Motorman Posted June 30, 2018 Share Posted June 30, 2018 I am intending to buy an Autocruise Rhythm 2012 on a fiat ducato, It comes with a cycle rack, supposedly capable of taking up to 60kg. I have two electric bikes weighing about 42kg without batteries, but I am concerned it may be too much for the van door. Does anyone know if there is a weight limit on the rear door? All new cycle racks for the ducato seem to be up to 35kg. Any advice appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keithl Posted June 30, 2018 Share Posted June 30, 2018 There have been reports in the past of door mounted racks damaging the door so my suggestion would be to ditch the door mounted rack and get a towbar rack instead. Keith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blaven Posted June 30, 2018 Share Posted June 30, 2018 Keithl - 2018-06-30 12:58 PM There have been reports in the past of door mounted racks damaging the door so my suggestion would be to ditch the door mounted rack and get a towbar rack instead. Keith. Yep. Scuffing to the paintwork if nothing else. Fiamma bike racks, or mine at least, rest on the door with a broad rubber pad. No matter how well fitted, road grime and small particles get between this and the paintwork such that when the rack is removed there’s an obvious band of abrasion which T-Cut cannot remove. You’ve got to be realistic and either accept this, or leave the rack in situ. The problem with a tow bar rack in my experience is that your rear door opening is compromised. The are good though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arthur49 Posted June 30, 2018 Share Posted June 30, 2018 Keithl - 2018-06-30 12:58 PM There have been reports in the past of door mounted racks damaging the door so my suggestion would be to ditch the door mounted rack and get a towbar rack instead. Keith. Agree. We had a Rhythm with door mounted rack on which we carried two ordinary road bikes. We changed to towball mounted as we were uncomfortable with the pressure on the door - no damage but evidence of rack slipping down the door a little even after checking all mountings were tight. We also did not like hitting a bump where gravity on the way down probably increased the weight on the rack!!. So, no way would I use a door rack again unless it was for one very lightweight bike. On last and current van we carry two electric bikes on towball mounted carrier. The batteries are carried inside van to reduce weight and for security purposes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted June 30, 2018 Share Posted June 30, 2018 We have used a Fiamma carry-bike on rear door for six years with no problem. But with our new ebikes I decided a swing out rack was the best way to go, not finding one which completely suited our needs I made one myself and it's working very well. For a ready made one there are couple of options, Robin has one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Motorman Posted June 30, 2018 Author Share Posted June 30, 2018 Thanks all for the advice. I will look into a swing out version as we will want to open the rear doors as its a rear lounge model. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wirehaired Posted June 30, 2018 Share Posted June 30, 2018 I am hoping to get a towball mounted bike rack at some stage,would be interested in what brand you had? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blaven Posted June 30, 2018 Share Posted June 30, 2018 Wirehaired - 2018-06-30 6:50 PM I am hoping to get a towball mounted bike rack at some stage,would be interested in what brand you had? I have a Witter for 2 electric bikes. Very robust and well made. I’d happily buy another. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul2 Posted June 30, 2018 Share Posted June 30, 2018 Hi I have a Buscamper Busbiker bike rack on my Adria Twin I think its' a really good rack and worth the money. Robinhood did a very good review of this rack 2 or 3 years a go much better than I could do, i'm sure if you do a search on the forum you will find it well worth a read. Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterjl Posted June 30, 2018 Share Posted June 30, 2018 Hi I looked at busbiker and similar however the weight of around 50kg plus put me off. I settled on a Westfalen removable towbar (31kg) plus an altera bike rack which slides and lets me access the back doors. It doesn’t slide quite far enough by about 5cm to allow the doors to fully open but it slides enough to give access. Just back from first trip with this arrangement and very pleased. Previously had a door rack but only used it for one ebike and carried the other inside because of the weight. Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geordy paul Posted July 1, 2018 Share Posted July 1, 2018 I too have the Altera bike carrier that slides away from the van. But, it still doesn't give enough clearance to open the doors. What I had to do was loosen it at the locking handle and twist it slightly then I could open the door. However, after a while doing this with the weight of two ebikes it becomes a pain in the back lifting the rack back into place. The solution for me was to buy a Memo Van Swing. You fit it to the vans tow bar and then fit your rack to it. I think it is by far the cheapest way to get a swing away carrier. Bit of a fiddle to fit depending on your existing tow bar but not hard. When not in use it just stays on the back of the van. Works a treat. I can now fit any tow bar bike rack and swing it away from the doors giving easy access to the gas etc. I bought mine direct from Memo in Holland for a substantial saving on the UK price. http://www.memo-europe.nl/en/van-swing-pivotting-system-bike-carriers (price in euros) https://www.roadpro.co.uk/product/03k-bike-racks-and-carriers/van-swing-cycle-carrier-j6202 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gdf Posted July 1, 2018 Share Posted July 1, 2018 After using a door mounted rack for 6 years with ordinary bikes I found that the hinge had dropped slightly and I had to 'lift' door to close when bikes on. Fiat don't recommend door mounted racks on PVC. New van and electric bikes (albeit with batteries removed for travelling) meant a search for another solution. Looked at towball mounted racks but the weight allowed on each rail of rack and opening of doors meant I now have a Memo Van Star imported and fitted by RoadPro at Daventry. It is a heavy rack, takes 2 bikes and can carry 60kgs and doesn't need a towball like the other product from Memo mentioned in another post. If you don't already have a towball it works out cheaper than the other Memo product. Hope this helps Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wirehaired Posted July 1, 2018 Share Posted July 1, 2018 blaven - 2018-06-30 7:45 PM Wirehaired - 2018-06-30 6:50 PM I am hoping to get a towball mounted bike rack at some stage,would be interested in what brand you had? I have a Witter for 2 electric bikes. Very robust and well made. I’d happily buy another. Many thanks I will check that out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowie Posted July 1, 2018 Share Posted July 1, 2018 gdf - 2018-07-01 9:46 AM After using a door mounted rack for 6 years with ordinary bikes I found that the hinge had dropped slightly and I had to 'lift' door to close when bikes on. Fiat don't recommend door mounted racks on PVC. Dave That sounds likely, I had a Fiamma door mounted rack on for about 3 years, and the off-side door is now stiff to open, so I wouldn’t choose that option again, Regards, Snowie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veletron Posted July 2, 2018 Share Posted July 2, 2018 Wee video of mine in action here: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rooster63 Posted July 4, 2018 Share Posted July 4, 2018 I carry 2 bikes on a Flamma door mounted rack on a Citroen Relay. No problems yet although a bit of rust discolouration where the brackets are bolted on. Also van developed a leak eventually traced to the top catch bracket working slightly loose so that there was a minute gap between the door and the seal, easily fixed, not sure if anything do do with the bike rack. When bikes are mounted I never open the rear doors so that the weight is evenly distributed and not just borne by the hinges. Take bikes off once on site, 2 minute job. Had thought about getting a tow bar rack but would need the expense of a tow ball, electrics and a new rack so will leave well alone for now. Only other snag with my current rack is that it is mounted quite high so as not to obscure the lights so need a step and a bit of muscle power to lift bikes up! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted July 4, 2018 Share Posted July 4, 2018 And that's the benefit of a swing out, can open the rear doors at anytime with no strain on hinges which are a known problem, and low so very easy to load/unload bikes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellen Posted July 5, 2018 Share Posted July 5, 2018 We had a Pendle tow bar mounted but had to remove bikes and rack to access the rear of the van. We recently purchased a swing out one. Very impressed so far much easier to access the rear, both doors can be fully opened also much easier to load our heavy electric bikes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grahamt63 Posted July 9, 2018 Share Posted July 9, 2018 I can recommend the Busbiker rack by Buscamper. Great design, great quality but not cheap. I've just had my 2nd fitted to a new van , at their Culemborg base, that I didn't plan on buying! See YouTube for clips etc The weight of the rack is 39kg without tow bar fitting. I think a swing out rack where you can get access to open the rear doors is a must as if you use eurotunnel and some ferries they want to physically check the lpg gas valves are isolated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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