hitch mounted bike racks

theweev · Jan 25, 2006

As I'm not too keen on the idea of lifting 50lb DH rigs on and off the roof I was wondering....Does any one have a hitch mounted bike rack on their 5 yet? If so what size reciever hitch and make of rack do you have. A friend of mine has one on his Mazda 3 but it can only hold 2 bikes and I was hoping to hold 3, possibly 4 bikes. Any info would be appreciated...(I'm that much closer to ownig a 5

).
cheers,
weev

AFaceInTheCrowd · Jan 25, 2006

sweet rig man. are the 888 vf2 or rc2x? upgrade those rotors tho... don't want that v-pattern wear on your pads.

but you definately want the 2" reciever hitch. if your gonna be shuttling you and 3 buddies, then you will have just about 200lb worth of bike on the back of you car. all my friends use yakima fullswings (yukon and f350)

Tushawn · Jan 25, 2006

Yeah,
Right on with the 2" mount and the Yakima rack. I have owned Thule and Yakima and have found Yakima to be superior in design.

theweev · Jan 25, 2006

AFaceInTheCrowd said:
sweet rig man. are the 888 vf2 or rc2x? upgrade those rotors tho... don't want that v-pattern wear on your pads.

but you definately want the 2" reciever hitch. if your gonna be shuttling you and 3 buddies, then you will have just about 200lb worth of bike on the back of you car. all my friends use yakima fullswings (yukon and f350)

ya, their the rc2X. simply unbelievable

. I checked a couple of sites afer my post and most say that the 5 will hold a class 1 hitch. That means only 2 bikes. Which I believe was the issue w/ my buddy's 3. thanks for the info though

Zoom5Zoom · Jan 25, 2006

bike hitch

Heya

I have held and dry run fitted a hitch in my dealership. It is a 1 1/4 diameter hitch. I will inquire if a 2 inch hitch is availble in the same style to fit the 5.

BTW the 1 1/4 hitch only need to enlarge two bumper holes to fit the unit.

Cheers
Zoom5Zoom
(cheers)

bulwnkl · Jan 27, 2006

Zoom5Zoom,

What would you (your dealership) say/do if a 5 owner came in with a transmission problem (under warranty) and they had a hitch on the back of the vehicle?

We have a super-small utility trailer that we presently pull a few times a year with our Neon. If you load it to the max the whole thing would weigh just about 1,000 lbs. and we use it to haul general stuff or the occasional large piece of wood. We've never loaded it past ~350 lbs. combined weight. We really prefer a tiny trailer like this over a roof rack when we need more space or versatility, though we may not need again it for quite a while with the 5. I know you can get a hitch for the 5, but the manual says not to tow.

SOoo... what would your dealership say/do in the above situation?

theweev · Jan 27, 2006

bulwnkl said:
Zoom5Zoom,

What would you (your dealership) say/do if a 5 owner came in with a transmission problem (under warranty) and they had a hitch on the back of the vehicle?

We have a super-small utility trailer that we presently pull a few times a year with our Neon. If you load it to the max the whole thing would weigh just about 1,000 lbs. and we use it to haul general stuff or the occasional large piece of wood. We've never loaded it past ~350 lbs. combined weight. We really prefer a tiny trailer like this over a roof rack when we need more space or versatility, though we may not need again it for quite a while with the 5. I know you can get a hitch for the 5, but the manual says not to tow.

SOoo... what would your dealership say/do in the above situation?

put a bike rack in the hitch and never mention towing anything.

Zoom5Zoom · Jan 27, 2006

Trailer Hitch

Good question on the "What if I had a hitch and tranny probs"....

First of all I can not speak for the dealership nor from Mazda prospective. I agree it says "NO" towing.

Now for the techical answer... GO FOR IT. If you respect the Gross Weight Gear Ratio your ok. All that means that if you are pulling something you must in total not surpass this rating. Lets not forget the people in the car when you calculate what "you" do.

Bottom line is once you put on a hitch you will at some point abuse its use and the worry is that both the tranny and most important the BRAKES will fail.

I have a hitch for my Mazda 5 and do intent to use for only bikes

Keep that in mind.

Cheers
Zoom5Zoom
(cheers)
PS I have had hitches on all my cars most of which said no towing. Had no probs but did come close to overloading the trailer like yours and it is a wild feeling to loose brakes mate.

