Bike rack for Transit Custom Barn Door ??

[cyclingspongecake]

Has anyone got a decent solution for fitting a bike rack to the rear barn doors on a Transit Custom (low roof)??. I've struggled to find anything that is designed for it, so I took a gamble on a Thule G2 Sport compact rack which was a nightmare to fit because of the shape of the door and also the lower panel isnt' very big and is filled with door locks etc. I've got windows fitted so it couldn't attach higher up the door.

Unfortunately now the rack is fitted it interferes with the reverse park sensors which I did wonder if it would happen but obviously it doesn't help

Anyone else done something similar and found a good solution?

[cyclingspongecake]

Ok update for anyone wanting to attempt something similar ! I spent several more hours moving the rack up 22 cm so that it now does not interfere with the reverse sensors. The downside is that the advance warning of coming into contact with something is likely to be when I come into contact with something However the rack is fitted which was a Thule Sport G2 compact. It is not 100% ideal due to the shape of the doors and I can see the lower panel moving when I press down but I believe it will be fine with the weight of a bike or two on it (non e-bike!) and if necessary I can add a bit of support behind the lower bar where there is a gap between it and the door & possibly add a bracing plate inside the door.

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[pjumeau]

I am also searching for a suitable bike rack for barn doors. Is there no a clip on version of this Thule rack which is designed for doors curved at the top? It is difficult to get a definitive answer even from suppliers.

[workbox]

I am also searching for a suitable bike rack for barn doors. Is there no a clip on version of this Thule rack which is designed for doors curved at the top? It is difficult to get a definitive answer even from suppliers.

there is a few different bike racks, Thule and the like that fits into towing bars. No back door drilling require.

[FrankMCG]

Ok update for anyone wanting to attempt something similar ! I spent several more hours moving the rack up 22 cm so that it now does not interfere with the reverse sensors. The downside is that the advance warning of coming into contact with something is likely to be when I come into contact with something However the rack is fitted which was a Thule Sport G2 compact. It is not 100% ideal due to the shape of the doors and I can see the lower panel moving when I press down but I believe it will be fine with the weight of a bike or two on it (non e-bike!) and if necessary I can add a bit of support behind the lower bar where there is a gap between it and the door & possibly add a bracing plate inside the door.

Hi, it looks great! Is it possible to mount a hitch rake for 4 bikes(like this) in the same way? I'm afraid that fastenings won’t hold that weight
Thanks in advance
Frank

[Bennett83]

Ok update for anyone wanting to attempt something similar ! I spent several more hours moving the rack up 22 cm so that it now does not interfere with the reverse sensors. The downside is that the advance warning of coming into contact with something is likely to be when I come into contact with something However the rack is fitted which was a Thule Sport G2 compact. It is not 100% ideal due to the shape of the doors and I can see the lower panel moving when I press down but I believe it will be fine with the weight of a bike or two on it (non e-bike!) and if necessary I can add a bit of support behind the lower bar where there is a gap between it and the door & possibly add a bracing plate inside the door.

Hi, Do you have photo of the inside of the door to see how they have fitted it? My mother has a 2016 transit custom camper and I told her to buy the same rack as yours as it said it was universal, but if I follow the instructions (top brackets 55cm apart and the height 80cm minimum there's door supports in the way. Now I look daft as there's a £200+ bike rack doing nothing, it seems it would suit a van with wider and taller doors. To me yours looks likes it been made to fit, which is what I might have to do. I am struggling to find any photos of it on any van nevermind a transit.

Thanks

[richbee]

Ok update for anyone wanting to attempt something similar ! I spent several more hours moving the rack up 22 cm so that it now does not interfere with the reverse sensors. The downside is that the advance warning of coming into contact with something is likely to be when I come into contact with something However the rack is fitted which was a Thule Sport G2 compact. It is not 100% ideal due to the shape of the doors and I can see the lower panel moving when I press down but I believe it will be fine with the weight of a bike or two on it (non e-bike!) and if necessary I can add a bit of support behind the lower bar where there is a gap between it and the door & possibly add a bracing plate inside the door.

Hi, it looks great! Is it possible to mount a hitch rake for 4 bikes(like this) in the same way? I'm afraid that fastenings won’t hold that weight
Thanks in advance
Frank

The one you've linked to is a towbar mounted one.
I would suggest that a towbar mount is the easiest way to do this. I'm about to do the same for my Custom - order a towbar and buy a thule or similar towball mounted bike carrier. No door drilling or worrying about hinges sagging under the weight. The only problem when mounted is likely to be opening the doors, even with a tilting one, I guess it won't be possible to open barn doors.
But the upside is that most of the time it will be in the garage and not causing any problems

[cyclingspongecake]

Wasn't subscribed to the post so didn't see all the queries.

I couldn't see an obvious one that would fit over the top of the doors.. this was very much suck it and see... I haven't got a photo of the inside as its all sealed away and insulated now but it was very very fiddly to get the nuts & reinforcing plates inside as there isn't much room.

I would not recommend putting a 4 bike carrier on this way, don't think it would do the door any good at all! Or an ebike one for that matter...

Because of the odd door shape, I ended up buying a lump of aluminium on ebay, cutting it at an angle and mounting it as a block between the door and the rack on the right hand side so the rack is now straight - probably a bit stronger like this as well.

It does also still interfere with the parking sensors a tiny bit but can't help that really. I could have used a tow bar mount one but then wouldn't have been able to open the doors with it fitted...

[RossGK]

Ok update for anyone wanting to attempt something similar ! I spent several more hours moving the rack up 22 cm so that it now does not interfere with the reverse sensors. The downside is that the advance warning of coming into contact with something is likely to be when I come into contact with something However the rack is fitted which was a Thule Sport G2 compact. It is not 100% ideal due to the shape of the doors and I can see the lower panel moving when I press down but I believe it will be fine with the weight of a bike or two on it (non e-bike!) and if necessary I can add a bit of support behind the lower bar where there is a gap between it and the door & possibly add a bracing plate inside the door.

IMG_20210904_184518.jpg

IMG_20210904_184509.jpg

IMG_20210904_184529.jpg

I'll see if my friend would like that setup. He'll start modding his new Transit project after we installed the shocks and suspension from 4Wheelonline onto his Wrangler.