I did some reading before I bolted a Reese receiver hitch to my back bumper for a bike rack and found a youtube clip of a guy who rebuilt the bumper because the 4 bikes that were carried on the back simply peeled the square bumper right off the welded supports from the frame.Continuing on I learned that some of those bumpers are really not rated for much and if the sewer hose is stored inside they can start to rust the bumper out.I've been carrying two bikes on the back of mine but I want to get a dual sport motorcycle and find someone to weld up a strong platform to the end of the trailer framing as well as a receiver mount to further extend the bicycles.Has anyone done this and could you post pictures for ideas I can show a local welder?Any input for pros and cons welcome, I have to chuckle when they rate those receivers for 500#'s, I want a Kawasaki KLR 650 and they weigh about 450#'s plus bags and gear and I want to be sure it's going to carry the load plus...Thanks for any pictures and input.Bill

You won't like towing it, the tail will wag the dog with that much extra weight so far behind the axles. Trailer bumpers are not designed to carry loads for a reason.

We need more test pilots on this forum. Give it a try then report back to us how it went, or didn't.

I want to incorporate the mount to the frame, not the bumper and while it will add weight to the back it will only be about 100#'s more than my secondary rear grey water tank (42 gallons) so if I travel with that tank empty it should be close to the same weight.Again, I'm not wanting to weld something to the bumper but rather the framework of the trailer.What I won't like more than a little extra weight is not having my dual sport with me when I travel.romore wrote:You won't like towing it, the tail will wag the dog with that much extra weight so far behind the axles. Trailer bumpers are not designed to carry loads for a reason.

You more than likely won't even notice it back there. I had about 600 lbs. on the rear of my 35' fifth wheel and it actually seemed to pull better with it back there. With about 600 lbs. on the back the front of the truck was about 120 lbs. lighter. Basically it wasn't that noticeable.

I don't think that is much different than having a hitch welded onto the back with the expectation to tow tandem, which is where I have experience.My recommendation would be to get a good, experienced welder to custom fab the hitch. Might want to reinforce the trailer frame in the back (mine is reinforced all the way past the axles).I am not sure if your towing experience will be the same, but with my little boat (around 2500 pounds with maybe 300 pounds tongue weight) I don't notice any different in the road manners of the rig. With my big boat (5500 pounds, over 500 pounds tongue weight), it really degraded the ride. Every bump was magnified. Still better than not taking the boat, or taking two vehicles though.

Motorcycle mount on back of 5er | Good Sam Community

40 Replies

Fisher_Bill
Explorer
Jan 10, 2018
The Bike I ended up with is a 2011 Kawasaki KLR so a little more dirt than street but I plan on having a welder friend look over my frame to see what might be the best option for enforcing the mount.

The bike is 432 lbs. wet so not too weight much compared to the other bikes I was looking over.

Keeping an eye on this thread and hoping to see some good results.

Bill
rjsurfer
Explorer
Jan 10, 2018
Fisher Bill wrote:
Yes I do have a front hitch but again I'll be close to maxing it out for it's rated for 500# so I now have another idea.

I saw this setup before and they had two quads on the back of the larger model but this might be the safest solution I've found so far;

I think this might be what I need but I've yet to buy the bike, I do like the middle range over the skinny bikes and I think I'm leaning toward BMW F650 GS or the Suzuki V-strom 650 ABS.

Any opinions on these two bikes?

Thanks as always,

Bill
Moderator edit to re-size picture to forum limit of 640px maximum width.

Would not hesitate a second to get another Vstrom 650. Best bike for the money, great cruiser and will work for light off road riding.

Super reliable and great bang for the buck and you could almost get two of them for the price of one BMW.

Ron w.
4x4ord
Explorer III
Jan 09, 2018
How are you making out with your project?
attuco
Explorer
Sep 27, 2017
I've been carrying either a DRZ or a DL650 on the back of my last two 5ers both AF. I use a 2 receiver hitch setup so the bike is pretty stable . I put a battery box on the pin box with four 6 volt batteries to counterbalance the weight on the rear.The system hasn't given me problems in over 10 years.
fj12ryder
Explorer III
Sep 26, 2017
The V-Strom will probably cost less and be more trouble free than the Beemer.

The swivelwheel-type trailers do work. I had one that I carried two motorcycles on and it worked a treat. The big plus is that you can back up with no issues, unlike a standard trailer.

Also I think the attachment nonpluses the LEO's as they aren't really sure how, or if, it qualifies as a trailer. I towed for several years, including in states that didn't allow double towing, and was never stopped.
Fisher_Bill
Explorer
Sep 26, 2017
Yes I do have a front hitch but again I'll be close to maxing it out for it's rated for 500# so I now have another idea.

I saw this setup before and they had two quads on the back of the larger model but this might be the safest solution I've found so far;

I think this might be what I need but I've yet to buy the bike, I do like the middle range over the skinny bikes and I think I'm leaning toward BMW F650 GS or the Suzuki V-strom 650 ABS.

Any opinions on these two bikes?

Thanks as always,

Bill
Moderator edit to re-size picture to forum limit of 640px maximum width.
RinconVTR
Explorer
Sep 18, 2017
frizzen wrote:
Have you looked into a front hitch for the truck?

My first thought as well, especially seeing the OP is looking at middle weight dual purpose bikes. (Same weight as most middle weight "adventure bikes" as well.)
frizzen
Explorer
Sep 18, 2017
Have you looked into a front hitch for the truck?
Bionic_Man
Explorer
Sep 17, 2017
joebedford wrote:
Bionic Man wrote:
Nothing with a motorcycle. Probably 60,000 + miles over the course of 18 years when towing tandem with a 5500 pound boat with over 500 pounds of tongue weight. And multiple friends who do the same. Which seems to be to be pretty similar to what the OP is considering (which is what I said in my first post).
I really can't see how a boat on its own trailer is anything like hanging a motorcycle on the back of a 5er but whatever.

I'm not sure where your disconnect is? The boat is going to have 500 + pounds on the back of the trailer (tongue weight), which is similar to the weight a motorcycle puts on the back of the 5er. In fact, the boat will likely put more strain on the back of the trailer because it will bounce twice - once when the 1st trailer hits the bump, once when the 2nd trailer hits. All of that wil be on the connection point to the trailer (the hitch on the back, the same as either welding a carrier onto the back or a trailer, or using a hitch to create a platform back there).

Maybe you really know someone who had a problem (color me skeptical, but it doesn't matter). The reality is if the platform or hitch is appropriately welded onto the back of the 5er, you are unlikely to have troubles.
joebedford
Nomad III
Sep 17, 2017
Bionic Man wrote:
Nothing with a motorcycle. Probably 60,000 + miles over the course of 18 years when towing tandem with a 5500 pound boat with over 500 pounds of tongue weight. And multiple friends who do the same. Which seems to be to be pretty similar to what the OP is considering (which is what I said in my first post).
I really can't see how a boat on its own trailer is anything like hanging a motorcycle on the back of a 5er but whatever.

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Motorcycle mount on back of 5er

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