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Trunk mounted carrier

Old 02-14-22, 07:24 PM
  #1  
kayakindude
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Trunk mounted carrier

Has anyone used a basic 2 bike trunk mounted rack to carry their tandem short distances?

I need something to move our 91 Cannondale about 5 miles in either direction to get to safer routes. Business 17 is busy and 50mph.

I've used our rear tire mounted rack on the Jeep without issue but I'm looking for something for the back of a Kia Optima when we travel south for the week. The bike is already there so not worried about long distance or high speeds.

Feedback appreciated, thanks.
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Old 02-15-22, 09:36 AM
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I use a hitch rack and remove the wheels so the tandem isn’t as long. This is with a bike that probably weighs around 30-35 lbs. Plenty sturdy with the hitch rack but I’d be nervous about doing this with a trunk rack even for short distances. One thing you could do is install a square hitch receiver on the Kia and use a hitch rack. Or roof rack crossbars and tandem tray rack but that’d be a much pricier option. If it were me and I was trying to do this as cheaply as possible I’d install the receiver and look for a good deal on CL or elsewhere on a used rack. There seem to be a lot out there, maybe because people have had to switch to tray racks for their MTBs.
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Old 02-15-22, 03:20 PM
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I've used a Saris 2-bike rack to move our tandem and a single seater (at the same time) without issues including long highway trips. I remove both wheels from the tandem and make sure all the straps are in good shape, not chafed, and tight. The biggest challenge is to position and pad both bikes so they don't bang around and damage each other. Pipe insulation is useful in this regard.
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Old 02-15-22, 05:27 PM
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Originally Posted by kaos joe
I've used a Saris 2-bike rack to move our tandem and a single seater (at the same time) without issues including long highway trips. I remove both wheels from the tandem and make sure all the straps are in good shape, not chafed, and tight. The biggest challenge is to position and pad both bikes so they don't bang around and damage each other. Pipe insulation is useful in this regard.

That's the rack I am thinking about. Interesting that you guys take the front and rear wheels off. Makes sense because I assume more flexing on a trunk system. On the jeep tire mount I've been transporting without issue with both wheels on, including a front motor hub without issue. That fits flush on the back. Also yes thinking about adding a hitch as an option too, but thinking the Saris is the cheap option for something I may need twice a year, three times at the most.
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Old 02-15-22, 08:13 PM
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Originally Posted by kayakindude
That's the rack I am thinking about. Interesting that you guys take the front and rear wheels off. Makes sense because I assume more flexing on a trunk system. On the jeep tire mount I've been transporting without issue with both wheels on, including a front motor hub without issue. That fits flush on the back. Also yes thinking about adding a hitch as an option too, but thinking the Saris is the cheap option for something I may need twice a year, three times at the most.
I only used it infrequently, when I was transporting the tandem and another bike. When moving the tandem alone I just fold down the seats and slide it in the back. That requires removing the wheels also. I took the wheels off when using the trunk rack mostly to avoid having the wheels protrude beyond the width of the car. Now I have a car that doesn't play well with the Saris and am going to have to get something else.
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Old 02-15-22, 08:33 PM
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Originally Posted by kaos joe
I only used it infrequently, when I was transporting the tandem and another bike. When moving the tandem alone I just fold down the seats and slide it in the back. That requires removing the wheels also. I took the wheels off when using the trunk rack mostly to avoid having the wheels protrude beyond the width of the car. Now I have a car that doesn't play well with the Saris and am going to have to get something else.
That's the cheapest option and funny enough I bought our newer cannondale tandem in the Myrtle beach area and managed to bring it back north in the Optima, but I had to remove the handlebars and wheels. Kia made a small opening so when the rear seats are down you don't have a wide area to slide the bike in, apparently they didn't anticipate fitting a tandem inside a sedan.
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Old 02-21-22, 10:13 AM
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Originally Posted by kayakindude
Has anyone used a basic 2 bike trunk mounted rack to carry their tandem short distances?

I need something to move our 91 Cannondale about 5 miles in either direction to get to safer routes. Business 17 is busy and 50mph.

I've used our rear tire mounted rack on the Jeep without issue but I'm looking for something for the back of a Kia Optima when we travel south for the week. The bike is already there so not worried about long distance or high speeds.

Feedback appreciated, thanks.
All the time. Thule hitch-mount, 4 place carrier with Kia Sorrento. Fuji Absolute 4.1. Wheels on, front tire bungeed in direction of auto travel. Hangs past my mirrors by <2 inches on each side.
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Old 02-23-22, 08:15 AM
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Old 02-23-22, 08:45 PM
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Thanks for the feedback. Ended up dropping the Kia rear seats and sticking it in the trunk.
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Old 03-03-22, 12:20 AM
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For anyone that asks in the future, I’ve used the 3 bike version of the Saris Bones to move a tandem many times without issue. I do take the wheels off, but this is just to keep it narrower as I had it on smaller cars.
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