# Roof mount vs. Hitch Mount



## Straz85 (Mar 20, 2009)

I have a 2009 VW Tiguan, and am in the market for a bike rack. I'll be getting a Thule roof rack with a ski attachment and box, and eventually canoe attachment, so getting the bike attachment for it would be the easiest solution. My question is, are there any disadvantages to using a roof rack? Should I go with a hitch mounted one instead? Based on your experience, how hard is it to get the bike up there without smashing it into the roof? I have a panoramic sunroof, so like 75% of the roof of the car is glass, the last thing I want is to put a big crack in it with the fork.

Thanks!


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## pimpbot (Dec 31, 2003)

*Do a search*



Straz85 said:


> I have a 2009 VW Tiguan, and am in the market for a bike rack. I'll be getting a Thule roof rack with a ski attachment and box, and eventually canoe attachment, so getting the bike attachment for it would be the easiest solution. My question is, are there any disadvantages to using a roof rack? Should I go with a hitch mounted one instead? Based on your experience, how hard is it to get the bike up there without smashing it into the roof? I have a panoramic sunroof, so like 75% of the roof of the car is glass, the last thing I want is to put a big crack in it with the fork.
> 
> Thanks!


well covered. Not that bad to get bikes on the roof, even on the biggest SUVs. The trick is to keep a short light stepladder in the back seat. No biggie.

THat said, I'm still of the opinion that roof racks blow, hitch rules. No worries about low hanging branches, wind noise, sucking lots of extra gas, etc.


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## rmccully (Jul 18, 2008)

You don't need to use a fork-mounted bike carrier. You can use one that allows you to keep the wheels on, which are quicker and easier, and one less hard surface to crash through your sunroof. BTW, the sunroof should be pretty resilient.

I'll refrain from choosing a side in the roof vs hitch mount decision.


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## PCC (Sep 5, 2005)

Just my opinion: I'm thinking of installing a trailer hitch to my Jetta GLI so that I can use a hitch mount rack for my car. Part of the reason is that I'm tired of dinging up the roof rails of my car because every time I install the rack I run the risk of the rack itself hitting the roof of the car. The other thing is that a heavy mountain bike, at the end of a long, tiring ride, can be difficult to control while hoisting it overhead to place it on to a rack. Add the extra height of your Tiguan, and it could be a real PITA. My buddy has a Honda Element and he uses a roof rack. It can be difficult to mount a bike to the rack with a light weight road bike in the best of conditions let alone trying to lift a heavy mountain bike on the side of the trail possibly with the vehicle not completely flat. With a hitch mount you have to lift your bike no more than 3 feet to mount it to the rack.

With a hitch mount you do have to worry about backing into something with the rack in place as well as drivers of other cars running into it. I'll take my chances with that one.

BTW, you do know that the sun visors on your Tiguan telescope out when not clipped in, right? I read on one of the online car review sites that their only real complaint about the Tiguan was that the sun visor does not have a pull out extension for when it is pulled over to the door side and the sun is hitting the side of your head from between the B pillar and the edge of the visor. They didn't know about the ability to pull the entire visor towards the B pillar to cover that gap.


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## pimpbot (Dec 31, 2003)

Heya... How do you like the tig? If they had that thing in awd with a stick and diesel, I would be all over it.


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## Deme Moore (Jun 15, 2007)

For me it's no contest. Hitch rack is easier to mount, no risk of slipping while loading and cracking my glass sunroof, no risk of driving the bikes into a ceiling and much much quieter. Better MPG too but it's the noise that bothers me the most with roof racks.


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## tougeep3 (Feb 9, 2009)

What happens when you forget to take the bike off the roof rack before pulling into the garage:










Though I guess you can squish it with the garage door also, but most of them nowadays will go back up once they touch something..


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## JohnJ80 (Oct 10, 2008)

Really depends on the car. I have a BMW wagon and the hitch for that is not subtle (in fact, it's butt ugly). The roof rails to which the rack attaches are substantial. My wife's SUV has a hitch and also can accept a rack in the same manner. That's where I'll use the hitch rack for overflow.

The downside of the hitch rack is that it's really easy to back into something which has equally disastrous consequences. Also, if you don't have the hitch already, you can almost double the cost of the rack by adding the hitch to the vehicle.

Bottom line, is it's a case by case problem.

