A110 + Bike Rack

[Simon Owen]

Been wondering about this for a while, so decided to give it a go. Didn’t work well on the roof (for me) as a bit wobbly. So tried the rear window and worked a treat. Front wheel sits surprisingly easy behind passenger seat, in a soft bag… & need to lift lid on silly rear box, as it can then be squashed up as you slide the seat back.

Not sure I would want to do it all the time but there are occasions when it helps us to do so.

[neil-g8km6]

Braver man than me, thought the rear window was a bit fragile?

[worldwidewebs]

neil-g8km6 said:

Braver man than me, thought the rear window was a bit fragile?

Having heard of 2 or 3 rear screens just go 'pop' I'm not sure I'd risk it either

[Captainian]

I've been dying to try this with my mountain bike but was concerned the roof might be too contoured or thin.

The main thing that put me off though was getting back in the car after a mountain bike ride...

I'm not sure I'd trust the window enough at speed with a mountain bike...

[erics]

i have seasuckers but i would not trust to fit them to the Alpine, everything is designed with weight saving in mind. At speed, the forces at play on the body work can be intense. You are a brave man.

[Mark A]

Been wondering about this as well as I want to be able to occasionally carry a mountain bike to work for post work rides and had been investigating sea-suckers. Downside is work is 100miles each way so would be on there for quite a few motorway miles.

Interesting seeing people perceptions of the strength of certain parts of the Alpine, now worried this may not be an option.

[Miserablegit]

I’m one of the owners who had a rear window blow out for no apparent reason. I’d never risk attaching anything to it -
Particularly as the rear screens cost £1680 to replace.
I had fun and games with my insurer which resulted in me having to pay about £300 towards it

[Mark A]

Been thinking about this still, would it work by mounting on the windscreen which should be more robust than anywhere else on the car, then single mount on the roof?

[Simon Owen]

Mark A said:

Been thinking about this still, would it work by mounting on the windscreen which should be more robust than anywhere else on the car, then single mount on the roof?

Yes I think it would, looks odd from outside but doesn’t actually restrict view out that much given the mirror mount etc. No options are ideal really, but no surprise given the cars design.

[zonda12s]

Been using the seasucker talon bike rack for over a year now with no issues. Same set up as in pictures above but with front two suction cups just onto the roof and third on the rear screen to lower the stresses on the glass. Works really well and only option for us A110 owners.

Edited by zonda12s on Sunday 25th October 18:14

[Captainian]

zonda12s said:

Been using the seasucker talon bike rack for over a year now with no issues. Same set up as in pictures above but with front two suction cups just onto the roof and third on the rear screen to lower the stresses on the glass. Works really well and only option for us A110 owners.

Edited by zonda12s on Sunday 25th October 18:14

Interesting. Is that a road bike? Do you have any pictures?

[julians]

This is a rockbros rack. It works fine, but you have tobe very careful to not get even a grain of grit under the suction cups

[Captainian]

Wow. EBIKE too. I’m impressed. I’m as much worried about the upholstery and interior as I am about the rack after an MTB ride!

[Naturally_aspirated]

Surely you just buy a cheap hatchback for lugging bikes and stuff around day to day so you can enjoy the alpine on the fun days.

The alpine wasn’t designed for those loads especially at motorway speeds, it’s stripped back for weight so the safety factors won’t be the same as a heavy steel body and attaching bikes to the rear glass is a risky game. It might work but aluminium and glass fatigue so repeated use is not worth the risk for me.

[julians]

Naturally_aspirated said:

Surely you just buy a cheap hatchback for lugging bikes and stuff around day to day so you can enjoy the alpine on the fun days.

The alpine wasn t designed for those loads especially at motorway speeds, it s stripped back for weight so the safety factors won t be the same as a heavy steel body and attaching bikes to the rear glass is a risky game. It might work but aluminium and glass fatigue so repeated use is not worth the risk for me.

Yeah, I don't use the alpine to carry the bike regularly, in fact I have only done it once. I use the other car most of the time, but very occasionally I cant have the other car, so I bought the rack for those times.

It does work fine, but you have to be super careful that the car is clean and there is no dirt on the suckers etc. You wouldn't want to use it regularly, far too much chance of damaging the paintwork with dirt under the suckers.

It's an ebike, but it's a light one at around 19kg, so without the battery (in the boot) and the front wheel (in a bag on the passenger seat), the rest of the bike probably weighs 15kg.