I've been looking all over the net for a 'non destructive' bike rack for my '05 mini. I certainly don't want to drill any holes into my bumper...Don't want to 'f' with my warranty. Even the service/parts manager at my mini dealership steered me away from the 'mini' bike racks not only the fact that both roof mounted and rear mounted options require drilling thru the body, but also the $1000 price tag! So really the only cheap alternative he pointed me to was just our local Canadian Tire for a Thule or SportRack rear clip-on for a about $60.

Now i recenly came across this on the web. An rear mounted, under-the-bumper hitch, that required only a simple direct bolt-on to the frame...Perfect!!
Here is the link. (I believe Curt makes the same thing...) http://www.etrailer.com/products.asp...ke=BMW&t1=&h=e
http://www.hitch-web.com/proDescrip....e=410482&OID=8

Honestly, im a mechanical designer...i could easily whip one of these up in Solidworks and bring the drawings to my local weld-shop next door, as long as i had the correct bolt-hole pattern for the hitch bracket....probably cost me way less than what these guys are charging!


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if you are particular.......the only problem for those who like to drive the twisties is addding the weight to the rear......other than that a nice system.....I saw it at the Dragon

 

Yeah your probably thinking of this site...
http://www.miniaturetrailer.com/hitch.php
Still, you have to take the whole bumper off and all that extra stuff.

Im going to get my measuring tape out and measure the holes underneth the rear frame. Im sure the hitch can be designed to be offset to either side of the 'S' centered exhaust tip. It's not like 3 or 4 inches will make a big enough difference in the torsion rating. How much does the average bike way? X 2 or 3. Easily make the weldment safety factor.

 

Yes...that is what I saw.....

I have a factory...drill in the roof style..... works great but when you take it off the covers won't stay on and you get the Frankenstein look.....which I don't care for....

 

There was another thread which talked about this, here's the link:
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ad.php?t=56463

I believe that Thule makes a clamp-on rack that is non-destructive and will match all the stock mini-branded rack add-ons. And you'd be able to take it off when you're not hauling around snowboards/skis/bikes/etc.

PS: I was going to buy it, but that was before I got my roof GFX.... now I'm not so sure....

 

I considered a roof rack but am still sitting on the fence. I'm worried that the hard-ish rubber used on the towers will leave too many marks on a black roof. The Thule seems to contour better to the roof shape.

 

I know what you mean. I have the bike attachments already (got them at cost as new-open-box from my MA), but have been unable to pull the trigger on the rack for just that reason. In a previous post I had asked the respondants about possible roof damage, but got no replies.

 

Well, i just sent off a sketch to a fabrication shop near me. Seems like a simple solution for mini owners like us that just want an easy racking solution without installing a roof rack (and blocking nethacks roof gfx

 

Mountain or road....carbon or aluminum?

PM "Moskito.....he is an exec with Litespeed....if anyone has an idea it would be him...His name is Herbert and he is a very nice guy.

 

For MCs it seems that rear hitch options bounce between the Minitrailer and the Sport Link from Mini-Fini (available less than list through a member here, at the moment) with the former being less intrusive but lighter duty, and the latter requiring drilling through the rear grills but being a better engineered product. From what I've heard, from users of each, they both work well fro what they do. The drilling through the vents (MCS) on the sport link is far better than through bumper like on MC, but yes, there's drilling. Both require removing the bumper skin, which doesn't sound too bad. The rest of the implications between the two sound like they imvolve how robust a tow hitch you need. For bikes, the sport link uses a separate bike rack J-bar, which bolts to the sport link sockets. The minitrailer type gives you a 1 1/4" hitch socket through the fog light hole, which can receive bike racks from Thule, Yakima and Nashbar/Performance.

The problem will ALL of these rear-rack solutions is that they depend on a rubberized clamp to the bike frame. And if you have carbon or a composite, they aren't intended to receive that crimping force, according to the mfrs. unlike aluminum and steel. Which leaves roof racks with fork mounts as the only option for these bikes.

I have a roof rack system by Yakima, installed, and removed from, my GTI before I traded it in for the MCS. I swore by the Q Tower system. It requires a different clip to hold it to the Mini, that's it. I have two bike rails with the frmae-clamp type mounts so wheels stay on. Again, not for carbon.

For what it's worth, my rack was on the GTI for just under 3 years, and when I removed it, expecting some paint wear from vibration etc, there wasn't a single surface scuff. I made sure the GTI was immaculate when I mounted it, and kept it on and tight. No scuff!

I intend to sell the roof system and buy a rear system, even though I'll lose out financially, just because I don't want to cover the beautiful expanse of sunroofery going on on the MCS. But it's a fine system!

 

Good information here.