Bicycle in or on the car? All info on bike transport!

Finally vacation time! Can your bike join you? Then you should think in advance about how to transport your bicycle in or on the car. A bike rack is a good transportation option, but which one is right? There are roof bike racks, rear bike racks, or bike racks on the trailer hitch - but what are their advantages and disadvantages? It's even easier to put the bike in the car, but there are a few things to consider here as well. Here you will learn how to transport your bike safely.

Bike in the car and go? Unfortunately, it's not that simple. Especially if you ride an e-bike, transportation is not so easy! You can actually load the e-bike into the car like any other bicycle. But e-bikes weigh significantly more than regular bikes, lifting an electric bike onto the rear car rack can be a real challenge, not to mention transporting it on the roof rack! Here you get tips for safely loading your bike.

How can bicycles be transported by car?

There are different ways to accommodate bicycles on or in the car. How best to safely transport a bicycle in the car ultimately depends on your vehicle. But of course, the number of bicycles also plays a role, because naturally, one bike is much easier to accommodate than two parent bikes plus three children's bikes. You should also consider how many people and luggage will be traveling with you. You can fit a bicycle or at most two in the trunk. More bikes must then be attached outside the car on a bike rack.

Here’s how you can transport bicycles on/in the car:

• in the car, in the trunk
• on a rear bike rack
• on a roof rack
• on a bike rack on the trailer hitch

Transporting a bicycle in the car

A bicycle fits in many cars, at least if the back seat is folded down. Transporting in the trunk is certainly the easiest solution. Even a smaller car usually fits a bicycle if you remove the front wheel, as this significantly reduces the length of the bike. If you pack your bike more often, it makes loading easier if your axles can be opened with a lever and/or you have the right multitool ready.

Very tall cyclists may also need to lower the handlebars and saddle, but then a bicycle should fit in the trunk. However, if you want to take more than one bike, it becomes difficult again, as two lying bicycles would get tangled in a normal trunk. With the back seat folded down, you will also have to do without more than one passenger. You can distribute some luggage around the bike, but often not much space is left.

With pedal covers, you can protect your car from the pedal pins. Image © Granite

You should definitely secure the bike so that it doesn't slip, the easiest way is with bungee cords. You should especially pack sharp-edged pedals so that they don't damage anything. The bike's gears and drive must be positioned so that nothing bends or shifts. Retaining straps and pedal covers are definitely cheaper than a bike rack and are also easier to store.

It becomes difficult with dirty MTBs, which can really mess up your trunk. Many bikers have an old fitted sheet in the trunk for this case, as it can be quite easily wrapped around a bike (hang it on the handlebars and saddle, wrap it around the bike from below, hang it again on the handlebars and saddle). However, this doesn't help much with wet bikes, then you need a tarp under the bike.

If the car is big enough, you can also transport the bike upright inside. For vans and transporters, there are rails in which bikes can be fixed to the floor of the car – the absolute professional solution. If this is not possible with your car, it is especially important to secure the bike load well with tension belts or bungee cords so that the bikes don't tip over and get damaged. Under certain circumstances, even two bikes can fit side by side, in which case you should load them oppositely so that the handlebars don't get tangled.

For shorter distances and trips without luggage, transporting one or two bikes in the car is a quick, simple, and inexpensive solution.

Caution! Since the StVO prescribes adequate load securing, you should secure the bike with tension belts or bungee cords. This way, the bike cannot slip and get damaged or scratch the interior of the car.

An overview of the advantages and disadvantages of transporting bikes in the car:

Advantages:	Disadvantages:
✅ you don't have to mount and dismount a bike rack	❌ often there is only room for one bike inside the car
✅ little to no additional costs	❌ less space for luggage or passengers
✅ the bike is best protected from thieves in the trunk	❌ the back seat may need to be folded down
✅ the bike is protected from rain	❌ dirty bikes soil the interior
✅ you don't have to store a bike rack
✅ without a bike rack, you save weight
✅ there are no restrictions on driving speed

• Cost: none
• Number of bicycles: one, maybe two
• Weight restriction: no
• Maximum speed: no

Transporting bicycles outside the car on the bike carrier

If you don't drive a bus or van, transporting the bike outside the car is a better solution for space reasons, but then you need a bike carrier. But there are also other reasons to attach the bike outside the car, for example, if you like to drive off-road and don't want the dirty bike in the car. There are bike carriers in different versions, bicycles travel either on the car roof, at the rear, or on the tow bar.

The bike carrier on the roof

A bike carrier on the car roof is the classic. Up to four bicycles can fit on the car roof. You have to get the bicycles onto the roof, and it's helpful to have a stepladder on hand and a second person to assist. When you transport your bike on the car roof, you can reverse and park as usual, but you must remember the unfamiliar vehicle height and observe restrictions on passage height. Usually, you buy a roof rack that fits the car and then the rails for bicycles individually.

A distinction must be made between roof racks with front wheel and roof racks without front wheel.

You can transport your bike without a front wheel on the car roof. Image © Matthew Sichkaruk on Unsplash

• Roof rack “without front wheel”

These roof bike carriers are rather rare, but we still want to introduce them to you. In a roof rack with “fork mount” the rear wheel of the bike is fixed with straps, you remove the front wheel, then you can attach the fork directly to the carrier. This method has a few advantages, for example, the bicycles are very stably accommodated, and the carrier itself requires less storage space. One less wheel also means less weight to lift onto the roof. However, there are also disadvantages. The axle must fit the carrier (or vice versa), the carrier must be compatible with disc brakes (since most bicycles today have disc brakes), and these carriers are not recommended for carbon forks. Additionally, you always have to disassemble the bike, which is not everyone's thing. When you remove the wheels, you should pack them in a wheel bag so that the axles and spokes are not damaged, and the wheels do not dirty your trunk.

