Towball mounted bike rack

I am trying to find a towball mounted platform bike rack that will allow the rear doors of my Kingham to open when it is tilted. Has anyone tried the Buzz Rack Scorpion 2 on their van conversion. I know the Atera dl3 will work but am looking for an alternative? Thanks.

We fitted a maxxraxx on our warwick duo but I had to modify it slightly to allow both doors to open 

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Many thanks but I would like to find a platform type rack.

We wanted one that on ferries we could put the bikes and the rack inside the van, looking at some ferries  it can make £100 difference.

I am too! :-)

YYou could try this one. It folds and has a bag to put it in, takes 60kg, suitable for electric bikes and does fold down when bikes mounted, but not cheap

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Thanks, does it fit on a van conversion and allow the doors to open?

I am not sure If it would fold low enough away from the vehicle, So would probably need to remove it. Just google bosal bike racks or YouTube for film clips, it shows how various towball racks they work.
Check out
Atera STRADA DL -
youtube has a film demo on a vw with 2 doors that open with bike rack on With bikes when folded away from vehicle, might suit?

I have seen most of the you tube videos and spoken to the companies too but no one can give me a positive yes or no. The Atera video I have seen but would like an alternative as I said in my original post. I will check out the bosal. Thanks

Think sneakily Cookie.

Messrs Halfords offer a free fitting service, and they sell Thule tow bars with the "droop" feature. (Ours came from them and they were the cheapest around.)

Why not ask them to fit one for you to see if it's suitable for your van? It won't take them very long, so if you turn up when they are not very busy you may get away with it. They should consider it preferable to selling you one, then having to give you a refund if it's no use. It's a bit of a try-on, but a sensible and reasonable request I would say.

Worth a shot?

Cookie99, 

I'm close to getting a tow bar fitted, with the intention of buying the Atera Strada to use on it.
Before I spend my hard earned on the Atera, is there any specific reason why you're looking for an alternative, which could benefit other users, or is it purely that you fancy something different ?

Thanks.

I would be ok with the Atera but you need the DL3 bike option apparently for the doors to clear. This rack sticks out 72cm from the towball and if the Buzzrack Scorpion 2 would work it wouldn't be as long (62cm). I also think the tilt mech would suit me better. The Scorpion also folds up small, take a look on you tube.

Hi Dave, the one with the droop you have gone for, which model is it please?

This one.

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Strictly speaking at 36kg it's under rated for the weight of two electric bikes, which total about 40kg. However, it's a lot cheaper than any other of comparable quality that I could find.

I spoke to a very sensible chap in the store who let me unbox it to have a closer look, and although he wouldn't recommend it (for obvious reasons) he did agree with me that it was built like a brick sh**house and would be plenty strong enough. He did confirm that the locking mechanism for attaching to the tow ball is the same as on the heavier rated models.

Make up your own mind of course, but I think you will agree on close inspection, it ain't going to fall apart in a hurry!! There's bound to be a very considerable safety margin built in anyway, and it does the job perfectly well for us with a hundred quid saved!!

On you tube it doesn't look like it would tilt enough to allow my rear doors to open. I tried the Euroway G2 from Halfords and the doors wouldn't clear. The Scorpion 2 tilts a lot further and may be ok but I don't think Halfords stock it.

Can't help there I fear as I've fixed ours so it won't tilt. No need for that feature on our van, and I didn't want it to tilt accidentally.

We have the Westfalia BC60 two cycle carrier. We use it on the car tow bar. It tilts down horizontally giving good clearance for the hatch door. A little more expensive but well made. Folds up but not down to a small size. Worth looking at. I think there is a Westfalia video on internet, showing its use.

Pete

Thanks Pete but it still doesn't look as if it tilts as much as the Buzzrack Scorpion 2 rack.

Decided to go with the Atera DL3 in the end. A good choice as with 2 electric bikes on it (they need to be on the 2 outer racks) the doors open ok when the rack is slid away from the van. Not too heavy and quite easy to fit and remove too. Will try it out next week.

Thanks for the update, that's where I'll be heading once I get a tow bar fitted.