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Volkswagen
Carrier Bar Set & Upright Bike Holder Attachment
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Submitted by
Jason
a Weekend Warrior
from Seattle
Date Reviewed: May 2, 2005 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Purchased At: | came w used jetta trek | | Strengths: | Uh.... it came with the car. | | Weaknesses: | Rack makes a ton of wind noise.
One tower pulled loose durring heavy cornering...yikes!
Upright bike mount is falling appart and a pain to put a bike in. The mount's arm will bearly reach my rigid bike... doubt it would work on a downhill bike.
The rubber pads on the bottom of the tower fall off, easy to lose and a pain when mounting system .
The tower locks are mounted to plastic... very easy break with a screwdriver. | | Similar Products Used: | Yakima SST & AI towers w steelhead bike mounts | | Bottom Line: | Its working but I'm looking for a used Yakima system to replace this junk rack. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Matt
a Cross Country Rider
from Manitou Springs, Colorado, USA
Date Reviewed: July 28, 2004 | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$350.00 | | Purchased At: | VW Dealer | | Strengths: | Very easy to attach and remove, so much so that I do not have to leave it on when I don't need it. | | Weaknesses: | I have had zero problems. | | Similar Products Used: | Yakima | | Bike Setup: | A few different Road bikes and mountain bikes | | Bottom Line: | This rack has been flawless in performance. The only gripe I can imagine is that the full bike carriers may be difficult with some full suspension setups. VW also offers fork mount carriers,which should be a good alternative.
I prefer these racks to my Yakima racks because I can attach or remove three bike carriers and the roof rack in about twenty minutes. Yakimas design allows for quick removal, but remounting their racks is a serious headache. The VW factory racks mount on hidden steel mounting brackets that are under the upper part of the door seals, it is simple to match the rack to the brackets and tighten an allen bolt to mount the racks. If I am not going to use my rack for a few days, I have no problem removing it so it does not hurt my gas mileage.
Also, each bike mount and roof tower comes from the factory with the lock cores in place. The lock cores alone on my Yak rack cost me more than $50. Also, there is no need to spend an additional $35 on Q clips.
As for users who have had trouble with bikes falling off, I have to assume that it was an error in assembly. I have had three bikes on the roof of my Jetta in immense Wyoming Cross winds that were blowing hard enough that it was difficult to keep the car straight. The bikes and racks survived with no signs of abuse other than bug juice.
I have driven bikes from Denver to Chicago and back four times carrying two bikes without an incident.
Also, the bike trays are built by Thule and come with all of the mounting hardware to put them on a standard Thule rack. So, if you sell your VW, you can keep your carriers for future use. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jason
a Weekend Warrior
from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Date Reviewed: July 7, 2004 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$300.00 | | Purchased At: | Local VW dealer | | Strengths: | The roof rack itself is pretty sturdy, and does not damage weather seals around door. | | Weaknesses: | Front tire wobbles when it's on there; I wish VW would offer a roof rack where you take off the front wheel before mounting it. | | Similar Products Used: | Packing the bike in the trunk :-) | | Bike Setup: | '99 Specialized Rockhopper A1 FS
'99 Volkswagen Passat GLS | | Bottom Line: | I've actually only used this product twice, but I'm fairly happy with it. Once was a 500 km trip at 120 km/h, where the bike was pretty steady.
The only bummer was that after that trip, my front tire had gone out of true from wobbling on there for five hours (and it was pretty straight before). But it didn't fall off, so I can't ask for much more than that. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Russsell Hanna
a Racer
from Columbus, Tdexas
Date Reviewed: August 6, 2003 | | Favorite Trail: | Broken Oak | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$260.00 | | Purchased At: | VW | | Strengths: | Rack is great, fits the Jetta body well. | | Weaknesses: | The tray I purchased was to be used without wheel removal, had a pinch clamp that tightened around the lower tube. The clamp system was too short to reach the tube high enough to be stable. Then the clamp mechanism broke, two weeks out of the one year warranty. No help from VW. | | Similar Products Used: | Yakima on another car. I adpted the Yakima trays to fit the Vw rack, as well as the fairing. | | Bike Setup: | GtI-drive 1.0, Schwinn homegrown and trek 2100. | | Bottom Line: | Vw no longer sells the bad tray system, but now offers the fork mount which looks good. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Tinkerbell
a Downhiller
from Whistler, BC
Date Reviewed: August 5, 2003 | | Favorite Trail: | the entire Whistler Bike Park | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$500.00 | | Purchased At: | VW dealer | | Strengths: | As it's designed specifically for my car, there's no messing about to install. Looks great on new Jetta!
