How to Put a Bike on a Hitch Bike Rack

How to Put a Bike on a Hitch Bike Rack

Bike racks are a vital tool for affixing your bike to your car and locking the bike so that nobody can tamper with them as you move around. There are many types of bike racks, including truck racks, roof racks, and hitch racks. In this article, our focus is on the hitch racks.

Hitch racks are the best racks overall, especially when you have three or four bikes to mount on a hitch bike rack.

Hitch bike rack is a rack that is fixed into the trailer hitch of a vehicle. It is installed into the receiver of your vehicle and locked using a safety chain, a bolt and nut. The hitch bikes are of different models, shapes, and different abilities to configure multiple bikes.

These racks may sometimes be tricky to use, but with the following information, you will find it easy to put your bike onto your hitch rack. Check it out!

Read the User Manual

Many people usually do think they can assemble and use different types of equipment they buy. They probably don’t see the need to read the user manual. These people end up frustrated when things don’t turn out exactly as they expected.

Installing a bike rack without any knowledge of how to do it may destroy your new rack, your vehicle, or even injure you.

Thus, you should read through the user manual to know the steps you should follow while installing. Also, by reading, you will get additional information on the maintenance of your bike.

Assemble the Rack Properly

Before you start assembling the rack, ensure you have all the necessary tools outlined in the user manual. Do not improvise tools if you don’t have them. It is good to buy or borrow the tool that you don’t have.

Use the user manual to follow all the steps in assembling the bike rack carefully. If you have successfully assembled the rack, then now it is time you mount it to your vehicle.

Attach the Hitch Bike Rack to Your Vehicle

Before you start installing the bike to your rack, ensure the rack you have is the right one for your vehicle. Use the sleeve adaptor to insert your hitch bolt to your rack hitch tube.

Adjust the trays or support arms and lock them into place using the provided safety pins. If you have any trouble mounting your rack to your vehicle, you can contact your manufacturer or find relevant information on YouTube.

Put Your Bikes on the Hitch

Carry your bike and place it on the supporting arms of the hitch bike rack carefully. There are those racks that carry two bikes while others can carry even more. If you are carrying two or more bikes, put one bike at a time while securing them.

There are different ways of securing bikes on racks. These include; adjustable clamps, rubber tie-downs, and Velcro tie-downs. Use the wheel ties for more safety.

After fastening the first one, you can add the rest one at a time while fastening them.

Test If Everything is Working Properly

Now that you have successfully put your bike on the hitch rack, you should take a short drive to see if everything is working correctly. This step is necessary before you head for long distances with your bike.

If you don’t want to risk your bike, you should first drive around with the hitch rack on your vehicle. If it is right then now you can add the bikes.

If you test and everything is good, then you are good to go.

Lastly, you can practice removing your bike and hitch racks from your vehicle. This will ease things when you are at your destination. You are now set!