Transport bikes of all sizes and styles, from mountain bikes to kids bikes, with this hitch bike rack. Ratcheting hooks on the center masts hold your bikes by their frames. Tilts down with bikes loaded for easy access to rear cargo.
Features:
Specs:
The FourTimer has a 2-bike base unit and a removable 2-bike extension so that you can carry up to 4 bikes on the back of your vehicle. The platform-style design makes it easy to load and unload your bikes. Ratcheting hooks and sliding wheel cradles accommodate bikes of different sizes. The rack tilts down - even with bikes loaded - for cargo area access. And an anti-rattle hitch lock secures the rack to your vehicle.
Versatile Rack
This 4-bike carrier can be easily converted to a 2-bike carrier. Simply remove a bolt on the base of the rack to detach the front 2 bike positions. Then remove the red endcap from the detached piece, and place it into the base of the 2-bike rack that you will be using.
Quick, Easy-to-Load Design
This rack lets you quickly and easily load your bikes. Low load height requires minimal lifting. And adjustable hooks and wheel cradles hold bikes of different shapes and sizes.
Each upright mast has 2 ratcheting hooks that move up and down with the push of a button. These hooks you to carry 4 bikes of different heights and frame styles - like children's bikes and bikes with fenders. The hooks firmly grip your bikes by the top tubes, and they have a rubberized coating that protects your bike frames from scratches and scuffs.
All of the hooks can be rotated out of the way for easier bike loading. Just push in the small buttons on the hooks to rotate them.
You can also replace a short hook with a long hook or vice versa. This gives you the ability to choose where you want to mount your bikes. Additional short hooks (Y80526 - sold separately) or long hooks (Y80525 - sold separately) let you mount a shorter or taller than normal bike on the rack.
Sturdy, adjustable wheel cradles let you carry bikes of different lengths. Use the hand knobs to slide each cradle to the desired position and tighten. Ratchet straps allows you to tighten down wheels of different widths.
Insert the straps into built-in slots on the cradles to keep them out of the way while you're loading your bikes.
If you want to carry a fat bike, the cradles can carry tires up to 4-1/2" wide with the addition of extra-long straps (Y02470 - sold separately).
The FourTimer's tilting design makes it easier to access your vehicle's rear cargo area. Just pull the spring-loaded pin at the base of the rack. Make sure the heaviest bike is loaded closest to your vehicle.
Easily fold the rack up against the back of your vehicle when it's not being used. Just pull the pin at the base of each upright mast to fold it down, and use the spring-loaded pin on the rack base to fold the rack against your vehicle.
An anti-rattle hitch pin and lock are included to secure the FourTimer to your vehicle. The threaded pin reduces movement of the rack in your hitch and lets you enjoy a quiet ride.
To secure your bikes to the rack, you can use a standard cable lock (sold separately). Use the loop on the base of the rack as an anchor point for the cable.
The TwoTimer includes an integrated bottle opener at the end of the rack.
Average Customer Rating: 4.6 out of 5 stars (87 Customer Reviews)
Transport bikes of all sizes and styles, from mountain bikes to kids bikes, with this hitch bike rack. Ratcheting hooks on the center masts hold your bikes by their frames. Tilts down with bikes loaded for easy access to rear cargo.The bike rack itself seems pretty sturdy, well build and not very difficult to put together. After completing the directions and during first use, I did have to change how the small and big hooks were installed due to the size differences of the bikes I was transporting. Once I rearranged the order and was on my way, I was very pleased with the performance of the rack. I didn’t experience any swaying or rocking of the rack or bikes (I only had two bikes loaded, not all four).
The only issues I have was the condition in which the rack was received. The box was pretty beat up which I understand but did lead me to expect some issues. After opening the box, the rest of the way, I could see rust on the heavy plastic wrapping. Once I removed the plastic wrapping, there was surface rust on the main carrier assembly on the opposite end from the hitch end. Also, it looks at though there is a light layer of rust developing on the inside of the hitch tube. The extension mast and additional parts were all in great condition. I would have given a 5-star rating had it not been for the condition in which the rack was received.
On our 2016 Kia Sorento, the liftgate does not clear any bicycle installed in the first position of this rack. we will need to remove the first-position bike to operate the liftgate even with the rack tilted down. It does clear the mast and second bike if tilted down.
The paint is super pretty.
