Viewing 14 posts - 1 through 14 (of 14 total)
  • Cycle Carriers – talk to me. WARNING: possible Halfords content, could be dull.
  • therealhoops
    Free Member

    I’ve got a proper bike, a ‘ladies’ bike with basket, a small BMX, a kiddies bike with stabilizers, an exciting Vauxhall Vectra and four passengers (2 big, 2small).

    How do combine the lot for a bike themed family fun day out?

    poly
    Free Member

    Do you have a tow bar on the Vectra?

    We have similar and comfortably get 3 on a tow bar rack + little one on the boot. Could fit more, and when on holidays and the boot is full the little bike gets lashed to the rack as well.

    I_Ache
    Free Member

    I would say tow bar or roof rack. I wouldn’t trust a boot mounted one with that much weight on it.

    Alternatively can you fit the kids bikes in the boot and just put the adult bikes on a boot mount?

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    therealhoops
    Free Member

    No tow bar on the awesome Vectra and the kids bikes are only gonna get bigger. Looks like it’s gonna be a roof mount jobbie.

    FuzzyWuzzy
    Full Member

    Given they’ll want bigger bikes soon enough and if you’re doing quite a few long trips then I’d get a towbar fitted and a 4 carrier towbar rack, much easier in the long run.

    therealhoops
    Free Member

    Haven’t got the beans for a tow bar despite the fact it might make more sense.

    therealhoops
    Free Member

    NW Towbars just quoted me £210 for fitting a bar. A Witter carrier would be another £75ish. I’ll keep dreaming 🙁

    Stoner
    Free Member

    Tow bar cost me <£80 for a new one from eBay. Fitted it myself with only minor losses of skin and blood.

    Atera Strada rack has been perfect for carting family stoner stuff around this summer. 2x big bikes, 2x kids bikes, + trailer. And the boot still opens.

    [img]https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-cFA6oANOHeQ/T_x6EDjvOYI/AAAAAAAAC-w/RUdcz2u4OJ0/s640/IMAG0080.jpg[/img]

    keppy
    Free Member

    If you’ve got nothing right now, the (new) cost of a towbar, rack and light/plate bar would be about £400 – if you pick a (new) Thule roof rack setup you’ll probably spend roughly the same, obviously if you don’t splash out on Thule you’ll pay a bit less though…

    Worth nothing that if you decide on the roof rack option and change cars, you can take the bike racks with you, but the feet invariably won’t fit on a different vehicle and the bars might not depending on the size of old and new cars…but that’s no different to tow bars….

    Also worth checking out ebay etc… for basic bar and feet sets as people regularly sell when they change cars!

    Therefore it’s really your choice – do you want to put them on the roof or not, cos the cost isn’t massively different.

    arcoolc
    Free Member

    If you have time and patience there are some bargains to be had on Ebay.

    I have a set of aero bars and 2 Barracuda racks on my A3 which cost me £42 in total.

    Both were badly listed auctions, so had no other bidders on them.

    petrieboy
    Full Member

    I fitted a towbar to our zafira. Cost <£100 including plug in electrics so no splicing cables or anything scary. Had to remove the bumper skin and cut a notch in it but only the underside face so not visible. I was dreading doing it. It it was actually very easy. Probably took an hour all in.
    Don’t know what year your vectra is, but if it’s around 2002 onwards and a higer spec one it should have a fuse box in the boot with a plug in slot for trailer electrics (poverty spec ones only have the engine bay fusebox so wiring will be more involved)
    We got an 2nd hand top of the range Thule carrier (the folding one, dont think they make it any more but its brilliant)from classifieds here to about £100 too.
    I’ve also recently picked up a set of Thule roof bars (£10) and a footpack and fitting kit (£15) for the same car from eBay which was a massive saving on Halfords new prices.

    bellys
    Free Member

    Have you looked on places like vvoc to see if there is any second hand tow bars on there…..I got mine second hand from there think it was £80 and the lad helped me fit it.
    http://www.vvoc.com/

    bellys
    Free Member
    Macavity
    Free Member

    Do not overload a rack, as this sort of thing can happen. When bikes and rack falls on to road as the car is moving.

    https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/429770_382617811757498_100000278487857_1424042_1956601723_n.jpg

Viewing 14 posts - 1 through 14 (of 14 total)

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