Looking for a way to carry bikes on your vehicle, but not sure the best way to do it? Roof mounted bike racks are one of several options that are available to you. We'll help you decide whether a roof mounted bike rack is for you and, if so, which rack will best meet your needs. Learn more about these racks in the article below.
A roof mounted bike rack is a good choice if:
If a roof rack looks like a good choice for you, then consider these questions to help you find the right one.
Questions to consider when choosing a roof-mounted bike rack:
Best Roof Mounted Bike Racks Available Now
The bike racks shown below are the most recommended and popular bike racks available. Click on any bike rack to learn more and to shop for that rack.
Features that these high quality bike racks share:
1. Kuat Trio
Most roof-mounted bike racks are designed to mount to the crossbars of a roof rack. So, to make sure that a bike rack will fit your roof rack, you should determine both the shape (cross section) of your crossbars and the distance between the front and rear crossbar (crossbar spread). Racks offered by Seasucker offer another mounting option - vacuum cups. These racks don't need crossbars - they attach directly to a vehicle's trunk, roof, or glass, and can be mounted and removed in seconds.
Crossbar Shapes
The following crossbar pictures illustrate the most common shapes of roof rack crossbars.
Crossbar Spread
This dimension is measured between the centerlines of the 2 crossbars.
Vacuum Cups
Roof racks by Seasucker attach by means of vacuum cups. These racks can be mounted on metal, glass, or fiberglass surfaces. They eliminate the need for crossbars, and they can be mounted or removed quickly.
Bike Rack Fit on Crossbars
Roof-mounted bike racks that mount to crossbars are built either with clamps that can attach to most shapes of crossbars or with mounting plates that slide into crossbars that have a channel. Clamps and mounting plates usually can slide along the rack to allow the rack to fit a range of crossbar spreads. Because they're adjustable, most bike racks can fit many different types of roof racks, allowing you to choose from most of the roof racks available. However, no matter which bike rack you investigate, you should carefully read its description to determine whether it will fit your roof-rack system.
Shop for roof mounted bike racks based on crossbar type
Roof-mounted bike racks can accommodate most kinds of bikes - a few racks will even hold tandems and recumbents.
Bike racks are divided into 3 types, which differ in the way they hold onto the bike. To mount a bike on a fork mount rack, you must remove the front wheel and attach the fork to a skewer (a pin). Other racks clamp onto the bike's frame or wheel to hold the bike in place.
Racks for Standard Bikes
Roof racks fit most standard bike types: road bikes, mountain bikes, bikes with step-through frames, children's bikes, bikes with fiber frames, and bikes with suspension
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Note: The rack must match your bike's forks - read more about fit, below |
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| Wheel mount | |
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| Frame mount | |
Racks for Specialty Bikes
Some roof racks are designed to fit the wide tires of fatbikes. And some roof racks are especially made to carry bikes with extra long frames, like recumbents and tandems, on your vehicle's roof. Many of these racks have a special type of skewer that swings out or swivels to make it easy to load one of these specialty bikes.
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| Fatbikes | |
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| Recumbent or tandem bikes | |
Find a Fork-Mount Rack That Fits Your Bike
Most fork-mounted bike racks are designed to fit 1 of 2 front axle designs. The front fork of some bikes is slotted, and the axle and wheel drop out when loosened. The other type of fork is not slotted and the axle must be removed from the side. This second type of front fork is referred to as a thru-axle.
Each of the 2 fork types requires a different bike rack mount. Racks for the slotted type of fork have a skewer that the fork can slide onto. Racks that are made for a thru-axle have a tube that the bike axle must ride in or a clamp that encloses the axle.
Many racks can fit a variety of front axles. And adapters are available to allow many racks to fit even more bike types. With so many options available, you can find a fork-mount rack for almost any bike.
Slotted Forks
Racks for bikes with slotted forks come with skewers of different sizes, or diameters, which must match the slots in your bike's forks. The picture shows where the skewer is measured and also shows a bike mounted on this kind of rack.
Thru-Axles
Racks for bikes with thru-axles come with tubes of different sizes, or inside diameters, which should match the diameter of the skewer of your bike.
Shop for roof-mount bike racks by fork type
Fork-mount bike racks are made to fit specific sizes of bike axles. But if you have multiple bikes with different types of front axles, or you get a new bike that doesn't match your rack, you don't have to buy a new rack. You can get an adapter, instead. Most adapters fit standard 9mm mounts and 1 or more sizes of thru-axles.
Shop for bike fork adapters
Capacity - How Many Bikes You Can Carry
These factors limit the number of bikes you can carry:
The maximum weight capacity of your vehicle's roof, more than any other factors, will affect the maximum number of bikes you can carry. Be sure to include the weight of your bikes, bike racks, and crossbar system when calculating the total weight you want to carry on your vehicle's roof. Some SUVs and other large vehicles may be able to carry up to 6 bikes, but smaller cars may be limited to 2.
Note: Your owner's manual should specify the maximum weight capacity of the your vehicle's roof.
The number of bikes you can carry is limited by the width of your crossbars.
Hint: To carry a large number of bikes, reverse the direction of every other rack.
Consider the following bike rack features and accessories to make your bike transporting experience easier, safer, and more secure.
Reaching Your Roof
If you have trouble reaching your roof (especially the roof of an SUV or van) several options that can help are available.
Wheel Steps
Wheel steps mount on your vehicle's tire. They are easy to use and, typically, easy to store, so that you can bring your accesory step with you wherever you go and then stow it in your trunk or cargo area.
Nerf Bars, Running Boards, or Vehicle Side Steps
If you don't feel stable simply standing on the sill plate of your vehicle, side steps are an excellent alternative. These custom-fit running boards, nerf bars and hoop steps install permanently on your truck or SUV, so they are a bit more of a commitment than a removable step, but they are much easier to use.
Shop for custom fit nerf bars, running boards, and vehicle side steps
Ease of Use
The following points can determine how easy a bike rack is to use:
Security
No bike rack is theftproof, but many have built-in locks to discourage thieves from taking your bike or rack. Some racks have locks built into the clamps. Other carriers offer integrated locking cables. These cables store in the arm of the rack when not in use and can be pulled out and wrapped around the bike frame or through the wheel and then run back to the carrier itself to lock in place. When the bike carrier is not in use, you can wrap the cable around the carrier itself to secure the carrier to your roof rack.
Many manufacturers offer keyed-alike systems for their carriers. Keyed-alike systems let you use one key for locking your bike rack to your crossbars and your bike to your rack. And most Thule and Yakima roof-mounted bike carriers do not include lock cylinders, allowing you to purchase the lock cylinders separately so you can match your other Thule and Yakima locking accessories and use one key for them all.
Shop for lock cylinders, below
Aerodynamics
Some crossbars have an aerodynamic shape to help cut down on drag and wind noise. For other types of crossbars, you can add a fairing to help improve the aerodynamics. A fairing won't help much when you have a bike mounted, but can help if you leave your rack on your vehicle when you're not carrying a bike.
Updated by: Raymond P.
Last updated: 6/26/18
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