The joint between the horizontal bars and spine of rack has more movement than I expected. We haven't actually used the rack yet (just loaded up our bikes to get it fitted) so I don't know if this will cause an offensive level of motion. The spine is super solid.
The tilt motion is locked by two pins, one plunger pin and the other a fat, short, ball-retained pin that's actually too long for the double layer of metal it goes through. This seems just a little cheesy. It's plenty solid, just odd that there's so much pin travel between the head and the ball retainer.
The rack's grip on bikes between the mast hold-down and wheel cradles seems very solid. Hold-downs are quick and easy to set and release. It is difficult to pinch the ball retainers that allow the hooks to swivel.
The ratcheting wheel straps are indeed easier to use than fabric velcro ones found on cheaper racks.
Wheel cradles are reasonably quick and easy to adjust.
Great sturdy product! Bikes are secure! The curved bar at the top sits down on the bikes bar and the tires fit in the trays where they are strapped in! We load up our bikes and check out local parks. Also, take them on vacation, camping, etc. With our old bike rack, the bikes were very close together and get scratched. Again, great product and worth the wait!
Extremely impressed with this purchase from price to shipping to product. Price through etrailer was a little over $100 less than anyone else, bike rack was delivered sooner than expected via UPS and the rack is much more configurable than I had imagined. It is a heavy beast but manageable and folds up out of the way with ease. I have used it with three bikes and as a two bike rack and am absolutely amazed how adjustable it is. It is a little time consuming to adjust and test bikes in different positions so the bikes don’t touch each other but it is possible. The rack holds the bikes rock solid but I do put protection on the frames where the arms grab the top tubes. I do own many Yakima rack products and this one is top shelf.
Rack’s design does not allow for carrying more than 2 large/medium/XL bikes. Due to the placement of the wheel trays and the frame hooks, you can’t carry adult bikes next to each other. You can carry 2 bikes of 48” wheel base, but the other two bikes will need to be small children’s bikes. Folding the rack requires reach across the rack with one hand while holding the weight of the 60lb rack with the other hand.
OH MY GOD! WHAT A PIECE OF [crap]! DO NOT BUY! i've used this thing about four times in the year since i purchased it and every time there's something else wrong with it. first of all, it was defective from the factory. one of the wheel cups was missing the receiver for the plastic wheel strap. after a phone call to etrailer and i can't remember how many weeks/months of waiting, i received a replacement. second, as noted in other reviews, the safety pin (held on by the tiniest of cables) broke off on first use. I just went to use the thing again and discovered a wheel cup had fallen off (while the thing was sitting in my garage!) i don't know if the mounting hardware had fallen off during our last trip and the cup came off when i set the unit in the garage or what! keep in mind, i am not a hardcore user. my family bought this to take occasional trips to the local park to ride on paved trails so it's not like we're using the thing for any high adventure off road situations. I believe i paid $[XXX] for the thing and waited for many months to receive it. this is our first experience owning this type of equipment and we were really excited. we bought a new vehicle and new bikes to start doing more outdoor stuff. Talk about a DISAPPOINTMENT! my advice would be to just buy a pick up truck to haul your stuff! i know i REALLY wish i still had mine.
For about the last five years I've had a Yakima Hold Up 2, which I have loved, but life goes on and the kids all of the sudden want to bring their bikes too. Well, to be honest, I want that too. It's more fun. Anyway, the Hold Up and that type of rack do not do a good job of accommodating children's bikes (though they are superior in almost every other way).
So I sold the Hold Up and tried using a SwingDaddy. That thing was a disaster. I bought it about three weeks before our summer trip and returned it the day after I got back. Even with the top tube adapters it didn't really fit the bikes. The seatpost to stem distance was too short and my son's bike has this weird frame that makes it hard to fit.
It was a couple hundred more dollars to trade up to the FourTimer, but it's worth it in the long run. Compared to the Hold Up it's harder to use. It's more complex to load the bike because you have to get the little trays in the right place and shift them to fit the other bikes. It's kind of a puzzle. But, what you get for this extra complexity is a much wider range of bikes you can fit. In my pictures you can see that I am able to fit my wife's 26" bike small frame, my 27.5" large frame bike, my son's 14" bike and other son's 10" bike. (The little girl's balance bike still rides in the car for the time being.)
The bottom line is that for my needs, this thing fits the bill perfectly.
