Hitch mounted bike rack

[40Man]

Here is my north shore currently sitting in the garage where I store it off the LX. I think this is my 4th summer with it. I don’t leave it on the truck but do use it year round and all the time. Even drive on the beach and through salt water. There is a little oxidation on the aluminum hardware and I have a couple cosmetic rust spots if you are really looking for them.

View attachment 2017256

It is nice how small they fold up.


My buddy ran his about 3/4 of the year. We rode all the time and we all left our racks on all the time. The inside of his had a ton of rust too. I honestly think it rusted from the inside out. I think it was an early model, so hopefully they fixed whatever the issue was with the rust (and hopefully their customer service too). Anyone test NS for warranty or other issues lately?

My Thule had a few cosmetic rust spots after about 15 years running on my car all but during ski season.

Edit: I will say that based on the size the NS was innovative, and I would guess it spurred the creation of the Alta and Recon racks. My good friend invented a similar rack (his required front tire removal, but held bike vertically off the hitch). He built it too early (biking wasn't as popular) and people wouldn't pay the cost to produce at the time. The NS goes a step above. While I appreciate the innovation, they wouldn't stand behind their product, and their product scratched my bike a good amount. The QC/rust can be understood, the response my buddy received put them on my s*** list. I wouldn't pay that amount for a rack that I know may not be dependable when there are others out there that stand behind their products. If I was still racing and doing lots of group shuttles, I'd probably go with the Alta, a bit more, but with a lifetime warranty. And it doesn't touch the fork or frame. Since I only ride in small groups, and my downhill riding is at resorts with no shuttling, the Kuat works for my needs, and I'm happy to support a company that puts so much into the biking community.

 

[chatt100]

Wanted to revive this thread to see if there are any newer options out there people have been happy with. Currently running a 2 tray 1-up which I love. However, my kids are now starting to ride and I need a bigger rack that can carry 4 bikes. Mostly mountain bikes but does need to be able to occasionally carry road bikes. Will typically be used around town but will need it for 6-8 hr road trips 1-2x/year. Maybe the velocirax or the alta rack?

 

[Artie]

Wanted to revive this thread to see if there are any newer options out there people have been happy with. Currently running a 2 tray 1-up which I love. However, my kids are now starting to ride and I need a bigger rack that can carry 4 bikes. Mostly mountain bikes but does need to be able to occasionally carry road bikes. Will typically be used around town but will need it for 6-8 hr road trips 1-2x/year. Maybe the velocirax or the alta rack?

We use the Velocirax on my daily driver mini-van, I mean manly-van, and it’s just plain awesome. We have the 6 bike carrier version and when it’s full the gas shocks are a godsend. Another neat thing about it is they make smaller tire holders for the top part if your kids are riding smaller tire bikes, they fit my kids’ 20 inch tires perfectly.

There is another rack that is similar to the Velocirax that does not have the gas shocks which allow for it to angle up out of the hitch which may grant it a little more rear departure angle over the Velocirax but I do not know that for sure. I think it’s called Alta Rack.

We have carried 5 bikes to the beach a couple times, it’s a 6 hour trip and it’s just fine, albeit heavy. Access to the back is less when it’s mounted but the tilt away function does help with that a lot. We also added their brake lights to ours they are very bright and easily seen when bikes are mounted. Mine stays on the manly-van most of the time because we ride 2-3 times a week, it’s not a pain to live with. Bonus points: it doubles as bike storage when stowed on the included wall mount.

 

[TaishoCruiser]

I haven't used them personally but have a few friends who also rock the Velocirax.

I have a Kuat Piston Pro and really like it for two bikes. For four, it works okay but gets a bit heavy and long. That said I've used it in the 4x configuration for almost two years and a few dozen trips and never had an issue.

 

[chatt100]

We use the Velocirax on my daily driver mini-van, I mean manly-van, and it’s just plain awesome. We have the 6 bike carrier version and when it’s full the gas shocks are a godsend. Another neat thing about it is they make smaller tire holders for the top part if your kids are riding smaller tire bikes, they fit my kids’ 20 inch tires perfectly.

There is another rack that is similar to the Velocirax that does not have the gas shocks which allow for it to angle up out of the hitch which may grant it a little more rear departure angle over the Velocirax but I do not know that for sure. I think it’s called Alta Rack.

We have carried 5 bikes to the beach a couple times, it’s a 6 hour trip and it’s just fine, albeit heavy. Access to the back is less when it’s mounted but the tilt away function does help with that a lot. We also added their brake lights to ours they are very bright and easily seen when bikes are mounted. Mine stays on the manly-van most of the time because we ride 2-3 times a week, it’s not a pain to live with. Bonus points: it doubles as bike storage when stowed on the included wall mount.

I have heard good things about the Alta but it is definitely not cheap. Think I'll end up going with the velocirax given the cost difference

 

[Paddler Ed]

Pretty sure you can get isi-Carriers in the USA (I know someone on another forum with a 4Runner that uses one) and they are a nice rack. I've got one that goes between my 80 series, the camper trailer and the Volvo V90 CrossCountry.

https://isi-carriers.com/

and for a Toyota, some customer examples:

https://isi-carriers.com/tag/toyota/

 

[dcs111]

Pretty sure you can get isi-Carriers in the USA (I know someone on another forum with a 4Runner that uses one) and they are a nice rack. I've got one that goes between my 80 series, the camper trailer and the Volvo V90 CrossCountry.

https://isi-carriers.com/

and for a Toyota, some customer examples:

https://isi-carriers.com/tag/toyota/

We used our One Up today for four bikes (can buy two add ons to add to the base rack). I am sure there are better racks, but that thing has been put through some stuff and still going strong!

 

[FerrisBueller]

I also have the Velocirax (5), it's pretty great. If you have the choice of narrow vs wide, get the wide, it will help a ton with fitting bikes side by side with less handlebar interference.