Tow-bar Mounted Bike Carrier On Verso: Access To Boot.

[yoast]

I am considering getting a Bike Carrier fitted on the Tow Bar.

I hope it will be able to get access to the boot without having to take off the bikes etc..

Is that possible?

I am currently considering the Thule and Halfords ones (http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/categorydisplay_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_categoryId_165515_langId_-1).

They both claim to be able to be tilted to provide access to the boot. But does that actually work?

If you know of other brands or have helpfull suggestions about using them I'd be grateful if you would share them.

Thanks

[mikeverso]

I am considering getting a Bike Carrier fitted on the Tow Bar.

I hope it will be able to get access to the boot without having to take off the bikes etc..

Is that possible?

I am currently considering the Thule and Halfords ones (http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/categorydisplay_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_categoryId_165515_langId_-1).

They both claim to be able to be tilted to provide access to the boot. But does that actually work?

If you know of other brands or have helpfull suggestions about using them I'd be grateful if you would share them.

Thanks

I have one, not sure of the make but theres no way you can open the boot with it fitted. You can lift the hole thing off with the bikes and rest it against something to get into the boot.

[Will_de_Beest]

I've just done the same thing. I bought an Atera Strada DL3 (from roofbox.co.uk, which I've used before and highly recommend.) This is largely aluminium to save weight, which is important because the Verso has a maximum towball load of only 60kg, which doesn't leave you much to spare if you're loading four bikes on it. (Pashley owners need not apply!)

The Atera doesn't tilt, but slides backwards on rails away from the tailgate to allow enough clearance to get it open. The carrier remains locked to the towball, with no loosening of the grip. It seems very well thought out and put together.

One warning, though. You can buy, as I did, an adaptor rail to fit a fourth bike to the DL3. What I hadn't taken in before I ordered is that the adaptor comes with two nylon top-stays, which have to be hooked over the top edge of the tailgate or fixed to the roof rails in order to bear the extra weight, and these rather negate the benefit of the sliding mechanism. You could still do it, but you probably ought to remove one bike first before detaching the top-stays. Of course, if you don't need the fourth bike, you needn't worry. Otherwise, the Atera is expensive - but no more so than anyone else's four-bike stand-on (as distinct from hang-on) carrier, but should last for many years and feels like money well spent.

[yoast]

Great to hear about your positive experiences. Thanks for the tips & advice.

I've just done the same thing. I bought an Atera Strada DL3 (from roofbox.co.uk, which I've used before and highly recommend.) This is largely aluminium to save weight, which is important because the Verso has a maximum towball load of only 60kg, which doesn't leave you much to spare if you're loading four bikes on it. (Pashley owners need not apply!)

The Atera doesn't tilt, but slides backwards on rails away from the tailgate to allow enough clearance to get it open. The carrier remains locked to the towball, with no loosening of the grip. It seems very well thought out and put together.

One warning, though. You can buy, as I did, an adaptor rail to fit a fourth bike to the DL3. What I hadn't taken in before I ordered is that the adaptor comes with two nylon top-stays, which have to be hooked over the top edge of the tailgate or fixed to the roof rails in order to bear the extra weight, and these rather negate the benefit of the sliding mechanism. You could still do it, but you probably ought to remove one bike first before detaching the top-stays. Of course, if you don't need the fourth bike, you needn't worry. Otherwise, the Atera is expensive - but no more so than anyone else's four-bike stand-on (as distinct from hang-on) carrier, but should last for many years and feels like money well spent.

[yoast]

Update: I got a Thule 9403 one at Halfords.

It carries three bikes. Recommended weight 45 Kg. With the carrier weight of an estimated 10 that ads up to the Verso's max 60kg on the towbar.

The two bikes furthest from the car can stay on the carrier while opening the boot.

This is possible because the carrier "tilts". The bike closest to the car has to be removed for the boot to be able to be opened.

A word of warning: upon reading the "fun with towbars" posting I realise that not all towballs are fitted at the same height. If your towball is higher or sits closer to the car it may not work in your case. Please let us know if yours does or does not allow access to the boot.

I read many reviews praising the carrier for its stability etc. I see no reason to deviate from this.

At £110,- (without lock, license plate etc. ) it will allow you to bring two bikes and still have acces to the boot. (see my word of warning above)

If you want to bring more than two bikes you'll have to lift one off to gain access to the boot.

The price difference with Will-de-beest's Atera one was too big. I also could have this one assembled at Halfords etc.. avoiding hassle.

Hope someone may benfit from this knowledge.

Thanks to you all for your info. Particularly Will.

PS I have attached 2 pics. 1 with the carrier mounted.and one with it tilted. You'll just have to take my word that I had full access to th boot with it tilted with two bikes on the outer two stands.

I am considering getting a Bike Carrier fitted on the Tow Bar.

I hope it will be able to get access to the boot without having to take off the bikes etc..

Is that possible?

I am currently considering the Thule and Halfords ones (http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/categorydisplay_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_categoryId_165515_langId_-1).

They both claim to be able to be tilted to provide access to the boot. But does that actually work?

If you know of other brands or have helpfull suggestions about using them I'd be grateful if you would share them.

Thanks

[Will_de_Beest]

Sounds good, Yoast - glad you're pleased. I noticed a few carriers like yours on our recent travels, and nodded approvingly - so much better than those high-mount things that leave bikes sticking out at all angles!

