Bike Transporter

Paul H

Paul H

Fearless OOS Poser
Bit early to be talking about this but anyways...
Was originally thinking about getting a cpo highlander next spring for the wife but she decided she would rather save instead. Can't argue with that but that leaves us as a 1 car family. Errr... no way. There are trails I want to ride and she hogs the car on the weekends. So I convinced her that I need a beater at the very least. I talked her up to $5k for now but I'm thinking at least $10k No? Will get to the finances later but I think I want a fuel efficient hatchback that will fit my Giant Trance in the back with the rear seats folded down. Which hatchbacks will accommodate this?
 
that is a bit much $$ for a beater -
you can put a fatbike in a fit by taking off the front wheel -
i'd rather see the $$ spent on the bike.

$5k bike, $1,000 car.....
 
fidodie said:
that is a bit much $$ for a beater -
you can put a fatbike in a fit by taking off the front wheel -
i'd rather see the $$ spent on the bike.

$5k bike, $1,000 car.....
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Lol
Would like something reliable as well and the longer it last, that much better.
After buying the trance, wife cut me off from spending money on anything bike related. :(
Ideally, would like to fit the bike without taking off the front wheel... but I'm open to it. Thought about having a rack but would like to be able to park the car with the bike in places like NYC and not have to worry about the bike getting stolen.
 
Get an older Subaru Impreza and throw a trailer hitch on and use a hitch rack. I have been buying Impreza's for years now and absolutely love them not to mention they are amazing in the slippery stuff. It also has a ton of room in the back when you put the seats down and is one of the most reliable cars on the road, up there with the Honda's and Toyota's.

The trailer hitch is really easy to put on and you can get a used hitch rack for pretty cheap and you can lock the bike to the rack. It is as likely to be cut off as someone smashing your window to get to your bike. Of course, you could probably fit the bike in the back as well but I haven't tried that since I use the hitch
 
BPaze said:
Get an older Subaru Impreza and throw a trailer hitch on and use a hitch rack. I have been buying Impreza's for years now and absolutely love them not to mention they are amazing in the slippery stuff. It also has a ton of room in the back when you put the seats down and is one of the most reliable cars on the road, up there with the Honda's and Toyota's.

The trailer hitch is really easy to put on and you can get a used hitch rack for pretty cheap and you can lock the bike to the rack. It is as likely to be cut off as someone smashing your window to get to your bike. Of course, you could probably fit the bike in the back as well but I haven't tried that since I use the hitch
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I like the impreza but they seem to be on the expensive side and in the used market has tons of mileage. I guess it's all a matter of perspective but the cars I have owned are relatively low mileage. For example, my current car is a 2012 MY and just broke 40k. So... over 100k is a bit to swallow.

I've installed a hitch on my current car and for the reason I've mentioned on the previous post, would rather not go that route.
 
C8N said:
I like the impreza but they seem to be on the expensive side and in the used market has tons of mileage. I guess it's all a matter of perspective but the cars I have owned are relatively low mileage. For example, my current car is a 2012 MY and just broke 40k. So... over 100k is a bit to swallow.

I've installed a hitch on my current car and for the reason I've mentioned on the previous post, would rather not go that route.
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Yea the Impreza def goes for more than most cars like it, they have one of the best resale values in the industry. My last one sold for $500 less than I bought it after I drove it for 2 years and put 50,000 miles on it. The good thing is if this is only temporary when you sell it you will not lose much money on it and you should be able to fit a bike in the back with the seats down. The car should be able to do 200.000 miles easy without breaking a sweat so the higher mileage isn't as bad as on other cars. You'll notice the same thing with Honda's and Toytota's for this reason as well. Honda Fit's are good but a little smaller and the Ford Focus is usually a highly rated hatchback. I also know a few people that like their Mazda 3's, but personally, I am a Subaru fan. Gonna be a sad day when I no longer have an Impreza.
 
I've owed Honda's mostly. My current car is a Honda... well an Acura... same thing.
Mazda 3 is also consideration but not sure if the bike will fit? My bro has one and looked a bit tight. I loaded my roadie in it and had to take off the front wheel. Considering the trance is a bigger bike... not sure. Will need to throw the trance in there to see if it will fit when I get a chance
 
Why not just a 5-10k used non cpo crv or rav4? It will have the utility of the highlander, though not 3 row seating, till you need it
 
I would think that most of the cars your looking at will require you to take the front wheel off to get it in. Really not a big deal these days with the through axle. I did like the Outback I just turned in because I could fold the seats down and the toss in the whole bike. Bummed I can't even fit my bike in my new car at all. :(
 
Mr.Moto said:
I would think that most of the cars your looking at will require you to take the front wheel off to get it in. Really not a big deal these days with the through axle. I did like the Outback I just turned in because I could fold the seats down and the toss in the whole bike. Bummed I can't even fit my bike in my new car at all. :(
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What did you get?

