# Carrying bike in car



## pennpeddler (Jun 8, 2008)

Hi all,
Do any of you mount your bike inside your car/truck? I prefer to carry mine in my car for security reasons and that I don't want it getting hit. I'm looking for a new car and was wondering what would be a good vehicle to mount my road bike upright inside it? Anyone do this with a Ford Edge, Escape or the new Chevy Equinox? If so, pics would be great.

Thanks


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## pdh777 (Oct 7, 2005)

Used to drive an Edge - layed my bike down inside on the non drive side with the rear seats folded forward - didn't have to remove the front wheel. I would then cover it with an old comforter so no one could see what was there + had nice padding for protection - worked fine + had plenty of room for other cargo. 

Also drove an Escape for a short while had to remove the front wheel in that one.

I do not believe either vehicle has a high enough roof line to allow you to mount them upright inside.


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## wim (Feb 28, 2005)

*Some thoughts.*

With the vehicles you mention, it depends on the size of the bike. High-floored SUVs don't have a lot of vertical space (like the low-floored Honda Element has, for example), so take your bike to the dealer when test-driving. Alternatives are taking the saddle off or lowering it, not insisting on having your bike upright or a (gasp!) minivan—the perfect bike hauler and bike event vehicle. But you really have to be dedicated cyclist to take the huge minivan style hit.  

I looked for an SUV a few years ago and was surprised how little vertical space there was for my bike in most of them. Wound up buying a Mazda6, which easily takes my lying-down bike with both wheels attached. I see no reason or advantage for having a bike upright and actually prefer it down and out of sight.

/w


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## GerryR (Sep 3, 2008)

We used to have a Ford Windstar van and I'm pretty sure there was a enough room in there to mount a bike upright. The downside was that it would require removing seats and would no longer hold as many people.


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## Wookiebiker (Sep 5, 2005)

I can lay mine down (front wheel off) in the back of my 07 focus, and easily in the back of our 06 Fusion with the back seats down (in both of them).

As others have mentioned, having it stand upright poses a different problem that many vehicles won't be able to accommodate. However, if you don't mind laying it down many vehicles will work just fine.


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## Ventruck (Mar 9, 2009)

*Unfortunately don't have any of the listed cars...*

But getting a bike to fit with the front wheel removed in a 2010 Sienna's boot was pie. It's acutally also convenient to find that the second row has that gap in the middle, but I have yet to take advantage of that. Like the OP, I'm weary about putting bikes on racks, especially when I'm taking a new bike home upon purchase. I mean, I just got it; I'm not planning to lose it already because I didn't opt for the most secure storage.


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## Infini (Apr 21, 2003)

a Honda fit is an option with the front wheel removed: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oy7MZB7-TxY


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## balatoe (Apr 15, 2009)

I have a 2005 Nissan Xterra and I have my bike mounted upright w/o the front wheel. The car barely has enough room for my bike to be mounted upright. There is less than an inch between the saddle and the ceiling of the car.


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## wayout10131 (Dec 25, 2009)

I have a Honda Element - a couple of road bikes fit in the back nicely.


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## nor_cal_rider (Dec 18, 2006)

I can place my bike upright in my '97 Land Cruiser with eveything in place, and one of the rear seats folded down. I can also speek for the Sienna's - my wife has one, and I'm thinking of grabbing it for my next bike/event transport (I can deal with the style issues - I have 2 other "stylish" vehicles) due to it's ease of loading gear and fully assembled bikes.


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## rbart4506 (Aug 4, 2004)

Got a Mazda3 Hatch and I'm able to mount both my bike and my wife's bike in the rear, standing upright. The front wheel and seatpost must be removed/lowered to achieve this. We only do this when travelling a long distance so we have the additional storage space for suitcases and such. For the local runs we just remove the front wheels and lie the bike down on top of one another, we a blanket in between.

In both cases the rear seat are of course folded down...

We will be looking at a new vehicle next year and are debating on a Mazda5, which has more headspace, and should allow us to leave the seatpost in place. I'm not sure if we'll be able to keep the front wheels on or not.

First step will be if I am prepared to give up the go-kart like handling of my 3 for the certain sway city of the minvan type vehicle...


