Van internal bike transportation

[j3ayy]

Hi.
I am just purchasing a new van & wondering what is the best way to transport my bikes in the back? My local bike shop suggested getting a Bstand & bolt it to the floor of the van.

 

[R120]

Personally I just bungee it to the tie downs along one side - if you are after something fancy . . .

Bike racks for motorhome | Thule | United Kingdom

Motorhome bike racks from Thule let you hit the road and take your bikes with you – safely, easily and securely. Find your ideal bike rack here!

www.thule.com

 

[Deleted member 7464]

I've done mine this way.i have made a drop down mount between the bikes to hold the front wheels

 

[j3ayy]

Would these work?

 

[Sharpy52]

I have a bike work stand type clamp mounted in the van, when not in use it's just a small metal plate on the side that the clamp slides into. Roll bike in, clamp and done.

 

[Richywalker64]

Would these work?

View attachment 48964

I bought one similar to this but it wasn't suitable.
I have plus tyres on (2.8) and they were too wide to fit, I tried bending it but the weld cracked and the bike still needed support at the front

 

[Andrie]

I have a bike work stand type clamp mounted in the van, when not in use it's just a small metal plate on the side that the clamp slides into. Roll bike in, clamp and done.

View attachment 48971

That looks great. What brand is that and if there is a link

 

[Sharpy52]

That looks great. What brand is that and if there is a link

I got 2 from Amazon a few years back, have one each side in my van. I also cut down the length where it fits into the holder, so it brought it closer to the side of the van Looks like they're not available at the minute on Amazon, but here's the link.

 

[jim0905]

I use a couple of fork mounts fitted to a length of timber

 

[R120]

With a van I just don't get the point if you have to take the front wheel off, for me the benefit of the van is that you can easily chuck the whole bike in, secure it in a matter of seconds, and off you go. I get people have vans that serve multiple purposes, but if I was getting a van purely for taking my MTB around in, then if I had to take the wheel off to achieve this it would be a fail IMO.

 

[dobbyhasfriends]

yea, like @R120 says, I just bungee or ratchet strap to the side of the van, once you bolt something down you can pretty much guarantee that it will be in the way of something else.

 

[jim0905]

With a van I just don't get the point if you have to take the front wheel off, for me the benefit of the van is that you can easily chuck the whole bike in, secure it in a matter of seconds, and off you go. I get people have vans that serve multiple purposes, but if I was getting a van purely for taking my MTB around in, then if I had to take the wheel off to achieve this it would be a fail IMO.

I get what ya saying but I'm driving a crew cab transit so no option but to remove the front wheel unless I'm on my own and then I can just throw it in

 

[Kentish]

I quite like the look of the Bikestow racks... BikeStow for Van, Home & Office

Bit pricy, but most things are these days. ?

 

[j3ayy]

I quite like the look of the Bikestow racks... BikeStow for Van, Home & Office

Bit pricy, but most things are these days. ?

View attachment 48989

View attachment 48990

Now that’s what I’m talking about ??

 

[drjarvis2003]

Now that’s what I’m talking about ??

Remember that if you use a rear fender, these are a no go!

 

[Doomanic]

Bike Station | Forty Winks

www.fortywinksuk.com

 

[j3ayy]

Now that’s what I’m talking about ??

Yea i can see why.

 

[Mikerb]

Most vans have load tie down points. Remove the tie downs and use them to bolt down a length of box section across the van. Fix 2 or more fork mounts to the box section. You want a secure load ( you have to consider the worse case scenario of a crash and you do not want the bikes entering the passenger space) and also do not want to have the bike swinging side to side on , for example, back wheel stands. Wheels are not designed to take those forces.....the forks are.
If you use large wing nuts to bolt the box section down, it together with the fork mounts can easily be removed and stored when not in use.

 

[Johnny]

I use two of these stands bolted to a sheet of wood which is then fastened down using the bolts from the lashing down points. The whole thing can be quickly removed if needed.

 

[MrSimmo]

I get what ya saying but I'm driving a crew cab transit so no option but to remove the front wheel unless I'm on my own and then I can just throw it in

Its a fair point, I have a Transporter shuttle which is essentially a crew cab transporter (i.e. middle row seats dont move) where I've taken out the 3rd row. I bungee my bike at a 45degree angle otherwise it wouldn't fit either length or width way, not a great solution for more than one bike. It also means that taking the bike on a family trip means messing around with wheels or luggage etc which tbh with young kids is is pita.

I'm taking a more strategic view now as family travel is increasing substantially so going for a Tourneo L2 (equivalent of a Caravelle LWB) which hopefully will have enough length to cater for this; not a cheap solution!

