I’m looking at getting 4 bikes onto the top of The Mighty SMax, ranging from a tiny little Ridgeback MX16 up to my Cannondale 29er.

Is the 591 any good?

Is there anything better for the price?

My roof bars are Ford aluminium aero profile jobbies.

Go!

They are ace, solid, quick to add/remove bikes, relatively secure (I still wouldn’t want to leave the car alone with the bikes on the roof in a car park), my three just live on the roof as i’m lazy.

Yep, they’re the best I’ve used. TBH mine isn’t a lot of use to me after selling the car, mind!!

Rachel

I have 4 on an A6. Could probably squeeze a 5th up there too with a bit of judicious shuffling. Easy to use, though not secure from theft and do tend to whistle a bit – not so bad on mine, but a mates’ roof rig howls the whole time even at modest speeds. Get them in pairs (or more) for a discount, and check out Amazon who often have “warehouse” deals on returned stock.

Edit: a 16″ wheeled bike may not fit so well, my kids’ 20″ wheeled bikes only go on at a stretch

Yes. The clamp is kind to delicate frames but still secure, it’s easy to get the bikes on and off, and while I wouldn’t leave bikes unattended for a long time the lock makes it OK to park outside the cafe for a while.

Is the 591 any good?
Yes, been using them and the version before the 591 for well over 10 years with both alu and carbon bikes and zero issues.

Is there anything better for the price?
IMO…No!

My roof bars are Ford aluminium aero profile jobbies.
The likelihood is these bars are made by one of the big brands like Thule so if they have the “t-track system” (a square cut out groove along the length filled with a rubber strip) then they will be perfect.

Just been down this road and got this:

[url=https://flic.kr/p/tjcyvU]IMG_20150524_160510348[/url] by Allan, on Flickr

Havent tried it in anger yet (it does fit on the car!) but seems a very well designed and manufactured bit of kit. Was quite nice to put together as it all just fitted.

Cheapest I could find all-in (including bars/feet and all-suited locks) was from https://roofracks.co.uk/ – very easy to use website, super prompt free delivery

Mine are great, unless you marry someone only 4’10”.

With hindsight, tow bar rack next time….. 🙄

Work great – some suspension pivots may foul the clamping point

You can dismantle and flip them so the winder is always on the outside front of the car

Kids bikes go fine – can fit a Isla Rothan balance bike on ours!

Brilliant racks and one of the best ways of carrying a bike.
I just changed from a 3 series with a roof rack to an s-max and at the moment don’t have a roof rack. I have been putting the bikes in the back but its trashing the car and more hassle than fitting the 591’s.
I have used mine on my daughters 16″ isla bike, her 16″ bmx, my mtb’s, my road bike and my bmx and have never failed to find a way to fit any bike to it securely.

I have the same car, same bars – only reason I don’t have four of them is that I got a towbar rack so I can stick a roofbox / surfboards on too. They are great and mine works well still after years.

Only issue I can think of is that you might have to mount 1 forward, 1 backward etc. to avoid handlebar clashes to fit four on, and reaching the middle two might be a bit awkward as the S Max is quite high and wide. The mechanism itself is about as easy as it gets.

That and the fuel bill 🙂

Yes, the 591 is great. I’ve got 591’s and an SMax and they work very well, the only drawback with the SMax is the height meaning you will have to be careful loading the central two bikes. I had 3 591’s on mine so the middle rack was perhaps further inboard than your’s will be and i’m 5’9″ and had to stand on the sills and give it a good stretch over. But other than that they work brilliantly and I think, all considered, the best cycle carrier system out there. I’ve also got a tow bar and a 4-bike tow bar mounted carrier, which is great for long journeys and the odd occasion i need to mount 4 bikes, but the roof mounted 591’s are more convenient by a long way.

Will fit 4 bikes no probs on the SMax. 591 is good but the bikes wobble a lot…securely held but as the clamp is low down, it allows a lot of wobble side-to-side if the ground isn’t smooth. Doesn’t affect performance.

