Bike + Roof Rack + Garage = Ouch

[Satnam]

Re: Bike + Roof Rack + Garage = Ouch

nice and clean

[RONDAL]

Re: Bike + Roof Rack + Garage = Ouch

ouch is right. wicked work on the hitch though that looks amazing

[stefan]

Re: Bike + Roof Rack + Garage = Ouch

Awesome work on the hitch! I'm going to need one for my Passat eventually, and that would be the way to go if I can find one!

Sucks about the rest of the story, I've been so damn close to doing that once or twice now. +1 for reasons to have tint.

[Canadian Turbo]

Re: Bike + Roof Rack + Garage = Ouch

Ouch is right, but solid design and fab work as always Rob!!!

[RobG]

So after 8 years of transporting my bike on a roof rack, I forgot about it and pulled into the garage.

This sucked, the one bike carrier folded and went through the back window, the bike is fine, the cross bars look okay, I have yet to give them a closer look.

I got the car fixed up, went with a black roof instead of the Gray. I had them tint the rear window before it was installed.

I started looking into the options of rook rack vs Hitch carrier.

The downsides to the rook rack

- Muddy Bike dripping on the car.
- Bike arrives coved in Bugs.
- Car is slower.
- My wife has a hard time getting the bike up there.
- The roof rack is too noisy to have the sunroof open on the highway.

But you always have the roof rack with the car ready to go.

Then I started looking into Hitches, but the "Hidden Hitches" don't clear the GLI rear valence and drilling into the thin tin in the spare tire well seems flimsy.

Then I saw how the Bosal and Westfalia hitches(towbars) mount and fit and how the car was designed to accept a hitch.



Even our tool tray's in the spare tire has the provision for the removable European receiver.



Mounting Holes



There is a notch where the hitch slides in



But to buy a hitch, it would com in close to $500 and still require rework to use one of our receiver styles.

I decided to get some steel and make my own.

Rubber grommet is for the trailer wiring to come through.



I used 7/16" bolts with 2x2x1/4 Flatbar drilled.



Finish Welded



Finished in Black Endura











The design intent was only to carry a bike carrier, nothing more. The 105hp car can only handle so much. I have dimensions and drawings if anyone wants the info to build their own. I based the design and capacity's on this Hitch.