Hmm.....now make it strong enough to hold up a Honda Ruckus. :thumbup:

I think this is by far the best solution for a bike on our cars. Please either send the specs or sell me a set.

I've had this same set up on my Mr2 for a couple of years now and and it works great, I thought about doing the same with the FRS but I found out the bike fits with seats folded down.

Hi!!
Wondering if I can order a set of the rods from you?
Thanks,
Jenn

Bike rack
 

Gents,
I have been running a set of these for a while now, over 1000 miles on them with a road bike. this set up is great, it never moves. I added the bike rack that was the easiet to use 1upusa, or you could use some other roofrack to hold the bike.
it has not been a day riding that when I get back to the car, someone is waiting to ask questions about it. never mind the car :thumbsup:
really enjoying it.

Hmm this looks like a good idea for my diamondback. plus i wouldnt have to worry about getting mud or dirt in/on my car

Please make more...soon...lol. I am so tired of loading up my Expedition with the bike to go MTB riding twice a week..

do you have access to more rods? How are yours
holding up

Glad to hear they are working for you! I love mine as well. Always questions at the trails as you say. Sadly, this setup works far better than our hitch/Thule setup on our other car. So much more stable on the FR-S!

But sadly, I offered to produce some more and of the 12 or so people on this forum that "committed" only 2 remainted interested after price and that's not enough to justify producing them. It's not a profit standpoint, it's a "these are f-n expensive if made in small batches" standpoint.

If I can get 12 people committed enough to take a set, I don't mind running off another batch. Right now, through the same supplier I used last time, they would be $200 CDN for a pair of bars with washers, shipped anywhere in North America. But right now, it doesn't seem like I'll be making any anytime soon. Sorry!

I'll commit for a set if they are around $200 CDN

Subaru BRZ Bike Rack
 

I came up with an easy solution for making a tow hook bike rack like the one designed by "Thatguy" in an earlier post. He used the tow hook receptacles and machined two galvanized steel rods and threaded the ends to screw them into the tow hook receptacles. Then put a roof rack bike rack across the two rods and you are set.

I don't have machine shop and couldn't find a machinist who would bother with such a small job. They typically wanted a lot more money as a "set up" fee. If you know a machinist or can find one who will cooperate you could use this approach.

What I did (after a first failed design) is pretty simple and elegant: Just buy two 16 mm x 1.5 threaded rods. The 1.5 refers to the number of threads and the tow hooks require this thinner size thread (as opposed to 2.0). Since it's metric, I couldn't find these at Lowes or Home Depot. I believe I ordered them from Grainger or another similar fastener company. They came 3 feet in length and I had an auto welding shop cut down so that once screwed into the tow hooks they extended an additional 16" beyond the bumper (I believe the total length was around 24"). This provided plenty of room for the single bike rack without adding unnecessary length. The auto welder also soldered two metal beads around each rod to mark where the bike rack should go so one doesn't have to measure the distance from the bumper each time (or have the rack sit crookedly).

I used the same bike rack the other person did: UpOne USA roof rack. It's the best rack I have used–easy to get the bikes on and off and very stable. I've used it around town and so far there seems to be less movement of the bike than with the previous hitch bike racks I used to use, perhaps because it has two supports rather than just one center support pole.

The rods were $40 each and the bike rack was $180, so the overall cost was not more than most hitch racks and probably less than roof rack set up. And of course, there is the expense of installing the hitch in the first place. (The only shortcoming is that it is only designed for 1 bike. I am not sure how it work if you made the rods longer so there was room for 2 bike racks. The increased length and added weight of another rack seems like pushing it to far).

It takes me only 3 minutes to screw in the threaded rods and put on the bike rack and clamp it to the rods. I have taken it apart in 2 minutes.

It's worked great on very bumpy Pittsburgh roads and in few weeks I will let you know how it works on the longer trip to North Carolina and Georgia.

The pictures look the same as those in ThatGuy's post, so I am not bothering putting them up. The only difference is that the threaded rods have threads throughout. I capped them with plastic caps at the end.

Another choice - thanks for the thread size.

[QUOTE=that_guy;848700]Interested to see how this turns out! Post it up when you start!
QUOTE]

TG, here's what I came up with, based on a design I did for couple of my Miatas years ago. I work in a machine shop so the pins/rods were not a prob just a Saturday project and a local muffler shop did the bending and welding. Unfortunately the car has gone back to Toyota, but that's another story, so I did not have a chance to fully test it out. I have little doubt it will perform well, waiting for the '14s to come out so I can get in the queue once again.

Interesting approaches. I like!

Glad this helped inspire others to get creative!

pm'd

[QUOTE=jabingb;1094417][QUOTE=that_guy;848700]1
QUOTE]



if someone hits that will it damage the car because the force goes to those two pins?

Hate to ask so late in the game, but are there any more of these rack mounting rods/kits available for sale? =) Very interested.

Nice Cdale! I have 2 Cdale 29ers: '09 Caffiene, '12 Scalpel Carbon 1

any more of these rods getting made???

How hard to mount these two pipes?

I had a custom made tow hook rack that accept any Yakima roof rack attachments for bikes. It is so nice to have and remove in 30 seconds.

