Transporting my Ebike

[B-rye]

Hello everyone. I am anxiously awaiting my new Rad Rover 5 and have also just received the Rad Rover Step Through. My question is.....Has anybody tried transporting their Rad Rover with a truck bed tailgate cover. You know where the front tire hangs over the truck bed on a pad.
Thanks

[cal]

The weight of the bike dissuaded me from this route. I didn't think it would be fun muscling the bike into the bed. I didn't really think about using a ramp and how hard it would be to get up. My overlook. Bought the Hollywood rack from the rad site. This is pretty heavy to put on the truck but manageable. I don't like the way the bike is secured with the upper hooks but it does work. Pretty expensive and I would try the tailgate protector first before spending $450 on a rack.

Let everyone know how it works when you try it. A good blanket will work for a test. 

[JimA]

I use an Overdrive Sport 2 rack which works similar to a Hollywood. They are considerably less money and mine has worked great for over a year. When mounted on my Ford f150 4 wheel drive it does requires you to lift the bike pretty high to get it in the rack. I can't imagine putting it in the bed over the tailgate. These bikes are heavy!

[B-rye]

Thanks cal and JimA I will at least try and see what a pain it is to lift them and hang them over the tailgate first before dropping the 450 for a rack.

[seavilla]

I just topped 700 miles on my Rad-mini and it has been relatively problem free. (just a few adjustments required).
However, because of the way I need to carry my Rad Mini, in the trunk of my BMW 7 series, (no suitable bike rack is available) I must always place the derailleur in the downside position. This puts pressure on the derailleur guard and bends it inward regularly. Consequently, I need a stronger guard mechanism.
any recommendations on how I can fix this problem?
seavilla@comcast.net

[1Eye]

I have been looking hard a different racks. I have a Nissan Titan truck and right now am just lifting it into the back of the truck.

It's crazy how much bike racks cost considering the weight limitations. The biggest thing I'm looking for is low loading and unloading. We have to rad step-thru (well we will once mine gets here) and I need a solution that will allow my wife to load and unload herself.

All of this has me looking at cargo racks. Funny that they can handle 700 lbs but most of the bike racks top out at 100 to 120 lbs. and cost 4 times as much.

The problem with a cargo rack is that I will almost certainly have to do some modifications due to the wheel base dimensions. The widest I can find is 60" which is longer that the wheel base however not long enough for the overall width.

Of course this will mainly be up to the wife and what she is comfortable with.

[kev12345]

same problem here. thule easyfold xt2 is the front runner for me but its $1000! it does have a built in ramp to get the bikes on and its the only one i can find that will properly hold a step thru frame with wheel fenders.

[1Eye]

I just pulled the trigger on the Hollywood bike rack that Rad recommends.

My wife made the decision for me 😁

The reason was purely weight. Our two step Thur bikes weight 71 lbs. I was looking at the Thule xt foldup but even that is rated 10lbs under. Looked at Kuat nv 2 same thing. There is another one on etralier.com swagman I think that is rated for 70lbs a bike and is the same style as the Hollywood but the YouTube review says up to 60lbs.

Buyer beware. I almost bought it at etrailer until I realized that you had to buy two fat tire trays for each bike which added $200 plus another $100 for the support bars for step-thru bikes. That's almost $700

Went to Hollywood's site and they had it the double fat tire rack for the same $449 and $80 for the two support boards.

I really wanted the Thule xt fold up because of the ramp but we were just too nervous about the weight issue. Way to much money to take a chance.

I'm thinking the fold down feature of the Hollywood should make it easier for my wife to do by herself.

[CG31]

Thanks cal and JimA I will at least try and see what a pain it is to lift them and hang them over the tailgate first before dropping the 450 for a rack.

B-rye have you had any success with this option? This is the route I am considering with the same two bikes. I am looking at some foldable alum ramps to load them in the bed and then just lift the front fork over the tailgate.

[GET]

I got a bike platform from e trailer, recommended for ebikes, will take two heavy bikes, 75 lbs per bike for $280.  Rola Convoy 2.  It fits a 2" receiver, tilts down and up and is simple to attach the bikes.  So far has worked great.