I'm hoping someone can help me out with this question, my MINI advisor seems to be ignoring my email...

I'm wondering if one could put a hitch on the MINI Cooper for the purpose of attaching a bie rack. I'm not overly thrilled about the idea of hoisting my bike over my head to put it on the roof, and my experience with trkunk/hatch mounted racks tells me there is a high risk of damage to the paint. My ideal solution would be a rack that sits on a hitch that can be removed. I know these exist, but I wonder if I would negate part of my warranty just by having a hitch put on the car. My dad has an Acura MDX that he put a hitch on and had to PROMISE the dealer not to tow anything or he lost some warranty coverage.

Anyone have experience with this?

Thanks!

 

Ibelieve it is Rogue engineering that has a light duty hitch (which would be ample for a bike rack) that is available for the Cooper S, but unfortunately, you have to use their exhaust system, which puts the tailpipes on the outsides, rather than in the center. I don't know if they have one to fit a Cooper or not. It is unrated as far as hitch class goes, but it mounts to existing holes, no drilling into frame.

I do know that THule has a rack designed specifically for hatchbacks (as opposed to car trunks) that might work better than what you are used to. They seem like a fairly high-quality concern type company.

good luck! :smile:

 

I saw a rack that actually mounts to the license plate brackets advertised in one of the mountain biking publications. Don't know if it would work for the Mini, or how well it works on any other vehicle for that matter. But I suppose it would be worth looking into. It does seem odd that it the license plate bracket could support that weight. I'll see if I can find the issue I saw it in and will post the info.

 

I'm looking for one myself, If I find anything, I'll post it here.

I was hoping to find one that attached and let the bikes be a little away from the vehicle - not like THULE since that can muff up the paint - especially on the hatch.

too bad the MINI doesn't have a side-car

 

yakima is evidently designing a roof rack for the mini cooper (base model and "S&quot, i believe they have
done some measurement and fitting on a "S" already, i guess the next step is to put it through a
rigorous test and see if it holds up in high speed as well as cornering and bumpiness and etc.

so, keep your eyes open for YAKIMA if you are considering a roof rack and dont wanna have your
beloved roof drilled. i myself am waiting to see one coming out from then since i know many people
who have good experience with their products. drilling the roof is just totally out of the question for my
"S".

enjoy and motor on!