What Not To Do
Examples of Bad Designs
Excessively Extending a Carrier
Loading two bikes (over 210 lbs. each) on this carrier will severely overload the hitch and cause disastrous driving impairment by reducing front wheel traction. This configuration will cause a virtual mobile teeter-totter driving experience. On anything but the straightest driveway entrance, this severe over-extension of the carrier will be sure to leave gouges in in the road, if not completely destroying the carrier and your hitch. Overloading your suspension may cause the shocks, and leaf or coil springs to be damaged or blown. And, what about your bike?
Excessively Long Horizontal Stabilizers
As in the case above with the overly long extension of the horizontal stabilizer will severely reduce ground clearance, causing the carrier to ‘bottom-out’ especially when going through drive-way entrances. The absence of a vertical stabilizer will allow the bike to sway on sudden stops or accelerations causing damage to the vehicle and/or the bike.
GROUND DRAGGER!
Hitch is too low on these SUV applications and will drag the ground!. Many minivans and small SUV’s have a hitch lower that the 14″ minimum for clearance. The solution might be a “lift kit” added on the cycle carrier. Send Motorcycleracks an inquiry. In some cases, the hitch is too high making loading difficult on the bigger bikes, so the same device can shift it DOWN IN 3″ increments up to a total of 6″. See receiver assembly to the left for example of an UP-shifting use.