For high large vehicles - hitch. For lower vehicles, either is fine to your preference. 

J.


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## panda-man (Aug 21, 2008)

tougeep3 said:


> What happens when you forget to take the bike off the roof rack before pulling into the garage:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


OUCH! I would have cried if this happened to me...


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## tougeep3 (Feb 9, 2009)

panda-man said:


> OUCH! I would have cried if this happened to me...


Yeah me too, good thing it's not mine..


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## Jayem (Jul 16, 2005)

JohnJ80 said:


> The downside of the hitch rack is that it's really easy to back into something which has equally disastrous consequences. Also, if you don't have the hitch already, you can almost double the cost of the rack by adding the hitch to the vehicle.
> .


Well, I guess it's "really easy" to back into anything, whether you have a hitch and rack or not? I'm not really sure how that all makese sense, but generally you aren't going to be hauling a$$ when backing up, and even if you did hit your bike on something it's not going to rip the rack off of your car, the bike and the rack will probably flex a whole lot before anything happens, and if anything does, it's not ripping the rack/bike off. I actually intentionally back my hitch-rack into a wall so the bike rests against the way, making it virtually impossible to steal the bike or the rack, even though I can lock both.


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## Lyndon (Apr 13, 2007)

OP, I am not trying to kidnap your thread, but I was wondering if anybody has some suggestions for finding a 3" bike frame clamp for this rack.

The circumference of my recumbent bike' main tube is about 2 3/4". I asked the bike maker what size clamp I needed for it, and they said:

"You'll want to get a clamp that will open up at least 3". 
Again, just make sure the jaws open up to at least 3".

I hope this helps."

Mike

But...the Piggyback clamp only opens up to 2 1/4" or smaller  


> The Piggyback bicycle rack has (4) grabber bars that reach out to your bike frame and clamp onto any frame sized 2¼" or smaller











Is there any way to stretch it out and not ruin the integrity of the metal, or buy separate clamps that could accommodate that 3" stretch???








The clamp would grab that main tube just in front of the seat on the main tube.









Thanks for any thoughts or feedback.
Lyndon


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## JohnJ80 (Oct 10, 2008)

Jayem said:


> Well, I guess it's "really easy" to back into anything, whether you have a hitch and rack or not? I'm not really sure how that all makese sense, but generally you aren't going to be hauling a$$ when backing up, and even if you did hit your bike on something it's not going to rip the rack off of your car, the bike and the rack will probably flex a whole lot before anything happens, and if anything does, it's not ripping the rack/bike off. I actually intentionally back my hitch-rack into a wall so the bike rests against the way, making it virtually impossible to steal the bike or the rack, even though I can lock both.


Well, there are those in my family who seem to do it on a regular basis in the family SUV without a hitch rack attached even. A heavy vehicle moving slowly will definitely pulverize the bike and rack. Been there done that.

Presumably when you back your car into the wall to make your bike less easy to steal, you stop before you do damage. The whole idea is that if you back up and into something *accidentally* you probably are not going to stop in time.

J.


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## PCC (Sep 5, 2005)

Lyndon said:


> OP, I am not trying to kidnap your thread...


Lyndon, you may want to start a new thread for your question.


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## p nut (Apr 19, 2007)

Throw that sucker in the trunk!

I will never buy a roof mount, only because I have a garage and my work has an underground parking lot. And with my luck, the bike would get thrashed and come through the roof of the car.


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## ryball (May 14, 2007)

Get a hitch rack. Free's up all that roof space for other things.


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## Straz85 (Mar 20, 2009)

PCC said:


> BTW, you do know that the sun visors on your Tiguan telescope out when not clipped in, right? I read on one of the online car review sites that their only real complaint about the Tiguan was that the sun visor does not have a pull out extension for when it is pulled over to the door side and the sun is hitting the side of your head from between the B pillar and the edge of the visor. They didn't know about the ability to pull the entire visor towards the B pillar to cover that gap.


Haven't even used the sun visor, I wear sunglasses all the time.



pimpbot said:


> Heya... How do you like the tig? If they had that thing in awd with a stick and diesel, I would be all over it.