• Bike carrier with built-in wheel

If you want to load the bicycle completely onto the car, you can mount a roof rack on the car roof. Depending on the design, the front and rear wheels are fixed with clamps, brackets, straps, or in a rail.

Removed wheels are well stored in a wheel bag when transporting the bicycle in the car. Image © Evoc

Overview of the advantages and disadvantages of transporting bicycles on a roof rack:

Bicycle racks on the trailer hitch

The attachment of such a bicycle rack is very simple: the rack is clamped onto the trailer hitch. Many cyclists are initially skeptical here. How is a connection barely the size of a fist supposed to reliably hold several bicycles? But years of experience show: It holds!

These hitch racks are very popular because the bicycles do not have to be lifted far, there are even “ramps” for heavy bikes and e-bikes. Since the bicycles are located behind the car, they hardly have any negative impact on fuel consumption. Many of these racks can be tilted even when loaded with several bicycles so that you can access the trunk. There are also racks that come with their own parking assist.

However, bicycle racks for the trailer hitch are the most expensive solution, as they have to be built very robustly and require their own lights and a license plate.

When you transport bicycles on the car in this way, there are a few things to consider: Reversing is a challenge because the car is significantly longer than usual. The bicycles can block the view through the rear window, and you may not be able to use the car's parking assist as usual. The driving characteristics of the car can also change due to the shift in weight. You need to be particularly careful when reversing without bicycles but with a bike rack! Out of sight, out of mind... you don't see the empty rack in the rearview mirror.

• Cost: 450 to 1200 euros
• Number of bicycles: 3, rarely 4
• Weight restriction: yes
• Maximum speed: yes

When you look at our list of pros and cons, you might wonder: Why do these things exist at all, with all the disadvantages? The answer is quite simple:

A bike carrier on the tow bar is the most convenient way to transport bicycles outside the car, because with all other carriers you have to lift your bikes higher!

Bicycle transport on the car with the rear bike carrier

The rear carrier is the golden mean of bicycle transport on the car. You don't have to maneuver the bikes as high as a roof rack requires, but you have to lift them a bit higher than a carrier on the tow bar would demand. These bike carriers do not make your vehicle significantly taller, it's just a bit longer than usual. This additional length is above many obstacles, which is the big advantage. They also bring little weight of their own and are relatively inexpensive. However, they block the rear view, and they can also disable the rearview camera, but the parking assist usually works as usual.

To prevent damage to the tailgate, rear carriers often come with small stickers to protect the car's paint.

There are models with holding rails, but also versions where the bicycle frame is "threaded" onto two bars, are available on the market. With these rear carriers, you must ensure that the frame of your bicycle fits the carrier.

Transporting one or two bicycles on a tailgate carrier is quite uncomplicated. Image © Brian Erickson on Unsplash

But of course, these bike carriers also have their disadvantages: Improper handling can damage the car or the bicycles. And here too, it is relatively easy to steal the bikes.

You might be surprised that you rarely find rear bike carriers in bike shops, but there is a reason for this: Since rear carriers must fit the trunk lid, they are often sold by car manufacturers to match the vehicles.

Overview of the pros and cons of the bike carrier on the tow bar:

• Cost: approximately 500 euros
• Number of bicycles: 2, rarely 3
• Weight restriction: yes
• Maximum speed: yes

General Tips

Which bike racks for e-bikes?

A luggage rack on the tow bar is usually the only travel option for e-bikes. With an average weight of around 20kg (usually more), very few people manage to get an e-bike onto a rear bike rack, let alone a roof rack. You can buy a rail for bike racks that are mounted on the tow bar, or – if you buy a bike rack specifically for e-bikes – the rail is often included. You can push the bike onto the bike rack over this rail like on a ramp, eliminating the need to lift it.

Bicycles on the pickup

Pickups are rather rare in this country, but they are quite interesting for cyclists. With a tailgate cover, you can transport up to 6 bicycles on the bed of such a vehicle.

How fast can you drive with a bike rack?

The manufacturer of the bike rack usually specifies a maximum speed that you should not exceed with bicycles on the car. Many bike racks are tested and approved up to a speed of 120 km/h, sometimes even up to 130 km/h. You can find information about the permitted speed in the bike rack's user manual.

Weight issues? Support load and allowable load of the bike racks

Bicycles are getting lighter, but they are still heavyweights as luggage items. Especially an e-bike, a fully equipped trekking bike, or a fully loaded bike with all the bells and whistles brings a lot of weight. There are several things to consider when traveling:

• Make sure to buy a bike rack that is approved for the weight of your bicycles.
• There are bike racks for e-bikes that can handle particularly heavy loads.
• With a loaded bike rack, you must not exceed the permissible total weight of the car.
• The tow bar has an allowable load, which must not be exceeded either.
• A car has a limited roof load, which you must consider when loading a roof bike rack.
• If your bike rack has a rail for each bike, you must not squeeze in additional bikes in between! It may be tempting, but "One more will fit..." is not a good idea.
• The heaviest bike always goes close to the car.

Also important:

• Always lock your bicycles on the bike carrier, otherwise they are easy prey at the rest area. Tips for optimal theft protection can also be found here in the Bike Blog.
• If you carry bicycles outside the car, you must remove all loose parts like bike baskets, e-bike display, bike bags or child seats.
• After a certain distance (see manufacturer's recommendation), you should briefly check the seat of the bike carrier.

Title image © SaiKrishna Saketh Yellapragada on Unsplash