Aluminum parts won't rust and relatively smart design for a light bike, pretty stable at hwy speeds. | | Weaknesses: | The swing arm can't reach high enough to hold ANY part of my downhill bike. The front tire tray will accept no more than about a 2.3" tire and the strap is too short to allow any sort of larger wheel. The rear tray also has only a short strap. | | Similar Products Used: | Only new-fangled hitch mount | | Bike Setup: | Norco A-Line (8" travel front and rear = 50 lbs +)
Giant AC Air (light, nimble, fabulous..) | | Bottom Line: | After succesfully hoisting my XC bike on and off the rack for 6 months I was pleased with my purchase. Then I discovered the adrenaline of downhilling and was really surprised/disappointed/pissed that the rack couldn't accommodate my new larger bike. (not that I really wanted to clean and jerk 50 lbs over my head to get the thing up there in the first place, but....)
Sold it back to VW (thank you) and after much digging found a custom made rack for my 2000 Jetta from Bird Automotive. (Designed for Porsche, Audi and VW, the Pea Shooter Bike Rack is great.)
If you have a cruiser,commuter, XC or other light bike, this rack is wonderful. If you have any desire for a big, bad downhill thrill, get a Pea Shooter or other hitch mount. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
vw vw
a
from ohio
Date Reviewed: July 10, 2003 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Bottom Line: | I am looking into buying the VW bike rack attachment for the base carrier rack for my 2002 Golf. I am not sure if I should get the fork mounted type, or the other type. What are the pros and cons of both? I would rather not have to take off my front wheel when I want to put the bike up. Do the fork mounted carriers come with a holder for the wheel, or do you need to put it in the trunk? | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
ty schmidt
a Cross Country Rider
from tucson,az,usa
Date Reviewed: July 8, 2003 | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$300.00 | | Purchased At: | VW dealership | | Strengths: | NONE | | Weaknesses: | poor design,poor clamping | | Similar Products Used: | none | | Bike Setup: | trek 8500 | | Bottom Line: | do not buy this rack, have had 2 bikes fall of going 65mph. dealership is no help. again do not buy this rack | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Patrick
a Weekend Warrior
from San Francisco
Date Reviewed: June 4, 2003 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$200.00 | | Purchased At: | VW dealer | | Strengths: | Looks and feels sturdy. Does not sit on the roof, instead clamps inside the rubber molding. | | Weaknesses: | Have to buy extra parts from Thule to work with Thule products. ( havent tried Yakima accessories yet ) | | Similar Products Used: | Thule Areo foot 400 w/ 2047 Fit Kit and 48" load bars | | Bike Setup: | Thule 872 Fairing, 590 V2 Fork Mount | | Bottom Line: | I bought the bars after testing the Thule setup mentioned. (Similar product used section). I didn't like the Thule since it sat on top of the roof which would potentialy leave a mark (maybe some clear stickies would help). That was my first concern.
The VW OEM bike rack didnt suite my need either; I wasnt comfortable with the amount of slipping and sliding the tail end of the bike rack after following the instructions on how to install it of course. So I went with the V2. The hardware that came with the V2 is not sufficient to install on the VW 2000 carrier bars. So I made my own. I also I called Thule and they said that I needed a bag kit 753-3082 which contains the peices need to install on these "euro" bars ( i havent gotten it yet. But I suspect, after looking at the Velo install instructions at Thule.com site (not thuleracks.com) that the front end of the V2 will be held by one bolt. This does not look good, but Ill wait for the parts. Until then its held together well by some bent carriage bolts dipped in plastic dip, all from home depot.
No extra parts needed to install the fairing. But its angle is steep due to the height of the bars. Im trying to find a way to lower them.
So if you've got the time to make custom attachments (extra $8) this rack is well worth it, for your cars roof and wallet.
