Cover for bicycles on a bike rack

[mark61]

There's probably more to the rule than just fitting on tow bar.

 

[barryd]

Sounds like the French Breathalysers thing all over again to me. I won't be putting one on. They are a pain in the arse.

 

[marchie]

Sounds like the French Breathalysers thing all over again to me. I won't be putting one on. They are a pain in the arse.

We leave for Spain on 3rd December, and, having had the bikes on the back of the M/Home since our return from the last trip in April 2025, sans cover, I spent all afternoon freeing up seized bike chains and derailleurs, plus the front [suspension] forks. I stopped when it became too dark to see what I was doing, so tomorrow will see Round 2 of the 3-in-1 oil, PTFE Spray + Brake Cleaner to remove any contamination from the brake pads on both bikes. Then I'll put the bikes back on the rack and apply the Hindeman Bike Cover, replete with Warning Sign, because that will be much less of a PITA exercise ...

Steve

 

[barryd]

We leave for Spain on 3rd December, and, having had the bikes on the back of the M/Home since our return from the last trip in April 2025, sans cover, I spent all afternoon freeing up seized bike chains and derailleurs, plus the front [suspension] forks. I stopped when it became too dark to see what I was doing, so tomorrow will see Round 2 of the 3-in-1 oil, PTFE Spray + Brake Cleaner to remove any contamination from the brake pads on both bikes. Then I'll put the bikes back on the rack and apply the Hindeman Bike Cover, replete with Warning Sign, because that will be much less of a PITA exercise ...

Steve

Yeah you need to get a proper bike! No chains or gears or any of that nonsense.

 

[GMJ]

As you've probably found, most bike covers for motorhomes are designed for use with a rack on the rear wall of the van, which means a large gap at the back.
Having read reviews about how flimsy some of the alternatives were, I eventually bought this one
It has survived frequent use, including two trips to France and Spain, no rips or other damage.

My mate used to have one he got from Taylormade (the company that make the windscreen covers) - it was very expensive, and very sturdy. In fact it was too sturdy, it weighed a lot and the thick material made it very difficult to handle and store. It was also far too large, but he may have ordered the wrong size!

@bartman - one last question if I may? How effective is your cover at keeping the road crud out from underneath?

 

[bartman]

@bartman - one last question if I may? How effective is your cover at keeping the road crud out from underneath?

I think it's probably as effective as any other. I've never found any great deal of crud appearing on the bikes. The cover has a drawstring around the bottom. It probably helps that my rack (made by Witter) has an additional removable rail in the centre parallel to the runners the bikes sit on.
It's meant to be used as a ramp to run the bikes up on, but I never remove it for that, I just lift them on. It may however be acting as a shield to fill the gap between the bikes.
Edit:
I've just tried to find a link to show my bike rack, but Witter was taken over by Westfalia and the range is completely different

 

[GMJ]

Thanks for that.

The toss up is between the one you have plus bungees for the warning sign at 32 quid (or 36 quid for the 3 bike version) plus bungees...or the Hinderman one at 80 quid with a pair of fixing straps.

Decisions, decisions

I'll do some 'man measuring' on the bikes when I pick up the bike rack tomorrow and try and work out how much space I'll need.

 

[exwindsurfer]

As you can see Graham I had to do a bit of rewelder on my bike rack as my fram has a steep rake on it so bike rack got altered to suit + I only carry one bike any how.

 

[GMJ]

I have now installed my new bike rack on the MH. I went for a Thule Outpace 2 in the end along with the Zettum bike cover recommended on here.

Fitting both were a struggle but I;m sure that will improve with practice.

I drove 30 miles yesterday and the bikes stayed on...which was nice!

Thanks to everyone for their help. Much appreciated.