Cyclists - Roof Rack or Install a Hitch & Thule Rack?

I am guessing you could fit a 2nd bike in, however, it will be challenging to reach in as the rear wheel and pedals are in each others way, personally i wouldn't do it due to potential damage to the bike, spokes ...
my Thule rack is a "hanging" one, can hold 3 bikes and i had 3 bikes on it on my old Gen3 Prius with no issues.
However, given that the Prime hatch is carbon fiber, i'm having 2nd thoughts if i would really like to use that, not that carbon fiber isn't a strong material, but those are metal hooks (with some kind of rubbery cover) and the danger of scratching is there, and in the old days when carbon fiber started out, scratching was a bad thing, but i am not a material engineer so just taking a guess

 

Thanks for the pic. Did you take the pedal off too?

 

while it would be beneficial to take the left side pedal off (bike is laying on tis left side and it would making it easier to get it over the hump, the difference in height between the battery and the rear seats) i consider it too much hassle, for me personally, i'm ok moving the pedal into the right spot when the bike is in the car sometimes. My pedals are small, they're the eggbeaters, they only stick out like 2 or 3 inches

 

another thought on hatch racks ... the Gen3 hatch was a metal frame all around, the Prime's hatch is carbon fiber as we know, but also the top of the hatch is glass ... since hatch racks (at least my Thule) clip in at the top, that has me know really worried that i would want to use a hatch rack on the Prime.

 

Very pleased with my hitch rack. Draw-tite hitch with a Rockymounts Split Rail rack.

 

I carry mine in our 2010 Sienna, but I do have a road bike I going try and fit inside the Prius.

 

Have you tried putting a bicycle in the back of a Prius Prime? I am contemplating buying a Prime but I want to know first if my 56cm road bike will fit in the back first. I had a Thule roof rack on my 2015 Prius Model Five but absolutely hated it .. the looks and the loss in mpg. Thanks!

 

i took my MTB to the dealer and said it would be a deal killer if it wouldn't fit in side ... love the Prime

 

Here is my 52 cm road bike in the back, didn't even have to take the front wheel off.

 

Not sure but dealer said it voided the cars warranty.

 

I ordered a Draw Tite Hitch for my Prius Prime from e-trailer, It installed OK but is completely useless as built. The receiver is 4 inches from the bumper and neither of my two bike racks will fit because they hit the bumper before I can put in the pin. I called e-trailer and talked to four different people, all were sympathetic, but no one would help. The said to buy an adaptor extension, about half the price of the hitch cost. Oh, by the way, they said the extension drops the tongue weight in half to 100 lbs. None of this was on their website by the way. All they need to do was to make the receiver 3' longer. I would not recommend Draw Tite for you car. Don't expect any satisfaction from e-trailer, it doesn't exist.

 

Just because the dealer said it, doesn't make it true. When denying a warranty claim, the manufacturer must show some rational link between the failure under consideration, and the unapproved use or modification being used to deny the warranty.

 

Just because the dealer said it, doesn't make it true. When denying a warranty claim, the manufacturer must show some rational link between the failure under consideration, and the unapproved use or modification being used to deny the warranty.

 

The Curt hitch is back even further. There are no other choices. The problem is these hitches weren't designed for the Prime; they are for the liftback. Just use the extension with an anti-rattle pin. Don't put more than two bikes back there. My 1up rack fits the Draw-Tite without an extension, but just barely.

 

Some racks fit, but are snug. Mine has a tightener & lock on the neck, so it doesn't. The short extender works fine. I have no worries about carrying 3 light-weight bikes that way.

 

My Prime is at Torklift for the next couple days...

 

I put a TorkLift hitch on my Highlander. Absolutely fantastic hitch...Almost invisible. Good to hear they will be providing one for the Prime.
It wasn't from TorkLift but I also have a hitch on my 2010 Prius and it's a great way to carry bicycles.

 

New 2" receiver hitch on my new 2017 Prius Prime! Now I have a 2" hitch on all my cars. The hitch comes all the way out from under the bumper with no extender needed.

Torklift had the car 3 full days, and then I picked up the car with installed hitch on Friday morning.






They said it will take 2 to 3 weeks for the engineering department to complete all the documentation, make this a production item, and list this model on their website.

I think it looks good, but I haven't yet put the bike rack on, since I had to go out of town Friday.

Disclaimer: Torklift provided me the hitch at no cost since I volunteered my car for 3 days.