Transporting a road bike on holiday - Advice needed on Carriers etc

larry1981

Good Morning all

The arrival of our first little one has stymied the usual exotic holiday, so we are heading to france in a couple of weeks to stay in some gites in mid and northern areas of the country.

To facilitate the lugging of lots of baby stuff, I have bought Thule Aerobars and fitting kit for our A3 - which I can state now was an absolute breeze to fit, and highly recommended.
I have also purchased a 1/2 width Exodus roofbox.

My question is, can I lash my roadbike to the other part of the roof not taken up by the roofbox, or would a cycle carrier be a better bet?
Height isn't an issue as I have specified that our car has luggage on top for the ferry, but I have never been a huge fan of the upright cycle racks? Anything I should look out for?

Thanks in advance.

andy8442

Look for a cycle rack that your front forks bolt down to. Thule do one but there are others out there that are cheaper. You of course have the front wheel to stow, but I always just attached it to the bike frame.

I just hate to see a couple of bikes flapping down the Autoroute at 130kph!

larry1981

Hi Andy, thanks for the post!

I will have a look out for those, do you know any manufacturers or models that are recommended that I can look out for?

Anything else I should think of? Thanks.

andy8442 wrote: »

Look for a cycle rack that your front forks bolt down to. Thule do one but there are others out there that are cheaper. You of course have the front wheel to stow, but I always just attached it to the bike frame.

I just hate to see a couple of bikes flapping down the Autoroute at 130kph!

Mr_Thrifty

I'd just hire a bike when u get there and save the hassle

GolfBravo

Recently I read a German article (either in AutoBild or ADAC) about bike racks and fuel economy.

They did a MPG comparison between roof mounted and tow bar mounted bike racks with 2 bikes attached. At 130kph (80mph) roof mounted bikes increased fuel consumption by around 20% and rear mounted bikes by 4%.

IMHO something worth keeping in mind when investing in bike racks.

cardinalbiggles

I got a tow bar fitted to my new car specially to take bikes on the back. The tow bar fitted ones are far more secure, and less likely to cause you grief going under low things than the roof mounted ones. Also, they are far far easier to get bikes on and off of.

You do need a tow bar of course!

larry1981

Thanks Golf and Cardinal- valid points, although I am stuck with a roof carrier as the car is a works one and I don't want to pay for a towbar.
We also have a fuel card so no worries on the fuel costs thankfully, but good point!

@MrThrifty- it wouldn't be very MSE to hire a carbon road bike over there would it? What's the point in not taking your own?

I am looking at the Thule 561 carrier, but can't seem to find any cheaper similar ones?

Sgt_Pepper_2

larry1981 wrote: »

Thanks Golf and Cardinal- valid points, although I am stuck with a roof carrier as the car is a works one and I don't want to pay for a towbar.
We also have a fuel card so no worries on the fuel costs thankfully, but good point!

@MrThrifty- it wouldn't be very MSE to hire a carbon road bike over there would it? What's the point in not taking your own?

I am looking at the Thule 561 carrier, but can't seem to find any cheaper similar ones?

And you were going to lash it to the roof?

Says it all really.

rev_henry

Wouldn't fancy just lashing down a nice road bike, you might scratch it. Towbar ones are the best really. I just use a normal halfords rear strap on one - not the best but I was given it. I have used it for a 200 mile journey before but not ideal for going round Europe with.

Notmyrealname

Remember that if you are using a rear mounted bike rack and it obscures the numberplate and/or rear lights you will need to get a light bar similar to one for a trailer that you can attach to the rear bike.

timbotambo

I got some Thule roofbars secondhand recently (£30) and a couple of Halfords Value (I know I know, but reviews were good) cycle bars at £20 each and they work like a dream, very sturdy and you can always tie the bike down more anyway. So if fuel isn't an issue then I think you will be fine.