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Bike On The Back Of My Car...


gasgas125otis
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I have a transit, and bought a Dave Cooper bike rack that mounts on the tow bar mount but still leaves towing hitch available. The central section stays on the vehicle but the rest is removable for when you don't have the bike on the vehicle. They appear to do racks for just about every type of vehicle and know their stuff so you may want to contact them..web site is http://www.davecooper.co.uk.

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i took my big lump off a bultaco all the way to Cornwall and back on a rack on my peugeot 406 with out any trouble police did see it a few times never bothered me. just make sure the bike is strap on proper. and you will be ok the front wheel sticks out more so just keep an eye on it when driver near parked cars and narrow lanes 1 eye on the road and 1 eye on the bike ah :D

Same here, never had a problem. even with heavy classic MX bikes

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  • 2 months later...
 
  • 2 months later...
 

Sean65, If you have a drop plate,just go for the standard Dave Cooper rack for your Discovery 2. With the big rear bumper the tow point is far enough back that the bike has clearance on the spare wheel. I used to have one on the back of a Discovery 1.

 This is the setup I have on the back of my Land Rover 110. One solo across the back and a trailer that can carry two outfits. 

post-2720-0-79969600-1436515913_thumb.jpg

The rack has been turned so the front wheel is to the left and I have added another bar (supports the chair) so that I can also carry a sidecar outfit on it's own like this.

post-2720-0-02907800-1436516423_thumb.jpg

 I have driven thousands of miles with the outfit on the rack with no problems.

 

 

Edited by p@ul250
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Where did you get the red bike covers? Those are nice!

 

 I made them! Having spent many years working in the merchant marine (mostly on sailing vessels) canvas, rope and needlework are something I can turn a hand to.  Anyone used to making boat covers would have no problem making something similar.  

Edited by p@ul250
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  • 2 weeks later...

You don't need an additional licence to tow small weights (in the UK) - check the licence restrictions, but a motorbike will fall well within what you are allowed to tow (should you want to go down that route). Second would be the nose weight of the towbar. If you are towing a bike, it will be plenty, if you are using a rack, you will probably be close. I had a renault clio with 80kg noseweight which is just about enough for a gasser.

 

The only other thing to consider is your insurance, with regards to a modified vehicle. A towbar is a modification, so should be stated as such on your insurance. This is kind of blurred lines if you use a rack and aren't actually towing - who knows where you stand, but best to just declare it as a mod, it shouldn't up the premium too much. 

 

Other considerations - can only do 60 towing a trailer, 70 with a rack. You will need a lighting board with either option to be safe. 

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There are other thoughts - if you do longer distances and use UK motorways, a bike across the back is OK for up to 70mph in all traffic lanes - a car with a trailer has the 60mph limit but most importantly, is NOT allowed in the fast (overtaking) lane.

 

Other thought, is your car front wheel drive?  The weight of the bike to the rear of the back wheels can make getaways from climbing side roads onto main roads very problematic in wet or slippery weather..........and also climbing out of wet trials fields...........

 

I regularly towed a largish caravan behind Land Rovers of various denominations, with an Ariel 500 on a Cooper bike rack in between the two and never had any problems in many thousands of miles over the years.

 

One final thought - be careful with your headlights with a bike on the back, you could well end up with floodlit clouds and a dark road in front of you............

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P@ul250

Thanks for the info. Having enquired of Dave Cooper as to the preferred rack they said the 4x4 one despite sending a picture of the drop plate I have. So it arrived, over a week after order, and instructions that were for a standard 2 bolt tow ball. I have therefore fit it as per the picture. I sits well back, although I can't see how else it fits.

However, when contacting them they had the gall to ask if I had read the instructions, to which I of course replied the affirmative but they were not fit for purpose.

My experience with Dave Cooper has been terse replies to reasonable requests, no apology for not being able to make the rack up in time for my holiday (again despite a reasonable request) poor instructions, welding quality that my mate will have a fit about. If the rack does the trick then fine, but the customer service has been very poor.

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How else did you imagine the rack would fit ?

It looks perfect to me, did D.C. supply the bolts, if not I assume since they are cap head they are high tensile ?

Never had a problem with D.Cooper, he is not a multi-national manufacturer so you can't expect him to hold vast stocks of every product he makes so next time order in advance.

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No but i expect a degree common courtesy. Just a simple ask. Most people that we deal with are hardly multi nationals in this niche sport. But you seem a fan with a similar degree of ignorance. If instructions are not fitf for purpose or as Paul said i could have had the model with less overhang at the rear had they only taken the time to look at the photos i sent originally

However. It does look pretty good once all loaded.

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Sorry to hear about your poor experience, I've never had to use their customer services so can't comment there, but it seems as though its a decent option for your car? A weeks lead time seems fairly reasonable for a 1 man band to put together a rack for your car. You mentioned the cowboy welding, I must say I disagree. The welding on mine is very good and appears in the picture that yours is too; were you after an aircraft grade cobra weld or something?

 

My rack is probably 10 years old now and still going strong, been on 4 different cars now so I can only say that for the money and size, I am a happy customer. 

 

Its a shame that a small amount of poor service can anger a customer so much...

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Not so much anger as disappointment, as reasonable service costs nothing. Not cowboy welding, but inconsistent. But as I said, it does seem to be all good when assembled, so here's to 10 years plus of keeping the bike on the back. :D

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