Hi,

Can anyone suggest the best towbar mounted bike carrier for an S-max?
Criteria:
– Safe and reliable (platform type rather than hang-on).
– Can transport 3 or maybe even 4 heavy bikes.
– Not too heavy and can store in boot when not in use.

Also, has anyone used Halfords for this kind of purchase?

Thanks!

Go to roofbox.co.uk they’ve got loads and it will give you an idea about costs, weight, spec etc
I got a buzz rack platform style rack from them and it is excellent so far(4years+)

What sort of towbar?
We’ve got a removable swan neck one on our smax and use a 4 bike carrier from decathlon. It replaced an atera strada which cracked where it clamps the tow ball. Cost £280 I think.
If you have a bolt on tow ball you have more options

I cant tell you the best, but i can tell you Whats good and Whats not with the Thuile euroride 943. Its solid, and holds 3 AM bikes very securely. Folds away well and is quick to attach. It is heavy though, not a problem for a bloke, but maybe for the misses. It also requires some practise to hold 3 big bikes on. The arms need changing order (not too tough, but could be simpler) and the bikes need some protection (pipe lagging) between forks. Also the Aframe could do with a quicker folding mechanism.
Otherwise cheapish and works well. I took mine to Alps with 1 triple clamp bike, 1 freeride and 1 AM no problems.

Hi,

We have a Westfalia detachable towball. It came with the car. Not sure if this is good or not.

Thule 9403 looks nice but only 45kg max load & all of our bikes are heavy.

I’m a bit wary of dealing with Halfords but it should be easier to sort out any problems locally rather than dealing with a mailorder company.

Also, I’m not bothered about being unable to open the hatch when the rack is in place as I can drop the rear seats for access.

Current options look like the Halfords 4 bike or Exodus:

4 bike

Exodus

Thanks!

Atera Strada on the swan neck detachable on our S-Max.

Of your bikes are heavy you may need a light rack. All up nose weight of 75kg on an S-Max I think.

Some racks are 20kg plus.

I have an Atera Strada 4 bike tow ball mounted rack on my C-Max. Fits all of your criteria except “not too heavy”. It weighs around 15kg itself.

It’s a great rack though. Takes a heavy load of bikes (within nose weight of car of course) and is very stable driving along. It has a sliding mechanism that allows the bikes to be tilted down away from the tail-gate so it can be fully opened.

Brilliant rack – don’t regret buying it, but it was pretty expensive.

The bad news is the Strada is one of the lighter racks IIRC.

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