Permanent rear bike rack (Citroen berlingo)

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 James Malloch 07 Sep 2018

I've managed to find a tow bar mounted bike rack that you can keep permanently mounted whilst still being able to access the boot, however I hadn't appreciated the cost of getting a tow bar fitted was £350 ish on top of that.

Are there any other racks which you can keep on and still use the boot with? 

We don't have much (any) space at home so the boot is full of bouldering mats all the time and there's no room for us to keep the rack inside when not in use.

Any ideas would be welcomed. 

The other option is a roof mounted one but it looks like a massive pain getting a bike up on top...

 

 IJL99 07 Sep 2018
In reply to James Malloch:

Is that the price of an official Citroen towbar?  I paid about £75 for mine from a tow bar dealer.  it was a few years ago but not far enough back to justify that sort of increase.  Tow bar racks are great but the main attraction of the Berlingo for me was that I could take a seat out and roll the bike into the back

OP James Malloch 07 Sep 2018
In reply to IJL99:

It was based on a couple of random websites so maybe I need to look harder! Though that included the electrics needed to fit the lights bar so perhaps that is driving the difference?

Yeah that would be ideal but we've had top many camping biking and bouldering trips which make it awful for trying to arrange everything in the back without tonnes of faff.

 nniff 07 Sep 2018
In reply to James Malloch:

Just a note - a perma-fixed bike rack is a good sign to a bike thief that there are bikes nearby, sufficient in number & value to warrant lashing out on a towbar rack. 

OP James Malloch 07 Sep 2018
In reply to nniff:

> Just a note - a perma-fixed bike rack is a good sign to a bike thief that there are bikes nearby, sufficient in number & value to warrant lashing out on a towbar rack. 

I think that's probably true for most bike rack owners I know, however ours are pretty crap really and spend their time chained up outside in a public space. There's no room for them inside (we live on a boat).

For us it's definitely a convenience thing. I'd try to steal the bike rack over the bikes!

In reply to James Malloch:

I bought from a company called p.fjones on ebay. Cheap and no problems with purchasing/delivery

It did require a handy mate to fit. If you havent got one...... your options are fewer

Post edited at 22:15
 Dave B 07 Sep 2018
In reply to James Malloch:

How is its the Berlingo? 

 

350 is cheap for a tow bar...

On a new car or so be about 800-1000 from a dealer. About 600-700 from a tow bar specialist. 

 sihills 08 Sep 2018
In reply to James Malloch:

Very easy to fit towbars in general and fitting one to my Berlingo was a piece of piss. Take of the rear bumper (a few screws) and bolt towbar to chassis. Refit bumper. You can pick up the electrics for less than £20 and there are plenty of advice, wiring diagrams on line to help. It's much easier than you would imagine. Mine cost less than £100 all in took about an hour in total.

OP James Malloch 08 Sep 2018
In reply to idiotproof (Buxton MC):

PF Jones seems to have the answer, thanks! Though looking at the video of it, it seems like the rack itself would be pretty easy to steal so maybe that's not the best option either...

https://www.pfjones.co.uk/thule-clipon-high-cycle-carrier-9106-2-cycle-carr...

I'd not considered fitting one myself but that could definitely work. I'll have a look into that in the meantime. 

 Dave B 09 Sep 2018
In reply to sihills:

You can  that on older models, but on a newer one using the cheap electrics will invalidate the warranty.

For modern cars, just the specialist electrics pack is several hundred pounds, hence the question  about age of vehicle.

I would use a cheaper system on a 10 year old car, but on a new car I'd be doing it with the specialist kit.

https://www.pfjones.co.uk/advice-centre/tow-bar-advice/tow-bar-electrics.ht...

 


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