Bike Racks, Roof and Hitch mounts

[machine4321]

I have the thule916. Love it. Mine is the 2 bike model. It makes no body contact at all the the tilt feature allows the hatch to open up. Its easy and fast to load and unload. The 916 comes with built in cable locks for the frames. Not theft proof but you can run into a store and not have to worry.

 

[WOLFexplorer]

i use thule 4 bike rack and love it. easy to install. folds out of way to access trunk

 

[Socalfyre]

IMO if have to use a roof rack then the Yakima Highrollers are the way to go. They're secure and you don't have to take off the front wheel.
But I would recommend going the hitch route. I put a hitch and I use the Thule T2 rack like THE CHEAT's set up.

 

[The Cheat]

Yup, I have the Thule T2 with the additional 2 bike add on. Love it.

 

[rman66]

I have been eyeing the Yakima Swingdaddy bike rack and wanted to find out if it will fit into the receiver that came with my 2014 Explorer with tow package. The thing I like about the swing is I can move the bikes out of the way and open the lift gate when parked.

 

[rman66]

2014 Explorer recommended Bike racks and power liftgate

I have 2 questions..
Are there any recommendations on bike rack to purchase for my 2014 Explorer with the stock hitch package? I had my eye on the Yakima Swingdaddy4 but would like your opinions before I purchase to see if I can evaluate the competition. I need it to hold 4 bikes max.

My 2nd question is regarding the power lift gate. I am worried with the bike rack assembled, if I accidentally click on the power liftgate button there is going to be a problem with the liftgate colliding with the bike rack. What is the solution for this?

thank you.

 

[blwnsmoke]

I don't have experience with this particular one but I believe my father has this one.

http://www.thule.com/en-us/us/produ...ike-carriers/thule-apex-4-bike-9025-_-1258650

Although he only uses 1 or 2 bikes and not the 4 you talk about, it folds out of the way of the lift gate easily.

As far as the power lift gate issue, I don't believe there is a way to disable it. Being that it is 100% electronic, there is no way to pull a fuse and still manually open it.

 

[Riley]

The power liftgate can be disable in the menu settings in the cluster.

 

[blwnsmoke]

The power liftgate can be disable in the menu settings in the cluster.

Good to know. Does that cover the dash button, remote and handle button in the rear?

 

[bigmoose15]

I have the swingdaddy 4. I picked it up on amazon on a lightning deal for $200 shipped. Its a great bike rack. You can swing it out of the way WITH 4 bikes on it and get into the back.

I've never had my hatch open into my rack.

 

[Riley]

Good to know. Does that cover the dash button, remote and handle button in the rear?

Yes, it disables the power function completely.

 

[croll326]

Cargo carrier and exhaust damage protection??

How is everyone protecting their stuff from melting from the exhaust gas? I dont have the OEM hitch which looks to put the cargo carrier above the exhaust. I see you can buy an offset receiver which will raise the carrier up but then it might not allow the door to open. I guess it might be a trade off worth making.

I have access to a metal fab shop and can make anything i dream up so i might have to come up with a light gauge metal deflector or something. Just wondering if anyone else has solved this issue.

 

[croll326]

http://www.curtmfg.com/part/45792

Thinking of this

 

[peterk9]

Have you checked these out? May not need 'heat' protection.

http://api.viglink.com/api/click?fo...1060.photobucket.com/albums/...cpZZ3QQtppZZ12

http://api.viglink.com/api/click?fo...trailer.com/comparison.a...131&pc2=52018F

Peter

 

[ibmike]

Thule, This what i got, works great,One of the Best you can get.http://www.amazon.com/Thule-Vertex-9029-Bike-Hitch/dp/B00653V9RE/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1399525499&sr=8-2&keywords=Thule+Hitch+Bike+Rack

 

[breddy]

Trunk mount bike rack - bad idea?

The family is getting into biking and we have a need to bring all 4 bikes with us in our 2013 Limited. Loading them in the cargo area works but is not ideal. We'd like to get a bike rack and at least one of the major brands says their trunk mount unit works with the 2013 Explorer but others who have the same design say theirs does not work.

Looking at the design of the hatch, I would think that attaching a trunk mount rack is not ideal due to how the spoiler gets in the way as well as the lack of gap at the forward edge of the spoiler not really being a good place to hook the straps in.

We're not really wanting to add a towing hitch and spend the extra money but from searching this forum it seems that's the only sensible thing to do.

Anyone using a trunk mount rack on a 5th gen explorer? Any other thoughts?

 

[the_don]

I dont know if i would trust anything mounted to the hatch, but have you looked into a hitch mounted setup? something like this: http://www.carid.com/rhino-rack/rhi...Kz3CP45MCQD609U0PVnkRZOCe8xv_h2uxCRoCC4vw_wcB

or something a little stronger: http://www.discountramps.com/piggyb...9b_h4I9CaM5bpttx9OKIEMAjga0HqfGZSKhoCEA7w_wcB

 

[breddy]

I dont know if i would trust anything mounted to the hatch, but have you looked into a hitch mounted setup? something like this: http://www.carid.com/rhino-rack/rhi...Kz3CP45MCQD609U0PVnkRZOCe8xv_h2uxCRoCC4vw_wcB

or something a little stronger: http://www.discountramps.com/piggyb...9b_h4I9CaM5bpttx9OKIEMAjga0HqfGZSKhoCEA7w_wcB

Oh for sure hitch mount is preferred but we don't have a hitch. It's looking like we'll have to add one.

 

[the_don]

reese hitches are about $150, and anyone with basic knowledge can install one in an afternoon.http://www.reesehitches.com/hitchsearch?year=2013&make=Ford&model=Explorer#result-anchor


just please remember, with something like this OUTSIDE of the vehicle IF something where to fail on the highway not only do you have your family but maybe some other family to think of

 

[breddy]

just please remember, with something like this OUTSIDE of the vehicle IF something where to fail on the highway not only do you have your family but maybe some other family to think of

A very good thought ... thanks.