Electric and heavy bikes ride with confidence on the NV 2.0. Each tray supports up to 60 lbs, making it strong enough for e-bikes and sturdy mountain builds. The platform design with large front-wheel cradles and sliding rear wheel straps keeps every bike steady mile after mile. Adjusting the setup for different wheelbases is simple thanks to the included Allen key stored on the rack.
The NV 2.0 secures bikes by the wheels, not the frame. Ratcheting hooks grab the front wheel firmly while avoiding delicate carbon tubes or custom paint. Rear straps slide to fit varying wheelbases, and an extender strap is included so you can carry one fat-tire bike without extra parts. It’s a setup that keeps your frame spotless and your load locked down.
Grabbing something from the back doesn’t mean taking every bike off. The NV 2.0 tilts down—bikes loaded—using a spring-loaded foot lever that leaves both hands free for control. When unloaded, it folds upright for compact storage. The lever is easy to reach even with bikes mounted, keeping things smooth whether you’re loading gear or parking in tight spots.
The integrated Trail Doc repair stand turns the rack into a work station wherever you stop. A spring-loaded clamp holds seat posts or top tubes between 3/4" and 2-1/2" in diameter with a soft rubber coating that won’t scratch paint. Adjust the angle or lock it in place to clean, tune, or fix your ride before heading out again.
Installation takes minutes with the hand-tightening cam system. Turn the front knob to deploy an anti-rattle wedge inside the shank—no tools needed—to keep movement to a minimum. When you’re done riding, built-in cable locks secure both bikes, and a locking hitch pin keeps the rack itself in place. Both locks are keyed alike, so one key handles it all.
Ratings & Reviews
I have a great rack! (actually my wife does) I have 5 or 6 friends that use this rack and grew weary of throwing my bike on top of the Outback. Additionally my wife has become interested in venturing off on her own and cannot put a bike on top her outback.
etrailer shipped promptly, and the product arrived in good shape, note: there were a few spots where the parts had jostled around in the box slightly and you could see some marring of the surface. This polished right out with a microfiber towel and mothers. There are a few minor nicks (I mean really minor) on the rack;but, they were there before being put in the factory packaging. Not enough to whine about just know the finish is great just not perfect.
Speaking of the finish the color matches my Outback perfectly, it actually looks like an OEM Subaru thing. Fit is good using the Hidden/Drawtite hitch clearing the hatch while tilted back easily even with 800mm bars. The locking Hitch pin that comes with the rack is 1/2" diameter instead of the normal 5/8", fortunately the hitch mentioned above has a smaller 1/2" about 12mm aft of the 5/8" hole. The hole in the rack is 5/8" but do to the snugging system on the Küat the mismatch I'd of no consequence.
Assembly is easy and someone with good mechanical aptitude should be able to do it in less than 10, an extra set of hands would be nice but aren't required. I built mine on an elevated bench and it was quick and super easy, admittedly I used power tools because I have them.
I'm looking forward to the convenience of a tray.
I thought i ordered the black one but I didn't read carefully enough. Turns out the Grey is a great match
I ordered the Kuat bike rack from etrailer.com because they had the best price. The bike rack came very quickly and it was exactly as described. Their customer service was excellent by keeping me up to date on my order. This is my 2nd purchase from etrailer and I will not hesitate to purchase again. Thanks etrailer!!
My recommendation on putting the rack together: Place the main support into your trailer hitch first, then put on all the trays and accessories. The Kuat instructions could be improved upon, but you can figure it out by looking at a picture of it fully assembled.
Love the fit and solid quality build of this bike carrier. Can't wait to try it out.
I am using this carrier for two e-bikes and I am confident that it will hold up very nicely and will have no problem holding the weight of the 2 bikes.
I have ordered from etrailer before and have been very happy with the service and products. The customer service staff stayed in contact with me when I had questions and when my order arrived, The Kuat NV 2.02 was a great price when compared to all other on-line stores. We are very happy with the high quality and function of the Kuat NV 2.0 bike rack. Thank you!
Clear and simple assembly instructions. Packaged very well to protect all painted
surfaces. It’s a very well built and sturdy rack. I really like that each front tire tray is adjustable up or down. Kuat pulled out all the stops on this rack, Excellently done! I also like the integrated bike locks and the anti-sway feature, very cool! I believe this rack will allow my son and I to travel further safely and explore more on our mountain bikes and bring us closer together.
Fantastic bike rack!! After getting fed up with loading my bike up repeatedly in the back of my 2003 GMC Sierra pickup (with a hard top cover) I decided to purchase this kuat rack. I wish I would’ve sooner. Assembly was easy and straight forward however I would use a magnetic parts bowl if I had it to do over. Kuat doesn’t included any extra nuts so I had to contact them to get another after I dropped and lost one (they were very polite and shipped one right away.) As far as function goes this rack is really easy to use. Just slide it into the receiver and put the lock pin it. Just like in the video you then tighten the knob at the back to secure the hitch so there is no movement. Load your bikes up and secure them and you’re ready to go. I did utilize the retractable cable locks after my ride when stopping to eat and they are very easy to use. No worries at all about a stolen bike. And the tilting feature is great too. It does allows you to access your truck bed with the tailgate down just as in the video. As an added bonus this rack fits perfect in my standard size truck bed even with the hard top cover closed (my truck is too long to fit in the garage with the rack folded up installed in the hitch.) Michael H. was outstanding providing schematic drawings with the dimensions so I would know this before my purchase (they’re on the Q&A page.) The free shipping was very fast so that made the purchase even better. I will definitely be a repeat customer as eTrailer is the one of the best companies out there with great customer service and timely communication. Great job!!
