Transporting XC bike in the back of an SUV?

Discuss light weight issues concerning mountain bikes & parts.

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DagenhamDave
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Joined: Sun May 28, 2017 4:50 am

by DagenhamDave

I have a 2017 Trek Top Fuel 9.9 RSL - full carbon frame, bars, stem, saddle rails, seatpost, wheels and XX1 Eagle components.

I don't want to put bike racks on my roof because of the wind noise and looks.

Is it safe for the bike to transport it laying flat inside the back of my SUV, obviously with the drivetrain side facing up? (The bike fits without needing to take the wheels off.)

I am worried that laying it flat will put undue (and unnatural) force against the XX1 Eagle carbon crank and potentially damage it or the bottom bracket.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,
Dave

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themidge
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by themidge

I don't think you'll have a problem laying it flat so long as you're careful. Just lay it carefully down, LH pedal at 12 o'clock and bars either resting gently on their end or flat with the front wheel pointing upwards (if you have space).
One thing i would say is that bikes tend to shift around a bit when going over bumps etc. in the road so you might want to place a few heavy things around it (there's a box of walking boots in my family car that does rather nicely)

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duvivr6
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Location: PR

by duvivr6

It is a mountain bike, I crash mine all the time and just get up and keep riding. Doubt laying it on its side inside your car will hurt your crank much less the BB. You are definitely overthinking this one.

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ms6073
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Location: Houston, Texas

by ms6073

While I am going to have to agree with others about the durability of a mtb, I can also understand wanting to have the bike inside, if for no other reason than to reduce the chances of the bike going missing. Depending on the SUV, size of the mountain bike, and how much internal height/clearance is available, you could get something like a Kuat fork mount carrier and bolt it to a piece of wood, put down the second row seat, then remove the wheel and use the thru-axle to mount the bike upright to the fork block.
Last edited by ms6073 on Tue Aug 15, 2017 5:41 pm, edited 2 times in total.
- Michael
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LeDuke
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Location: Front Range, CO

by LeDuke

Is this a serious post?

If it is, tell me, what the hell do you do with your bike that you think it doesn't undergo more stress during an average ride than it would sitting inside an SUV?

llhh
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Location: Estland

by llhh

ms6073 wrote:/.../and use the thru-axle to mount the bike upright to the fork block.


But then you got to be careful not to damage the fork when taking sharp hairpins with the SUV, though :D

This post cannot be serious - I thought I was obsessive caring for bikes but this here is plain pathological.
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DagenhamDave
Posts: 10
Joined: Sun May 28, 2017 4:50 am

by DagenhamDave

I honestly wanted to know. I used to carry my bike on the back of the car until I read that the exhaust can damage the carbon rims, which wasn't something I expected. These new light-weight all carbon XC bikes seem to fail significantly at times during crashes, so I just wanted some thoughts. I didn't expect the criticism. :?

ntb1001
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by ntb1001

No problems with laying it flat..drivetrain up.

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ms6073
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Location: Houston, Texas

by ms6073

llhh wrote:But then you got to be careful not to damage the fork when taking sharp hairpins with the SUV, though :D

Lost me there. :lol:
- Michael
"People should stop expecting normal from me... seriously, we all know it's never going to happen"

DagenhamDave
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Joined: Sun May 28, 2017 4:50 am

by DagenhamDave

Thanks to those with constructive replies!

tomvin90
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Joined: Sat Feb 22, 2014 2:12 pm

by tomvin90

Stick it in the back of the car. It will be totally fine.

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ms6073
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Location: Houston, Texas

by ms6073

Yeah, not sure what is wrong with this (not my vehicle) as we have a similar setup for our road bikes. Considered a rear hitch rack until (a) one of our friends had both of there high-end mountain bikes secured with $$cable locks stolen while they ate lunch at a restaurant (thieves unhitched the rack and tossed it, bikes and all, in the back of a pickup-truck), and (b) another friends bike carried in a nice-hitch rack was destroyed when his car was hit from behind during a domino-effect collision in bumper-to-bumper rush-hour traffic, for which he indicated his bike would have been unscathed had it been inside the car.

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Last edited by ms6073 on Wed Aug 16, 2017 8:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.
- Michael
"People should stop expecting normal from me... seriously, we all know it's never going to happen"

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stockae92
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by stockae92

I have no problem "stuffing" my carbon HT into my tiny Fiat 500e with both wheels off.

Actually, since the car interior is small, sometimes the rear stay (non-drive side drop out) will be rested on the back of reclined front passenger seat, with two (2) 29er wheelsets (four (4) wheels in total) rest on top of the frame.

de lars cuevas
Posts: 182
Joined: Fri Jul 28, 2006 8:28 pm
Location: the Netherlands

by de lars cuevas

Laying is fine off couse, but upright looks more pro!:D I have these:

Image

My review here: http://www.velozine.nl/2015/11/17/bikei ... n-je-auto/
(Dutch only, sorry):

H2o
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by H2o

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