What compact/estate can you fit a bike in with both wheels on? No dog.

Anybody personal experience with getting a bike in one of the cars in the list below with folded/removed rear seats? Would be a medium 26 hardtail with 650mm wide bars and seatpost height for 5’10.

The idea is to take the bike along on business trips and go for a ride after meetings.
So it should be easy to get in and out without scraping the interior too much. Happy to do some trick angling (as in bike tilted, front wheel angled) to achieve it.
Taking front-wheel out would be an option, but prefer to load the whole bike with wheels and seat post in place.

Brief yes/no and with/without front wheel would do. Thanks!

– current Skoda Octavia Estate
– current Golf 5-door hatch
– current Clio 3-door hatch
– current 3-Series Touring
– new 1-Series 5-door hatch
– old-style 1-Series 3-door hatch
– current Mini Clubman (NOT Countryman)

“Taking front-wheel out would be an option”
My inital feeling is that this might be a neccessity tbh

I had my 19.5″ bike in the back of a 54 plate BMW 3 series estate (with rear seats folded) the other weekend. It would have gone in with the front wheel removed (and seatpost slammed), but to rule out scratching I just took both wheels out

I know its not a car on your list but similar-ish?

My experience of small-medium hatchbacks generally is that both wheels have to come off sometimes (usually on the way back?) the second frame ends up with me taking the rear mech off at the hanger

My medium 29er HT goes in my Octavia. I always take the front wheel off tbh as its 100 times easier and less chance of marking the roof lining. Great car all round as well.

Not compact but my Nomad used to fit in my Mondeo estate with wheels on .

my bikes fit into my car fairly easily with both wheels on and the seatpost at full height, but it’s a T plate 406 estate!

even then its only easy since i care not a jot about the interior.

i suggest that you should plan to take front wheel out for any of the above. combine that with wheel bag/blanket to wrap it in and the mid-sized cars you mention above should survive far better for the sake of a few seconds effort each time.

the octavia is pretty big, but even the 3 series touring has a very narrow boot thanks to the rwd.

Many thanks so far!

And yes, Mondeo and 406 are certainly real estates with lots of useful boot space, much more sensible for this specific task then my compact live-style selection.

But I want some agility and fun handling, too.

So if I will default to taking out at least one wheel anyway: how does a Golf 5-door hatch cope with accommodating a bike with just the front wheel taken out, rear and seatpost in place? I don’t even dare to ask how the Clio 3-door hatch copes. BMW 1-Series anyone? Old or new style?

Many thanks!

Could fit my medium Meta 5 in the back of my Mondeo hatch with wheels on, seats down.

Got a coin-op arcade machine in the back of my mate’s mondeo estate.

2006 3 series touring – road bike will just squeeze in with both wheels on. Have never tried the MTB with both still on, but I’m guessing it wouldn’t go. Always just pop the front wheel off and it goes in easily.

Current golf 5 door hatch takes my med HT with wheels on.
Used to be easier with 680 bars, now got 730 and it still goes but not as easily. I was surprised i at the difference, but its noticeable.
Always end up with the front wheel twisted back on itself.

Ridng pal had a Clio and just took the front wheel out, but then he’s about 5′, so it’s not a real size…

My 20″ HT fits in the back (not boot) of my 5 series saloon, with just the front wheel out 🙂

Or a Dr Jekyll wheels out on the back seat…

2 Hardtails in the back with all wheels on, seatposts out. But it’s a lot easier with the front wheels off. Oh.. In a Astra.

Golf takes a 20 inch 29er with just the front wheel out

My fiesta – mk4 used to take a 9 inch travel downhill bike standing up with forks hooking in behind the front seats with front wheels out !

I can literally ride my bike into the back of a Volvo V70.

1 series is not a car I would recommend unless you get rid of the run flat tyres, I swapped mine for an Audi a3 sport back, much better and larger rear. It will take my hard tail with the rear seats down and front wheel out.

Large Zesty into my 330d tourer: Will go with front wheel on, but requires a bit of careful angling etc. much, much easier to simply pop the front wheel off, then it goes in easily, with seat at full height and no more phaffing around.

and you get to drive the best handling estate car in it’s segment……………

(you also get to part with mucho ££ for the “priviledge” of owning it too 😉

My Mondeo was the ST version plenty of fun and more handling than you think for such a big car, you would be amazed how quick they are.

Focus estate with the back seats down will take any bike I’ve tried, with both wheels on- mine are all mediums but I’ve had a large Orange 224 with bars as long as my arm in it, no bother.

(had my Hemlock and my BFe in it at the same time without taking any bits off, but tbh that was stupid, getting them back out was a swine)

I can literally ride my bike into the back of a Volvo V70.

Agreed.

A girl I ride with can get a size small 26″ GT something-or-other into the back of her Ka with both wheels attached.

Its a sight to belhold watching her wrestle it in, but in it fits.

Nothing else can be in the car though, save for her!

Have you considered a Fabia estate? I test drove one when I was shopping around for a car and really liked it. Researching it at the time the boot space was pretty much best in class.