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## GirchyGirchy (Feb 12, 2004)

Any midsize sedan should have enough room for a bike to go behind the front seat with the wheel off.

Why does the bike need to be upright though? I put the seats down in my Nissan Altima and lay it down sideways. I take the front wheel off but probably don't have to. If I take both wheels off it fits in the trunk by itself.

For travelling with my wife, I take both sets of pedals off on the bikes and lay them on top of each other. It allows us to easily fit both bikes/wheels/tools/pump, plus enough luggage for at least a week.


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## Becky (Jun 15, 2004)

I can get 2 upright bikes into my Subaru Outback, but I must remove the front wheels and take the seatposts out. No big deal- a piece of tape to mark the post height, and good to go.

FWIW, a 56cm frame is about the biggest that this will work with, mostly due to length.


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## ericm979 (Jun 26, 2005)

rbart4506 said:


> Got a Mazda3 Hatch and I'm able to mount both my bike and my wife's bike in the rear, standing upright. The front wheel and seatpost must be removed/lowered to achieve this.
> 
> First step will be if I am prepared to give up the go-kart like handling of my 3 for the certain sway city of the minvan type vehicle...


I've also got a 3, a Mazdaspeed. My bike goes in on its side with the front wheel removed. I have some old blankets and sheets to cushion and protect the bike. It's easy and quick. If I need to carry another bike I just put a blanket between the bikes. Removing the seat posts would be too much of a hassle, especially if you often drive to rides/races.

I've heard that the 5 handles pretty good for what it is, but it's not a 3 and certainly not a speed3 with modified suspension.


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## JCavilia (Sep 12, 2005)

*Why upright?*

If you're buying a larger car than you otherwise need just so you can carry a bike upright, that seems like a waste of fuel and other resources. Most any car with an average or larger size trunk can easily fit a road bike with the wheels removed. Putting the wheels back on is a 2-minute piece of cake after you've practiced it a couple dozen times. I used to work in a location where I could get in lunchtime rides, so my road bike lived most of the time in the trunk of my Taurus sedan. A couple of pieces of carpet padding prevented scratches and other minor damage.

There are some other advantages to trunks. The security you mentioned is enhanced by having the bike out of sight. A fancy bike standing upright in the passenger compartment of an SUV may tempt thieves. Also, on sunny summer days the trunk doesn't get as hot as the greenhouse. Not a huge deal, but long periods of excessive heat accelerates the aging of tires, saddle leather, etc.


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## jrz1 (Mar 15, 2006)

Two years ago I fell in love with a hot Scion TC (not the boxy XB) that was blinged out with every TRD (Toyota Racing Division) speed part available including their supercharger. I never considered my bike in the purchase since I also have a mini-van that I had used to carry my bike anywhere. Well, one day several months after my Scion purchase, my wife was gone with the mini-van and I needed to get my bike in to the repair shop so I figured I would try to take it in the Scion. To my surprise, with the rear seats folded down of course, my bike fit perfectly in it! With the front wheel left on! I was very surprised and now the Scion, not the van, has become my bike hauling vehicle to rides. My arrival is with style and announced by a nice tight growl from a high performance exhaust system. It is always fun to see the expression on peoples face when I take my bike out from that small car.

Very encouraged to hear from the Mazda guys that bikes fit nicely into the Speed3. I am thinking of moving up from the 2dr Scion to a 4dr vehicle and the Mazda Speed3 has been at the top of the list. Willing to give up the "zoom" of the Supercharged Scion for the "zoom-zoom" of the Speed3. Sweet car.


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## Jim311 (Sep 18, 2009)

Removing wheels and stacking bikes is such a pain. I'd rather just have a hitch mounted or roof mounted rack. As far as your bikes getting hit - that's what the other drivers insurance is for.


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## jpdigital (Dec 1, 2006)

BMW X3 actually has a setup where you can mount a bike on the inside w/ a bike carrier as you would with a roofrack system.