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Submitted by
Rick Krinitt
a Cross Country Rider
from Pacifica, Ca, USA
Date Reviewed: August 7, 2002 | | Favorite Trail: | Anything off-road by the sea | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$380.00 | | Purchased At: | VW Dealer | | Strengths: | Best fit for 2001+ VW's. Doesn't crush the door's weather-stripping like Thule or Yakima. This was a huge selling point for me. | | Weaknesses: | Noisy... Haven't found a fairing yet. Should have made base carrier supports 1/4 in. taller, so NO rubber touches the car's paint. No damage so far, however. I'm not using the clear protective foils... | | Similar Products Used: | None, but did lots of research on the web and by talking to others who owned other carriers. | | Bike Setup: | Giant '02 Rainier | | Bottom Line: | Good carrier as far as roof mounts go. VW did well and it's a factory product that fits. I have 2 FORK MOUNT carriers installed. These are the way to go no matter what brand you go with. This is the safest and most stable way to transport a bike on your roof. The frame mounts and crank clamps types are flimsy and your bike(s) will sway on curvy roads at speed. Overall, I'm happy with it, but I'm going for a trailer hitch mount carrier on my next vehicle no matter what it is. More money, but worth it in my opinion.
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Submitted by
Kurry
a
from Morgantown
Date Reviewed: July 13, 2002 | | Favorite Trail: | bakers Ridge | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$200.00 | | Purchased At: | E-bay | | Strengths: | I really like the way this rack set up looks and handles. It is very very easy to put on and very very sturdy. I compared the looks and strenth to Yakima and other Thulle racks, and this one is far more bang for the buck. | | Weaknesses: | The only thing that bothers me is the locking end caps to the base bars. They seem very cheap and every time I open and close them, I am afraid of breaking them. These parts would be very hard to replace if I did break them. | | Similar Products Used: | I have not used anything else. | | Bike Setup: | Gt avalanche.....I love it!!!!!! | | Bottom Line: | This rack is not the cheap piece of foreign crap that other entries have made it out to be. If you want something that looks classy, this is the right rack for your VW. I for one am not into all the other racks that made my car look like a moving ad. promotion for Yakima or Thulle. This rack makes my 2002 Jetta and Gt bike look wonderful together(awwwww). I have had my bike on the car in the hardest of storms with serious winds and had no problems!!! I think it is how you install it that matters everyone. As for price, I was lucky and found what I needed on E-bay for just about $200.00 for the base bars and one tray. However, if you buy this rack from VW, you will still save about 70-100 bucks than if you would buy the towers,racks, locks,straps, etc. for the other styles. Oh .....and did I mention the scratch factor? All of my freinds that have the black metal racks from Yakima and Thulle have rust build up from were they get scratched. The Alluminum VW model has no rust and always seems to look clean even when it is dirty. That is all. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Mike
a Cross Country Rider
from Denver, CO
Date Reviewed: March 13, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$125.00 | | Purchased At: | VW Dealership | | Strengths: | You know it's gonna fit.
VW accepted my return. | | Weaknesses: | *The rack sits higher than Thule or Yakima base carriers. *It's brushed aluminum, which to me sticks out on a car with no chrome.
*You are forced to use all VW racks and attatchments for bikes, canoe, etc, or use an adaptor that might work. | | Similar Products Used: | I run a Thule base carrier and (Red)RockyMounts trays. | | Bottom Line: | DO NOT buy this rack. Believe me, at my work parking lot, I am able to compare mine and other's cars to those with the VW oem parts.
