So, my car has a factory-fitted Wesfalia detachable towbar, like so:

I was wondering if anyone knew if there was a bike rack that fitted directly into the swan-neck socket as it would be a) easier to fit, and b) much more secure and stable than one that clamps onto the towball itself?

Cheers!

There’s nothing “unstable” about a rack that clamps the towball. Most of them lock on too so they are also secure.

Never heard of such a thing and if there was, it would only be made by Westfalia (in the example on your picture).

Is there any reason why you don’t like the Thule-style ball-clamp ones? I know that, from an engineering perspective, it’s a bit of a cludge, but I’ve never heard of one falling off a car…

I have the towbar in the OP’s picture – my bike rack is rock solid when clamped onto the towball.

from an engineering perspective, it’s a bit of a cludge,

That is the bit that bugs me – I know that the ball-clamp type are perfectly ok; I was just wondering if there were a more elegant, direct-fitting solution! If not, then fair enough 🙂

I do know that there’s a Bosal detachable 2″ hitch receiver that was made for the Tesla Model X that looks to be the same fitment as the Westfalia detachable swan neck, but they’re over £400! I do like the idea of the receiver hitch-mounted racks though.

The downside is that they will be immediately obsoleted when you switch cars to a different towbar manufacturer. I have to admit that my last few cars have had the Westfalia one like you pictured, but I’ve had others in the past and it would be a pain if a bike rack could no longer fit.

I guess that, rather than consider it a cludge, consider it a “manufacturer-agnostic bike rack interface” 🙂

I have a detachable tow bar. I wouldn’t want to be faffing around with the rack and it’s weight while trying to undo it from the mount. It’s much easier putting it on and off the ball than faffing any other way

Interesting post. Another similar one about a week ago. The only available one exists for an old Thule rack which fits in a Brink detachable.
The different suppliers have different removable receivers.
The hitch system from US offers a universal under bumper fix.
I am talking to some car and towbar manufacturers to come to an agreement. I used to develop towbars for Nissan. Please follow or support.
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