Thule XTR Big Mouth Single Bike Rack Review

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Review of the Thule XTR Big Mouth Single Bike Rack

Today we are going to show you part number TH599, the XTR Big Mouth Upright Carrier from Thule. What this bicycle carrier is designed to do is carry bikes in an upright position with both wheels attached to the bike. And this bicycle carrier will attach to all Thule roof rack models and to Yakima models also. First, I will show you some of the features of this bicycle rack, starting with how it attaches to a typical roof rack. Following, on the rear of the vehicle, you will see that the roof rack has a clamp-like system right here. And basically it has two bolts coming down and a plate and the threaded knobs that actually clamp it to your roof rack bar right here. And this is also fully adjustable on the track of the carrier itself.

Moving on to the front of the vehicle, we can see where the rack actually clamps to the front of the bar here. And it has got a pretty neat little deal. Basically it has an arm that comes down through the bottom and wraps around the bar. It also has this quick-release mechanism right here, kind of like the quick-release on the fork of the bike. And basically this little bracket comes around. And this quick release has this little bolt right here with a special head assembly and this goes onto the little bracket that wraps around the crossbar of the roof rack. And you just give it a couple of turns and then you can just go ahead and push it down and lock it into place. There is one on each side of the rack itself.

And what is also nice that holds your bike into place is you have got two sets of these straps right here. Basically this pad goes over your rim, this slides through the bracket - you can actually ratchet it to make it as tight as you need to. And it holds the front wheel of the bike in place. And there is also one identical to it on the rear of the rack itself. Well, featuring the clamp itself, this is the part that actually clamps onto the frame of the bicycle. It also has this neat lever assembly here that kind of has a spring-loaded assist. So basically when you put your bike in and you clamp it down, the spring pulls it as tight as possible. And then you just give a little more force on it to make it as tight as you can and then push the lever into place, which locks it so the jaws cannot reopen.

All right, now we will go ahead and install a bike on the rack and show you how it works. Again, there is no need to take the front wheel off with this one. Bring up the Big Mouth part of the rack. And then kind of push the locking lever in a little bit and then then push it down a little more so it clamps onto the frame - and the clamps are rubber lined, so they will not scratch your frame - and then lock it into place. And next we just strap the wheels in onto the track itself. And with that, your bike is secure and ready to go down the road. All right, and there you have it for part number TH599XTR, the Big Mouth from Thule, their upright carrier.