Traveler Hitch Mounted Bike Rack

My last bike rack was good, but with a Toyota 4Runner, you had to remove the bikes to get in the back. That was very inconvenient, especially in the rain. Then my $1300 road bike was stolen because there was no good place to secure a bike lock. Finally, it was low to the ground so you had to be very careful with dips in the road - which I ran into crossing some road construction. This rack absolutely solved all three of those problems. It is high enough that even very large dips, rocks, driveways, whatever - don't matter, you have plenty of clearance between your bike and the ground. Next, there are several places to secure a bicycle lock so you don't lose your bike. Finally, there is a very quick and easy to use release that allows you to drop your bikes down (almost to the ground - it stops with about 6" clearance from the ground) allowing you ample room to get in the back of your SUV, and in my case, easily clear the rear gate which I can raise all the way up without worrying about hitting a bike.It exceeded my expectations when it came to durability and strength. It doesn't move at 75 MPH, holding two bikes (haven't tried three). Both of the bikes I mounted were mountain bikes, but they fit just fine, and even though they are heavier than road bikes, the weight made no difference on the unit. It held up just perfectly.As far as securing the bikes, each bike is secured with three rubber straps that pop on and off easily, but don't budge at high speeds. The design is so well crafted that I even forgot to secure the rubber straps and didn't realize it until I was going about 30 MPH. I pulled over and secured them, but the bikes stayed in place in the "U" shaped mounts. That was impressive.This is an outstanding deal, great quality, well engineered, easy to secure/unsecure bikes, and affords great security too.I am exceptionally well pleased with this purchase and would HIGHLY recommend this.

After much research, I decided that the best value for my money would be the Hollywood Racks HR8500 Traveler 4bike rack. I'm glad I did the research as this rack is as advertised. As casual riders, I would say we use the rack weekly rather than daily. It has yet to disappoint us in any way. I felt strongly enough about this product and its value that I decided to try my hand at my first ever review of a product. The rack was installed on a 2005 Honda Pilot.The FitGetting our 4 bikes (2 adult mountain bikes, 2 bmx kids bikes) on the rack is a minor challenge as the positioning of the handlebars and pedals on the kids bikes necessitate a puzzle like combination, but once we figured out the system....easy peezy. My wife's bike is a women's model and this rack accommodates her frame type with no extra adapters needed. From the layout, it seems an easier task to fit four larger bikes on simultaneously. The rack seated itself snugly into our 2 inch hitch receiver and the arm folds down easily to shorten the profile when bikes are not attached.The FinishPowder coated and sturdy, I was impressed with the construction. The rack is very sturdy in its seat with a thumb screw for micro adjusting to guard against rattle or sway. We have experienced minimal sway on a dirt, rock, trail with all four bikes loaded, but regular hilly country roads are not a challenge to it. Solid, thick pins allow for easy and fast installation. We had purchased the additional locking hitch pin bolt and security cable to protect our bikes and our hitch from theft. (approx $30) My wife and I appreciate the ability to swing the arm down with an easy operating locking pin system when not in use. Another similar pin system at the base of the rack will allow you to lower the rack away from your hatch to allow access to the rear of your vehicle. (Great for unpacking the picnic lunches on biking days, or groceries on nonbiking days!) This is can be done with or without the bikes on the rack....just to be clear, make sure you can slowly lower the bikes down if you choose to unpin and tilt down. My wife strains to handle the bikes with the tilt mechanism. The rubber straps seem to be extremely durable and allow for a very tight grip. I am confident that those bikes aren't goin' anywhere after we lash them down! The composite pegs that hold the straps seem to be strong enough to handle the stress for the long haul.Overall, everything works better than my expectations and can't say enough good things about it. We have recommended this rack to friends and family, all who have positive comments upon inspecting and seeing it in action.I hope this was helpful!

This rack is sturdy and well built, but has a major flaw. The support arms are too wide to accomodate most modern bikes. Even with the top tube adapter (which I also purchased) there is still not enough clearance to fit smaller frame bikes on the rack. I'm not talking about children's bikes, but smaller frame adult bikes. The rubber cradles help cushion and secure the bike, but they are also bulky and it is difficult to fit the bikes over them. If you have large frame bikes with straight top tubes the rack works fine, but with the modern road bikes and mountain bikes with sloping top tubes the fit is difficult, even with the adapter. If the support arms were about 3 to 4 inches closer together the rack would be perfect, but the way it is now it's almost useless for many bikes.UPDATE(July 2013): After using the rack now for over a year I've upgraded my original rating of 2 stars to 4 stars. I discovered that if you position the bike so that the down tube is resting on top of the front cradle then the rack will accommodate smaller frame bikes and bikes with sloping top tubes. If you secure the bike using this method you don't need to use an adapter. Sometimes the bike might not be resting in a level position, but it is still very secure to the rack. You can also rotate the front cradle inward so that it rest more flush with the down tube. Also it's best to use a strap or bungee cord to keep the front wheel and handlebars straight. Works great.

Exactly as I expected it to be. Fairly easy to assemble will need a second person to hold it for a few minutes. Attaches to the hitch great and really easy and sturdy for bikes