Hitch Mounted Bike Rack for Vehicle and Travel Trailer

Updated 02/24/2026 | Published 02/19/2026

Products Featured in This Question

etrailer RV Bumper 2" Trailer Hitch Receiver

(73)

$66.85

Replacement Shank for Gen-Y Adjustable Ball Mount - 2" Hitch - 10" Drop/Rise - 16K

(5)

$269.95

Replacement Shank for Gen-Y Adjustable Ball Mount - 2" Hitch - 12-1/2" Drop and Rise - 16K

(2)

$289.95

Adjustable Width Trailer Hitch Receiver for RVs, 18" to 51" Wide

(579)

$312.11

Hollywood Racks Destination Bike Rack for 4 Bikes - 2" Hitches - Frame Mount

(919)

$449.99

Mount-n-Lock SafetyStruts Bumper Brackets and Reinforcement Plates - Qty 2

(7)

$99.95

Yakima LongHaul RV Bike Rack - 4 Bikes - 2" Hitches - Silver

(71)

$318.95

Yakima HoldUp Bike Rack for 4 Bikes - 2" Hitches - Wheel Mount

(361)

$878.40

Question:

Hi there. I am looking for a tilt-able frame/wheel mount bike rack that I can use on both my 2” car hitch and on the back of our travel trailer factory installed 1 1/4” hitch. Any suggestions? I haven’t seen any with a 4 bike capability but for now 2 bikes would be fine. Many that I review don’t say they’re for travel trailer use. Was hoping you could help.

asked by: Alexandria J

Expert Reply:

Hey Alexandria! Bike racks rated for travel trailers are pretty limited. There is quite a bit of additional force back there. This also means there are no 1-1/4" bike racks that will work. I have two different options for you.

The first is to mount a different hitch at the rear on your bumper, assuming you have a bumper. The etrailer RV Bumper 2" Trailer Hitch Receiver # e38HR fits 4" x 4" and 4" x 4-1/2" bumpers and has a 350 lb tongue weight capacity. This would allow you to use the Yakima HoldUp Bike Rack for 4 Bikes # Y95MX which is the only 4-bike platform rack rated for travel trailers.

This bike rack has a max capacity of 40 lbs per bike when mounted on the trailer, and weighs 85 lbs, so it will not exceed the capacity of the hitch. You also need to make sure the bumper can handle the weight. You might also want to reinforce the bumper with something like # MNT85VR. Hanging bike racks like the # Y02476 are the only other option.

The other option is to keep the bike rack mounted on your vehicle at all times, even when towing the trailer. You can use the Gen-Y stacked receivers like # 325-GH-505 or # 325-GH-506 in the rise position so you can mount the bike rack and your ball mount to tow the trailer. Unlike other adapters, this won't reduce the capacity of your hitch. However, you still need to make sure your vehicle hitch is rated high enough to handle the trailer and bikes. With this you could use a bike rack like # B89VR.

What kind of bikes are you carrying?

expert reply by: Robin H

Yakima HoldUp
(click to enlarge)

Alexandria J.

2/23/2026

I think I may be misunderstanding you. My minivan has a 2” receiver. My travel trailer has a factory installed 1 1/4” receiver that came welded underneath. It’s not on the bumper.

Robin H.

2/23/2026

@AlexandriaJ I understand, I'm saying to add this other 2" receiver to the bumper if you have one. You would leave the other hitch and it wouldn't be used. You can't put any kind of bike rack on that 1-1/4" receiver, none of the racks with a 1-1/4" shank can handle the forces from that trailer. So you can either add this hitch or keep everything on the vehicle. If you don't have a bumper that can handle it, and the vehicle option won't work for your setup, you will have to cut off the hitch on your travel trailer and add one like the Adjustable Width Trailer Hitch Receiver for RVs # C13702.

Alexandria J.

2/23/2026

Sorry, the whole reply did not go through at once. I do not pull the trailer with my minivan. We pull the trailer with our truck. I’d like to use a bike rack on my minivan for carrying at least a gravel bike in a mountain bike. I also have three small kids bikes, but I could potentially put those in the trunk. When we travel with the camper, we could put the kids bikes in the back of the truck, but would like to put the mountain bike in the gravel bike on a bike rack. I wasn’t sure if there’s any way around buying two separate racks since the receivers are two different sizes. Also trying to avoid having to weld a different hitch to the camper since it already came with one. May not be possible to find something that fits both.

Robin H.

2/23/2026

@AlexandriaJ there are bike racks that fit both a 1-1/4" and 2" hitch but there are no bike racks that will work with a 1-1/4" hitch on the back of a travel trailer.