A note on Yakima hitch locks: My Hold Up and this FourTimer have the type of hitch lock that goes through the hitch pin hole and bolts in. The SwingDaddy and other newer Yakima racks have this new type of lock that supposed to be tool-free. It has a big knob on the back. In my opinion, this type is a big step backward in development. Using the SwingDaddy, it would come loose by using the swing out feature. Fail.
1-year later, this trailer is doing really well. It is still very easy to use, and stood up to the first Minnesota winter - exposure to road salt bringing the fat bike to singletrack trails. Spray some white lithium on the moving parts like I did before the winter and you shouldn't have any problems with anything sticking from rust.
Very easy to load/unload bikes and always feel like the bikes are firmly secured. Need a better design for retaining the plastic tire tie straps when loading a bike. You have to slide the strap all the way back to avoid pinching the strap when loading the tire into the cradle and causing the strap to snap. Maybe a nylon strap or a positive stop on the open end of the strap.
What amazing customer servicce! I called and was able to talk to someone without jumping through hoops. They helped me resolve my problem and sent me a brand new part that I needed for the bike rack. It was a small bolt and knob, so it was free as well!
Received this rack on Saturday, used it for the first time on Sunday! Really easy to assemble. I purchased the rack because 90% of the time I will carry one or two bikes, but 10% of the time I want the ability to carry three or four bikes. I haven't tried the extended set-up yet, but it worked flawlessly for hauling my mountain bike.
UGH!!! LOVE, LOVE , LOVE this rack and sooo wanted to give it FIVE STARS... BUT...
Everything is well built; easy to assemble and install; looks great on my Jeep Gladiator; can load four family bikes in less than five minutes; super sturdy and bikes are solid and secure. I would buy this rack over and over again! So what's the complaint...
With everything being so well engineered and high quality, why would they secure the lock pin cable with a cheap plastic button instead of a stainless pin, bolt or screw? Mine broke off the second time I removed the pin (see pictures)! Not a big deal as I will likely tap the hole and re-secure the cable with an appropriate small bolt, but why this one little compromise on quality?!? I would HIGHLY recommend (have I mentioned that I love this rack?), but not sure who got sick in quality control at Yakima the day they voted on plastic instead of stainless steel for this one part!? :-)
BUY THIS BIKE RACK... did I mention I love it... you will too!
Delivery was speedy but the condition of the box was in very bad shape. Hopefully no pieces are damaged or missing!
Though the box arrived tattered everything was in tact and in good condition. Directions were easy to follow and took less than a hour to assemble.
Haven't had a chance to transport any bikes, but looking forward to it.
So far so good. This product is tougher than some reviews led me to believe. I’m a happy camper at the moment.
E Trailer is great with prompt shipping and great customer service. This particular rack is great if you have mountain bikes of significantly different sizes like large, medium and small or 4 road bikes. If you have 4 large frame mountain bikes it can be a real hassle to get everything situated without the bikes interfering with one another. Quality is good but function for 4 large mountain bikes is very limited.
This is one of the best bike racks.
Sturdy and rather inexpensive.
Even better than that etrailer is the best reseller that can be.
A problem with my shipment was promptly addressed.
A price decrease was immediately matched.
Great quality product. Easy to assemble. Very happy!
The bike rack works well but is extremely heavy. I do not use it as much as I would like because it is hard to put on and take off. My wife cannot lift it so she cannot use it when I'm not home. We tried leaving it on the car but it is extremely inconvenient when having to open up the back door of the SUV.
Great price and in stock with the shortage. Easy to put together with step by step instructions. Can’t wait to use it this spring.
Heavy-duty bike rack assembled just like the directions said. Haven't used it yet for bikes, but I have no concerns. Heavier than expected, so best to have a helper to move it.
I am happy with this. First used it on a 6 hour, 350 mile drive and it work great.
Love it! Looks great and works even greater! Really enjoying this rack and all it's capabilities.
We like our Yakima FourTimer hitch bike rack after owning it for a year.
Positives:
- Wheel straps easy to tighten and are very tight when use built in ratchet tighener along with pulling it.
- bikes held very sturdy
- top tube anchor works easily, quick real ease spring pins to raise and lower the assembly and a quick release clamp to lock down bike tube
- trays slide easily by loosening and retightening for easy fit of children's bikes
- stores easy by leaning against garage wall & securing with strap
- best feature is how much easier it is to fit kids bikes than the fork style
Negative
- heavy but still can maneuver it.
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