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| One of the few hobbies that greatly expanded during the
pandemic is E-Bike riding. That's exactly when/why we bought ours as
well. I recently retired, my wife is retiring at the end of the year.
We have a Class A motorhome, towing our Jeep. We wanted to take our
bikes along as well. There are LOTS of bike carriers on the market,
but most are for lightweight bikes, not heavy E-Bikes. I've owned Thule products before. Their roof rack for my kayak was excellent. Used it for more than a decade. Top quality products. Their EasyFold rack is the best on the market, in my humble opinion. No other rack is designed for this weight, has an integrated ramp, is lightweight, folds up very small, has wheels on the bottom, and a grab handle on top. The downside is it is very expensive. But you just paid $3K for two bikes, spend the extra money, get a carrier you won't regret. |
 The new bike carrier arrived, along with the longer wheel straps to fit the 4" fat tires on both bikes. |
 With the platform wings folded up, and the hitch stinger in the stowed position, this makes for a very small bike rack to store. There's a grab handle on top, and wheels on the bottom. Just tilt and roll where it needs to go. |
 The first upgrade. The shorter original ramp is fine for vehicles that are low, like a family car. But our Jeep is lifted, with taller tires. The optional 53" ramp is 17" longer than the stock ramp, reducing the approach angle. |
 No lifting the bikes. I use the throttle on the E-Bike to drive it up the ramp. Notice how far the stock carrier sits behind the spare tire. I'm not using a hitch extension. Clears with no issue. |
 Once the bikes are loaded, I remove the batteries to further reduce the weight on the carrier. This keeps the total weight below the rack's capacity. The TeamObsidian XL bike cover fits our two RadRover bikes perfectly. |
 This is a transport cover, not merely a bike cover. It's intended for highway speeds. It has multiple nylon webstraps underneath, and several cinch straps to gather any loose fabric. The result is a skin tight cover, with no flapping on the road. |
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 With the Jeep hitched to the motorhome, we're ready for a trip to Disney's Fort Wilderness Campground. This is a very bike/E-Bike friendly place. |
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 A few things to note. The RadRover bikes have 4" wide tires. I had to buy the optional longer tire straps you see dangling. Links to these below. The rack also has a built in mount to move the license plate to where it's still visible with the bikes loaded. I added my own aux lights to the carrier. More on that below. |
 Bikes unloaded, visiting family at another campsite. |
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This is a view of two bikes loaded, without the cover. Notice the license plate and tail lights on the truck are completely obscured. No bueno. Also illegal. |
 These are BIG bikes, but they do NOT touch. |
 A closer view of how the clamp arms grab the bike frames, and hold them securely in place. Each bike has its own adjustable arm. |
 It will even fit in a storage bay in the motorhome. |
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My only disappointment with the carrier is it didn't include tail lights.
The stock setup has reflectors, as shown in the very first picture above.
I 3D printed housings, and purchased LED fixtures from Amazon. These
mount in place of those reflectors. Now the
lights are fully visible, even with the transport cover in place. If
you have a 3D printer, and would like to do the same, here are the design
files:
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4577097 This carrier is fantastic. I can watch it from the rear view camera of the motorhome. I've also had someone follow me when I first tested it. The hitch stinger has an expanding clamp, which takes all the play out of the hitch. No wobble. It travels smoothly, even at 70 MPH behind the Jeep. |
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Last updated 07/19/22 All rights reserved. |
