Most Popular Swagman for 2012 Ford Transit Connect

Truly grooving on my wife's new Swagman Chinook bike rack. She wanted to be able to transport her nice road bike easily without throwing it in the back of her car, and since a roof rack is out of the question, this Swagman model fit the bill perfectly. It arrived quickly on the anticipated date. Kudos to etrailer.com for the email updates to keep me informed of my purchase. Within one hour, it was installed on my wife's 2014 Mazda3 hatchback. The Swagman is heavy and solid, which is reassuring as it makes me feel confident that it will keep the bikes secure. It also makes me feel like I got my money's worth. A ratchet wrench and Phillip's head screwdriver were the only tools required for the easy install. I did my research before purchasing the Chinook model as I was also eyeballing a very similar Thule rack that was slightly more expensive. I spoke with an etrailer.com expert who gave me the lowdown on both models. Ultimately, the Swagman won out because it has a smaller 'footprint' while extended or folded up ... and also can tilt away from the car for easy access to the hatchback area. Very convenient! FYI: Mazda doesn't make a trailer hitch for the Mazda3 as it's a small car with a small engine and has no business towing anything. Thankfully, the Curt company makes an aftermarket frame and trailer hitch that fits the Mazda3 hatchback perfectly with no drilling. Stupidly, I purchased it from another online company thinking I was getting a good deal. Turns out etrailer.com had it for less with FREE shipping. Oh well ... live and learn. Now I know that etrailer.com is one-stop shopping for bike racks AND trailer hitches. (Full disclosure: I had the garage down the street install the frame as it's easier with a lift) Only snafu: the shipment contained an extra set of keys that I assumed was for the hitch bolt lock (there was also a set of keys on the bolt itself). I spent 15 minutes using those keys trying to figure out how to remove the lock from the bolt to install it on the hitch. The keys just wouldn't turn in the lock. I called etrailer.com and Kevin told me to try the other set of keys ... and they worked. So an extra set of keys came with it that did absolutely nothing ... weird! Obviously, I can't speak to the longevity and durability of the Swagman Chinook 2 Bike Platform Rack as I just installed it. What I can speak to is the sturdiness of it, the ease of the installation and my complete satisfaction with the good folks at etrailer.com.

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I ordered the Swagman Chinook 2 Bike Platform Rack on line from etrailer and so far have been very satisfied. The bike rack was delivered in less than a week. Unpacking the rack and assembly was fairly straightforward. I have read some reviews that complained the assembly instructions were a bit vague. I didn't have a problem but can see where others without a mechanical background get confused. The rack is very sturdy, but there is some side to side play in the tilt mechanism. I'm not sure this can be avoided with a rack that folds down. Installing the Curt trunk stabilizing strap takes most of the sway out of the rack. Installation is fairly easy and quick. It takes me 6 - 7 minutes to install the back on my hitch, and to install the bike and be ready to drive away. That seems reasonable to me. So far I've only loaded 1 bike. I've included pictures of my installation on a 2014 Mercedes Benz E350 sedan. Clearance between the bikes, the rack and the car are good. With the bike loaded in the inside, most forward position, I have 6" clearance between the pedal and the bumper. With the bike removed, the center support folded flat and the rack folded up in the storage position, I have 4" clearance between the closest part of the bike rack (the fold down hinge assembly) and the back bumper of the car. I am able to open the trunk of the car without removing the bikes or using the tilt feature, but I do have to remove the stabilizing strap first. Overall, I'm very pleased with the bike rack and think it will serve me much better than my old strap on rack. Since the weather has been cool since getting the bike carrier, I haven't taken any long trips to give it a real workout.

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Quality bike rack at an affordable price. Easy to setup and adjust, yet sturdy enough to trust. Like others may have mentioned, be sure to strap a piece of foam to your frame. The adjustable hook will scratch the finish. Easy enough of a fix though, virtually a non-issue. I've taken the rack on two separate trips, 6 weeks and 2 weeks in length respectively, with no issues.

