Submitted by
TJ
a Weekend Warrior
from oceanside, ca, usa
Date Reviewed: January 1, 2008
Strengths: Finally, a way to transport my fixed gear!
Weaknesses: Those stupid plastic wingnuts that crack after a year. No big deal but wish they would make em out of metal or better mnaterial. THese are the wingnuts on the tray.
Bottom Line:
Ive been a fork mount guy for 15 years. I found a great deal on a returned upright carrier so I got it. I have a fixed gear for commuting. Occasionally, my wife will give me a ride etc and it was very inconvenient pulling out the 15 mm wrench to remove the front wheel. Mounting the bike on top of my wifes full size SUV is not that bad (Im a guy - 6'0") but there is no way my wife could do it (but I would not expect her to do the fork mounts either). I fond the upright camming lever quite clever and makes securing easy. One thing that I dont miss with the fork mount - accidently slipping the fork of the bike of the carrier - BAM - nice little dent in the roof. It will never happen with this carrier. Seems that this carrier is more bulky than the fork mount, but then again you dont have to worry about the wheel and what to do with it! I will probably end up using this over my fork mounts for my other bikes due to the shear convenience.... I dont care if I dont look like a euro-pro!
Strengths: VERY SECURE, GOOD PRODUCT, NOT AS GOOD AS THE THULE BIGMOUTH
Weaknesses: PAIN IN THE BUTT TO USE.
Bottom Line:
I PURCHASED 2 BIGMOUTH AND 2 STANDARD UPRIGHTS FOR A NEW 4 BIKE, ROOFRACK FOR MY NEW TRUCK. I KICK MYSELF FOR NOT GETTING 4 BIGMOUTHS. THEY ARE FAR SUPERIOR OVER THE STANDARDS. MUCH EASIER TO USE. TURNING THET KNOB SUCKS.
Submitted by
railtrailbiker
a Weekend Warrior
from Bergen County, NJ
Date Reviewed: October 28, 2001
Strengths: Stability, security.
Weaknesses: Ease of use.
Bottom Line:
The method of securing bikes via turning that big knob could prove difficult for those without good upper body strength, particularly with the bikes up so high when the procedure is being performed.
Similar Products Used: Volkswagen roof rack system.
Bike Setup: Cannondale M400, Cannondale C300, Cannondale H500 - all stock.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Pan
a Cross Country Rider
from Lafayette, LA
Date Reviewed: October 6, 2000
Strengths: -super stable at highway speeds (i can do 85mph with no problem) -the camming-lever, though plastic, is lockable (if you buy a lock core for it)for a modicum of security -easy to mount to the crossbars -easy to adjust between bikes -once mounted, never need to mess with it again.
Weaknesses: -the beefy plastic camming lever at the bottom of the carrier, which is used to open and close the jaws, can misalign when closing and squirt to the side of the wide plastic adjustable nut it slides against -jaws could stand to open a bit wider -have to buy a lock core to lock it -price ($20-30 lower would be great)
Bottom Line:
-my carrier is over 3 years old. the currenct version *looks* like a lot of the shortcomings i listed have been solved (the jaw opening, the camming-lever). -if you own a version that has that camming-lever problem, its easy to solve by simply squeezing on either side of the lever as you close it. works every time for me. -if it ever fails on me, i'll buy another one without a doubt.
Similar Products Used: none, these have worked almost perfectly for me
Bike Setup: '00 fsr xc, race face, xtr, crossmax
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
robert
a Cross Country Rider
from Flagstaff, AZ
Date Reviewed: August 23, 2000
Strengths: At one time it held the my bikes securely.
Weaknesses: The plastic covering on the crossbars is peeling off, making the rack look cheap. I also used an ultimate upright and the latch doesn't fit the adjusting knob like it should, catching only one side of it resulting in an insecure attachment.
Submitted by
Jamie
a Cross Country Rider
from Swindon, Wilts UK
Date Reviewed: January 28, 2000
Strengths: Quick to Fit Strength - I have had 2 bikes on my Prelude - no problem at motorway speeds (plus a bit!)
Weaknesses: As rear bar mounting is not fixed one of my bike carriers wrattled - soon fixed by jamming some padding between the silver plate and the roof bar
VERY INSECURE LOCK - BE WARNED
Bottom Line:
Please be careful when using the Thule bike rack with oversized frames as the jaws do not wrap around sufficiently to stop your bile simply being 'forced' off the roof.
I normally lock the bikes, and wheels to the roof rack, but I was only inside the house long enough for a thief to spot my bike, wrench it off the roof and ride off on it (Klein Attitude comp £1000 !! b^%$£%ds) luckily it was insured!!
My tip is that rather than trusting the simple locking mechanism when fixing oversized frames, purchase a small, but strong cable lock, the type you fix to the down-tube are great as you can fix it to the Thule uprights. pass this lock around the U join in the Thule uprights and around the frame:
Bike Setup: - was an attitude comp, now back to my trusty '85 Gary Fisher Hookoo.
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
deric
a Cross-Country Rider
from SLC,UT
Date Reviewed: July 21, 1999
Strengths: Thule fit kits and cross bars seem to work O.K.