I love it so far. My past 4 cars have been an '01 GTI VR6, 04.5 Jetta GLI, '01 TT 225 and an '07 GTI, all of them modified, so getting a CUV was kind of a change for me, plus this is my first automatic. I miss driving stick, but honestly not as much as I thought I would. The thing I miss the most is having an "enthusiast car". My prior VWs were all noticably modified, and there's a huge VW scene near me, in which I have always been very involved. Whenever I see another VW guy driving, it's bums me out when I don't get a wave of a thumbs up.

With all that said, I love the Tiguan. WAY more fun than any other CUV I've driven. I've thrown it around some corners pretty hard and it felt solid and planted. Also, the interior is much nicer than anything else in the class IMO. The 2.0T is a solid engine, awesome torque, pulls nice and hard. I agree, having a manual TDI would be awesome, I would have taken that over the 2.0T any day, but I still love what I got. Plus, on the highway I do much better than the advertised mileage. Actually, real world mileage is just as good, if not better than it's competitors. I drove from PA to MA, 290 miles, and averaged 28.0 mpg, this was verified with both my trip computer and the ol' fill up and divide method. If I drive "normally" on the highway, which is pretty aggressive for me, I get between 24 and 25 mpg. Unfortunately, I live in a really urban area, so this kind of kills it. I'll be back in the suburbs in the few months though!


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## homey (May 24, 2004)

I had the same question for my jetta, hitch or roof rack. I bought a Yakima roof rack b/c of it's ability to do more then just hold bikes (like snowboards and cargo). Another major factor for me was time; with a rear hitch rack I'd would have mount the rack everytime I wanted to ride, then the bikes and gear. Also I would need to find a spot for it in the garage when it's not being used. With a roof rack the rack is already on the car and all I have to do is throw the bikes on top and it frees up mch needed garage space :thumbsup:


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## PCC (Sep 5, 2005)

I'm one of those guys who always takes my rack off of my car whenever I don't need it. I do this because of the noise from the rack drives me crazy and the fuel economy hit is too much for me to deal with. For me, since I am always taking it off and putting it back on again it is much faster with a hitch rack than a roof rack. The roof rack is much easier to store, though.

Eventually, I'm going to put a trailer hitch on both my GLI and my wife's Sienna. That way I can use the rack with either vehicle. Currently, I only use the roof rack with my GLI. I never use it with the Sienna because trying to put bikes on top of that minivan would be too much. Putting them inside is a real PITA because I have to remove the seats, the bikes fall over onto my passengers, etc.


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## JohnJ80 (Oct 10, 2008)

I guess I'm surprised at the gas mileage hit that others are referring too. I'm driving a BMW 530 wagon and with the racks on or off, the gas mileage varies by less than an mpg where it averages 24mpg pretty much through the entire bike riding season. 

I wonder why some cars have such a variance and others don't. I don't drive slow (70-80mph) so it isn't wind resistance/aerodynamics. 

J


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## PCC (Sep 5, 2005)

Are you using a fairing? I'm not.

Oh, yeah, part of the reason for not leaving it on the car is that I hate the way it looks with a rack on all the time.


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## JohnJ80 (Oct 10, 2008)

Nope. I'm not either although I probably will if I leave the Highrollers on for the season.

J.


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## Gilboy (Mar 22, 2004)

*Hitch racks rule*

if you have a garage or carport and a roof mount rack. Eventualy you WILL drive in and wreck your bike, car, and garage door. Not that I've ever done it. I just know everybody else who has. I don't know of anybody who ever damaged a bike backing into something. You don't have to take the wheel off for a hitch rack also. A big plus with Leftys and thru axles. Buy only a Thule T2 916 or 917 or a Saris Thema.


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## JohnJ80 (Oct 10, 2008)

Gilboy said:


> if you have a garage or carport and a roof mount rack. Eventualy you WILL drive in and wreck your bike, car, and garage door. Not that I've ever done it. I just know everybody else who has. I don't know of anybody who ever damaged a bike backing into something. You don't have to take the wheel off for a hitch rack also. A big plus with Leftys and thru axles. Buy only a Thule T2 916 or 917 or a Saris Thema.


You know, I just don't buy this argument. I've been carrying bikes and ski boxes on top of my car since 1985 and never had a problem and never done this; never even got close to doing that. I have, however had stuff backed into and backed into stuff with my car (with and without a rack). A rack makes it worse where ever it is on the car.

Nothing is safe and I'd say neither is safer. You have to cognizant of your vehicle. Pretty much any of these problems are operator error and are totally avoidable - be it on top or on the back.

