Geekzone: technology news, blogs, forums
Guest
Welcome Guest.
You haven't logged in yet. If you don't have an account you can register now.


networkn

Networkn
32349 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified
Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

#226251 28-Dec-2017 11:26
Send private message

I have a BMW with a Automatic Retracting Towbar. The ball is a different size and shape to a regular towbar, which is making taking our regular bike rack difficult.

 

I want a good quality euro compatible Bike Rack capable of taking 4 bikes (2 adult and 2 kids).

 

Anyone able to recommend one?


Create new topic
Coil
6614 posts

Uber Geek
Inactive user


  #1926049 28-Dec-2017 11:34
Send private message

Do you still have your E91 335I? 




networkn

Networkn
32349 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified
Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

  #1926053 28-Dec-2017 11:36
Send private message

Coil:

 

Do you still have your E91 335I? 

 

 

No, sold it a while ago, I have a 335D now :) Much MUCH nicer car all around.


Coil
6614 posts

Uber Geek
Inactive user


  #1926055 28-Dec-2017 11:36
Send private message

networkn:

 

Coil:

 

Do you still have your E91 335I? 

 

 

No, sold it a while ago, I have a 335D now :) Much MUCH nicer car all around.

 

 

 

 

F31 or E91? 

 

*Edit, I remember your plate :P, its a F31.

One option I saw was one that mounts to the top of your tailgate and bottom of it and lifts with the boot lid. But this was only suitable for 2 bikes and not compatible with an electronic opening boot..
Have you consulted Thule?

Other options I have seen is they mount the bike racks to the tow hooks on the rear which is also where the slam panel screws into the chassis.
IIRC they need to modify the left side of the bumper and add a little removable window to achieve such.

Can you remove the tow bar itself from the mechanism to install another tongue? 

 

Here is the BMW OE option: https://www.amazon.de/Original-BMW-Fahrradhalterung-auch-Bike/dp/B00PC9KS2E

 

 




mudguard
2113 posts

Uber Geek


  #1926066 28-Dec-2017 11:55
Send private message

I bought a Thule rack recently, I'm fairly certain it fits both towball diamters. Provided the bikes aren't E-Bikes or four DH bikes it should cope with the weight just fine. They make a four bike version.

 

I think the best thing about this style, as opposed to the older one I had, the two pronged rack, is that I can see much more out the rear window, whereas previously the bikes were obscuring my rear view.

 

One downside is if you have unusual frame designs, as opposed to the typical bike, you might need some tetris skills to line up the clamps. It's fine for me as I usually have the same two bikes on. The lights and room for supplementary plates are a nice touch. And it's easy to attach and remove. This one tilts as well, which is probably useful if you have a hatchback or stationwagon. I guess if you have a steep driveway there might be clearance issues, but so far it's been brilliant. 

 

 

 


networkn

Networkn
32349 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified
Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

  #1926070 28-Dec-2017 12:01
Send private message

@mudguard what was the cost for that?

mudguard
2113 posts

Uber Geek


  #1926081 28-Dec-2017 12:31
Send private message

It was just under a grand. They make quite a few different designs, I eventually went in store to physically see what the differences were between models as I found it confusing.
I think the full name is Thule Euroway G2 923, Torpedo7.co.nz have their own branded ones as well which are similar.

  #1926109 28-Dec-2017 12:52
Send private message

can you not just change the ball to a different size?


 
 
 

Cloud spending continues to surge globally, but most organisations haven’t made the changes necessary to maximise the value and cost-efficiency benefits of their cloud investments. Download the whitepaper From Overspend to Advantage now.
Coil
6614 posts

Uber Geek
Inactive user


  #1926192 28-Dec-2017 14:49
Send private message

Jase2985:

 

can you not just change the ball to a different size?

 

 

 

 

He has a folding tow bar which is a solid one piece cast bar.
I believe the tongue type can be changed to one where you have a flat bar and a ball so the rack can sit flush and be torqued down.


networkn

Networkn
32349 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified
Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

  #1929246 4-Jan-2018 17:41
Send private message

Still have the horrible old one. I doubt it could come loose, but I did wonder how strong those towbars are? The bikes weigh about 50KG, but they are cantilevered and despite my best efforts as the trip wore on, the rack was moving on the towbar, esp over bumps etc. 

 

One of my worst nightmares would be the towbar snapping and my bikes hitting a car behind us. 


mudguard
2113 posts

Uber Geek


  #1929283 4-Jan-2018 18:20
Send private message

Do you have a picture of the tow bar? I'm trying to figure out how a rack like mine would sit square if you have what I think you do.

networkn

Networkn
32349 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified
Trusted
Lifetime subscriber

  #1929300 4-Jan-2018 19:00
Send private message


NightStalker
314 posts

Ultimate Geek


  #1929467 4-Jan-2018 21:19
Send private message

When previously looking at ones similar to the picture of mudguards Thule model I found caravan/campervan type places to be cheaper so its worth checking those sorts of places out as well.

 

 

 

 


Technofreak
6530 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

  #1929484 4-Jan-2018 21:41
Send private message

networkn:

 

 

 

 

Well that's unnecessarily complicated and not much use for a bike rack, well at least not the style I have.

 

Mine sits in the flat plate/tongue that the ball is bolted to and clamps against the ball.

 

As a thought could you devise a way of clamping a fitting to the arm below the ball area that a flat plate/tongue could be bolted or welded to? This flat plate would be in the same place relative to the ball in the same way it would be on a more traditional towbar. That way a bike rack would sit in the flat plate and be prevented from wobbling around on the ball.

 

As I write this I reckon I have a design idea that would acheive this.





Sony Xperia XA2 running Sailfish OS. https://sailfishos.org The true independent open source mobile OS 
Samsung Galaxy Tab S6
Dell Inspiron 14z i5


Create new topic





News and reviews »

Air New Zealand Starts AI adoption with OpenAI
Posted 24-Jul-2025 16:00


eero Pro 7 Review
Posted 23-Jul-2025 12:07


BeeStation Plus Review
Posted 21-Jul-2025 14:21


eero Unveils New Wi-Fi 7 Products in New Zealand
Posted 21-Jul-2025 00:01


WiZ Introduces HDMI Sync Box and other Light Devices
Posted 20-Jul-2025 17:32


RedShield Enhances DDoS and Bot Attack Protection
Posted 20-Jul-2025 17:26


Seagate Ships 30TB Drives
Posted 17-Jul-2025 11:24


Oclean AirPump A10 Water Flosser Review
Posted 13-Jul-2025 11:05


Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7: Raising the Bar for Smartphones
Posted 10-Jul-2025 02:01


Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 Brings New Edge-To-Edge FlexWindow
Posted 10-Jul-2025 02:01


Epson Launches New AM-C550Z WorkForce Enterprise printer
Posted 9-Jul-2025 18:22


Samsung Releases Smart Monitor M9
Posted 9-Jul-2025 17:46


Nearly Half of Older Kiwis Still Write their Passwords on Paper
Posted 9-Jul-2025 08:42


D-Link 4G+ Cat6 Wi-Fi 6 DWR-933M Mobile Hotspot Review
Posted 1-Jul-2025 11:34


Oppo A5 Series Launches With New Levels of Durability
Posted 30-Jun-2025 10:15









Geekzone Live »

Try automatic live updates from Geekzone directly in your browser, without refreshing the page, with Geekzone Live now.



Are you subscribed to our RSS feed? You can download the latest headlines and summaries from our stories directly to your computer or smartphone by using a feed reader.