GhostLinker · Jan 28, 2006

I installed the Hidden Hitch Part # 60948 Class I Trailer Hitches - 1 1/4" Receiver and a Softride Access HD Rack (4 bikes).

I love the rack. It folds down to give you access to the hatch, even with the bikes on it. You can also install a ski rack on it.

Check the pics:

theweev · Jan 28, 2006

GhostLinker said:
I installed the Hidden Hitch Part # 60948 Class I Trailer Hitches - 1 1/4" Receiver and a Softride Access HD Rack (4 bikes).

I love the rack. It folds down to give you access to the hatch, even with the bikes on it. You can also install a ski rack on it.

Check the pics:

how much weight will it carry? remembering that 4x50lbs = 200lbs.

GhostLinker · Jan 28, 2006

2000 lbs Gross Trailer Weight and 200 lbs Tongue Weight.

Just one detail ...
If you modified your exhaust, you will have some problems fitting the receiver and you will need a custom install.
They had to notch the rail on myne and reinforce it with other steel plates (paid 50$ extra).
I was able to carry 3 bikes with no problem. With 4 heavy bikes ... As long as you don't exceed the recommended 200 lbs, you should be OK.

You can check this link for details
http://www.hitchesonline.com/mazda_cl1_protege_02.htm

bulwnkl · Jan 28, 2006

Thanks Zoom5Zoom.

GhostLinker, a Hidden Hitch is what we have on our Neon. I didn't see the 5 listed at their site. Are you saying that the Mazda5 and the Protege5 are identical at the rear (for the purposes of attaching a hitch)?

GhostLinker · Jan 28, 2006

Follow the link in my previous post. It is specific for the P5.

Model HH60948.

Zoom5Zoom · Jan 28, 2006

Mazda 5 Trailer Hitch

I do have a part number C11338/DH247381 it is a Curt Hitch. I have fitted it on the 2006 Mazda 5.

Here is the link NOTE IMAGE IS NOT AS SHOWN.....and beleave me it is not. It is somewhat hidden and is a 1 1/4 receiver square hole.

http://search.cartserver.com/search...c1_receiv_01&maxhits=1&keywords=gl0033&GO=GO!

You should be able to find a local distributor in N Vancover

Cheers
Zoom5Zoom
(cheers)

theweev · Jan 29, 2006

you all rock thanks for all the info!!

Fly on the Wall · Jan 30, 2006

Guess I've been lurking around here long enough. I just joined this forum...

Here is the hitch on my 5.

Look here to see more pics: hitch on my 5

The hitch is from etrailer.com.

Here she is with a couple of "cargo" boxes on the rack.

theweev · Jan 30, 2006

welcome fly. thanks for the pics. how badly does that rack affect the cars handling?

Zoom5Zoom · Jan 30, 2006

Great Pics Friend

Looks like the same hitch I had in my hands. The hitch I had had only 4 attachment points. Hope it is the same.

Wonder how it does handle...... PS doe the cargo carrier come with lights behind ??

Cheers
Zoom5Zoom
(cheers)

Zoom5Zoom · Jan 31, 2006

step plate

Hey Fly

Lookin at those pics I also noticed you don't have a Step plate for the rear bumper cover. I like the step plate as it prevents wear and tear on the top of the bumper cover......

Cheers
Zoom5Zoom
(cheers)

Fly on the Wall · Jan 31, 2006

Thank you for the welcome.

When I've had the rack on, I've also had the car fully loaded. Between the two the handling was definitely sloppier. I normally drive mellow and was a bit more conscious with the rack and a full load... I think the overall load was more of a factor than <200 lbs on the rack. One thing that I think helps is running ratcheting tie downs from the rack, through the cargo boxes to the tie down hooks under the 5s bumper (I think you can see this in the pic). This keeps the load from shifting or swaying. Also, while the rack is behind the rear wheels, I don't think it is that far back compared to a car with a trunk (The rear wheels seem near the rear of the chassis on the 5). Don't get me wrong the handling wasn't a problem, but there was a noticeable difference.

The hitch mounts with 4 bolts, which seems sufficient for 200 lbs max. No lights on the rack, but it doesn't obscure the 5s tail lights at all, though it does extend about 2 feet beyond them.

"you don't have a Step plate for the rear bumper..." I've been thinking about getting one (when I recover from Xma$). I'm also thinking about splashguards, all weather mats, and seat covers. Has anyone seen Mazda's seat covers in person? What do the feel and fit like? Do they have separate covers for the armrests and headrests?

hitch mounted bike racks

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