Yup. I use two and they’re the biz. Got them from a Nissan dealer for £50 each but they’re proper 591s

Thanks.

Will put the little bikes in the middle.

£50 each is very reasonable, the best I’ve found so far is £120 for a pair.

Looking at getting a 591 but I understand it needs an additional (£35) adaptor to take a 15mm thru axle. Anyone know of any cheaper alternative fork mounted racks that are worth a look?

591 isnt fork mounted so not an issue – it clamps the downtube. You’re probably thinking of the 561 which I think comes with a 20mm adapter (check before buying though).

Edit yes 15mm adpater is another £35 on top of £90 for the rack. Probably easier and lot cheaper to get 591s if they ft your frame.

For tall cars (or loading heavy fatbikes) I stick some small steps in the boot.

HtS – I have 2 and they are great. You are welcome to borrow them if needs be…

I’ve got them.

Only time I’ve ever had an issue was when I’d been loaned a bouncybike, it was a bit of a frig to get somewhere sensible for the clamp to sit. Other than that they’ve been ace.

Strangely I don’t have wobbly bike syndrome, they’re pretty steady on my car. I do really pull on the wheel straps though to try to compress the tyre into the channels. So much so I did once snap the plastic carrier! Was only a tenner to replace though. I also really properly lock the rack down onto the bars.

Bought one to try and then bought another almost straight away. I have a yeti and they are quite high so the 591 makes it easier to clamp the bike on the down tube and I’m 6ft 4. Imagine it’s still quite high on a Smax. Tow bar mount might be better in this instance.

Yep – had a couple of 591s in regular use for about 10 years and only ever needed a bit of a clean and squirt of WD40.

The clamp can polish up the bike frame where it clamps around it – a bit of old inner tube wrapped round the frame solves that problem though.
Also, if you swap the carrier round (which you will need to do if you want your bikes all facing the same way), your big ring can end up touching the clamp arm, which means it might get a bit eaten. Again, put the chain up onto the big ring and problem solved.

Great bits of kit.

Just make sure that you put a sticker on your dash to remind you that you have a height limit ….

I have 3 ontop on my civic ,they live there all the time ,to lazy to remove them , same with the clamp though , I wrap a rag or towel around my frame to stop rub , a 30 second affair to add or remove the bike , even with the locks , I picked each of mine up on the bay for between 30-45 quid each

I have two and have used them for years but the wheelbase on my five is too long for it and the wheel hangs off the front of the carrier, so they only get used when I’m transporting my road bikes at the moment. Is there a way to move the clamp further back down the rack, where I clamp the frame there is loads of rack sticking out behind the rear wheel but the front one is literally touching the windshield?!

Bright, yes, you can adjust that quite easily!

My five is medium with 26inch wheels. Fits fine.

I use them & as said already they are very easy to use.
Only issue I’ve come across is that because the clamp holds the top/bottom of the downtube I have to remove the cable guides from my Cube Stereo as the rear brake & deraillieur are routed along the top of this tube. I can then move them to the side so the clamp can directly contact the tube.

It’s a bit if a faff but less hassle than losing the bike off the roof or damaging the cables!

Nothing much to add other than I’m also very happy with my pair. Leave them on all the time.

I find the carriers themselves don’t whistle too much and the bar you mount to make far more difference. An aero bar is vital!!!

Glasgow Dan, how do I adjust them? Would be great to keep the MTB outside of the car this winter!

bright

Take the rack off the car and turn it upside down. You should see some screws or bolts that when you slacken them will allow you to move the main clamp relative to the rack. It’s been a very long time since I adjusted mine as it’s a bit of a fit and forget thing but I remember it being pretty obvious.

This will be my project for the weekend. Thanks

bright – Member
This will be my project for the weekend. Thanks

This may help if you don’t have the instructions to hand (p7):

http://www.roofbox.co.uk/fitting/TU591.pdf

^top man.