This is the Veloster... looks like a bike would fit...

2012-hyundai-veloster-cargo-room.jpg
 
at the yearly mileage you drive, actual gas mileage probably isn't that important.

consider a basic 10 yr old SUV getting 15, and a 4wd 'small car' getting 25. you have 1 car between 2 of you now and only drove 8k miles per year.
with two cars, what is it going to be?

to make it easy, let's say 6k mi/yr

that is 400 gallons with the SUV
or 240 with the little car
difference of 160 gallons - at $3/gallon -> less than $500/yr difference.

that is overstating mileage, and overstating the cost of gas. So it should be on the high side.

reason i throw this out there, is that high mpg cars seem to fetch a premium, which may, or may not be justified by the economics.
unless you are trying to save the world - which you are already doing by using mass transit, and riding your bike.

SUV means wheel stays on, and more room for other tasks.
small car means you need to lower it, and keep knocking the air dam off, or scraping the oil pan on speed bumps. :D
 
fidodie said:
at the yearly mileage you drive, actual gas mileage probably isn't that important.

consider a basic 10 yr old SUV getting 15, and a 4wd 'small car' getting 25. you have 1 car between 2 of you now and only drove 8k miles per year.
with two cars, what is it going to be?

to make it easy, let's say 6k mi/yr

that is 400 gallons with the SUV
or 240 with the little car
difference of 160 gallons - at $3/gallon -> less than $500/yr difference.

that is overstating mileage, and overstating the cost of gas. So it should be on the high side.

reason i throw this out there, is that high mpg cars seem to fetch a premium, which may, or may not be justified by the economics.
unless you are trying to save the world - which you are already doing by using mass transit, and riding your bike.

SUV means wheel stays on, and more room for other tasks.
small car means you need to lower it, and keep knocking the air dam off, or scraping the oil pan on speed bumps. :D
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Absolutely and I've thought about getting a larger SUV and liked the utilitarian aspect to loaded up crap and ppl if there would be a necessity, but ultimately decided against it due to ironically, the size. To elaborate, I want to be able work on the car for regular maintenance. My detached garage is rather small... well it's narrow. In my research, Pathfinder and i think Highlander as well, were the few SUVs that would fit with just barely room at the sides to be able to remove the tires. At the end if the day, the need to haul stuff and ppl are rare occassions and a smaller car made more sense to me.

I'm also open to the smaller suvs types @qclabrat mentioned
 
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C8N said:
Absolutely and I've thought about getting a larger SUV and liked the utilitarian aspect to loaded up crap and ppl if there would be a necessity, but ultimately decided against it due to ironically, the size. To elaborate, I want to be able work on the car for regular maintenance. My detached garage is rather small... well it's narrow. In my research, Pathfinder and i think Highlander as well, were the few SUVs that would fit with just barely room at the sides to be able to remove the tires. At the end if the day, the need to haul stuff and ppl are rare occassions and a smaller car made more sense to me.

I'm also open to the smaller suvs types @qclabrat mentioned
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in the same boat as you. 1 car family currently as I work from home. I need a small beater. looking at older mid sized pickups. easy to fit a bike in, can use for hauling shit, and super easy to maintain.
 
Gnick said:
im

in the same boat as you. 1 car family currently as I work from home. I need a small beater. looking at older mid sized pickups. easy to fit a bike in, can use for hauling shit, and super easy to maintain.
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Pick ups are cool! But... in my case, I would like to park the car in places like NYC and not have to worry about the bike getting stolen... damn... I think I have way too many requirements for a beater lol
 
C8N said:
What did you get?
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Lincoln MKZ hybrid - Company car. Glorified Taurus. Rides nice but surprisingly small back seat area. Tried fitting a bike in the back seat and it didn't fit. Plus it's a hybrid, so batteries or other hybrid gear take up a chunk of space in the trunk so no go on folding down the rear seats and throwing a bike in the trunk.
 
Mr.Moto said:
Lincoln MKZ hybrid - Company car. Glorified Taurus. Rides nice but surprisingly small back seat area. Tried fitting a bike in the back seat and it didn't fit. Plus it's a hybrid, so batteries or other hybrid gear take up a chunk of space in the trunk so no go on folding down the rear seats and throwing a bike in the trunk.
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I have a TL and had to remove both wheels to fit the trance in the back seat. Supposedly... Acura did away with folding rear seat for increased structural integrity... :confused:
 
How about a Honda Element. I kinda like those things. Fold up rear seats for large cargo area. I think it can swallow up a few bikes in there. Decent gas mileage.
 
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