This thing is built like a tank! It is of the best fit and funtion I have seen in a bike rack! Solid as can be, fits my bikes perfectly and looks awesome! Plus it folds completely out of the way to access the rear liftgate on my 2022 Rav4!
About the Kuat NV 2.0: Buy a Kuat NV 2.0!!! Then, get the 2 Bike Add-On to carry 4 bikes. This is hands-down THE BEST rack on the market. I chose this rack after researching THULE, Saris, Yakima, and many, many others. The Kuat NV 2.0 has a professional car quality finish, is ROCK SOLID so the bikes do not move at all, has built in locks, a built in mechanic stand, and never touches your bikes. Do your research and you will arrive at the same conclusion: THERE IS NO BETTER RACK ON THE MARKET!!!
This bike rack has worked well for our family of 4. It allows us to safely and securely carry all 4 bikes through the mountains of Colorado with our Hallmark Milner truck camper. Strong and durable rack that barely moves when driving. etrailer's customer service was outstanding. The rack was initially delayed and after one phone call to check status a warehouse manager quickly solved a minor issue and got the rack shipped. etrailer was fantastic in managing this transaction with extremely limited staffing. etrailer is the first place I check for anything recreation as I've never had anything but stellar service.
Have used it on a 2015 Audi Q5 with an aftermarket Curt 2" hitch.
LOVE it! We were looking for the longest tongue that we could find so that when stored upright, it wouldn't hit the bumper.
With the advice of the etrailer phone rep...we got 4 place model which is what we ended up with..(we got the add-on)
Avid mountain bikers that love this setup. The model is very solid with 4 bikes! Also like how you can adjust the front wheel cradle so that the bars won't rub on other bars/seats. Heavy when you lower the rack "loaded" to open hatchback, but that's what you'll deal with when going with a setup that doesn't touch the frame which is what we want and need. Much nicer than the Thule/Yakima options that other friends have. A lot better looking too!! It does slightly block the tail lights so added some reflectors for those "distracted drivers" ;-)
Highly recommend and feel price is worth it.
the bike rack is great a little heavy but other wise great. after a few longer trips i let u know but the not raddling or moving around is great.
Assembly was not as difficult as I expected. After watching some videos, the instructions do make sense. I also used the box with some of the foam packing to support the frame because, as suggested, it easier to put together"upside down". Once it's together it seems very solid and well made. Installing on my 2017 Hyundai Tucson Eco was simple and easy to do. Putting the bike on the rack was even easier and will make impromptu bike rides no problem when I'm by myself. In the pictures the bike was on the outside rack because I was demonstrating it to my friend who thankfully assisted me with the hitch installation.
Great service from etrailer and the rack arrived as expected. Fairly easy assembly. OK video on Kuat’s site, but didn’t cover the foot pedal. Really glad we got the 2” hitch. It tightened up and we’re impressed with the quality and the stability of the rack. We haven’t done a road test yet, but look forward to putting it to the test. We have a Ford F-150 and it works great. The bikes were fairly easy to load with the batteries out and two people. We do need the strap extenders for our RadMini Step Thru’s. The tires are too big for the ones that come with. Only one set of extenders came with the bike and one adapter for a smaller tire. It’s okay, but since it’s a two bike unit, would have been nice to have both extenders. Otherwise, we are really liking the look and stability.
Rack arrived today. I will not lie, it is heavy and therefore cumbersome to assemble. Despite that, I was able to assemble and install it in just under one hour. I did this on my own, another person would have cut this time in half. The rack checks all the boxes of wants and needs. That same weight noted before makes it rock solid. The anti-rattle feature to tighten the hitch is wonderful. Handle/pedal to change from upright position to bike holding rack to tilt away from my Subaru 2010 Forester was incredibly simple and smooth. I was all set to buy the Thule T2 Pro XT 2 and a friend told me about this Kuat NV 2.0. I am so happy. I knew it was more expensive, but free shipping and price was discounted at checkout when I purchased it from etrailer.com. Great surprise. This rack is well thought out, has superb quality features, and I am convinced that I made the best choice. All things aside, it also really looks nice.
I have had my Kuat NV 2.0 4-Bike Platform Rack - 2" Hitches - Tilting - Metallic Black for a month now. Amazing engineering. Solid rack. I have four or five old (cheaper) racks and this is the best rack I have ever seen by far. Extremely happy with this. I will reserve comment on whether or not a bike rack should cost $xx.xx but it’s a great rack.
