I want to start transporting my bikes on the Range Rover. Am I better off getting the genuine Rails, Or is there any aftermarket kit i.e. Thule that's just as good.

Thanks 2010 MY Vogue SE TDV8 3.6 Stornoway Grey- fully loaded

Genuine LR ones cost a fortune and TBH unless you're 6 foot 32 tall you run a very high risk of damaging paintwork just getting the bikes up there. Much better off with a towball mounted one.

Depends whether you have a tow ball - and if you do, whether you'll be towing....

I had a Thule which worked very well.

I also had a MaxxRaxx which was OK when towing a boat - and also a genuine RR which was great but couldn't tow at the same time - likewise with a Thule tow ball one which I also had for a while

I did used to carry one of these when the bikes were on the roof though

I have one of these racks http://www.pendle-bike.co.uk/shopping/wheel-supports.php

But they do other types. All very good quality

Alistair wrote:

Depends whether you have a tow ball - and if you do, whether you'll be towing....

Are we not missing an opportunity to sing the praises of the westfalia tow bars? I recon that by the time you've got a westfalia and a shiny new bike carrier, you'll still have change over the cost of a LR roof rack, and you'll have a tow bar as well And from what I have read the after market cross rails and bars are not that well made, so it's genuine or fixed roof bars, that will sing to you all day long

At least with the tow bar option you can stick the bike rack in the shed when it's not needed and no one will be the wiser looking at the car, cos there is nothing to see, unless you slip under the rear, then you will see the receiver  Yesterday I couldn't spell Engineer... Today I are one!
Inventor of the 'Guide-o-Matic automatic wheel alignment tool'
Former long term L322 owner, Up/Down graded to a Classic Tractor!

Get one of those pendle bike rack things and a spare multi height hitch (£95) add that to the cost of the hitch £300, and it's still less than the £750 the roof racks go for, and don't even look at OEM / Genuine rails and cross bars, the last set I saw new were £980

And if you have no interest in towing then forget the extra multi height hitch and save another £95  Yesterday I couldn't spell Engineer... Today I are one!
Inventor of the 'Guide-o-Matic automatic wheel alignment tool'
Former long term L322 owner, Up/Down graded to a Classic Tractor!

Thule wing bars £184

Thule bike carriers £45-70

Whole setup for £400 for 4 bikes

Easy to fit, removes completely, can be used for a roof box, ski carriers etc - new foot pack & can be used on another car, reasonable residual (eBay) value - can get 5 or maybe 6 bikes on a FFRR if you straighten the handle bars

Either option works - it just depends on your preference & constraints

BTW - French toll roads charge based on height

Last edited by Alistair on 25th Aug 2015 8:26pm. Edited 1 time in total

That works out the price as the towbar option

And you can tow with the towbar option, so that's a plus, and now you it's cheaper in France as well, ++

So do you get the toll cheaper if you creep though in access mode  Yesterday I couldn't spell Engineer... Today I are one!
Inventor of the 'Guide-o-Matic automatic wheel alignment tool'
Former long term L322 owner, Up/Down graded to a Classic Tractor!

I got some second hand LR sports bars and fitted 4 budget Thule racks to the t track on them.

Second hand bars - £100
4x Thule racks £140

Small folding hop up from builders merchant, £20

£260 all in. Works perfectly👍 I leave the bike racks attached to the sports bars but you need to be strong to fit it to the car once the racks are attached but it is doable and takes 5mins to fit and 10 to load. The small hop up helps. There is nothing that can't be fixed with a hammer😜😜
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I've done bikes on roof bars and they are hard to handle, even road bikes. and you can't trust anyone else to put them on or remove, as there is a big risk of bikes falling off etc. and your arms get tired etc.
if you have a tow bar hitch 'hole' you can get some 50mm box section and make a perfect tray with say four bike capacity, with a slotting in piece for the armature, and use a trailer board and have the bikes at a manageable height.
There is a company in USA that make various bike racks for this size hole called Yakima, and some people have these over here, and they come up on eBay.
Use a lock if you are going though services etc.

Be careful buying from the US - they use a 2" receiver which is 52mm - some stuff is manufactured for an easy fit and works on a FFRR, but other stuff it slightly too big and won't go in unless you take a grinder to it.

Having tried just about every option, I preferred rear mounted unless I was towing a trailer with a flat front and then they went on the roof.

I think the post was referring to the square hole on the tow armature? Which will be the same size world wide? But you're right towballs in the US are still the old imperial size.

^^ Careful bud, over the pond they do not do metric full stop, and the Germans do not do imperial, so while the German Westfalia hitch will measure in at exactly 50 mm square +/- 0 ( you know that they are precise )

The American ones will be 2" +0.01 / - ? , and if it looks sort of right, then that will do as everyone has a full machine shop under there house, next to the ten car garage with the 2 and 4 poster lifts, all sited in their measly 1000 Acre plot

2" is actually 50.8000 mm and knowing the tolerances that the Germans will have made it to, if it's possible to get a 2" shaft in the receiver you'll probably have to hammer it in, and then it will not come out I thought that the westfalia hitches had a reputation for the shaft rusting in the armature, that would make it a tight squeeze to start with. Yesterday I couldn't spell Engineer... Today I are one!
Inventor of the 'Guide-o-Matic automatic wheel alignment tool'
Former long term L322 owner, Up/Down graded to a Classic Tractor!

Just had a dig on the web, the Americans use a 2" ball, we on the other hand are forced to use Metric, even though we invented Imperial (name sort of gives it away), and Brussels has decreed that we must have a 50 mm ball. And while in america you will not be able to hitch up to a euro spec trailer with your USA hitch, in Europe it is not that straight forward.
An american made trailer will couple with a euro ball, BUT, our balls are too small for the American hitch And it will jump off the car at the first opportunity
So if you have got an American hitch, remember you need BIG BALLs  Yesterday I couldn't spell Engineer... Today I are one!
Inventor of the 'Guide-o-Matic automatic wheel alignment tool'
Former long term L322 owner, Up/Down graded to a Classic Tractor!