honda fit bike rack

[kpokla]

i am looking for a bike rack for my Honda Fit...actually, i guess I am looking for a hitch to put on my honda fit (2007) so i can get a bike rack. Roof racks are impossible for me to use. Anyone out there done this already ... and can vouch for a brand? k

[indysteel]

Yakima comes to mind.

I recently looked into this kind of a rack:
http://www.raxterracks.com A friend has one on his Miata and it's very nice.

[Triskeliongirl]

I just have a normal Saris Bones rack on my fit, no problem fitting it to the hatchback.

[kpokla]

i have saris bones, but my fit has one of those darn spoilers on it and people are telling me the weight of the bike will take the spoiler off....Does your fit have a spoiler on it?

[tulip]

I'd be interested in why you need a rack with the Fit. Everyone raves about how great the Fit is because you can carry bikes inside. Is your experience different?

[Triskeliongirl]

NO, mine does not have the spoiler. I can carry my bike just laid down with the rear seats down without removing the front wheel, or behind the front seats by putting the rear seats cushions up and taking the rear wheel off. If I put one of those fork mounts in I could also easily get two in standing up with the rear seats down, but since I already had the saris bones rack I just use that to have other cargo options inside the vehicle.

I love my FIT so much I just pre-ordered a 2009 FIT for my daugther. We were gonna wait until she graduated, but she has a part time job that she needs the car to get to, and a promise of a great after college job at the same place so we thought why not get it now.

[bike4ever]

I put a Yakima rack on the roof of my Fit. I'm 5'4" and have no difficulty loading my bikes. I also regularly put my bike inside the car, especially if I am leaving for an early am ride.

There's a Fit I see around town that has a bike hitch rack on it. It seems to sit low to the ground. I'd be concerned about bottoming it out.

[HillSlugger]

At my last tri a saw a Fit with a bike in the back, upright, with both wheels on. Even kept one usable back seat in place. It was amazing.

[evangundy]

A friend of ours drives a Fit, and has a hitch rack. We emailed her your question and she replied "There are hitches available for all years of the Honda Fit (it’s the Honda “Jazz” in Europe, BTW) – any good truck/van shop will be able to order one. Mine was $199 installed – it came from “Van Specialties” in Lake Oswego".

We're going to test drive a Fit in the next week or so. We're shopping for a new car, and it's high on our list.

Edna

[kpokla]

it has been so hot here in dallas that I haven't tried to load my bike in. But i am thinking in terms of going to a rally with a friend or two and a rack would be nice in the long run. Also, my bike has a rather large basket on the front (commuter) not easily removed. And I am not, alas, handy or mechanically minded so taking the back wheel off is not something I want to do.

So, I thought --the car is new (to me, anyways) i'll get a hitch and make life easier.

Lifting is an issue for me, too...not so strong. . . thus i didn't want a roof rack. keep the ideas coming in! thanks. k

[aicabsolut]

Honda ought to be able to install fork mounts inside for you. The you'd just need to remove the front wheel. Is that any easier?

[JapaRider]

Hi Kpokla- Maybe you don't even have your Fit Sport anymore, but I just passed by your post and wanted to give the info I found on a hitch for the Honda Sport Fit in case anyone else needs it: This is a site that sells a hitch for the Honda Sport and has a short videuo that shows how it is installed. Even if you are not insatlling it yourself, the video is worth seeing so that you can see how simple it is to install (takes about 5 minutes for a professional) once the car is on a lift, so that you won't be ripped off by someone telling you how complicated or time consuming it is...
http://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Hitch/Honda/Fit/2011/24826.html?vehicleid=2011208568

[Biciclista]

hahaha Japarider, that is not something just anyone could do, but thanks for sharing!

[azfiddle]

We have the Thule Helium rack on our Fit and really like it. I ordered the hitch on line, and had it installed at the U-Haul dealer for about $50 bucks, as we are not handy people.

With the seats down, I could probably put my bike in the back of the Fit standing upright, but my husband's bike is too tall. I can definitely put it in laying flat without taking off wheels (a nice plus, since I hate having to take off the wheels).

[TrekTheKaty]

I have a Honda Accord with a hitch rack. (My next car will keep the bikes inside.)

Previously, we had a cheaper hitch rack that the secured the bikes while hanging off their top tubes. This was great, but didn't fold down and took up a lot of room in the garage.

We have started traveling farther for organized rides and my husband just upgraded to a carbon frame. Last summer we bought a Thule 916XTR (http://www.thule.com/en/US/Products/BikeCarriers/Hitch/916XTR%20T2.aspx)with the bonus of folding up while in the garage.

[Branta]

The best hitch rack I have used so far is the 1up USA Aluminum Quik-Rack. It is small and only about 25 pounds and very easy to take on and off. It even folds up enough you can store it the trunk. The down side is it only comes ready to haul 1 bike so you have do buy the add-ons for additional bikes. For hitches I don't recommend the Hidden Hitch brand depending on how the bumper is on the Fit. On my 02 Civic I couldn't put it completely upright when not in use but with the Curt hitch on my Accord it works perfectly.

[JapaRider]

Hahaha Biciclista. If you actually read my post, you will see that I said that it's good to see the video so that you know what's involved in installing a hitch, so that you can avoid being ripped off by a mechanic.

[maillotpois]

hahaha Japarider, that is not something just anyone could do, but thanks for sharing!