Just to complete my input as well, we, our Verso, our bikes and our Atera (and our annoying Toyota roof bars and our ancient Thule roofbox) have just completed a 1200-mile return trip to western France. It could not have gone better - the sun shone, we rode the bikes every day but one, and as a result we used the car a lot less than on previous trips and probably burned off a little more of that French food than we might otherwise have done.

The Atera rack was a pleasure to travel with - and I'm the kind that dreads the idea of travelling with stuff attached to the car. Nothing broke, nothing wobbled, nothing worked loose. I could still see out of the rear window, and despite being right on the 60 kg towbar weight limit, the car's handling seemed not to suffer. It averaged 41.2 mpg over the entire trip, most of that with a full load and at motorway speed; I suspect carrying the bikes high up would have dragged that down. When we parked for the night outside our stopover hotel on the way home, we felt confident to leave everything locked to the rack.

We couldn't slide the rack to open the tailgate without removing the smallest bike and unfastening the top straps, but this didn't make much difference - we just packed anything we needed on the trip where we could get at it through the back seats. I haven't measured the height of the Toyota-fit towball but I'd estimate it's something like 500mm with the car empty.

[yoast]

That sounds great Will. Thank you very much.

We're leaving on Saturday. Scotland - nightride to Dover and then France.

My kids are small So I'll gain some more calories.

The Trailgator I'll use (and a front seat for the smallest) will limit our range. More purely recreational than touring. Since the seat will take up too much space I'll just strap it on the carrier. The trailgator itself does not take up much space. I'll probably carry the children's bike at the front of the carrier with its own strap and lock. Much easier to lift off.

We do not have a roofbox. I may live to regret that. I did check with Norauto and Toyota france that we can order one there, should we really need one.

I just hope everything will go as well as it did for you.

Speaking of the towball height. I remember that the Halfords staff, fitting the carrier, stressed not to fit it too low, otherwise the rear might hit speed-bumps or curbs. Has that happened to anyone?

41 mpg is terrific. Is that a diesel? I get the impression that with cruise control and careful driving (preferably 50 to 55 mph we can get 37 to 39 mpg on our petrol one. But w have only owned the car for a couple of weeks.). Our nightly dash for Dover will probably reduce our average for the holidays. In France I would prefer to take Route Nationale's and small roads.

Thanks again,

Yoast

Sounds good, Yoast - glad you're pleased. I noticed a few carriers like yours on our recent travels, and nodded approvingly - so much better than those high-mount things that leave bikes sticking out at all angles!

Just to complete my input as well, we, our Verso, our bikes and our Atera (and our annoying Toyota roof bars and our ancient Thule roofbox) have just completed a 1200-mile return trip to western France. It could not have gone better - the sun shone, we rode the bikes every day but one, and as a result we used the car a lot less than on previous trips and probably burned off a little more of that French food than we might otherwise have done.

The Atera rack was a pleasure to travel with - and I'm the kind that dreads the idea of travelling with stuff attached to the car. Nothing broke, nothing wobbled, nothing worked loose. I could still see out of the rear window, and despite being right on the 60 kg towbar weight limit, the car's handling seemed not to suffer. It averaged 41.2 mpg over the entire trip, most of that with a full load and at motorway speed; I suspect carrying the bikes high up would have dragged that down. When we parked for the night outside our stopover hotel on the way home, we felt confident to leave everything locked to the rack.

We couldn't slide the rack to open the tailgate without removing the smallest bike and unfastening the top straps, but this didn't make much difference - we just packed anything we needed on the trip where we could get at it through the back seats. I haven't measured the height of the Toyota-fit towball but I'd estimate it's something like 500mm with the car empty.

[Will_de_Beest]

...The Trailgator I'll use ...

Interesting link. I had no idea you had such shapely legs. B)

41 mpg is what our diesel generally returns in mixed use, so I was pleased to see how little difference the excrescences made.

Bonne route!

[yoast]

Thanks Will,

We returned safely.

The Thule held out well with 2 bikes + 2 kids bikes. I have atached a picture. The only problem we had was owing to myself (I did not strap the bikes down poperly on one trip. Had to stop to tighten the load. Oops). The boot could still be accessed with the bikes tilted down, that was very handy.

We did almost 4000 km. With much more Peage / Motorway than originally thought. The Verso did really well with the havy load. Fuel consumption was somewhere in the region of 35 to 37 mpg. The speedometer/Odometer tended to overreport by 10% consistently(as compared to the Satnav).

Thanks for your help.

...The Trailgator I'll use ...

Interesting link. I had no idea you had such shapely legs. B)

41 mpg is what our diesel generally returns in mixed use, so I was pleased to see how little difference the excrescences made.

Bonne route!

[Stu w]

Hi there,

I am looking at an Atera rack for 4 bikes as per Will_de_Beest from a few years ago. Any one got any ideas for a towbar installation for a 2008 Verso? Don't really want the bumper cut.

Do I need a 13 pin connector for the lights to work correctly?

Kind Regards,

Stu

[Stu w]

Have an Atera Strada rack and it is great. 4 bikes, 2 adult, 2 child. Had a fixed towbar fitted locally and bumper slightly cut out.

Solid bike rack. Took a bit of time to get bikes on for first time working out suitable pedal positions etc, but gets quicker the more often you put them on!