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## Ibashii (Oct 23, 2002)

pennpeddler said:


> Hi all,
> Do any of you mount your bike inside your car/truck? I prefer to carry mine in my car for security reasons and that I don't want it getting hit. I'm looking for a new car and was wondering what would be a good vehicle to mount my road bike upright inside it? Anyone do this with a Ford Edge, Escape or the new Chevy Equinox? If so, pics would be great.
> 
> Thanks


I do exactly this, and I have a little Euro car (a Skoda Fabia II, which is smaller than the Mazda3) and a very big bike...I can't imagine any car on the US market in which it wouldn't be possible. Except a Smart of course.

The best way I've come up with is to lay only the passenger-side back seat down, set the fork down on the back of the folded seat (protected of course) and tie the frame loosely but firmly to the headrest of the still-upright driver's side seat. I can get it so it doesn't move at all even in the Alps, but I still tie it up in case of accident. This involves removing only the seat post and front wheel, leaves plenty of room for stuff and even a third person if necessary: the drivetrain is on the other side so this person doesn't even have to get greasy. I imagine with an American-sized car and a smaller bike that you might not even have to take the seatpost out, which would be cool.

I've also thought about mounting a fork-mount thingy directly onto the back of the seat. That would be cool, but I haven't come up with a good way of doing it yet. I think about it when I'm bored and will probably come up with a hare-brained idea sooner or later.


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## DaveG (Feb 4, 2004)

*measure at the dealer*



pennpeddler said:


> Hi all,
> Do any of you mount your bike inside your car/truck? I prefer to carry mine in my car for security reasons and that I don't want it getting hit. I'm looking for a new car and was wondering what would be a good vehicle to mount my road bike upright inside it? Anyone do this with a Ford Edge, Escape or the new Chevy Equinox? If so, pics would be great.
> 
> Thanks


I would measure the distance to the top of the seat and then measure the opening and interior at the dealer. It probably depends of the size of your bike. I suspect most mid-size SUVs will not be tall enough or you may have to take the seat down, which is a pain. I can fit my 61c-t bike in my Honda Odyssey with no problem, buts that's another class of vehicle. I also have a Mazda Protege and my bikes fits inside on its side without a problem,


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## joep721 (May 4, 2009)

I know they aren't on your radar but both the Honda Element and Pilot allow you to either lay the bike (or bikes) down in the back of the vehicle. Plus Honda has an accessory to remove the front tire and stand your bike up vertically inside. I've seen where you can put two bikes side by side inside the Pilot or Element.


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## thedago (Sep 30, 2009)

*4runner works great*

with the front tire off- here is a pic with my mb - road bike also fits (without saddle adjustment)


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## ZoSoSwiM (Mar 7, 2008)

I hope that my next car has a trunk that opens into the cars cabin. That way with an old blanket down I could put my bike in with no problem. I have a thule T2 rack which is nice and works well.. when it's nasty out though it worries me. 

I used to take both wheels off my road bike and wrap it up in the back seat. It worked but certainly wasn't ideal.


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## pmf (Feb 23, 2004)

Mine fit in with room to spare. One of the few advantages of owning a minivan.


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## GirchyGirchy (Feb 12, 2004)

Jim311 said:


> Removing wheels and stacking bikes is such a pain. I'd rather just have a hitch mounted or roof mounted rack. As far as your bikes getting hit - that's what the other drivers insurance is for.


You forgot about the whole security thing. I'd much rather have my bikes inside the car.


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## GirchyGirchy (Feb 12, 2004)

ZoSoSwiM said:


> I hope that my next car has a trunk that opens into the cars cabin. That way with an old blanket down I could put my bike in with no problem. I have a thule T2 rack which is nice and works well.. when it's nasty out though it worries me.
> 
> I used to take both wheels off my road bike and wrap it up in the back seat. It worked but certainly wasn't ideal.


I was toying with buying a T2, but between the cost of it + a hitch for the car, yikes. Off come the wheels and pedals!


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## pennpeddler (Jun 8, 2008)

*Thanks*

Thanks all for the responses. I'm interested in mounting it upright since then it doesn't consume your entire back seat and you have one seat available. I have a Mazda 3 sedan and it squeezes in the back ok, but then nothing else fits. I've seen the setup for the X3 and Xterra and wanted to see if any other small SUV's have a similar setup possible.


Thanks again everyone.


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