Bike racks are a lot like cars, with new styles and brands available to consumers each year. And while we love cars at CR, we're also avid cycling enthusiasts, and recently performed evaluations on hitch-mounted bike racks, as well as pickup-truck tailgate pads, from brands like Kuat, Yakima, Thule, Bell, Allen, and Race Face. We discuss which ones performed best, how they compare to roof and trunk mounted racks, and what to look for if you need to transport an electric bike (e-bike).
SHOW NOTES
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00:00 – Introduction
00:14 – Our cycling background
03:47 – Bike rack evaluations
20:37 – Question: If continuously variable transmissions (CVTs) provide so many benefits to a vehicle, why are they so reviled by many?
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Best Bike Racks
How to Choose and Use the Right Bike Rack
How Bike Racks Affect a Car’s Fuel Economy
How Rooftop Carriers Affect Fuel Economy for Cars and SUVs
Best Electric Bikes From Consumer Reports’ Test
Guide to Car Safety
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Toyota has never put a CVT in their hybrids. It’s an eCVT that has little or no relation in engineering design to a CVT. All CR is saying is that it sounds like a CVT. I wish the show was more enthusiast-oriented and actually went into more detail with things like this.
This is my wheelhouse! So glad you guys are covering it!! 😍👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾
Ebikes are great for people who otherwise wouldn’t ride one. But there are so many styles and brands and price ranges. You have the commuter from casual to bruisers that exist on city bike lanes and are the workhorse of food delivery drivers, you have your motorcycle style ebikes that are actually not that ergonomic once the battery runs out, and then you have your enthusiast road and mountain bikes that cost $10k. All those need to be differentiated as to what they’re good for. The other big thing is what brands are reputable and which ones are knockoffs that should be avoided. Especially with battery safety.
Lol. A couple of us used to mount a road bike on our motorcycles.
I used to have the trunk mount for a car but switched to a saris glide EX when my wife and I bought SUVs. I really like how it moves away from the hatch for access with or without bikes on it. I was thinking about a platform mount for my X3Mcomp but it’s still a little low to the ground.
I love e-bikes. Have been a bicycle rider for decades. As I approached 50 the hills grew larger and longer so I forced myself to embrace some electric assistance. I slapped a mid-drive on my mtb and have been hooked for years now. Since then I built a local commuter e-bike and am about to convert a fat-bike.
With most e-bikes you can use “walk assist” to go up the hitch mounted rack. Most e-bikes, if you hold down the button to go down in pedal assist levels, you engage a walk assist mode which propels the bike forward at about walking speed.
Living in a big city I prefer to keep my bike in the car (5spd manual Outback XT), if possible. I do have a standard bicycle hitch mounted, top tube hanging rack (forget the brand) because it isn’t always possible to put them in the car. The rack is intended for 4 bikes & I never carry more than 2 so they don’t touch or go over weight limits.
DIY a mid-drive on the bike you already have & it fits the same racks you already have. Without the battery my DIY e-bikes are only about 10lbs heavier than a bicycle.
Save the manual! 3 pedals for cars and 2 pedals reserved to bikes;)
This episode was like sitting through your nephew’s 4th grade recital: you can see that they love it, so you stick it out because you love them! 😆
CR has other videos regarding other kinds of products, but I didn’t like this “new Coke!” 😆 More CAR videos, CAR stats, CAR comparisons, etc. on Talking CARS is my vote. 😆 🤷♂️❤️
Is called cycling not biking Long live the Tour
Are they twins?
7:03 also a roof rack will not disable the kick to open feature for a suv tailgate.
I personally don’t like e-bikes but I’m happy to see more ppl riding due to e-bikes assistance.
I love using my roof mounted rack. I drive a hatchback and like to be able to get into my trunk easy.
I’m 74 and have been transporting bikes for a few years. My 21″ 1989 Trek 950 mountain bike with fenders (it’s my foul weather commuter bike) fits in the back of my Mazda CX-30 without any rack at all. Same goes for my 59-62cm. road bikes. If you’re only transporting 1or 2 bikes, you may not need a rack at all.
A roof rack has one additional benefit over all the racks mentioned. You can transport your kayak/canoe using the same system. A 14 ft. kayak just won’t fit in the back of a subcompact SUV.
I think that ebikes make a lot of sense for people who bike for transportation. When people use ebikes for recreational cycling, I can’t help but laugh. They might not be getting much exercise but at least they are out getting some fresh air. 🙂
My wife and I are 74 years old and she has Rheumatoid Arthritis and her knees are not as good as they use to be so our bike riding has suffered. We own a 2019 RAV4 Trail model and have a 2 inch hitch on our SUV and bought a Kuat N2 for our 2 mountain bikes and decided to buy 2 fat tire [4″ tires] to do our off road biking and for hunting to get into the backcountry. The bikes [ Aventon Aventure ] weigh app. 75# and are a dream to haul on our SUV. Now we again ride hundreds of miles on our bikes instead of 10’s of miles. I love biking and combined with working out at the gym we stay is quite good shape. We hope to haul an Elk out of the bush with the help of our Ebikes this fall. It beats hauling 300# of meat out on your back several miles. Not that I’m too old to do that yet!
I get e-bikes for commuting but find them an odd choice for recreational riding particularly for exercise. Also I expect manufacturers will continue to offer higher powered versions that rapidly blur any distinction between an e-bike and an electric motorcycle.
Thanks! lots to think about when selecting a bike rack. Those evbattery bikes batteries could be removed before mounting to make it easier. Store the battery in the trunk.
The big advantage of e-bike is when you look at it as a commuter vehicle replacing a car and not for sport or exercise