This or that: roof racks or rear-mount racks?

The best places to ride your bike aren't always within cycling distance of your front door, which means sooner or later you'll want to transport your bike by car. If it had a choice, your bike would travel inside with you; safe, secure and protected from the elements. Of course, that isn't always realistic, which is where the humble bike rack comes into play.

But what kind of bike rack should you be buying – a roof or rear-mounted rack? The answer comes down to what you drive, what you ride and what you want.

Roof-mounted bike racks come in two basic styles – those that require the front wheel to be removed and, more commonly, those that don't. Many cars can fit three of these racks on the roof, but if the car is big and the bikes aren't, four might be possible. Regardless of type or quantity, roof racks are a stable, secure and light mounting system that don’t interfere with access to a car or vision and manoeuvrability while driving.

However, roof-mounted racks don't work for every car, bike or user. If you're tall, drive a low car and have a featherweight racing bike, securing your bike to the roof of your car won't be a challenge. If you're short, have a high-riding car and a heavy bike, however, roof-mounted racks will likely not work for you.

Transporting your bike on top of your car – among all the harsh elements and road debris flying around – isn’t always good for the condition of its fragile parts or your car's aerodynamics, either. Some wind noise can be expected. Some roof-mounted bike rack systems require the front wheel of your bike to be removed; these systems can require fiddly adapters to accept all bikes, meaning you’ll need to think about where you're going to store them and the lone wheel.

While the out-of-sight-out-of-mind quality of these racks is a big plus, it does make it easy to forget they're there – and doing that in a garage or car park can be unfortunate and costly. If you don't already have a roof-crossbar system to fit your bike rack to, it’s a good idea to invest in one that can take add-ons that deal with more than just bikes.

The traditional 'hang-on' style racks, correctly coined rear-mounted bike racks, sling onto a car’s towbar and have the ability to hang three, four or even five bikes on them. More common these days than the traditional style – and costlier – are platform rear racks, which similarly attach to the towbar but support and hold the bike securely via its wheels using platforms with straps. Most platform racks are made for two bikes but some can handle up to five, either via extensions or the rack itself.

Platform racks are easy to fit to your car and easy to use, no matter the type of car you drive and the type of bike you ride. Simply lift the bike onto a knee-height platform, strap it in and you're ready to go. Rear-mounted bike racks do not introduce wind-noise issues to your driving experience and you can relax about your bike suffering wind or stone damage. Platform racks are also inexpensive.

Transporting a bike via a rear-mounted rack means it does have the potential to move around and therefore get damaged. Securing a bike via its frame tubing is also not recommended for many of today’s carbon-fibre bikes. Rear-mounted racks add length to your vehicle and can restrict the rear view, so manoeuvring can be a little trickier. If you don't buy a swing-away or tilt-down model, access to your boot could also be restricted.

Some rear-mounted racks can obscure your vehicle's tail-lights and/or number plate, making it necessary to purchase optional auxiliary light/plate packages to comply with the law. You obviously need a car with a towbar in order to use rear-mounted racks, however there are rear-mounted racks that sit on the back of a sedan or hatch and are secured by straps. These tend not to be suitable for all bikes or multiple bikes and can be fiddly to secure.

^Disclaimer

^{Viva Energy Australia Pty Ltd (“Viva Energy”) has compiled the above article for your general information and to use as a general reference. Whilst all reasonable care has been taken by Viva Energy in compiling this article, Viva Energy does not warrant or represent that the information in the article is free from errors or omissions or is suitable for your intended use.}