Rack for hatchback/wagon?

I drive an '06 Mazda 3 "5 door." I talked to a guy recently with the exact same car (even color...it was a freaky clone of my baby). He has a rack that straps onto the back and can fold up a bit so that one can still open the hatch sans bikes. He really likes it.

But would we be happier getting a hitch on my car and a hitch-mounted rack? I know that would give us more model options, but I'm guessing there is no way to open the hatch if we had a hitch-mounted rack.

Any model suggestions from those with same or similar vehicle? We would want something to hold 3 bikes.

I don't have a Mazda 3, but I have a hitch-mounted rack. I have a Thule T2. Loading and unloading is a snap. If you got an after-market receiver hitch (you'd have to get a 2"), you could carry up to four bikes on it.
Pros:
Easy to load and unload
Very stable
You can access your hatch when using it (even when bikes are on the rack).

Cons:
Expensive
Not convenient to take it on and off the car, so it will generally live there forever
Possible rear-end accidents make me sweat

I have a Hyundai Accent Hatchback.. I initially wanted a roof mounted rack system for it, but after some looking I found the hitch mount quite a bit cheaper (and I don't have to lift the bikes up over my head). The bike rack I have is a Bell so not high cost; it has a fold-away design so all you do is remove a trailer pin and the mount will drop to the ground (with bikes on it!) allowing easy access to the hatch interior. Relatively easy to lock up - I use a long cable and run it through the appropriate bike parts and then around where the hitch attaches to the car. It's not coming off unless someone cuts the cable.

I like it; the hitch mount would stay on most of the time except I have found on my small car it will actually hit the ground pretty hard going through dips in parking lots, to the point that I have bent metal on the bottom of the bike rack. It's pretty easy to take on and off though. The front of the car hits the ground too but not much I can do about that.

U-Haul installed a hitch - total cost ~$150.

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Originally Posted by pumpkinpony

I like it; the hitch mount would stay on most of the time except I have found on my small car it will actually hit the ground pretty hard going through dips in parking lots, to the point that I have bent metal on the bottom of the bike rack.

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That's the only thing I'm concerned about. But it's not a scenario I would encounter very often. Glad to hear the hitch-mount set-up works for you, too. I definitely wouldn't want the roof rack. I am short and wussy. :p

I'm average height (5'6") with a fairly average sized car (Subaru Outback) and I loooooooove my Yakima roof rack. I think if I get a new a car I will get another roof rack. It's very convenient, and even more than that, I love how stable and solid it is. The bikes don't shift at all.

Many of the hitch mounted racks have a pin that let you lower the rack so you can open the hatch. Mine does. It's a Yakima King Pin, I think. It goes in a 1-1/4" receiver hitch, but only because the bike store swapped out a part to make it fit the hitch on my Beetle (now deceased--R.I.P.). On my Element, I put on a 2" receiver hitch so I could pull more things (the Beetle couldn't pull anything thus I have nothing to pull, but I like having options), and I just use an adapter to step the hitch down to 1-1/4".

I don't care for strap-on racks. I had a strap come off of an old one on the back of an Explorer once. It was scary (but I just had the kid's bikes on there).

*I looked at a pic of your little car. It won't pull anything either. :) I'm reminded of why I wanted the Yakima King Pin. We needed room for 3 bikes for our family and it carries 4 bikes (though I could only hold 3 on the Beetle due to weight restrictions). Because of the capability for 4 bikes, it was set up for a 2" hitch. But, since the Beetle didn't accept a hitch with a 2" receiver (weight restrictions), the bike shop swapped out the arm for me (and I removed the hardware that holds the 4th bike on). Thus, the King Pin (4) could do the job of the King Pin (2). (The KP2 may be called something else.)

So go to etrailer.com and find out if your car will take a hitch, and that will determine what hitch mounted racks you can get. (If you go for hitch mount.)

Karen

I have a Mazdaspeed3 (5-door) and I have a strap-on rack. It's really the only thing that would work with my car, since it's a little lower and a hitch would have a very limited capacity.

I love it, though I wish I would have gotten a 3-bike instead of a 2-bike. :)

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Originally Posted by artifactos

I have a Mazdaspeed3 (5-door)

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My DREAM car...*sigh* would not be good in MI snow or in terms of gas or insurance. But a girl can dream. :o

I have a VW Rabbit. I have found that with one bike, it's safer and better for the bike to remove the front wheel and put it in the back of the car. With the back seats down, it fits without a problem.

An even better solution has been getting my Bike Friday, which fits in the way back with the back seats up. I can fit my dog, crate, luggage for a week, computer, and all sorts of stuff in the car when I have my Bike Friday in the way back. But that's quite a bit pricier than a bike rack.

I am getting a roof rack, however, because occasionally I take another bike and rider with me. I have a folding Saris rear rack but it's a pain to deal with. I don't care for hitch racks because you can't remove them and they make parking in small spots difficult. So a roof rack it is (Thule).

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Originally Posted by tulip

I have a VW Rabbit. I have found that with one bike, it's safer and better for the bike to remove the front wheel and put it in the back of the car. With the back seats down, it fits without a problem.

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Yeah, my bike fits great with only one wheel off...but that eliminates being able to have DS and DH in the car with me. The rack would be for family outings/trips when we want to have all bikes along and still have trunk and backseat space left for people and luggage.

Hitch racks are easily removed. I use a locking pin so no one ELSE can remove it while I'm not around. But it is very easy to remove.

Of course, I prefer to keep my bikes INSIDE my Element when I can. :) They roll in standing up.

Karen

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Originally Posted by zoom-zoom

My DREAM car...*sigh* would not be good in MI snow or in terms of gas or insurance. But a girl can dream. :o

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You'd be surprised! The insurance for my 2009 is only $100 a year more expensive than what I was paying for a 2004 Toyota Matrix. Really.

And I live in Ohio, so snow with good tires (it's still front wheel drive!) is a non-issue as long as you know how to drive in it.

I will, however, give you the gas issue. I get 30 mpg or so on the highway (DC, so stop and go), but far less in the city where I zoom-zoom a lot.. I'm averaging 25 mpg on these country roads at home. :)

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Originally Posted by artifactos

And I live in Ohio, so snow with good tires (it's still front wheel drive!) is a non-issue as long as you know how to drive in it.

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Holy moly were we surprised at how bad the stock tires were in snow when we hit our first Winter with our 3. The day that I was unable to move (even starting in 3rd gear) in 2 parking lots with just a couple inches of snow my hubby got on TireRack.com and ordered a set of Blizzak snow tires. Man, what a HUGE difference. We frequently will get storms that dump a foot/day (our average snowfall/season is generally in the 8 foot range...thank you, Lake MI...NOT!), so true Winter tires are priceless. I rarely can even get the ABS to kick-in with those babies. Now the only problem we run into is bottoming-out. There have been more than a few occasions when the front grille is literally plowing through the snow. It's kind of fun, though.