How to Choose a Bike Rack for a Motor Home or RV

To choose a trunk-mounted bike rack that is compatible with your vehicle and bikes, it is important to consider four simple points

• Vehicle Compatibility
• Bike Compatibility
• Vehicle Accessibility
• User Compatibility

Vehicle Compatibility

Do you have a motor home/RV?

• Bike racks for motor homes and RVs mount to the vehicle in several ways
  • Bolt around a square bumper
  • Mount to ladder
  • Slide into trailer hitch
    • We offer hitches for motor homes/RVs

What kind of bumper does your motor home/RV have?

• In order to accommodate a bumper-mount bike rack the bumper must
  • Be a square, 4" to 4-1/4" bumper
  • Be continuously welded to the frame
  • Not be crafted of aluminum

Do you have a ladder on your motor home/RV?

• Ladder-bike racks are designed to fit either flat/elliptical steps OR square/round steps
• Ensure that the ladder-bike rack you choose is compatible with your ladder's steps

Does your motor home/RV have a hitch?

• Because motor homes/RVs are not trailers, their smoother rides are compatible with hitch-mounted bike racks
• Hitch-mounted racks provide the most options with the most convenience

Bike Compatibility

Bike racks come in a variety of styles. Consider what style of bike rack would be most compatible with your bike frames and transportation requirements.

Wheel Mount

• Style available as a bumper rack or hitch rack
  • Capacity: 4 bikes
  • Easy bike loading

Bolt-On Bumper Rack

• Bike wheels placed in tire rails
• Bikes held in place with tie-downs (supplied separately)
• Adjustable racks can accommodate any size bike, as long as all bikes being transported are similar size

Hitch Rack

• Bike wheels placed in wheel mounts
• Bike held in place using a wheel clamp or frame clamp
• Accommodates widest range of bikes
• For more details see Wheel-Mount-Hitch Bike Racks

Frame Mount

• Style available as bumper mount, ladder mount and hitch mount

Ladder Mounts

• Bike supported by 2 arms
• Bike frame secured in cradles using straps
• Arms carry bikes vertically
• Accommodates most styles of bikes
• Capacity: 2 bikes

Bumper Mounts

• Bike rack mounts to bumper
• 2 Arms support bike frame
• Crossbar of bike held in place with J-bolt
  • J-bolts can be difficult to use
  • J-bolts accommodate bikes with frames up to 1-1/2" in diameter
• Narrow arm span accommodates most bike sizes
• An adapter bar may be necessary

Hitch Mounts

• Bike frames can be supported by 1 or 2 arms
• Capacity: 5 bikes
• For more details see Frame-Mount-Hitch Bike Racks

Vehicle Accessibility

Motor home and RV bike racks do not limit accessibility to your vehicle.

User Compatibility

Choose a rack with features that make it convenient and easy for you to handle.

Installation

Ladder Racks

• Easy to install
• Hooks onto steps of ladder
• Can have a high loading height
• Does not require tools

Bumper Racks

• Easy to install
• U-bolts secure rack to bumper
• Not easy to securely fasten bikes to rack

Hitch Racks

• Slide into hitch receiver
• Easy to install
• Consider using an anti-rattle hitch bolt to reduce jostling of bikes and rack during transport
• Can be used while pulling a car when using a hitch adapter
• Have the widest range of features
  • Beneficial for bikes
• Can be transferred from RVs to other vehicles with a hitch