Fixing Fiamma Carry-Bike 200D to a Duetto

Has anyone fitted one of these (or similar) to a Duetto?  I am concerned about getting access to the inside of the rear door to fit the bolts. The bottom wouldn't be a problem as it seems it's just a matter of removing the trim panel. However, the top bolts would come through where the moulded plastic trim is and I am not sure how to remove this, especially as it goes under the window seal. I want to use the rack, not for carrying bikes (far too energetic!) but for the awning and maybe a couple of chairs, to free up space inside. Any suggestions would be most welcome. Thanks.

janian wrote:Has anyone fitted one of these (or similar) to a Duetto?  I am concerned about getting access to the inside of the rear door to fit the bolts......

Yes i had one fitted on mine. Though relatively easy to fit i'd advise having it fitted professionally. The internal door panel has to be removed to access the bottom bolts and those at the top go precisely where the plastic trim is and they used a hole cutter to make access on mine.

Now.....cutting a long story short, the dummies who fitted mine fitted it on the wrong door!! It was fitted on the nearside rear where it should have been on the offside but by the time they realised their mistake, it was too late. I've since had it refitted to the correct door.....but, there is actually an advantage of having it on the 'wrong' door as being lever bolted top and bottom, that is the stronger of the two doors. However, opening the door required a 'juggling act' hence the reason i eventually had it put on the right door. But since then i've noticed the door isn't easy to shut....it needs slamming to get it to close properly.

You need the rails if you fit a back box. They provide the under support. However you don't need the full length of rail unless carrying bikes (which you said you don't intend to). And this is where i would do things differently if going through the same palaver again. I would mount the rack on the nearside door, then cut the rails down so there is just enough for the back box. That way you have the added strength of it being on the 'wrong' door, plus easy opening of the doors. I don't know how big your awning is when rolled up but i'd question the wisdom of using the rack to carry it. The max load the rack will take is 34kg so you need to find what weight your awning is.

I hope all the above has made some sort of sense and be of help to you. The Fiamma racks are good, but they aren't cheap. I spent ages hoping a decent used one would come up on ebay. It didn't so i had to buy new. A couple of months later whilst away on holiday one came up on ebay.....brand new, never fitted for just £50! 

Thanks for the very helpful info Bulletguy. My awning is a Vango Idris Airbeam and weighs only around 15kg as there are no metal poles so no problem there with the weight. I take on board the pros and cons about which door to fix it on and will do some serious thinking about where and how to fix it. We rarely open the back doors but of course access would be needed in case of emergency.
Thanks again for a very informative post

I fitted a 200D to my Boxer. All was pretty straightforward and I would recommend this rack, particularly in comparison with the rubbish Omnistor unit I had first - see separate old thread somewhere.

Where upper bolts interfered with the inside trim I just bored holes in the trim using a hole saw. The result is neat and functional but not a thing of beauty. However on a 22+ year van this is not a concern!

Bartfarst

I'm thinking on the same lines. I am a fairly good at DIY (except at managing to finish a job before moving to the next!) so will tackle the job myself and bore the holes out of the trim as described. We have put a roller blind at the rear instead of curtains so this will hide the offending holes and if the cut is neat enough I could always glue the plugs back in  unless they drop through never to be seen again 

janian wrote:I'm thinking on the same lines. I am a fairly good at DIY (except at managing to finish a job before moving to the next!) so will tackle the job myself and bore the holes out of the trim as described. We have put a roller blind at the rear instead of curtains so this will hide the offending holes and if the cut is neat enough I could always glue the plugs back in  unless they drop through never to be seen again 

I have a blind on mine too but since re-fitting the rack to the offside door have no need to use it as the back box blocks out everything! I forgot to mention, if you decide to fit your rack on the (correct) offside door, it's a good idea to use a thick(ish) metal plate on the inside of the door panel where the bottom bolts go through. Transit door body panels are not heavy gauge steel and it will help beef it up. The cost for fitting mine was just £40 which made it a 'no brainer' really and done while i waited.

Just an update on the fitting of the bike rack. I decided to fit it on the nearside door because of the strength issue as mentioned by Bulletguy. The first bracket (top right) was fiddly to fit as the holes I drilled were close to the lever bolt and I had to chop away more of the inside plastic trim than I would have liked. The fitting of the other 3 brackets went reasonably smoothly and the rack is now in place and looks great. By the way, I purchased it from the Unipart Autostore who were offering 10% discount which made it the cheapest around.