Nice easy option, you don't need to remove wheels or worry about visibility. You do need to remember to look out for low bridges though.

Supercell

Thanks Verb, will have a look in Halfords this weekend for something like that, looks like a good solution.

Gavin

Supercell wrote: »

Thanks Verb, will have a look in Halfords this weekend for something like that, looks like a good solution.

Sure, no prob. Thule I think are the brand to keep an eye out for.
http://www.cyclesuperstore.ie/shop/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=182&idproduct=17825

A friend has one on his car and it's rock solid. They are more expensive though, around 100 euro a pop. And then there's the cost of getting a roof bars onto the car if you don't have em already.

granturismo

daymobrew wrote: »

I have a Halfords bike rack for my car. It worked on my VW Golf and now on my Passat. The rack was around 40 euro and not too dissimilar to the Aldi one.

How long does it take you to install and take this style rack off the car. Like Supercell, I want to drive partway to work and could easily fit the rack in my estate boot.

Thanks.

Gavin

granturismo wrote: »

How long does it take you to install and take this style rack off the car. Like Supercell, I want to drive partway to work and could easily fit the rack in my estate boot.

Thanks.

I needed one on saturday and didn't bother wait for the Aldi one. So I bought a Halford one for 80 quid. After fixing the thing, which was put together wrong when I got it, it's trivial to install.

There are 6 straps. Two go through the top of the boot, two go to the side, clamping onto the boot edge and two go down the bottom. There are two additional straps then which are tied around the bicycles to keep them secure. The clamps are reasonably strong, they hold the straps well. We still removed the wheels from the bike as they stick out the side of the car quite a lot, and do obscure the tail lights a bit. Overall it's decent, Takes around 10-15 minutes maybe to mount it and secure the bike properly.

mtbr hylo

Towbar and Thule rack is the business...a bit more costly but worth every cent for a one-off investment. You can still access the boot and it takes 30 secs to fit or remove. I bought a 2ndhand towbar for the avensis and a Thule on ebay. Had a "Hollywood" rack previously and got fed-up with it, never mind the scratches to the car.