[bikejack]

I have been a avid road cycling fan for years. I like to participate in Century Events throughout the West Coast which means a lot of driving to them. I prefer carrying the bike inside my vehicle for driving through mountains with snow and rain can cause a lot of havoc on a bicycle with road grit and grime. One of the reasons I bought a 2006 RAV is because my big bike (61 cm frame) fits inside the RAV beautifully vertically. I don't even have to drop the seat tube (saddle) because of the good interior height. I have to remove the front wheel on the bike. I mounted a quick release skewer mount on a wood board and lay it on the cargo area. The bike fork fits into the quick release mount. I also have a old fork on the board to store the front wheel vertically next to the bike. Lots of room still for luggage and bike support equipment and all my wife's stuff. The RAV works even better than my Subaru Outback for interior space and I love the RAV rear side opening door for shoving the bike easily inside.

I realize if traveling with a family with children a outside bike rack may be the way to go and just offer my approach as a alternative.

 

[Lance]

I posted this a short while back in the 4.3 Interior board. Check out my album for a picture of my interior bike set-up. The rack is a Saris Triple Track. I can even fasten the fork mounts at an angle if I want to squeeze wheel mounts in between.

Now I have a cargo tray to keep the back clean, and I reposition the rear all weather floor mats to the area where the bikes' rear wheels rest, to keep the whole interior clean.

Lance

 

[Rav4adventurer]

I like your concept Lance, is the plate bolted to the floor or is there a rough surface on the bottom to stop the plate from sliding?. I'd hate to see it slide to one side and a handlebar hit the glass.
If you have expensive bikes it's a great way to keep them inside and away from curious people and ones that have bad intentions.
I installed a THULE rack on the roof with 2 Bigmouth ramps. Since it's the family car i have to put the bikes somewhere when everyone comes along. The THULE bars will give the extra strength if i decide to install a box or basket later. It's nice to have this rack on the roof but the downsides are, i'm the only one in the family able to get the bikes on and when i come out of the woods with my mountain bike the mud falls on the roof and scratches the paint. When i'm by myself i'd rather just shove my Kona inside.
When i really liked having them on the roof was during a 24h mountain bike relay challenge i made a bed outback with the seats down and slept while the bike was locked on the roof.
My girlfriend is gone with the Rav and the digital camera, i'll take a pic and ad it to my album when i'll have a chance.

 

[dragracer7383]

I built a similar setup to haul our bikes. We just don't feel safe leaving our bikes outside on a bike rack while we are out doing....whatever. Just makes them too inviting to would be thieves.

I have a mountain bike and also a roadie.... and my wife has a flat bar hybrid. I made the carrier so we can haul both my wifes bike and either one of my bikes. I cut a piece of black indoor/outdoor carpet to cover/protect the entire rear with the seats down. Then I covered a big board with the same carpet. This carpet against carpet makes it impossible for the board to slide. The board fits the full width of the cargo area also, so it cannot slide side to side. Then on the back side I added a couple of little extensions so that if it were to slide back, the extentions would keep the handlebars from touching the rear window. My bikes are tall enough that I do have to pull the seat/post out and stash it under the floor. It works GREAT, and the best part was it probably cost me all of about $15 to make. I had the fork mounts and board already so really all I had to buy was the carpet. I can probably post a few pics if anyone would like to see it in action.

 

[Lona]

I can probably post a few pics if anyone would like to see it in action.

Yes please!

 

[tankyuong]

please post pic

pic please

 

[quattroleap]

I built a similar setup to haul our bikes. We just don't feel safe leaving our bikes outside on a bike rack while we are out doing....whatever. Just makes them too inviting to would be thieves.

I have a mountain bike and also a roadie.... and my wife has a flat bar hybrid. I made the carrier so we can haul both my wifes bike and either one of my bikes. I cut a piece of black indoor/outdoor carpet to cover/protect the entire rear with the seats down. Then I covered a big board with the same carpet. This carpet against carpet makes it impossible for the board to slide. The board fits the full width of the cargo area also, so it cannot slide side to side. Then on the back side I added a couple of little extensions so that if it were to slide back, the extentions would keep the handlebars from touching the rear window. My bikes are tall enough that I do have to pull the seat/post out and stash it under the floor. It works GREAT, and the best part was it probably cost me all of about $15 to make. I had the fork mounts and board already so really all I had to buy was the carpet. I can probably post a few pics if anyone would like to see it in action.

I pretty much did the same setup:
2x6 board $6.00
2 fork mounts from Bike Nashbar on sale $12.00
Black carpet from the local auto store $6.00
CAT5 loop staples *I had some laying around from my last install
The loop staples acts like little antiskid feets that sinks into carpet
mat loom to prevent the rack from sliding or bouncing around regardless
if Im transporting a bike or not.

Total cost $ 25 / Project time 30-40mins



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[dajazzee]

I guess we’re on the same page. Two Saris front mounts and a scrap 36x1x4 oak board that I stained. Mounted the fork mounts with T-Nuts. Drilled holes in the center also so if I‘m only carrying one bike I move a mount to the center to keep it balanced. I’ll never carry more than two bikes so I didn’t need a diagonal setup and I just throw the tire/s where ever I have room. I've only used it once so far and it seemed stable. If I find that it moves around I'll add something underneath to keep it in place, or use bigger wood.
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[dajazzee]

quattroleap, very nice. I went with simple, but can see the inherent stability in your design. If I find mine slides or moves around I may have to revise and steal some of your ideas. Hope you don’t mind.

 

[quattroleap]

Thanks! By all means, used what you need. It's nice to share ideas.
Here's another idea for those who dont want to go carpet and staple route,
you can use 6 soft golf spikes and 6 wood screws to attach them to backside
of each corners and centers. This works out pretty nicely. Just be sure to used
newer design soft spikes otherwise it will ruin the carpet.

 

[schaudhary]

I posted this a short while back in the 4.3 Interior board. Check out my album for a picture of my interior bike set-up. The rack is a Saris Triple Track. I can even fasten the fork mounts at an angle if I want to squeeze wheel mounts in between.

Now I have a cargo tray to keep the back clean, and I reposition the rear all weather floor mats to the area where the bikes' rear wheels rest, to keep the whole interior clean.

Lance

Excellent idea! I have been looking for an inexpensive solution to putting two bikes inside my 2008 RAV4 V6. Lance, can you fit two bikes with only one seat folded down?