I have a Passat estate but with the seats up I can only get a Prince Albert in the boot with both wheels off, seat post out and thru load arm rest down, the Pitch no chance that’s a seat down carry option.

So for riding post work it’s not great as you can see there is a bike in the boot through the arm rest it’s possible to cover that but it’s viewable.

The boot needs to be about 3 inches longer.

So what hatchback or saloon would consume the bike with the seats up, for stealthness by day and ability to go ride by evening.

At the moment I’ve thought
VW Jetta
Seat Altea XL

I was looking at a colleagues new Focus last week & I thought that it may well have the capacity to swallow a bike reasonably easily – obviously not tried it though

Our old Vectra estate was pefect for this, the frame in sideways and wheels on top (In bags), pull the load cover over, bike’s hidden.
🙂

PP – loads of estate cars will manage it – he’s looking for a hatch or saloon

Full bike in a hatchback yup, but Id be interested if anyone fits one in a saloon boot?

We have a monster of an old Lexus saloon (over 5m long) with a boot 64″ wide, 40″ deep and about 20″ high and I still have to take my front wheel off!

VW T5 Multivan does it for me.

PP – loads of estate cars will manage it – he’s looking for a hatch or saloon

Fairy nuff, good point. Go have a look at an Octavia (I know, I know: STW car of choice blah blah blah 😉 )
We looked at them recently and the boot is colossal!

Out of interest, why not an estate? I wouldn’t be without one now 🙂

We got an Octavia precisely because it had the biggest boot capacity with the seats up of any of the smaller estates at the time. (This was for pushchair/kiddie stuff carrying rather than bikes)

Not actually tried it, but I reckon it would take a bike with the wheels off and seatpost down.

And the Octavia estate is the same length as the saloon/hatchback. Tend to forget it is only based on the Golf, always seems to be compared to Mondeos – which have a big boot, btw!

Fiat Multipla. It’s wide enough that the frame will sit in sideways?

how about a mondeo – the boot is huge in them and they don’t drive like a huge car

I’ve had a complete bike in the boot of my Saab 9.5 saloon with both wheels and pedals still on.

It was a bugger to get out though.

Not adverse to another estate its excellent with the tow bar rack loaded but for after work blasts it doesn’t fit the bill.

Happy to take front and/or back wheel off to fit it in

Parents have a focus will bowl up with muddy bike and ask for they keys 🙂

Good suggestions so far keep them coming

My ST4 and wifes Cannondale fit diagonally, front wheel off in the Touran boot (but not together)
Flipping a seat is so quick, that I usually do that and line them / kids bikes up with front wheels off the full size ones.

I get mine (with both wheels off) in a Peugeot 406 saloon. Fairly tight fit – it will only go in one way, but they are cheap to buy and run (53mpg with the roof racks on all the time), and as an old car,I don’t care about dings and scratches!

volvo 740
Toyota Celica

With the parcel shelf out i can fit my BLT in the back of the Focus, i need to take the seatpost out, compress my forks, (Rc41’s) and loosen the stem. But it fits.

can get one in the boot of the Honda CR-V – push the seatpost down and pull the boot blind across and no-one’s any the wiser.

I’d second the Mondeo post earlier. I’ve had a 19″ P7 or 16″ Patriot in the boot with both wheels off and (bike) seat down. Car seats up and parcel shelf on. No problem.

Fold the seats down and there’s plenty of room for 3 people, 3 bikes, and 3 sets of gear for a weekend away biking.

Octavia = No, cant get a hardtail with wheels off in the boot

Focus estate will fit a bike in the boot without popping the seats down. Its not really a proper estate tbh. I used to manage it with a medium framed hardtail without having to adjust the seatpost. It was tight though.

I also had a Jetta and that was probably better than the focus estate.

Now i have a Dualiner the bike goes in complete and i can carry 5 passengers 🙂

As always the answer is A VOLVO!

I can get my DH bike in with just the wheels off and the back seat up, or with the wheels on with half the back seats down.

3 people 3 dh bikes and gear easy. or 2 people and 4 bikes etc etc…

Wheels off you can get 2 bikes in the boot of a mk2 mondeo, lid down, easily.

Newer mondeos might not be as wide in the boot though?

As always the answer is A VOLVO!

I can get my DH bike in with just the wheels off and the back seat up, or with the wheels on with half the back seats down.

3 people 3 dh bikes and gear easy. or 2 people and 4 bikes etc etc…

Its not the answer though really is it unless you own a large dog as well. Mondeo hatch does all that too (except the large dog thing) with ease and my ST TDCi does silly mpg. Dumfries to Halifax to York and back to Halifax the other week on half a tank (£27s worth of dizzle).

“2 people and 4 bikes” – that’ll be an STWers niche weekend then….

I got a large pompino in the boot of an A4 saloon once no problem.

He was struggling a lot but we got him in in the end!!!!!!!

but yes, A4, Honda Accord, Astra hatchback, A3. I’ve had bikes in the back of all of them without dropping the seat.

My Touran, no problem!

the road bike will go in the boot of my octavia without much issue. The full sus will go in if i remove the parcel shelf. There isn’t quite enough room otherwise. If i remove the seatpost then i can get the full sus in.

Obviously wheels off.

i can fit my hardtail (18″) in the back of my octavia hatch without taking either wheel out if seats are down.

I can get my Heckler in the boot of my Honda Accord with just the wheels off, pretty easily, plus space for my laptop (in a locked compartment), riding and overnight gear.

It’s the best biking car I’ve had.

Lincoln Towncar – absolutely massive boot, you’d probably get a passat in there between the spare tire and oil can

306 estate. 16 inch inbred 456 with wheels off no problems. I can even get the rear shelf in and cover the bike up.

Mk3 Mondeo again? I’ve got my brothers Fat Possum laid flat in the boot of my Mondeo and it has those chunky upside down/triple clamp maverik forks on it. Just had to remove wheels and I used a strap to hold the mech forwards against the chainstay just to be safe. Its an Estate but I think the Hatch’s boot is the same apart from the lip and the lights which intrude into the opening slightly. The estate will swallow 4 complete bikes in the boot if you remove wheels and pedals, though obviously the parcel shelf then doesn’t fit!

Couldn’t get the Fat Possum in my dads Octavia estate without dropping both sides of the rear seat.

Thanks for the feedback, I need go and have a look at some of the suggestions, quite a few I had not thought off. I think I will need to take the bike around some dealers for testing

Audi A6, got a motorbike in the back with one wheel off!

things we’ve had in th back of a focus estate………………

1 dog
2 dogs
2 dogs and a bike
2 dogs, 1 bike, 4 peoples luggage for the week
triumph boneville

mazda 6 estate old version easily swallows a full sus or hardtail under the load cover