Thule and Yakima both make better base carriers that will ride and look better. VW claims it's made by Thule, but it's Thule Europe, which in this case is very different. The carrier attatchments are different, and must be VW OEM to fit, and if a friend has, for example, a bike rack, he/she cannot attatch it to your base carrier w/o a non-typical adaptor. Nor can you borrow somebody else's Thule/Yakima/RockyMounts gear, which is the norm out there. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Mike
a Weekend Warrior
from Arlington, VA
Date Reviewed: February 13, 2002 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$600.00 | | Purchased At: | Stohlman VW, Fairfax, VA | | Strengths: | None | | Weaknesses: | My mountain bike, a 1997 Giant Sedona, does not fit on the rack. The grab arm appears to be too short. Whether the dealership installed it correctly or not, nobody has any answers. Directions don't help and they failed to give me the tools. Does anybody have any hints or similar problems? | | Bottom Line: | I've put this bike on this rack every which way possible. I'm pissed, and VW is no help. Please email suggestions or hints to azcat@rocketmail.com. Thanks. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
railtrailbiker
a Weekend Warrior
from Bergen County, NJ
Date Reviewed: October 28, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Old Croton Aqueduct State Park | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Purchased At: | Joe Heidt Volkswagen | | Strengths: | Appearance, ease of use. | | Weaknesses: | Part breakage. | | Similar Products Used: | Thule upright bike carrier and roof rack system. | | Bike Setup: | Cannondale M400, Cannondale C300, Cannondale H500 - all stock. | | Bottom Line: | The best fitting and looking rack for Volkswagen owners but the wheel straps suck. Thule's ratcheting system is much better. However, the Thule and Yakima bars don't fit right or look the best on VW's. Go with the VW system and carry some bungee cords just in case one of your wheel straps breaks on the road. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
robert sobol
a Weekend Warrior
from oradell nj usa
Date Reviewed: April 23, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | none | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$450.00 | | Purchased At: | vw dealer | | Strengths: | ease of setup with volkswagen car.
bright aluminum finish.
loads and locks quickly | | Weaknesses: | a vise-claw tightening mechanism broke. There is no way to disassemble the A-bracket and repair it.
Don't misplace the odd size allen wrench that come with it.
The manufacturer should provide extras of the unusual
square-head bolts and hex nuts. | | Similar Products Used: | none | | Bike Setup: | two family hybrids | | Bottom Line: | There is no excuse for a vise-claw tightenimg mechanism to break!
This could have really screwed me if I was a way on vacation.
There is NO way to temp a c-clamp or a bungee around it and keep going.
Now I have to take time off work because the vw dealer parts dept isn't open on saturday! I'm hoping vw makes good on a replacement but I feel I need to keep a spare in the car.
I can't rate this product. It should have been a 5. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
russell hanna
a Racer
from houston texas usa
Date Reviewed: April 10, 2001 | | Favorite Trail: | Flatrock in Comfort Texas | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$260.00 | | Purchased At: | dealer | | Strengths: | Bolts on the roof right out of the box, and fastens to the studs on the roof from the factory, Jetta 2001. | | Weaknesses: | Cannot find a fairing for the front to quiet the wind noise. Other bike racks do not fit easily. | | Similar Products Used: | Yakima on my old Mustang. nice setup | | Bike Setup: | GT Idrive, Schwinn factory Home grown, Trek 2100 road bike. All bikes attach to the bike mount without removing the wheels. | | Bottom Line: | The best rack for a Jetta. Factory custom made to fit. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
bob wilson
a Cross Country Rider
from east lansing mi usa
Date Reviewed: February 26, 2001 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | dealer | | Strengths: | looks cool on my car | | Weaknesses: | hard to fit my existing Thule products | | Similar Products Used: | have been using Thule for 15 years | | Bike Setup: | just bought Thule fork mount which is available through the dealer in the AUDI catalog - why is it not in the VW?!
Thule could not help with the setup which is weird since they manufacture this for the european market | | Bottom Line: | I think the other reviewer had his rack set up incorrectly. I had a bike fall off when I FIRST tried a roof rack many years ago. it was definitely MY error. after I figured out what I did wrong, it NEVER happened again. I would suggest he buy the thule fork mount and not worry about his bike again since it is the safest! my only markdown is the price which is about 10% higher than the thule product available at my favorite bike shop, but the finish looks great on my car! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
wade wallace
a Racer
from calgary, ab, canada
Date Reviewed: July 5, 2000 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Weaknesses: | this bike rack ripped right off the roof of my car when going against a fairly strong crosswind. This happened in the exact same place where a friend of mine had the same incident with the same type of rack. | | Similar Products Used: | Thule, Yakima | | Bottom Line: | Don't even think of buying this rack. Buy Thule or Yakima. It's not something you want to cheap out on! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
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