wordsman Posted October 14, 2012 Report Share Posted October 14, 2012 I'm after a towbar and 4-bike carrier for my 2005 D3. There seem to be a lot of options out there but I'm not sure what's going to work on the A8. Anyone had any experience? It'll be for kids and adult bikes, small and large. cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patently Posted October 14, 2012 Report Share Posted October 14, 2012 Well I found this to be a good bike carrier: MAXXRAXX bike rack, cycle carriers, home. The UK 4 bike, cycle carrier, car bicycle rack Can't help with the towbar, though, but I think he can arrange that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wordsman Posted October 14, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 14, 2012 Thanks, I'll check the site out. cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveP Posted October 15, 2012 Report Share Posted October 15, 2012 I have a thule euroclassic, holds 3 bikes and then you add an adaptor to get the 4th. Works ok. Folds into 3 so takes up less space. Fitting can be a bit fiddly, once you have an order that the bikes go on then it gets easier. Quite heavy to pick up (16kg) and very awkward (a friend has one also and finds it hard to move about). Makes a lot less noise than roof ones! Makes getting into the boot awkward (BMW touring with opening glass was excellent for this very reason). Some racks have a tilt, not sure if any 4 bike ones do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulrstaylor Posted October 15, 2012 Report Share Posted October 15, 2012 (edited) I have a thule euroclassic, holds 3 bikes and then you add an adaptor to get the 4th. Makes getting into the boot awkward (BMW touring with opening glass was excellent for this very reason).Some racks have a tilt, not sure if any 4 bike ones do. Erm, I have a euroclassic also...... and it tilts Just like the pictures here Difflock.com: Thule EuroClassic bike carrier On the G5 I have there is a release handle behind a flap above the numberplate that releases the whole carrier to hinge back about 45degrees, on the G6 it is a pedal I think that does the same thing..... Hope that makes getting in your boot easier Dave Edited October 15, 2012 by paulrstaylor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveP Posted October 16, 2012 Report Share Posted October 16, 2012 mine is about 6 years old. It is different from the pictures you posted (the 4th bike adaptor for a start is 2 separate wheel supports) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wordsman Posted January 6, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 6, 2013 So, I tried to get a towbar fitted, but the guy couldn't drop the bumper off to get to the chassis - looks like it's been bodged at some point. So imagining a world of pain I scrapped the idea. Now I'm wondering if there's a bike rack that'll fit on the boot. Ideally it'll hold 4 bikes, but my bet is that'll be too heavy. Any ideas? thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PsYcHe Posted January 8, 2013 Report Share Posted January 8, 2013 Personally, I'd stay away from boot mounted carriers... If you can't do towbar, then spend the money and do roof mounted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveP Posted January 9, 2013 Report Share Posted January 9, 2013 I agree. What I do is leave the bike rack attached to the roof bars and just lift them off in one go, makes it quite quick to put on / take off. Just don't try to drive into your garage with them on the roof. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MichaelV8V Posted January 11, 2013 Report Share Posted January 11, 2013 I'd persevere with the towbar option, the one that Audi use is a Westfalia removable one. Add the Thule 3-bike carrier, with the optional 4-bike extension, and you're there. Only think to consider is the overall weight, the towbar is rated for a 90kg load, if the carrier is 16kg as quoted above, then you've 74kg left for bikes, or 18.5kg each. Kids bikes can be very heavy. I bought the Westfalia + Thule 4-bike carrier, but lost my nerve when I saw how far out that 4th bike would be, and the load it was putting on the towbar, so went back to just carrying 3 bikes. I feel very comfortable touring at 100mph+ with three bikes on the towbar, 70mph made me nervous when the bikes were on the roof, you could see them shimmying through the sunroof, and a friend lost 4 bikes at 90mph when they just ripped the carrier off the roof, there is a lot of drag with 4 bikes. 80kg of bikes on the boot would seem very unsafe, and would mean having to take the bikes off whenever you want anything out of the boot. Really inconvenient on a long tour. As mentioned above, a towbar mounted carrier can be tilted to let you open the boot. The other thing to consider is the security of the bikes, locked onto a towbar with additional security wires makes them pretty hard to remove whilst you're having lunch somewhere, nylon straps on a boot makes them an easy target. Roof mount is somewhere between the two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveP Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 You are right about weights, etc But I have taken 4 mountain bikes to the alps and back (3 times in total) and not had problems with it. But on lower rated tow bars you can get very near the hitch limit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MichaelV8V Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 I think the limit is one that Audi state, and I'm cautious about it because the weight is so far behind the ball with a bike carrier, which is an unusual load for a towbar. It is encouraging that you've done some long trips without problems, and, thinking it through, if Audi says its good for 90kg, then they will have tested it at 180 without problems, so 4 decent bikes should be fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveP Posted January 12, 2013 Report Share Posted January 12, 2013 Sorry, I will clarify - I have done 2 trips in a BMW 5 series (witter detachable) and a Q7 (think it is a witter detachable). The BMW was fine and I never had any qualms or questions about the load. For some reason though the Q7's seems to be...better/more solid. Not quantifiable by looking at it, but it DOES have a higher load value. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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