Weaknesses: Only one day after buying it I noticed that the PLASTIC parts at the lower latch were not working correctly.One of the PLASTIC flanges on the PLASTIC lever would raise over the adjustment knob(knob would also describe the person who designed this thing).The bottom line is the rack would never attach securely to the bike because only one of the two latching surfaces,at the bottom,would stay in it's groove.
Bottom Line:
My obvious dislike of Thule products was over a year in the making and peaked when I tried their newest upright bike rack.I also own their previous upright design,which among other things,scratched the down tube on my bike and takes entirely too long to operate as compared to Yakimas quick release design.Thank God Yak makes a kit that allows me to use their products on my Toolie(as in the tool that designed these racks) cross bars.deric
Excellent rack. At highway speeds it is absolutely stable. It is also easy to use and to adjust between bikes. Removal only takes a few seconds once unlocked.
Submitted by
Peter
a Weekend Warrior
from Sydney, Australia
Date Reviewed: June 27, 1999
Strengths: Ease of use and flexibility of mounting most bikes.
Weaknesses: Upright threaded rod has a habit of stripping away during hard use.
Bottom Line:
Bought two of these racks and have been ultra happy despite minor problems. These racks have been places that would see bikes flying into the bush. Try ROUGH CORRUGATED Aussie bush roads at 140km/h hour after hour with no tightening or maintenance required. Just throw the bikes on, one flick and they're mounted. Just hop out and get them down at the other end! Only downside is that they are expensive, however they are the easiest alternative for mounting some of the weirder frame shapes (Fisher FS, Giant ATX-DH). Thule have done well.
Bike Setup: Gary Fisher Full Suspension 1998 models.
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
andy
a Cross-Country Rider
from saratoga
Date Reviewed: June 20, 1999
Strengths: easy to use, my bike never fell off looks cool on your car
Weaknesses: upright bar doesn't stay and slips down my down tube so it ends up doing nothing
Bottom Line:
not a bad rack, i wouldn't have been happier with the old school rack but it works. it just rocks around a lot up there, i've used it a ton though and it has never been a serious problem. 4 red hots
Submitted by
David Ray
a weekend warrior
from Cumming, GA
Date Reviewed: February 26, 1999
Bottom Line:
I picked up the Thule roof rack for my 81 Volvo wagon and originally got the Velo-Vise fork mount carrier. While installing the rack I started thinking about the convenience of the Ultimate Upright for just $10 more. ($100 vs. $89 at REI) So I swapped the fork mount for the upright and couldn't be happier. Bike seems to be rock solid on the roof and it's a breeze to hook up. Rack is great for traditional frames but could see difficulties with some of the exotic designs. Only downside is expense, but if you're buying Thule racks you're spending some bucks.
Submitted by
olymtb
a cross-country rider
from berkeley, ca
Date Reviewed: December 25, 1998
Bottom Line:
This rack is ok, but not as good as my previous Yakima. The construction is sturdy but the plastic shell is falling appart. Also assembly is not as easy as my previous Yakima.
I have tried both the Yakima and Thule Roof Rack systems. I originally bought the Yakima Roof rack system because or their round bars which I felt would adapt better to curved gutters. Also, according to their Fit Book, their gutter mount would fit all three of my cars. However, their book was wrong. It did not come close to fitting one of my cars. The dealer, (REI), couldn’t believe thelr Fit Book was wrong but came out to my car and confirmed that this was indeed the case and exchanged the entire system for a Thule system for me.I bought 5 of Thule’s Ultimate Upright bike racks. Their Upright system works better than Yakima’s in that their latching and locking mechanism is down at roof level rather than up by the downtube. (In 1998 Yakima is supposed to come out with their “Ankle Biter” bike mount however, which attaches to a bike’s crank arm, making downtube diameter irrelevant. Also, this keeps the cranks from turning while driving. But it does not use a triangulated mounting system with two upright struts per bike, but one strut only, which seems inherently less stable.)Furthermore, if you want to switch your racks from car to car, the Thule requires only one knob. Yakima requires a knob, but in addition, requires you to use a wrench on a bolt on the hard-to-see backside of the gutter foot. This wrench can only be turned about an eighth turn at a time. Furthermore, as you tighten the foot, the angle of the foot to the bar changes, which has a tendency to bend both feet on the bar in towards each other, changing their distance between each other, so you have to loosen the bolt and start the tedious process all over again, predicting by trial and error, where the foot will end up after it’s fully tightened. This may not be so tough if you have to set it up for just one car, but if want to switch cars, repeating this process is very inconvenient.The Thule Ultimate Uprights appear quite sturdy, and can hold road, mtn, kids bikes, or even our kid’s trailer bike, (Alley-Cat). Thule’s rectangular bars have not been a problem. We even bought Thule’s Adventurer 16 cu. ft. cargo box, which there is room for on the rack in addition to our bikes.I also like Thule’s quick release levers to attach and detach the bike uprights. It makes it easy to slide the outer racks with bikes into the center of the roof while mounting additional bikes. The bikes lock to the Ultimate Uprights which lock the Uprights to the bars.