I ended up with a Mazda Premacy which swallows a 29er whole nae bother but it’s a bit of an unsexy grandad-mobile.

Four blokes (upright), & four bikes (upright) in my Galaxy. Not the sort of thing for business trips & fun handling though. 🙂

Dude if you’re taking it on business trips (like me) you’ll need to be able to stash it out of sight assuming your trips are overnight or where you could be a bit jumpy about leaving it on view (almost anywhere…). Therefore I’d suggest you’ll need something that’ll take your bike with the seats up and the load cover pulled. I’d expect most decent sized hatches/estates to be able to do this (my Mazda 6 estate will take two bikes unwheeled and seat posts off without any evidence of them being in the boot).

Of your list, prob just the octavia. The rest are too “lifestyle”.

I have a Passat which will take a bike whole, but it’s easier to whip the front wheel out and slide it in flat.

The “bike hidden in boot with seats up” is as much about load space shape as capacity. Cant do it with an MTB with Passat, but previous Focus would take two in the boot without seats up despite being a much smaller car.

We got a bath in the back of the Focus, but the Psssat will take 4 bikes, 3 weeks of kit and 100+ bottles of wine. It’s about priorities innit! (and still pull a ton twenty on the AutorouteBahn)

I could get my XL Scott Genius with wheels off in the back seat of my 2011 golf estate. Seriously dull car to drive in bluemotion guise though.

Worth it though as I kept having to drive to llanfairfechan for 30 mins work!

Any of my bikes go in my Astra with wheels on 🙂

If you are taking your bike on business trips maybe you need to think about finding an estate where you can put the bike in the boot (both wheels off) with the load cover drawn otherwise it’s a risk leaving a bike for any lenght of time in a car. This is what I have done for the last 10yrs – never had a security problem

Octavia estate looks the best bet. I put my bike straight into my ’03 Civic 5-door whilst with wheels off it can do three bikes and three riders. It’s the height between the boot floor / folded seats and headlining, hatch / rear screen angle and the wheel arch intrusion that makes all the difference.

The only estate you mention is the Octavia. The BMW’s tend to be a lot smaller due to the rear wheel drive as mentioned above!

I was looking at a Clio estate, recently and was suprised how big it was compared to the older Clio’s I’d driven and owned.

I have a current 3 series touring and I can get my medium cotic in with both wheels on without a problem. My 29er wouldn’t fit in with both wheels on, another good reason to keep away from clown wheels.

It’s not the biggest boot in the world, but if bikes fit in its big enough for me.

One other good thing is that if you take both wheels off it’ll fit in the boot with the luggage cover over it. Great if you take your bike away with you and need to carry clients. The smell of gt85 always gives away the secret!

Had a skoda oct nice car but I always took the front wheel out and dropped the seats down in the back. I ride an xl or 20″ frame. Biggest boots tend to be older cars volvos, mondeo

Now have the ols shape Seat Alhambra……. Not on the list I know but it’s a little known fact the the cargo bay on the space shuttle was based on the boot of this car got four bikes all the gear and four people in this front wheels off.

No chance on the current octavia, unless you’re happy pushing the passenger seat right forward and getting tyre prints everywhere

I just drop a wheel/wheels out, since it’s a ten second job and it’s fine

With the seat pin out a 26er fits in the boot this way, but no chance with my FS or 29er

That’s a good point tbh, sometimes it’s easier just to remove a wheel even when you don’t have to, makes loading and handling easier.

Good point actually about being able to store the bike away from sight!
Might not be crucial every day but certainly doesn’t harm.

@bobalong:

so you say
1. medium cotic fits in current 3series touring with both wheels on without a problem

AND

2. if you take both wheels off it’ll fit in the boot with the luggage cover over it. And rear seats up? Seat post out?

I’m amazed but definitely like to believe it because 3-Series is a favourite! 🙂

Saw MK1 Focus 3-door and current Ka today in action – interesting!
Focus no problem with 1 wheel out. Ka took 2 bikes all wheels out.
But it also depends on how much you (have to) care about your interior.

Thanks for all the shared experience! Keep it coming!

hock

Hi Hock,

Yes, the soda fits in without a problem. It’s like the car was designed for it!

I’m 6′ so have a lot of seatpost out and it goes in at an angle, then lays nice and flat.

Also, yes. Take the wheels and seatpost out and the whole lot will fit under the luggage cover. When I do this I keep the wheels in a wheel bag just to protect the car a bit.

One thing I should point out is that I only run 680mm bars. You could use longer ones but it’ll get trickier.

One thing I would suggest is to go to the main dealers and try, even if you’re not buying new. They’re pretty accommodating if you look serious. I tried my bike and my dog!

One car you haven’t got on your list is the current Civic. It’s a great bike car, the rear seats fold up as well as down. In the up position you can easily get two bikes in with the front wheel off and a dog in the boot!

Hi bobalong,

very valuable information – many thanks!
5’10 and a Soul with fairly narrow bars here.
(Though no a dog. Yet.)

So should fit perfectly! 😉

Cheers!

Front wheel and seat post off makes things much easier and its not as if undoing two QRs is difficult.