I've also found that a bolted down solution has caused me issues in the past where it resulted in me having to constantly move other things around to accommodate, this meant Ive ditched that method in favour of bungees.

 

[Mikerb]

Its a fair point, I have a Transporter shuttle which is essentially a crew cab transporter (i.e. middle row seats dont move) where I've taken out the 3rd row. I bungee my bike at a 45degree angle otherwise it wouldn't fit either length or width way, not a great solution for more than one bike. It also means that taking the bike on a family trip means messing around with wheels or luggage etc which tbh with young kids is is pita.

I'm taking a more strategic view now as family travel is increasing substantially so going for a Tourneo L2 (equivalent of a Caravelle LWB) which hopefully will have enough length to cater for this; not a cheap solution!

I've also found that a bolted down solution has caused me issues in the past where it resulted in me having to constantly move other things around to accommodate, this meant Ive ditched that method in favour of bungees.

??? I have a T5 Shuttle...all the seats in the second and third row are removeable! I use mine with just the single seat in the second row in place. The bike fits lengthways behind that seat ( LWB T5). The rest of my van is mostly for winsurfing gear so it has a rack for 3 boards etc. I made the rack so that the bars easily remove just leaving the uprights, so then I can put a second bike in, again on a fork mount.

 

[MrSimmo]

??? I have a T5 Shuttle...all the seats in the second and third row are removeable! I use mine with just the single seat in the second row in place. The bike fits lengthways behind that seat ( LWB T5). The rest of my van is mostly for winsurfing gear so it has a rack for 3 boards etc. I made the rack so that the bars easily remove just leaving the uprights, so then I can put a second bike in, again on a fork mount.

Sorry, to be clear I leave the 2nd row in at all times for my children. Mine is a SWB hence the move to a LWB in the future.

 

[cozzy]

I had a bracket made up with adjustable angle iron slots to hold the wheel.
If I had to faff taking a wheel out, I would buy a longer van.
Although now im down to 1 bike & the kenevo is so long, i usually just wedge it into the corner & strap it to the side of the van.

 

[Mikerb]

Sorry, to be clear I leave the 2nd row in at all times for my children. Mine is a SWB hence the move to a LWB in the future.

Ah..OK ...so to be clear for others the second row of seat is fully removeable but if you want the second row double or that plus the second row single left in, then bikes will fit lengthways behind them on a LWB T5 using fork mounts. My cross member is mounted across the 2 rear luggage tie down points.

 

[gelfy666]

eBay wall mount work stand, I've also got a bikestowe but if youve to similar sized bikes I find it tricky to get the to fit nicely.

 

[Doomanic]

[mention]Mikerb[/mention] is the fork mount the wheel out type?

 

[Mikerb]

Yes. Remove the wheel and the through axle is then used to secure the forks to the fork mount. The fork mount in turn needs to be securely welded/bolted to a steel cross member which is securely bolted down across the van. Using the mount positions for luggage tie downs does the job because if you remove the tie down loop you have access to a 10mm reinforced floor mount that is as good if not better than a seat belt mounting point.
Whilst it does of course mean removing the wheel ( no big deal especially if the through axle is the lever type) there are a number of advantages to securing the bike in this way. Firstly no other form of support is required, straps etc. Secondly, the bike is shorter in overall length by half a wheel diameter and that can make the difference between it fitting in a given space or not. Thirdly, the centre of balance of the bike is much lower which means less swing weight; the forks are also designed to take the sort of forces being applied whereas a wheel is not. Lastly, all loads need to be assessed for safety in the event of an accident. With a fork mount, the rear of the bike can lift in a violent collision but the bike itself cannot move forward into the passenger area. I have seen examples of people using bungee straps etc to strap a bike to the side of a van or mounting brackets to the van side lining without going into a frame member with a reinforced seat belt standard fixing......both, worse than useless in an accident.

 

[Doomanic]

I thought so. It's how I'd do it in a crew van too.

I'm currently looking for a nice car that'll take a bike in a similar fashion because I don't want to lose my creature comforts and I like driving too much to have a van as daily driver. If my 5er was about 100mm taller it'd be perfect.

 

[Mikerb]

Just measure the height of the bike with the seat post slammed, and the length of the bike without the front wheel. Then check those measures ( rear of seats to rear of vehicle/ height) of whatever vehicle you fancy. Your only issue then is mounting a secure cross member for the fork mount. ps....I prefer driving my T5 to most cars except my BMW!!

 

[Doomanic]

Just measure the height of the bike with the seat post slammed, and the length of the bike without the front wheel.

Oh wow, if only I'd thought of that...

There's slightly more to it than that; boot opening/lip is also a factor.