Help with a bike rack choice please.

[Disney-4-Me]

My sons bought me a bicycle for Mother's Day. The last time I rode a bike, my 25 year old son was in a baby seat behind me.:blush:

Luckily I could actually ride it without falling off. Now I need a bike rack to put on my car so I can take it out of the neighborhood to somewhere safe to ride.

I've been searching online for a couple of hours and can't believe how many choices there are! I am looking for a rack to fit on my 1977 VW Beetle. Any suggestions?

[A Big Kid]

There are a couple of different types. The easiest to take off and remove is a hitch mounted rack. Of course, you have to add the added expense of installing a hitch to your bug. The advantage is that you can still access the trunk with the hitch installed. The best choice of this type is the kind that hold the bike by the wheels, not the frame.

If you are getting a trunk mounted hitch, bar none, the Saris Bones is the best. Its design is perfect for a bug. While it mounts the bike by the frame, it is a very depenable design. The Saris Bones is one of the most expensive racks out there but the owners rave about them. The disadvantage to a trunk mounted rack is that it blocks access to the trunk.

Id avoid buying any rack brand new. Scour craigslist for a rack. Good ones go quick so you gotta be on your toes. Good luck!

[Scar]

The disadvantage to a trunk mounted rack is that it blocks access to the trunk.Not only that, but on a 1977 Beetle it would look pretty funny driving around with a bicycle in front of your windshield. ;)

[btharvey]

So far, the only bike rack that would fit a beetle or super beetle requires an existing roof rack. Or, to get a hitch attached (at the motor end, not the trunk end ;)).

Have you got a roof rack? J. C. Whitney carries roof racks for classic beetles. [link removed per TOS]

Haven't found bike racks. Adding a hitch and using a light hitch mount might be the best bet (add the smallest hitch that will fit the mount that you choose -- 1-1/4 inch for example, to reduce the weight). Bike could strap to roof rack, ungainly but works.

And if you have 'roof bars' (the two-piece roof rack, not the four-sided box), you can use practically any 'roof-mount bike rack' that attaches to the crossbars.

[A Big Kid]

Not only that, but on a 1977 Beetle it would look pretty funny driving around with a bicycle in front of your windshield. ;)

You got me. I failed to take into account the year the bug was made. D'oh!

[btharvey]

Just sent a message to Disney-4-Me with the web site where one can at least get a roof rack. message me, and I'll send to whoever else wants it.

I think the bike on the front of the bug would look just fine! :mickey:

[Disney-4-Me]

Thanks for all of the help! I looked at the site for the roof rack - thanks btharvey!

Now I just need to figure out if I can lift my bike up on top of my car. I've always had a weak upper body so I'll have to see about that.

[Kenny1113]

I am so glad someone asked this and I stumbled upon it! Within the last week I have been looking for bike racks for my car. My kids do BMX twice a week and I am sick of cramming their bikes in the back of my Tahoe, when DH is working. I have been looking at a 3-4 bike rack. Used ;).
@ a big kid - what would be the benefit/difference for a rack that holds the wheels vs the frame?

TIA

[A Big Kid]

Thanks for all of the help! I looked at the site for the roof rack - thanks btharvey!

Now I just need to figure out if I can lift my bike up on top of my car. I've always had a weak upper body so I'll have to see about that.

That is why I didnt suggest a roof rack. I assumed your sons didn't buy you a$ 2,000 18 pound bike and figured lifting it on to the roof would be problematic.

[A Big Kid]

I am so glad someone asked this and I stumbled upon it! Within the last week I have been looking for bike racks for my car. My kids do BMX twice a week and I am sick of cramming their bikes in the back of my Tahoe, when DH is working. I have been looking at a 3-4 bike rack. Used ;).
@ a big kid - what would be the benefit/difference for a rack that holds the wheels vs the frame?

TIA

Since there are so many differnt frame designs, sometimes the bike rack design is not compatible with the bike frame. It is also much more secure. Since gravity pulls the bike down, the bike is pulled into the wheelholders. Also, there is much less sway. Swaying bikes tend to rub on the car's paint.