I'm thinking about it actually. Had some time to stew over it and think I might have a slightly improved design idea.

I'll be sure to post something here if I decide to run another small batch. I have a hitch now on the car but after all the effort it took to make a hitch, I still think the tow hook mount option is the best there is.

Stay tuned and thanks for the continued interest everyone!

Looking forward to it. I didn't have my 86 yet when you made them last time.

Just emailed some machine shops local to get a quote. I'd rather go through my original source (4000kms away) but I'm trying to find a way to keep the costs down for everyone. As I've said before, small batches and expensive materials (which are also expensive to machine materials) make it difficult. But I wont skimp quality, so stainless is the only way.

OK, seems my best source is still my original source. Nothing wrong with that though ;)

Now I'm not a vendor here and I have no intentions of becoming a business or store to sell these. Just simply providing a service to those who, like me, want to carry a bike on this car without modifying it or damaging it.

If interested, please PM me and I'll see about running a batch off again to service those interested.

Thanks.

Do you think these would be strong enough to hold a fat bike, like a surly moonlander? Think 35-50 pounds depending on the model.


Edit: I should clarify that I am well aware of the fact that I wouldn't be able to use the same "rack" section as a lot of you guys are using, and would have to seek out something different than that one by 1Up (or w/e the brand is)... but as far as your thread-in rods go, do you think they'd hold up to fat bike weights?

I can't comment on strength as my bike is only about 22lbs and the rack is about 16lbs. But the bars are very robust and I think they could defintely work. Put one of your tow hooks in and stand on it, probably similar forces except they are made of aluminum and these bars are stainless steel (a little more sturdy).

Now I'm not a sales guy for 1UP, but they do make an add on for the bike rack I've used that allows you to fit a fat bike. Check out their site, it might work for you.

Last call for interested members. I'm on the fence about producing some of these again and this will be my LAST time doing this. Far too many people raising their hands and then backing out. I am not a business and while I applaude members for creativity in designing something on their own, I am not in the business of losing money to help others.

So if you are interested, please PM me. If there is not enough interest, I will NOT be producing these ever again.

Thanks!

I applaud you for even trying. I know it's far more effort than I would be willing to put out for something that started as a personal project. As interested as I am, I do not have the money to spare at this time and therefore do not want to lead you on in any way... so I guess you could say my interest is purely academic. Thank you for creating this and sharing it with the community.

Just an update for all those following, the last batch is in production...

http://i58.tinypic.com/w1cx0l.jpg

4 sets are paid for and spoken for, only 1 set left. After this, there will be no more! PM me if interested.

Great job, I can't wait! :D

Pm'd on the remaining set. Thanks

Check out SeaSucker racks. No body modifications needed. They adhere to the body and the glass with vacuum. If you felt so inclined you could mount the bike to the side of the car ;) Having just picked up my FRS I havent invested in one of these yet, but since I own 3 times as many bikes as I do cars.... I'm going to LOL. This particular design of bike carrier has been run by the Kenda / 5 Hour Energy race team for the last couple seasons and they love it.

I'm just a bit hesitant to place that much weight on the glass rear windshield. Also, how is it holding when cornering? I mean, with a bike attached I would be more careful when making turns, but sometimes you can't help it.

I havent tried em out yet.... but they say each of those cups holds with 220lbs of force...so cornering and driving should be good. As far as the glass goes I'd share your concern, but at the same time I can recall seeing people try to break door glass - on purpose - and they fail miserably LOL....meaning the glass is much tougher and harder to break then you'd reasonably assume. I believe they also make a mount that has a footprint on the body of the car of about 1 square foot - tiny - that doesnt require anything be placed on the glass. All that said.... I have a concern about the cups leaving a ring on the paint.....but if that proves unfounded....the thing would sure beat any body modifications.

I've got some contacts with the 5 Hour team.... I'll ask 'em about the glass and if the thing leaves any marks on the paint etc ;)

Not to toot my own horn, but the bars being discussed in this thread do not require any body modifications either...

Be very careful adding weight to the roof of this car. It is thin metal and can/will warp and contort during driving. Weight is one thing but the leverage that a bike provides that weight is another. Think of your bike swaying on the roof as you turn and drive. That weight is prying at the glass and roof. If it's even remotely in a weak spot, it can cause damage.

The tow hook bar option does not cause any damage to the car and even if it did, it would be concealed under the rear bumper anyways. If something were to happen, it would happen with the rebar which is a replacement body part that any Joe can install themselves. It's fairly inexpensive too. Much cheaper and easier to replace than a heated rear window and painted body/roof.

Just saying. Think about it before you act.

Totally valid points about the glass and body work. I'm not familiar with the SeaSucker mounts in practice - just in what I've seen online etc. Your design is a fantastic work around for the problem of where to put a hitch as well, and like ya say eliminates the risk of damage to some fragile and expensive parts. Just tossed the one out there as a thought for consideration.

My issue with putting my bike on the roof is that I am a clumsy dude. So, eventually, I will drop my bike on the roof and dent it or break the glass with the dropouts or something like that. So, my bikes go inside or out back of any of my vehicles.

[ame]http://youtu.be/zP9mndGzLt8[/ame]