Possible improvements:
1) The rack is just too heavy. With the amazing engineers that worked on this, knocking 10 lbs off the rack would be easy. I know it is one of the lighter ones available but it is still too heavy. The center rail is all steel and the heaviest part. The outer part of the swing arms are steel (inner part is aluminum). The arms have really nice bushings on the hinges. The whole thing is amazing, well-built, and well-engineered. IDEA 1: lightweight the center rail by using U-lube instead of square tube. Or just make holes through the top and bottom of he square rail. IDEA 2) The Aluminum platforms are amazing. But use less Al and more plastic. The ones for the back tire add significant weight.
2) Someone came up with a great idea for dealing with one aspect of the weight problem. One problem is that at 54 lbs. when you put it in the receiver it’s hard to align the hitch pin hole by yourself. So I kludged up a stop using a ring clamp and some plastic tubing. I was going to tap a hole in the center rail for a stop screw but then I could not adjust the depth for different vehicles. So I went with the ring clamp. When installing it (see photo) I noticed that someone already had a great idea and tapped a hole to add a stop. I assume there is an adjustable clip that is secured by the recessed screw. But I did not receive the clip. I just have a beautifully designed tapped hole and recessed screw with no way to use it. Probably an easy answer to this one but i didn't get a clip and didn't see this referenced in the instructions at all.
3) Back tire surface. It almost doesn’t matter where you ride the mountain bike, somewhere along the trial there is sandy, gravely surface that gets on your tires. I have gone in five ‘dirt’ trails and covered my tires with smooth mud thinking that I wasn’t going to hit sand. Then when I get back to the parking lot the mud collects the sandy gravel—either in the gravel parking lot or at the edge of the asphalt lot. Then I put the bike on the beautiful smooth aluminum carrier and scratch it. There should be an improvement to resurface the area where the back tire goes. It looks like there has been some weak attempt to provide a plastic coat but it doesn’t work. I am going to buy some rubberized truck-bed liner or spray rubberized spray rust proofer to refinish this.
4) Last possible improvement. The only people that should be buying this bike rack are people with high end mountain bikes. The reason for the platform carrier is to accommodate the odd frame geometry of mountain bikes and to protect the full suspension from dangling and getting air in the cylinders. If you have a full carbon road bike then just hang it on the back of your car with a $200 bike rack. And no one is going to carry $120 steel Walmart BLO’s with a $xx.xx platform carrier. They are going to strap them to the roof of their minivan. So you could even make this carry less weight capacity to make it lighter. And just tell people to put the 60 lb bike (like ebikes) closest to vehicle and lighter bikes in the back. EVERYONE has a lighter bike… either aluminum, carbon, or just a kids bike. This rack can carry 250 lbs of bikes (4 x 60+). The market for carrying 250lbs of bikes is nearly zero.
delivery was perfect. Assembly was easy with two people; probably could do it with one.
As you can tell, it is a real stretch to find anything wrong with this. But my minor comments are above.
This is truly the top of the top when it comes to bike racks. Super easy to put together, balanced when you are carrying it and installing it in the receiver and it couldn't be more rock solid or easier to use. Once again, the etrailer review and assembly videos were 100% accurate and helpful. Fantastic product and fantastic sales experience!!
This rack system ties in well with the Kuat Pivot that I recently purchased (also from e-trailer). I am totally impressed with the quality of the Kuat products. I have previously used Yakima racks beginning with rooftop systems in the 1980's. The Kuat is the best system on the market today.
After much searching, I decided to purchase the Kuat NV 2.0.
I was fairly easy to put together….” Read the directions “ it will tell you exactly what and how to put it together.. Great instructions easy to follow. I was able to adjust the wheel cradle to fit my bike quickly.
I was a SMALL problem…. I did not get any information from etrailer like I have in the passed… which was strange. So I did not know if they were processing my purchase or not… The money came out of my account. So I after my bike rack showed up… I sent a text to them, with in minutes I received at response, that said they were looking into the problem.. maybe 20 mins later I got a response from them … It seems I Fat Fingered my 1 letter on my e-mail address so etrailer could not send tracking information… Thank you so much GREAT SERVICE. I will use them again
so far so good. easy to put together if you watch a video first and have one helper.
Awesome rack, awesome service and commu nication.
Arrived in great shape, no dings or missing parts. Got it together with the help of my daughter and studying the assembly diagram closely. Ended up putting it together on the dining room table. Can't wait to use it!
Sturdy, convenient to use, good quality.
Ok at 1 year I still remember how good customer service is with etrailer.com. This rack remains awesome as well, favorite features are the locks and the flip down capability so even with bikes loaded I can open the back hatch of my SUV with no issues. Also I think it is easy to take on and off so I don't just drive around with it on, hangs easily in the garage.
Love this bike rack! The NV 2.0 firmly keeps my road bike and beach cruiser securely in place. The added lock is a great feature for keeping the bikes safe after a day of riding. Even on my tiny Corolla the rack looks and fits great. I never have to worry about the bikes when they're locked onto the NV 2.0
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