Bike carrier for Pleasure Way 3500

[Michael Harrison]

My wife and I just purchased an older Pleasure Way 3500 RV. We bought a Thule bike rack for the receiver, and when this wouldn't extend far enough past the spare tire carrier mounted on the back door, wee added a Thule 12" extension. It is now much too long and cumbersome to use. Has anyone come up with another solution? I saw one PW on Route 95 that seemed to have their bikes mounted on the front bumper. Does anyone know about this or anything else that they can recommend? Thanks in advance,

Michael Harrison

[<<B-Guy>>]

Originally Posted by Michael Harrison

My wife and I just purchased an older Pleasure Way 3500 RV. We bought a Thule bike rack for the receiver, and when this wouldn't extend far enough past the spare tire carrier mounted on the back door, wee added a Thule 12" extension. It is now much too long and cumbersome to use. Has anyone come up with another solution? I saw one PW on Route 95 that seemed to have their bikes mounted on the front bumper. Does anyone know about this or anything else that they can recommend? Thanks in advance,

Michael Harrison

Can it not be resolved by just shortening the extension to the minimum required for adequate clearance?

If not, carrying the bikes up front should cerainly be an option, I have done that on our last three tow vehicles, one minivan and two trucks.

Depending on your vehicle, front mounted hitche receivers should be available and might be easily installed by yourself.

I did find that with our present 3/4 ton truck, the bikes were riding too high into the field of vision - I just needed to cut down and re-weld the bike rack to suit.

Brian

[cruising7388]

Originally Posted by Michael Harrison

My wife and I just purchased an older Pleasure Way 3500 RV. We bought a Thule bike rack for the receiver, and when this wouldn't extend far enough past the spare tire carrier mounted on the back door, wee added a Thule 12" extension. It is now much too long and cumbersome to use. Has anyone come up with another solution? I saw one PW on Route 95 that seemed to have their bikes mounted on the front bumper. Does anyone know about this or anything else that they can recommend? Thanks in advance,

Michael Harrison

1UP USA makes a 7.5 inch hitch that would provide you the clearance you need plus it employs some gizmo that will eliminate the play that hitch extenders often have.

https://www.1up-usa.com/product/hitch-extender/

Putting the bikes on the front does facilitate access to the rear doors but the overall length of the coach won't change that much. Also, bikes on the front are more vulnerable to debris and rock chips although there is the argument that every rock chip absorbed by the bike avoids producing one on the vehicle. You also check to see if loading the bikes on the front will produce an unacceptable decrease in ram air to the engine and its peripherals.

[<<B-Guy>>]

Originally Posted by cruising7388

Putting the bikes on the front does facilitate access to the rear doors but the overall length of the coach won't change that much. Also, bikes on the front are more vulnerable to debris and rock chips although there is the argument that every rock chip absorbed by the bike avoids producing one on the vehicle. You also check to see if loading the bikes on the front will produce an unacceptable decrease in ram air to the engine and its peripherals.

True that the bikes are more vulnerable up front - in our case we carry 25 year old beat up inexpensive mountain bikes so not a concern.

I can appreciate it would be more of an issue for those folk who have the fancy $6000 bikes!

I suppose there is the possible technical issue of legality in terms of obstructing vision of blocking headlights.

I have our bike rack height adjusted so that I can barely see the hand grips above the hood line of our truck - just enough for me to know they are still there and secure. We rarely are driving the rig at night, but when we are, I sense a very minor impact on lighting - not enough to make much difference.

In any case in about twenty years of carrying bikes this way many times on teh interstates driving along with police cars, never been an issue - hope I haven't jinxed our next trip.

Brian

[RT.SS]

I gave up looking for a real solution to same problem with my Roadtrek Agile, so I fabricated my own. Building the Ultimate Hitch Bike Rack that Does Not Interfere with the Rear Spare Tire

[ponti33602]

What we did. Kuat. We can open one door with rack and bikes on. Need to buy a attachrack if we want to swing it away for both doors. Rocky Mounts makes one that will swing but we didn’t like the rack as well but another option.





Someone also mentioned a 1up. Very nice rack as well.


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