Fitting a Fiamma Pro C E-Bike Rack

Having recently purchased a 2000 Peugeot Boxer AS Harmony without a bike rack I spent some time searching around for the best carrier for e-bikes. Me and Mrs Aeronet plan to use the van for day trips to various walks and bike rides as well as non-campsite overnighting in the Scottish islands. Bikes are pretty essential to our plans and we’ve found e-bikes great for long mountain rides without too much of a slog (as well as nipping to the pub). Choice is pretty limited for general bike carriers for two door vans with the Fiamma 200D tending to be the go-to rack. Postings of this forum have shown how this does the job although I was a bit concerned about proximity to the windows etc – and of course it isn’t designed for e-bikes. I also considered the various tow bar racks and also the expensive swing out type but was quite worried about weight for my underpowered vehicle. I’d seen a jury-rigged bike rack on the back of another two-door van that was made out of various Fiamma bits and that got me back looking at their products. Then I noticed how small the fixing footprint of their Pro C E-Bike Carrier was and decided to have a go at fixing that below the window glass on a single van door. In fairness to Fiamma what follows here is me getting it to work in my situation and it may not fully meet their manufacturers fixing recommendations so please only copy anything I’ve done at your own risk!
 
Like I said, the attractiveness of the Pro C was partly due to the confined spread of fixing points so the first thing I did was some rough measuring, having removed the inner trim panel and the insulation in the door. I could see that it just about fitted below the window, if I reduced the height to the minimum 40cm as permitted in the instructions. I could also see that it would be a little tricky because some of the fixings would be in the least accessible parts of the door but reckoned I could just about reach them with a flexi spanner. I was also a little concerned about not fouling the door catch / lock mechanism so keep that in mind too.
 

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I spent some time experimenting with the optimum positioning for access, not fouling when door open etc and I did this on some hardboard which I later made into a drilling template. Read the positioning of the fixing points closely as some of the dimensions are centres of holes and some are centres of the top brackets.

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I clamped the template to the door, double checked measurements, took a deep breath and drilled pilot holes. I removed the template and checked again, then drilled the holes at full size.
 
I cut down the upper verticals of the rack tubes by the max 5cm as per the instructions.
 
I fitted the brackets as per instructions, but added 100mm x 50mm x 9mm exterior ply packing pieces to spread the load and give a thicker fixing. Some people might prefer metal or solid rubber to pack out with (or larger dimensions). Even with that packing the provided bolts are a little on the long side so I did substitute the bottom bolts for shorter ones (having seen with the top bolts that it made the many spanner turns needed in a confined space less!)

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After that I assembled and fitted the rack as per instructions. One thing to watch for is that the printed instructions for drilling the 8.2mm holes in the verticals are misleading. Only the upper part should be drilled (the bit you cut) because the lower section tube holes are square to retain the bolt collar so don’t drill through them.

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After that I tested it by loading a couple of e-bikes with batteries removed, adjusting the wheel tracks as necessary. I ended up with them both cantilevered to the left like the 200D is (but note that Fiamma show them as being more symmetrically distributed.) The problem with that is not increasing the width of the van with the bike wheels beyond the wing mirrors (picture).

Seemed pretty sturdy and I even plucked up courage to open the rear doors. Fine for quick access but obviously wouldn’t leave that weight hanging on the hinge.

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A lighting board and number plate is required as the bikes obscure lights and number plates so you need to factor that cost (and wiring the socket) into your considerations.

I took the bikes on a test run and they seemed ok. I was able to watch them fairly closely in the reversing camera too which gave some peace of mind. I’ve yet to give them a long run so will update this post once I have.

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Summary of key points:
 
1.     This is a sturdy bike rack, suitable for 2 e-bikes and with a 60kg load limit.
2.     Take care positioning, checking and re-checking the hole positionings using a template.
3.     You’ll need to cut down the vertical tubes (as per Fiamma guidelines) to get the smallest footprint.
4.     Factor in the cost of the wiring plug and lighting board in your cost comparisons.
5.     You’ll need to pack out the fixings inside the door and you’ll need some spanners for restricted spaces.
 
Happy to answer any questions if I can.