J.


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## Jayem (Jul 16, 2005)

JohnJ80 said:


> I guess I'm surprised at the gas mileage hit that others are referring too. I'm driving a BMW 530 wagon and with the racks on or off, the gas mileage varies by less than an mpg where it averages 24mpg pretty much through the entire bike riding season.
> 
> I wonder why some cars have such a variance and others don't. I don't drive slow (70-80mph) so it isn't wind resistance/aerodynamics.
> 
> J


Well, you are increasing the drag, and drag is a function of velocity squared. Maybe you have some wierd situation where your bikes and rack don't add to the drag of the vehicle, but in 99.99% of all other cases it does, and when you start driving over 45mph, you get significantly more drag. Drag (and the power required to overcome it) is the biggest variable with milege. I'm not calling your cliams BS, but physics supports every one elses claim that adding a rack and bikes on the top significantly decreases milege. About the only situations where it doesn't is a vehicle that already has poor milege. If a 15% decrease of 10 is only 1.5, whereas 15% of 30 is 4.5.


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## Margaritaman (Aug 25, 2008)

2008 GMC Acadia - Hitch rack. I've had roof racks for years, but because this car is taller than a sedan and already had a hitch, I went with a hitch rack. As long as my future cars have a hitch, I'm going to put them on the back. And ya, I've done the garage door manuever too.


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## JohnJ80 (Oct 10, 2008)

Jayem said:


> Well, you are increasing the drag, and drag is a function of velocity squared. Maybe you have some wierd situation where your bikes and rack don't add to the drag of the vehicle, but in 99.99% of all other cases it does, and when you start driving over 45mph, you get significantly more drag. Drag (and the power required to overcome it) is the biggest variable with milege. I'm not calling your cliams BS, but physics supports every one elses claim that adding a rack and bikes on the top significantly decreases milege. About the only situations where it doesn't is a vehicle that already has poor milege. If a 15% decrease of 10 is only 1.5, whereas 15% of 30 is 4.5.


I was referring to the comments that a rack by itself produces a lot of drag and decreased gas mileage. With bikes on board, of course it would cause a decrease although, i agree, it might not on some vehicle such as perhaps a Hummer or suburban or something like that.

J.


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## iridetitus (Sep 16, 2004)

when cresting a hill cops will see you far faster than you will see them if you've got bikes on the roof. gas mileage suffers more. wind noise. blocks the sunroof view. may not be considerations for some, but they are for me. and the bike into the garage thing happens far too often. wheel mount hitch ftw.


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## jitenshakun (Aug 21, 2008)

I have a 2005 Subaru Impreza sedan and after 3 years with a Thule roof rack I am loving my Saris hitch rack.

1. I can see my bikes. When my one Thule carrier failed I only knew when my handlebar hit my side window.
2. 2 bikes on the roof made the car feel like it had a sail in the wind (little car, big bikes). I have yet to feel any change to my car's handling with the hitch rack.
3. No ugly roof rack on my car. I used to like it, but a little hitch receiver poking out looks way better than base feet, crossbars and a fairing.

I still use a roof rack on the wife's vehicle, but its much larger, impervious to cross winds and not pretty.


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## mtb_freak2000 (Dec 24, 2006)

I have both a hitch rack and a roof rack on my car. I have a Thule T2 on the back and a Yakima system with SteelHead trays on the top. Personally I like the T2 better, the only reason I have a roof rack is because I frequently need to carry more than 2 bikes and didn't want to deal with the 4 bike T2 sticking 5-6 feet out from the back of my car. The annoying part about the roof rack is that I drive a Jeep Cherokee and I'm 5'9 so the tray where the bike rests is above my head, and it's gonna be even higher when I can finially afford a lift kit for the Jeep. The T2 is so convinient, it literly takes about 10 seconds to load up a bike. I'd say a hitch rack is your best bet.


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## PCC (Sep 5, 2005)

I almost completely forgot this. Another reason for not wanting to mount a bike on to a roof rack? Mud. After a muddy ride I'd want the bike hanging off the back of the car, not over it where it will drip mud onto my car. Also, a muddy bike makes it a bit more difficult to handle while trying to mount it to the rack so the chances of dropping the bike are probably a bit higher, too. This is MTBR and not RBR so getting muddy on a ride is a reality.


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