KyAllroad wrote:ultraclyde wrote:That looks like a disaster in the making....NONACK wrote: Let me expand this slightly- what vehicles have an available 2" receiver hitch (required for the bike mount) that really probably shouldn't?with this handy adapter - ALL of them!
Of course it does, where would the fun be if it didnt
EvanB wrote:
I want that. Badly.
ultraclyde wrote:NONACK wrote: Let me expand this slightly- what vehicles have an available 2" receiver hitch (required for the bike mount) that really probably shouldn't?with this handy adapter - ALL of them!
I wouldn't be comfortable hanging a bicycle rack off that, let alone a motorcycle rack.
I have a friend with an Element and he loves it. However, when transporting his dirt bike he uses a trailer. You need a car or truck with a pretty substantial tongue-weight rating to do the moto-tray thing. Another buddy did it with a Cherokee, tho...
The problem with the Grand Cherokee - fuel mileage. Mid-teens, tops.
In reply to DaveEstey:
As do I. Notice he didn't include a CL link for it as he plans on hoarding it for himself. That'd be the perfect car to daily, trips to the hardware store, in a pinch light towing, and capable at autocrossing, rally and drifting.
In reply to Ian F:
Understood, that's why I'm looking for things that can take a class III hitch- and why the Suburban is good for every reason but mileage. If I want to really be a boss, I can put another hitch on the front of the Suburban and carry 2 bikes. I was hoping a DRZ could fit in an Element, but reasearch indicated otherwise.
These are getting pretty affordable. Will tow anything you want. Gets low 20's mpg when not towing. Lots of ground clearance and plenty of weight/torque for pulling things out of places they don't belong (Mine has done a lot of work at winter rallyX events pulling cars out of snow banks and generally bombing around). Add a cap and you've got ample dry storage. Really comfortable rolling down the highway at 1,800 rpm.
In reply to DaveEstey:
Funny, I had one of those all lined up, WITH A CAP, and the guy berkeleyed with the deal at the last second and wouldn't go back to what we had agreed upon- so I walked.
This seems grassroots enough for this crowd.
In reply to KyAllroad:
I really like how he doesn't have a single picture of the engine bay. Someone needs to call and ask if the "powerstroke exhaust" is from a 7.3 or a 6.0
Muhuhahaha:
http://cincinnati.craigslist.org/cto/4571954632.html
NMNA
captdownshift wrote: In reply to DaveEstey: As do I. Notice he didn't include a CL link for it as he plans on hoarding it for himself. That'd be the perfect car to daily, trips to the hardware store, in a pinch light towing, and capable at autocrossing, rally and drifting.
No CL ad, I just typed "best truck ever" in google image.
(not really, just a search for Volvo pickup)
In reply to NONACK:
I go through similar mental exercises like this all the time: purchase & running costs vs. fuel mileage. So with that in mind, ask yourself a few questions:
The simple fact is when you crunch the numbers, it often works out that you can buy a lot of gas for the cost of a more efficient vehicle. Did I enjoy the 20-22 mpg the Dodge Cummins would get vs/ the mid-teens of the E-150? Sure. But when I crunched the numbers compared to how much I actually drove them, the van was considerably cheaper to run.
In reply to Ian F:
That's how I ended up with this Suburban- PA thinks it's a station wagon, so $35/yr registration. When I crunched the numbers, it beat out pretty much every other truck/van since towing capacity was a big deal at the time (it will be again in the future, not sure when). This other vehicle, if it can get 20mpg plus and doesn't suck to drive, could replace my Celica- or, if it can tow 6k lbs, it could replace the Suburban. Sticking with what I have makes a lot of sense, but it's fun to think about options.
CL turns up no Kamazes(sp?) at this time so what about an AWD Astro van. Not too big and if needed you can put some lift under them.
The easy-button answer here is Minivan. Can fit the bike inside (especially if you get one of the longer ones like the Grand Caravan, and just stack all your tools and gear on either side of the bike and carry an aluminum ramp on the roof rack, or get a roof box for your gear), can take a hitch (though tongue weight is probably low, drives way better than an SUV or pickup, and gets way better gas mileage. If they could tow 6k, I'd much rather have one than the Sequoia.
Or you could get that oddball GMC Envoy with the slide-open roof over the cargo bay :)
irish44j wrote: The easy-button answer here is Minivan. Can fit the bike inside (especially if you get one of the longer ones like the Grand Caravan...
I have a Grand Caravan. My cross-country mountain bike doesn't fit inside standing up - my DH bike (even taller) would be but a dream... and only marginally fits laying down with the front wheel on. There's no way in hell a DRZ would fit inside without taking it half apart, nevermind the fact there's no good way to strap it down.
Reviving this because craigslist gave me a very bad idea: why not a 1995 Impala SS with a hitch carrier, roof rack, and knobbies? 
NONACK wrote: Reviving this because craigslist gave me a very bad idea: why not a 1995 Impala SS with a hitch carrier, roof rack, and knobbies?
The only thing wrong with that is that it is not a wagon.
...which means I can open the trunk when there's a bike on the back.
Funny you should mention the SS - saw two of them on my way to work today. It would probably need air-shocks or something in the back when you hang 500 lbs of rack and DRZ off the end of that long trunk.
The other issue may be the hitch itself. After a quick bit of Googling, the receivers I've found are only rated for a 350 lb tongue weight.
I was thinking either air shocks or helper springs- it would look good with some rake when unloaded, right? 
350lbs is the rated tongue weight for the car as well, so that may just be a requirement as far as the hitch manufacturer's rating is concerned. I have no problem with adding reinforcement if necessary.
In reply to NONACK:
I guess it depends... for driving down the highway - sure, some reinforcements may be enough. But if you're thinking of bombing down semi-rough back-roads, I'm not sure there is enough metal under there to reinforce when you've got 500 lbs of bike leveraging 4' off the mounting points, occilating up & down hundreds of times. A couple of good bumps could rip off the entire ass end of the car.
You would need to really analize the structure of the car first to see if it could work for what you want to do.
Sorry to be a buzz-kill... it's the engineer in me always looking at worst-case scenarios... 
You already own one of the best trucks ever made. Keep it.
Well, let's look at the back end of that chassis...
Admittedly, that does kind of look like its' ass might fall off. Triangulating the rear corners up to the rear suspension area would probably be the way to go. I would definitely want to at least modify the hitch carrier to put the bike as close to the back of the car as possible.
Powar wrote: You already own one of the best trucks ever made. Keep it.
I know, and I almost certainly will, but I really enjoy these thought experiments. This vehicle can always be an addition rather than a replacement 
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