# 1
Thule Spare Me 2 Bike Rack - Spare Tire Mount - Folding Dual Arms
I had one of these bike carriers back when I had a Toyota FJ and loved it. I had to sell the FJ so the carrier got sold also. Well Just bought a new Jeep JK so I had to have another to carry our bikes. It looks like they have added a thing called an anti-sway cage. This is a great bike rack if you have a spare tire. Also I've bought a few things from etrailer.com and they are great also.
I have aftermarket ExpeditionOne bumpers for my 2020 Ford Ranger. My spare tire is on a rear bumper swing arm (see photos). In my install what worked best was the short arm only, no spacer. If you read the instructions, that will make more sense. I think the instructions are for a Jeep, but my spare tire mount is different, considering I have 265/60 tires. Negatives The thule cable lock for the bike doesn't engage enough to lock, but looking at the design, not sure how robust it is anyway, so I'll just use a bike lock I already have through the swing arm frame and spare tire. Also, for offroading, I think it may be safest to take off both bike wheels and strap the frame separately. I drive on very narrow jeep trails, so I don't want a bike wheel catching on brush/branches that I'm driving by. Those two things are why I only gave 4 out of five stars. Positives The light weight of the rack (15lbs) and the thule bolt lock to the spare tire (different lock vs the bike, see photos), are why I got this rack. Really like that I could offset the rack some, so it's more centered. Really like the spacers that add more contact between the tire and the bike rack, see photos. Summary/Observations I'm lazy, so will try the orange tape, instead of always lowering the arms (see photos) I'm tall, so that should keep me from walking into them. My truck tires aren't huge, so I'm still in the weight range of the swing arm, keep that in mind too, but I'm happy to avoid a hitch bike rack, I didn't want to lose departure angle for off roading. I'll update the review if it doesn't perform like I expect, but I think it'll work well enough. I've had lots of different racks (roof, hitch, rear trunk, etc), so I'm not expecting any surprises.
# 2
Yakima SpareRide 2 Bike Rack - Spare Tire Mount - Folding Arms
Pros: 1. Awesome rack, and cable locking device 2. Great price from e-trailer (-$40 vs. Amazon) 3, Super sturdy and flexioble rubber tiedown straps make securing the bike easy 4. Had it installed on the FJ Cruiser in < 5 mins. 5. Doesn't stick out too far. Cons: 1. Wish the felt pads that protect the bike from rubbing against the rack were rubber instead of felt (one had already fallen off) 2. Blocks the back up camera on the FJ (this was called out to me prior to purchase though) 3. The way the bike hangs off the rack, it blocks the rear back up senser so it's always going off if it's activated.
Solid product! Money well spent for a 2007 FJ Cruiser! Although for the future purchaser, I would recommend a small bungie cord to prevent the front wheel from swaying. This is a personal preference though. You should see one pictured in the photos I've attached. Installation took maybe 20 minutes, maybe longer because the wife needed help with something in the back yard. The hardest part of the installation was choosing what extension I needed to use. I used the middle of the three available. If you have a spare tire cover and needed to never remove it, be prepared to get dirty. Amazing what can get up in there. As for etrailer.com. I ordered this on a Wednesday morning and received Friday afternoon. Communications were great with emails for order status, order shipment, order transit, and order delivery. Will be a return customer. Thank you etrailer!
What our customers are saying:
"Everyone that bought before me was right! I got my rack in time for my next days off and putting it together was fast too. And I'm a grandma!! Thank you for being fast and honest! You beat anyone in my town hands down!"