Bicycle Carrier For Towing Hook

[misko903]

HEllo,

i have rav4.3 '06 with spare wheel on the back door. as i have seen, there are bike carriers, which can be bended down, that the 5th door on the boot can be opened. but all of them for the cars, where the 5th door are opened to the top (not to the side, as on ours RAV4). i have a towing hook installed already, it is a bit longer that on the cars without the spare wheel.

is there any towing hook solution, which fits rav4 and did not limit the boot access? i know that i can put the bikes on the roof, but considering the air resistance/fuel economy and acces to the bikes i prefer the "hook" solution.

thanks for all replyes/ideas :)

[bothwell_buyer]

have you tried towing the bikes behind you? ( )

What about a cheap trailer?

[misko903]

have you tried towing the bikes behind you? ( )

What about a cheap trailer?

hello :)

the trailer increases the fuel consumtion also (another 2 tyres, wind resistance, you need the place to park and lock it, maneuvring...). i need a quick solution for the holidays without mobile home and also for short trips. but thanks for the tip :)

i have seen that there are also a bike holders for spare tire, but that means that i should remove the cover for 5th wheel - and the biggest disadvantage is, that if i buy another car without the 5th wheel, i cant use it anymore.

[Davrav]

have you tried towing the bikes behind you? ( )

What about a cheap trailer?

hello :)

the trailer increases the fuel consumtion also (another 2 tyres, wind resistance, you need the place to park and lock it, maneuvring...). i need a quick solution for the holidays without mobile home and also for short trips. but thanks for the tip :)

i have seen that there are also a bike holders for spare tire, but that means that i should remove the cover for 5th wheel - and the biggest disadvantage is, that if i buy another car without the 5th wheel, i cant use it anymore.

What about this type? Cycle carrier

As far as I can see, the bracket stays bolted to the tow hook and the column snaps in/out for fitting or access to the load area.

Edit:

Have just spoken to PF Jones and the model you would need is ZX100 BUT it can only be fitted if you have a flange mounted towball as in the picture.

[misko903]

have you tried towing the bikes behind you? ( )

What about a cheap trailer?

hello :)

the trailer increases the fuel consumtion also (another 2 tyres, wind resistance, you need the place to park and lock it, maneuvring...). i need a quick solution for the holidays without mobile home and also for short trips. but thanks for the tip :)

i have seen that there are also a bike holders for spare tire, but that means that i should remove the cover for 5th wheel - and the biggest disadvantage is, that if i buy another car without the 5th wheel, i cant use it anymore.

What about this type? Cycle carrier

As far as I can see, the bracket stays bolted to the tow hook and the column snaps in/out for fitting or access to the load area.

Edit:

Have just spoken to PF Jones and the model you would need is ZX100 BUT it can only be fitted if you have a flange mounted towball as in the picture.

thanks for a tip, i hope that there exists a types also for ball type towing hooks. it is really inexpensive (comparing to traditional models). the only disadvatage is, that the bikes doesnt have a support for the wheels, so they must be probably fixed together and to the pole with a lock, or something like that.

[benxt5]

Excuse me if I'm asking a silly question, but does that mean this bike rack will only work if you have a tow bar already fitted.

[Davrav]

Excuse me if I'm asking a silly question, but does that mean this bike rack will only work if you have a tow bar already fitted.

It is bolted to the tow hook flange - you don't need the hook but you do need the flange.

[benxt5]

Everyone needs a bit if flange every now and then!

So is that part of the car as standard or would it have to have been fitted as an option?

I'm just thinking that the price is good but not if I also have to by the tow bar (which I will probably otherwise never use).

[Davrav]

Everyone needs a bit if flange every now and then!

So is that part of the car as standard or would it have to have been fitted as an option?

I'm just thinking that the price is good but not if I also have to by the tow bar (which I will probably otherwise never use).

Hi Ben,

I guess you would need to have a suitable tow bar fitted - i.e. one that has a flange.

If you were not intending to tow with it you wouldn't need the electrics and any low cost bar would do so long as it fits with the correct amount of clearance to fit the rack. The bottom bracket of the cycle carrier would take the place of the tow ball and the rack could be demounted when not needed.

This is from the same company as the cycle carrier FLANGE Towbar

Fitting is pretty straight forward I think.