Actually my husband put that hitch on my Fit by himself. It involved quite a bit of swearing, but he did it. :)

[Catrin]

Very interesting discussion. I would love to have a hitch that would support the kind of rack where the wheels go in a tray. Sadly, my 2008 Lancer can only take a 1 1/4 inch hitch and that kind requires a 2 inch hitch. The other type of rack I already have (Saris Bones RS). It is a problem to get my mountain bike on it properly, being short doesn't help.

I will keep the Honda Fit in mind should something happen to my Lancer. I love that car, but you never know what might happen.

[maillotpois]

Sadly, my 2008 Lancer can only take a 1 1/4 inch hitch and that kind requires a 2 inch hitch.

Aren't there converters for that? http://www.amazon.com/Converter-Hitch-Receiver-Adapter-Bicycle/dp/B000VSSZZ8

[Biciclista]

Hahaha Biciclista. If you actually read my post, you will see that I said that it's good to see the video so that you know what's involved in installing a hitch, so that you can avoid being ripped off by a mechanic.

haha yourself I DID watch the video. I am certain that neither my DH nor I could do it. PUSHING exhaust pipe around??? :confused::confused::confused::eek::eek::eek:
hopefully if we decide to get one, we can find someone who is not intimidated by such things to install it for us.

[Catrin]

Aren't there converters for that? http://www.amazon.com/Converter-Hitch-Receiver-Adapter-Bicycle/dp/B000VSSZZ8

I've been told by Uhaul and Mitsubishi that the hitch size limitation is directly related to what my car can handle. As has been explained to me, hitch bike racks place more/different stress on the car than towing something with wheels. There are some hitch racks that have straps to the trunk that helps divide where the stress goes but not the kind of rack I want. The Uhaul store i discussed this with has a lot of experience with installing hitches for this reason. Given all of this, I don't think I want to take the risk of using a converter. Pity...

I DO have other options for getting the Jamis on my existing rack - and can easily put it in the trunk as well - but this would have been a more elegant approach. Also quite expensive, so am somewhat thankful it isn't a real option :)

[Blueberry]

Very interesting discussion. I would love to have a hitch that would support the kind of rack where the wheels go in a tray. Sadly, my 2008 Lancer can only take a 1 1/4 inch hitch and that kind requires a 2 inch hitch. The other type of rack I already have (Saris Bones RS). It is a problem to get my mountain bike on it properly, being short doesn't help.

I will keep the Honda Fit in mind should something happen to my Lancer. I love that car, but you never know what might happen.

Look at the Saris Thelma 2 Bike - the Saris website says it will work with either a 1 1/4" hitch or a 2" hitch.

From Thule's website, it also looks like they have some tray hitch options that fit 1 1/4" hitches. So - if you want it - I think you can make it happen.

[FlyingScot]

Take a look at http://www.etrailer.com They have a ton of hitch racks, many of which will fit a 1 1/4" hitch. I have this one, http://www.etrailer.com/Hitch-Bike-Racks/SportRack/A30403XT.html. I absolutely love it. I used to have a Saris Bones which was fine but it didn't secure to my car as well as I would have liked for long trips (fault of the design of the car not the rack). I really don't want to put my bikes inside due to the light interior color. Loading the bikes is a snap and I can still open the liftgate just by tilting the rack down. Roof racks were out for me because I am a weenie!

[BikeDutchess]

Very interesting discussion. I would love to have a hitch that would support the kind of rack where the wheels go in a tray. Sadly, my 2008 Lancer can only take a 1 1/4 inch hitch and that kind requires a 2 inch hitch.

Actually Thule has a version that fits the 1 1/4 inch hitch: 917XTR T2.
http://www.thule.com/en-GB/US/Products/BikeCarriers/Hitch/917XTR%20T2.aspx

The other one (916XTR T2) was the 2 inch hitch model.

There's also the less expensive 990XT Doubletrack which has the hitch adapter.
http://www.thule.com/en-GB/US/Products/BikeCarriers/Hitch/990XT%20Doubletrack.aspx

[Irulan]

Maybe I missed something, but what's the problem with a roof rack? You can't get much shorter than a FIT. If I had a fit, that's what I'd put on it.

just wondering, as always.

[Catrin]

The Thelma and Thule both look like they would serve :) I had searched but overlooked those particular models - all of the others require a two inch hitch and I don't want to use a converter. Food for thought, for sure.

[maillotpois]

Maybe I missed something, but what's the problem with a roof rack? You can't get much shorter than a FIT. If I had a fit, that's what I'd put on it.

just wondering, as always.

We have a carport and a roof rack involves parallel parking adjacent to the carport, removing the bikes and then moving the car. Maybe I am lazy. :p.

Also my DH has (twice!) run his car into the carport with bike on. (Did I mention he did this twice?)

[jobob]

Also my DH has (twice!) run his car into the carport with bike on.

(Did I mention he did this twice?)


I bet that little factoid came in handy last year ;)

[maillotpois]

I bet that little factoid came in handy last year ;)

Oh I think I have gotten plenty of mileage out of it. :) Maybe I can pull it from reserve in the whole "Let's let Tony build up my steel bike instead of you putting a robo-stem on it" debate.

[TrekTheKaty]

I don't have a roof rack because of a bad back, and I like being able to leave the bikes on while in the garage. However, I thought of another one today. I CONSTANTLY glance back to check on my bike while it rides on the rack. If I couldn't see it on the roof, I'd panic! I'd have to keep pulling over to see if it's still there! (I know--stupid)

[Blueberry]

I almost got a sun roof on my car - just so I could see the bikes on the roof;)

[tulip]

I prefer roof racks to any other sort when I'm carrying two bikes. My next car will have a sunroof just so I can check on the bikes!

[TrekTheKaty]

OH! I have a sunroof. Genius.