Thank you Etrailer for replacing my first bike rack that was either defective, or damaged in transit. This bike rack is great! Very light, unlike other platform bike racks. I have arthritis and I can handle this one. I would not bother with a hitch pin lock because it's so easy to use a wrench and steal the rack or bikes. I recommend a cable lock, through the hitch welded ring. With a few uses, you'll see how quick and easy it is to use. I'm satisfied, and good price. I have it on a 2014 Ford Fiesta.

I have bad shoulders and could no longer lift my long wheelbase recumbent bike up to my Thule rack. The new rack solved the problem and made it much easier to load the bike. Very happy I got the new Swagman rack.

Thank you again for such excellent customer service. I am including two pics from today showing the bikes mounted on my 2009 Honda Fit with the bike rack we purchased from you. Please feel free to use them in any of your publications, print or web.

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I bought this one for my camper, I had the 4 bike rack all ready. I purchased this one because these racks are the best, period! If you want a solid rack, and one that doesn't make your bike move while in transit to potentially get scratched from another bike, then get this one or the 4 bike one. I will abuse my bikes while riding, but not by transporting.

I absolutely love this bike rack! My wife and I have used a Thule trunk mounted bike rack for the past couple of years and we dreaded using it every time because the bikes would either rub together while in transit or the bikes would beat up the back of the car! (Thus we had to use about a dozen bungee straps to secure them!) The Swagman XTC-2 is the best! Both of our mountain bikes fit beautifully, and the anti-sway bolt that secures the rack to the hitch is great! I can't give enough kudos to the person who invented this bike rack! This is a worthwhile investment to anyone who is looking into a hitch mounted bike rack.

Pros: That model of roof bike rack allows fork mount to be moved back and forth as other models seems to only offer "fixed" position directly above cross bar. Price is reasonable. Con: Outside diameter of the adapter used with 9 mm skewer is way smaller, that inside diameter of the holder it goes into, resulting in significant wobbling of bike even when skewer is tight. Fixed the problem wrapping piece of aluminum flashing around adapter to make it fit much tighter and that stoped wobbling. Expect to have adapter and holder to match each other way better.

Overall we were very pleased with this bike roof rack. The install was easy and we can take it on/off quickly when we have to accommodate other items on the crossbars. I especially like the integrated wheel holder, it’s very stable and I don’t have to worry about locating a Velcro strap. Price point was more affordable than other brands and no loss in quality. Would buy again if we had a need!

etrailer has the best pre- and post-sales customer service I've ever seen! I started out not knowing anything about hitch-mounted racks. So I wrote to etrailer telling them about my car and type of hitch I was about to have installed. Samuel wrote back with lots of great information tailored specifically to my car. He even included a photo that looked just like my 2017 white VW GTI with a hitch and rack installed. Okay something of a coincidence. But the rest of the assistance I got from the crew at etrailer was just as prophetic. I went into this a novice and came out knowing lots more about hitches and racks and finding the rack best suited to my situation. I have a small car, a class 1 hitch and a heavy mountain bike. I got exactly what I needed. As to the Swagman rack itself, it works fine. If I had a different situation I would probably buy a platform rack as they are easier to load. There's no reason to buy a bike rack anywhere else.

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First off, thanks to Jason T. or "Troop". The exemplary customer service he provided is rare these days. Troop made several calls to the various manufacturers to ascertain which bike rack would afford me the most ground clearance as my new VW Golf sits low to the ground and my old bike rack frequently scraped the ground when I went up even a slight up hill grade. His efforts paid off as he found me the best bike rack for my car, the Swagman Trailhead 2 Bike Carrier. It sits up off the ground just high enough that it doesn't scrape on my driveway. It is also sturdy and holds my bikes securely. And, the delivery was amazingly fast. I had my rack in about 2 days! Note to Troop, see my Pittsburgh Pirates Logo on my bumper in the attached pictures? Pirate Fans persevere! The Bucco's will be coming after your Cardinals this year! Thanks again Troop!

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