[Closed] Tow bar cycle carriers any deals and good quality

I bought a buzzrack E scorpion.
Over £300, but still good value.
Takes 2 Ebikes easily, takes a 3” tyre no problem.
It is rock solid, tilts to allow access to boot.
Would buy the same again.

Thanks @martymac
I think I’ve just read your comments from the earlier towbar thread, I searched tow bar so got no hits and added this new topic ..

The buzzracks look good value

There's a 5% off for roofbox stuff too here https://www.ukcampsite.co.uk/offers/

The buzzrack e-scorpion 2 is decent value at £300, I was looking at the Atera Genio Pro but that's £435 cheapest at the moment.

Yeah I have mentioned it before.
I would happily have bought any brand tbh, but every shop I went to had zero stock, so i ended up buying online.

@ta11pau1 Just used that campsite offer to buy some roofbars - thank you 🙂

I have an older version of the Buzzrack Scorpion so don’t know whether the new one has improved in these areas but mine is a little hefty and requires a spanner to fit to the tow ball. I chose it and like it because it provides roomy accommodation for two bikes rather than trying to squeeze on as many bikes as possible.  I found racks that are trying to fit three or more bikes tend to be more awkward to load when you have long bikes with chunky tyres and wide bars.  Quality wise it is fine but more functional than the last word in refinement

Looks like the tightening spanner is now built in,
Think I’ll go for the buzz rack e-scorpion 2, the video looks good, has barrels locks, comes with long tyre straps (Thule atera charge for longer ones) Folds up for storage, plenty of width and space between mountain bikes.
Can always borrow a mates 3 rack if we decide to fill the car for a trip.

It seems other brands still go with fitting as many kids / cheap bikes it can, rather than accommodate bigger tyres and pedals.

These adverts storing the bike in the boot while riding, car boots full already :0)

I've got the standard discontinued Buzzrack Scorpion 2, but the new one looks like a big improvement!

Still, mine is really easy to use and I've had an XL Pace RC529 on there with the drop outs set to the longest with no issues.

I chose an Atera Strada E over the Scorpion and Thule XT Velospace as I didn't want to use the tension frame clamps on carbon frames.

Use mine with all my carbon bikes and there's no issue. Clamps are fine as long as you're not swinging off them to tighten it 🙂

In my experience it's always best to get a 3-bike carrier, even if most of the time you only carry 2. It means that you can put the two bikes in tray 1 & tray 3 and there's absolutely no chance of them bashing together.

Pendle Bike Rack. https://pendle-bike.co.uk/

i've had mine for 15 years. Driven all over europe. Simple design and rock solid.

This is the one i use, but they also do tilting etc..

https://pendle-bike.co.uk/collections/hang-on-tow-bar-racks/products/standard-hang-on-tow-bar-rack

In my experience it’s always best to get a 3-bike carrier, even if most of the time you only carry 2. It means that you can put the two bikes in tray 1 & tray 3 and there’s absolutely no chance of them bashing together.

The Velospace XT 2 has loads of space for fat bikes and boost with no chance of them touching. I think it’s got one of the biggest clearances I could find when looking.

It’s not cheap though but I’m very happy with it.

Looks like the tightening spanner is now built in,
Think I’ll go for the buzz rack e-scorpion 2, the video looks good, has barrels locks, comes with long tyre straps (Thule atera charge for longer ones) Folds up for storage, plenty of width and space between mountain bikes.
Can always borrow a mates 3 rack if we decide to fill the car for a trip.

Yeah the spanner is all built in now, I've only used mine once but have no complaints apart from little things like the number plate mount being very hard to remove, and there being no place to tidy the (long) wheel straps.

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It's very well built, mostly metal and any plastic is decent quality. The spacing is very generous, it's got 4 basic wheels so you don't pull a muscle lifting it to the car. I was a little concerned about a carbon bike with the clamps but you don't need to tighten them that much, the bike is rock solid with just the one clamp. I got a free strap too which I use and with that I've got no worries.

Thanks ta11paul, had a good luck at your picture and looks plenty of room, now 3 days before BLACKFRIDAY what’s the chances of a further discount, or just order it with 5% U.K. camping discount

Atera Strada  with the third bike adapter here.

