bikes on roof bars, Honda CRV or any big car

[Mr C]

Hi All

we have a MkII Honda CRV , our son wants to take his bike (mid size, he is 11) when we go away in the van, I do not want to put it in the caravan when we are travelling,my wife thought about roof bars and then a cycle carrier on them. It seems very high to me to get it up , how does it effect driving with the van behind ? Thank you for any advice.

 

[RichardS1]

We often carry four bikes on the roof of the Sorento and find it apart from a small decrease in fuel economy there is no difference when towing. I bought a small pastic foldable step from Halfords, great for taking the bikes on and off the roof.

 

[MikeJE]

I used the caravan door step to give me the extra height to reach the roof mounted bikes - just make sure everyone knows the step is not there for the time being ! I also insist the bike riders are on there to lend a hand - even if it is raining/windy/or whatever.

 

[Graham_5110442]

I also have a mk11 CRV and put 4 adult bikes on the roof while towing. Best place for them out of the way and the hight is the same as the caravan so no problems there

 

[rayc]

Mr C, I have a CRV and carry 3 bikes on the roof using a Honda roof bar system and Thule carriers. i carry the outside two facing forward and the inside one facing to the rear.

To get the bikes on/off the roof my wife or daughter stand in the rear load area. The door space slopes inwards at the top and so they can stand upright. Using the caravan stool I lift the centre bike onto one of the outside carriers and it is held by person in the back. We then together move it to the centre carrier and fix the securing clamp. We then fit the outside one similarly.

I have used this system for 5 years or more on two CRV's and have not had any problems with this set up whether towing or solo.

 

[MrsMothy]

Hi Mr C

We use the Thule system on our CRV. We carry our two 'half bikes' on the normal cycle carriers and use a gas assisted carrier (from JD Cycles in Ilkley) to put the tandem up there as well. We use a pair of kitchen steps at home and the caravan step on site to make it easier to get the half bikes up there and the arm on the tandem carrier comes down to lift the bike from about 6 inches above the pavement. You could invest in a gas assisted cycle carrier for your son's 'half bike' but they are a bit pricey so only perhaps a last resort.

Denise

 

[Clive-Cardiff]

I've traveled down through France to Spain a couple of times with 2 bikes on the roof of a Freelander. Comparing the mpg over considerable mileage with and without the bikes I found that the bikes increased my mpg by about 20%.

With regards to getting the bikes up on the rack I used the caravan step and a good push on my backside from my wife to get the bikes up.

The problem is that even if you have enough arm strength its difficult to stop falling backwards.

We now have a Landcruiser so bikes on the roof are out of the question, I use a Witter towbar mounted carrier, it just means that I have to remove the spare wheel and carry that in the car.