Biker9876

Hi, brand new into mountain biking.
i bought a Thule gateway pro 3 bike trunk rack and had my bike come loose from one of the straps while driving. I added a bunjee cord to it, which will probably fix the problem, but after that experience, i just dont trust these strap style trunk racks enough.
Im looking into having a trailer hitch added to my 2007 Toyota Corolla so I can add a 1up hitch rack which i would probably trust enough, but the conversion shop said a trailer hitch would hang low and possible drag on my car.

So, my questions are,
1. can anyone recommend a secure trunk rack?
And:
2. im in a situation where i love mountain biking but am stuck for the moment because the possibility of my bike flying off my car and causing a wreck is a non starter for me. Has anyone else been in this jam, and what did you do?

Thanks!!

Canker

I have a hitch on my lowered 95 mazda miata, your corolla will be fine.

Biker9876

good to know thanks!

Jeff Neese

I use a Saris Bones trunk rack (similar to your Thule), even though my vehicle has a hitch. Bungees are part of how I secure the bikes. I secure the built-in straps very loosely, protecting my cables and the paint, and use three bungees per bike to actually tie down the bikes. It keeps them from bouncing and moving around and I'm not relying on only the straps built into the rack.

The thing I always worried about is the rack coming off the car (strap or buckle failure), but I've had trunk racks all my life and that has never been an actual issue.

timdow

My 2010 Corolla has a hitch on it works just fine for my Thule two bike hitch mounted rack. I also previously had a 2004 Corolla (same gen as yours) with a hitch on it worked just fine also.

veganbikes

There is no secure trunk rack! Get a hitch, we install tons of hitches on various cars with few issues.

Biker9876

Great info here, thank you everyone.

Jeff Neese

That's always been my gut feel too, but I've used a trunk rack in one form or another for over 40 years over many miles, and I've never actually had even one strap come loose. I do make sure to secure them properly (tie a knot at the buckle) and also use bungees to secure the bikes.

Kapusta

With a roof that low, a roof rack would be a possibility.

murphyqin

Bicycle rack this thing, looks simple, but in fact, it is quite complex to use, because we need to consider the cost performance, through, easy installation, compatibility and other factors...
The most important thing is to consider driving safety!