It can be a faff slotting the locking/holding arms through various bike configurations, but we had an Orange alpine (L), YT Capra (XL?) and a Radon Swoop (M) on it for last years Alps trip. Once you've figured the best arrangement it works fine.

Only bad point is the slide release mechanism that is a bit awkward to use - I don't use it though as with the bikes loaded it will not allow the tail gate to open any way.

Only other issue is that if you have the mandatory STW middle class vehicle of choice, don't put the bike with 800+ bars on the inside.

Hth

proutster

Subscriber

In my experience it’s always best to get a 3-bike carrier, even if most of the time you only carry 2. It means that you can put the two bikes in tray 1 & tray 3 and there’s absolutely no chance of them bashing together.

No required with the e-bike carriers being discussed here, they all have extra spacing to work with Boost spacing. The Atera Strada i have needs the same thinking you mention though

thanks all, got the buzzrack e-scorpion 2 in the end and its great, just opened it up and had a look, its like a transformer and takes up less than a 1/3 of the floor space of what the atera strada 3 i'd bought on ebay covered, which will keep the wife happy, it feels really sturdy and well thought out, wide spacing for 2 bikes ..

was gonna ask the Reg plate seems really easy to put on and off, has anyone had it knicked, or do you remove it when parking your car up and riding.

Yeah I thought that, I might put a couple of bolts through just to put it on permanently.

I was going to use some double sided tape but getting it on with getting to slide the plate in would be a right faff!

I remove it when parked, as I thought the same

Thread resurrection:

We have a 10 yr old Buzzrack which is now very "tired". I'm thinking of replacing it with a new rack but I don't like the frame clamping/attachment points on the Buzzrack.

Has anyone used both an Atera Strada Sport and a Buzzrack?  Are the Ateras much better?

Are there any other racks to consider in the £250-350 price range?

We usually have 2 bikes with us but sometimes 3; old 26" MTBs, hybrids, gravel bikes etc.

I'm also interested in this thread- my thule rack (and towbar) was crashed into in the car park at Swinley and is destroyed. Seems it pretty badly damaged the car that hit it too, although I didn't see that damage so it is an insurance job - so looking at 3 bike carrier options to replace it. That buzz rack looks quite good...

This by a country mile. Just saying😉
https://www.roofbox.co.uk/scripts/rbvehsel4_tab.php/car-specific-accessories/whispbar_3_bike_tow_bar_carrier_no_wbt31/Qx%40w%2C6M42VAwp3%40Rb%7B~cC4urewHNE2

Nice but that's £500 !!

Don’t buy anything unless you know for certain it has spacing for boost. Not having this is a complete PITA when modern bikes are involved

No boost bikes in our house

The Atera is well made, but I sold mine. It doesn’t cope with boost spacing, or fat tyres and modern long wheelbases.

Thanks @andrewpic. Our MTBs are old 26" hardtails and won't be replaced soon. We use the hybrids most of the time due to my decrepit body.

In that case the Atera will work fine. It isn’t cheap, but it’s a good product, within the limitations already mentioned.

ElShalimo

Member
No boost bikes in our house

Given the money and timescales (a rack should last a long time) involved you’d be mad not to future-proof imo

I bought the Atera ebike one and it’s fine with boost and big tyres, they even sell longer fat bike wheel straps to use with it as required. Also copes with long wheelbase :

Here

I’ve got an Atera Strada with space for 3 bikeS but can not fit two due to the boost hub size on our bikes. Now that we need to be taking another bike with us and it’s getting too large for the boot, are there any options for a bike rack to carry all 3 bikes on the towbar? Carriers like the Strada have different length arms which are fine for 3 adult bikes but seem to be no good for what I want to fit on the carrier?

Is there any way I can avoid roof bike carriers?

@grey_or_black

Other than economy/height restrictions and very heavy bikes (e bikes etc);I am an almost total convert to roof carriers (family of four with both kids presently on 24" wheels). So long as you're in roof rack capacity (100kg for our estate) you don't have to think about leverage effect of tow bar nose weights (which legally can be quite restrictive) and you stand a good chance of seeing out of the back window. A 120cm roof bar will easily manage 4 MTBs (worst case you may have to turn one or two handlebars) and it mostly doesn't need adjusting for different bikes.

