mr_andyj wrote:
You should be able to just remove the hinge pin and not have to grind, but if you want the stock luggage rack gone, as it is not for bikes, not 4 bikes, then you can cut it off.
I'm not here to ask why the rack cannot be just removed. He said it is welded on, I provide how to un-weld it. Welding is not as permanent as the grinder is.
After you get a proper bike rack you will say, this was such a good move.
Not ALL hing pins are "removable" without causing collateral damage to the pin or hinge. Some pins may be friction fit like a standard home door hinge, but pins that must never leave their proper place in life are often mushroomed on both ends making easy removal, not easy or impossible.
OP didn't say they want the rack removed, they mentioned they were not able to find a way to remove the rack and were asking how they could haul the bikes without damage to said bikes.
Big difference..
I have seen those racks, strangely enough, unlike typical shoddy RV manufacturing they are very well built and OP simply needs a way of adapting the existing rack or in other words converting the rack from cargo to a sturdy bike rack..
All it takes is something to clamp the bikes to individually at the top and tie the wheels to the rack. If they are not touching and are not able to move they cannot damage each other.
That cargo rack can easily be converted to a top notch bike rack by adding a bike bar with clamps to the existing cargo rack parts with just a bit of creative thinking. I could do that in my sleep and OP was handy to me, I would offer to help them sort it out without the need of hacking things up with a grinder..
Matter of fact, here is another example of a bike rack that can easily be adapted to the cargo tray..
That is a car roof top bike rack which uses the bikes front forks for secure mounting.. I see those all the times on roofs of cars, those bike mounted that way cannot move, bounce, touch or damage the next bike.
Rear wheel is strapped down to the rack
You can simply bolt right through the existing cargo tray.
The downside of this rack is you have to remove the front wheels..
Adding a simple horizontal bike rack bar from and existing bike rack gets you the clamps for the top of the bikes and eliminates the need to remove front wheels.. Fast, safe and efficient.
kfp673 wrote:
Yes, the pic above is exactly what we have. There is a vertical bar that gets installed allowing things to be secured, but as mentioned, it is still a bunch of bikes and now a bunch of bikes with a bunch of damage. I still have the bolt on receiver hitch piece from my old trailer the I could mount to the bumper but that would then make it so I can't use the rack. I already own the Thule version of what you show above that we use on our other car, but will have to figure out how it could be used along with the rack.
You might have a vertical bar, but that is not enough for bikes.
You need a horizontal bar from the top of the vertical bar.
See the bar I circled in red..
That horizontal bar is what keeps the bikes apart and that part is what is missing from your setup.
Without that horizontal part your bikes are all jumbled together in one massive heap. There is no way they will travel without damage if they are not separated from each other.
You might be able to use "U" bolts to connect your existing Thule rack to the existing vertical bar as a work around..
Like this..
You can find that and many more types and sizes at Lowes or Home Depot.
Get a bike rack that has the bikes stand up like this one....
I had 3 on the back and 2 on the front in this setup. I got a the front hitch and rack when it was suggested because finding a 5 bike rack was difficult. Getting the 3 bikes on the rear rack which supposedly held 4 was a chore. So if you don't get the above rack, get a front hitch if possible and split them up.
I had 3 on the back and 2 on the front in this setup. I got a the front hitch and rack when it was suggested because finding a 5 bike rack was difficult. Getting the 3 bikes on the rear rack which supposedly held 4 was a chore. So if you don't get the above rack, get a front hitch if possible and split them up.
What you have is a "cargo rack", not really a good bike rack and that is the problem.
Found a pix that should look pretty much what your cargo rack looks like..
There is no way to keep the bikes from moving around or rubbing and trying to tightly strap them into one big bunch is going to result in what you are seeing, damaged bikes.
You need a bar like a bike rack that goes all the way out to the end of your cargo rack that has two mounting points for each bike.
Like this..
Each bike is tied at two points and cannot touch any of the other bikes.
Each bike must have space between the next bike.
You do have a bonus with that cargo rack, you can bungie the wheels of each bike down to the cargo rack. That insures there is zero movement of the bikes and they can't swing back and forth.
To use a rack like the one in the pix above you need either a hitch receiver installed on your cargo rack or some modification to the floor of the rack to allow mounting the vertical part of the rack to the cargo rack floor..
Found a pix that should look pretty much what your cargo rack looks like..
There is no way to keep the bikes from moving around or rubbing and trying to tightly strap them into one big bunch is going to result in what you are seeing, damaged bikes.
You need a bar like a bike rack that goes all the way out to the end of your cargo rack that has two mounting points for each bike.
Like this..
Each bike is tied at two points and cannot touch any of the other bikes.
Each bike must have space between the next bike.
You do have a bonus with that cargo rack, you can bungie the wheels of each bike down to the cargo rack. That insures there is zero movement of the bikes and they can't swing back and forth.
To use a rack like the one in the pix above you need either a hitch receiver installed on your cargo rack or some modification to the floor of the rack to allow mounting the vertical part of the rack to the cargo rack floor..