We have a towbar but I'd still go roof rack again based on my last couple of years experiences and the ever changing standards and shapes of mountain bikes. Only exception might be if I only ever carried one bike at a time at which point it's probably more convenient to have a single well set up tow bar rack.

no doubt a silly question, but what difference do Boost hubs make to fitting on the rack ? Is it just that the overall unit is wider, reducing space for second bike if a Boost one is on first ?

Following a thread on here a little while back, I bought a Buzz Rack Buzzy Bee 4 as I feel like it was on offer:

https://www.probikekit.co.uk/cycling-accessories-nc/buzz-rack-buzzy-bee-4-bike-wheel-support-rack-black/11259570.html

It's been great. We've been putting 2 adult and 2 childrens bikes on there. My Sonder is massive and it fits ok so wouldn't be too worried about any sizing issues unless you have a longest Geometron or something.

no doubt a silly question, but what difference do Boost hubs make to fitting on the rack ? Is it just that the overall unit is wider, reducing space for second bike if a Boost one is on first ?

I think we found that trying to fit one big with boost hubs and two bikes with normal hubs (whatever was normal for 26” wheels) wasn’t possible with our Atera Strada DL3 carrier. With two bikes with boost hubs, the middle rack has to be left empty.

I think we found that trying to fit one big with boost hubs and two bikes with normal hubs (whatever was normal for 26” wheels) wasn’t possible with our Atera Strada DL3 carrier. With two bikes with boost hubs, the middle rack has to be left empty.

thanks, I haven't tried a second bike on the Strada E Bike ML, so could have same scenario, as first and only bike often a FS Boost 29er ebike..

Description does say :

'Designed to transport two electric bikes (e-bikes) or bicycles. The distance between the bike rails is 230 mm, leaving plenty of space for the drive unit or battery. It's 120cm wide making it a great option for bikes with larger wheelbases (up to 143cm).'

...so may give it a test !

Strada E should be fine for Boost

Even non-boost bikes can be a challenge on most 3/4 bike carriers as the spacing is very tight. I think my Strada Evo is 19cm spacing. Takes a lot of fiddling to avoid contact between QRs and forks/stays.

It also surprising how far stuff moves in a 70mph wind. The buzz rack above with double straps on the front wheel seems like a really good idea.

We're now a family of four and at least one of us likes travelling with two bikes, so it's no longer a choice between roof and tow bar for me.

@mashr - by the time I change my MTB the standards will have changed again

;o)

Is there such a thing as a 3 bike carrier with enough room for 3 full sus boost hubs bikes, without forks rubbing against rear axles etc, or would they fall foul of the average cars weight limit?.

I have a Thule G6 - 929 Euroclassic 3-bike carrier with the 4 bike extender kit and it's great.

Have owned it for 5 years and whilst seemingly expensive it has more than repaid it's worth over the years.

Multiple alpine/Flanders/Normandy/Pyrenees/other locations in France trips with this on the rear and it's always solid as a rock. I wouldn't use it for four MTB's but 3 is fine or 4 road bikes no problem.

Nobeerinthefridge

Member
Is there such a thing as a 3 bike carrier with enough room for 3 full sus boost hubs bikes, without forks rubbing against rear axles etc, or would they fall foul of the average cars weight limit?.

nobeer - i swopped from roof to towbar when I knew I was getting an ebike. The ebike specific ones appear to have wider bike adjacency spacings and can be had with long wheelbase capacity. I looked at Thule and Atera and went Atera as felt the frame retention was better for carbon. My large 29er Orbea Wild FS fitted fine and I think I'd get 2 on. They do come with 3 bike options. Whether I'd want 3 hefty ebikes on the towbar with a combined bike and rack weight of about 85 kg is another matter 🙂

Remember you can remove the batteries from ebikes to bring the weight in from the rack. 3 batteries would be a fair percentage of the total weight.

I went for the Area Strada Sport M3. We only have 2 bikes most of the time so it will be fine. If we ever move on to boost/eBikes it will cope with 2.

Thanks for the help