The 4 Best Bike Racks for Sedans (Trunk and Hitch Options)

I’ve got a scar on my driver’s side door from a hanging rack that swung into a highway divider at 60 mph. The bike survived. The rack did not. The paint job took the hit, and the only reason I’m not still bitter about it is that it finally forced me to admit that sedans are the worst platform for hauling bikes, and that cheap trunk straps are a donation to the body shop.

I drive a sedan because I race crits and I like having a trunk that actually holds my gear without a roof box. That means I’ve spent twelve years and eight racks figuring out what works on a low hitch and a fragile trunk lid. The market is full of products that claim they fit sedans. Most of them lie. The ones that don't lie are either overpriced or have one fatal flaw you only find out about after you’ve loaded a bike in the dark and heard that awful creak.

Here’s the thing about sedans. The hitch receiver sits low, usually around 12 to 14 inches off the ground, which means a lot of tray racks will scrape on any driveway with a slight incline. And the trunk lid is aluminum or thin steel, which means any strap-mounted system is just a scratch machine with extra steps. I’ve tested four racks this year that actually deserve a conversation. I’m not going to pretend they’re all winners, because they’re not. But if you drive a sedan and you want to haul a bike without crying, these are the ones I’ve measured.

The first one I’ll talk about is the Allen Sports 522SR, which is a trunk strap rack that costs about $130. I know what I said about trunk straps, and I stand by it: they scratch paint, they wobble, and they’re a pain in the ass to mount on a car with a spoiler. But the 522SR is the only trunk rack I’ve used that doesn’t feel like it’s going to murder my bike on the interstate. The straps are thick, the cradles have decent padding, and the mounting points are designed for sedans specifically. I tested it on a 45-mile highway run with a 29er on the back, and the wobble at 75 mph was real but manageable. It’s not a hitch rack and it never will be, but for the price, it’s the best option if you absolutely refuse to install a hitch. My criticism is the same one I have for every trunk rack: it blocks your license plate and your taillights unless you buy the extension, which is another $20. That’s a safety issue, not a convenience one.

Now, if you’re willing to spend a little more and you have a 1.25-inch hitch receiver, the Hollywood Racks Sport Rider SE is the best bang for your buck in the sedan category. It’s $230, it’s a tray rack, and it holds two bikes. The tray arms fold down when you’re not using it, which is huge for a sedan because you’re not constantly banging your shins on a stuck-out rack in the garage. The loading process is straightforward: roll the bike in, strap the front wheel, cinch the rear. It took me about two minutes on the first try, and that’s with a 29er with a long frame and a rear rack, which is the enemy of every tray rack I’ve tested. The one thing I hate about it is the velcro straps. They’re the standard issue cheap velcro that’s too short for anything wider than a road tire. I replaced them with bungee cords on day two, and that’s the only modification I’ve made in six months of testing. The rack itself has held up through a Colorado winter, which means it doesn’t rust like the cheap stuff. That’s worth $230 by itself.

The contrarian take in this article is about the $60 rack. You know the one. It’s on Amazon, it has four and a half stars, and it claims to fit “all cars.” It’s the kind of rack that shows up in the “frequently bought together” section with a bungee cord and a prayer. I tested a generic version of this rack. It’s called the Simple Houseware 5-bike rack, and it’s not made for sedans at all. It’s a vertical floor stand, not a car rack, but I’m including it because it’s the answer to the real problem with sedan ownership: where do you put the bike when you’re not driving? Sedans have small garages and no space. You’re not hauling a bike on a highway every day, but you are hauling it from the porch to the garage and back. The Simple Houseware rack is $35, it assembles in fifteen minutes with a Phillips screwdriver, and it holds my 29er and my 26-inch commuter without tipping over. The catch is that it rusts within three weeks if you leave it outside, and it’s not adjustable, so if you have a bike with a weird geometry, you’ll be shimming it with cardboard. I’ve had mine for four months and it’s already showing rust spots on the base. But for $35, it’s the right call for a lot of people. I hate that it’s the right call, but it is.

The fourth rack is the one I actually recommend for most sedan owners: the Kuat Transfer 2, which runs about $400. That price makes people flinch, and I get it. But this is the rack I’ve used for the last two years, and it’s the one that survived the deer strike. I was doing a gravel ride in the foothills, and a deer ran into the side of my car while my bike was on the rack. The rack took the impact, the bike stayed on, and the only damage was a bent fender on the car. The rack itself didn’t even need a new strap. That’s the build quality you’re paying for. The Transfer 2 has a 2-inch receiver option, which is what I use, and it tilts away from the trunk so you can actually open the trunk with bikes on it. That’s the feature that sold me. Every other rack I’ve tested forces you to choose between hauling bikes and accessing your trunk. The Kuat gives you both, and it does it without sagging because the hitch mount is solid. The downside is the weight. It’s 50 pounds, which is a lot to lift onto a sedan’s low hitch. You’ll need to be comfortable with a little bit of a workout, or you’ll need a second person for the first few mounts. But once it’s on, it’s the most stable rack I’ve tested at highway speeds. No wobble, no sway, no drama.

Now, let me talk about what I won’t recommend. The Swagman XC2 is a popular budget hitch rack at $250, and I tested it for three months. It’s a folding tray rack that fits a 2-inch receiver, and it’s fine for a mountain bike with a short wheelbase. But I’ve seen the reviews, and I’ve lived them: the welds on the folding mechanism are weak, and after three months of weekend use, I noticed a hairline crack on the hinge. It didn’t fail completely, but it was enough that I stopped using it. That’s the problem with mid-tier racks: they’re built to a price, and the price shows up in the metal. The Kuat is $150 more, and the difference is a rack that’s not going to crack after a season of gravel riding. If you’re only hauling a bike twice a month on flat roads, the Swagman might be fine. But I’m not going to recommend a rack that I wouldn’t trust on a highway run.

The other thing I won’t recommend is any trunk rack that uses a single strap over the top of the trunk. I’ve seen the product photos, and they’re all the same: a bike hanging off a sedan with a strap that looks like it’s holding on for dear life. That’s marketing, not physics. The strap is always too short for a 29er with a long frame, and the rack always sags low enough to scrape on a speed bump. I tested one of these, and I returned it after one trip. The bike was fine, but the paint on the trunk lid was not. The Allen 522SR is the exception because it uses a multi-point strap system that distributes the weight better, but even that has the license plate problem.

So here’s my bottom line. If you drive a sedan and you want to haul a bike on a highway, get a hitch installed and buy the Kuat Transfer 2. It’s $400, it’s 50 pounds, and it’s the only rack I’ve tested that doesn’t sag, wobble, or scratch your car. If you can’t afford that, the Hollywood Racks Sport Rider SE at $230 is a solid second choice, but budget $10 for bungee cords. And if you just need a place to store your bike in the garage, the Simple Houseware rack for $35 is a steal, even if it rusts. Just don’t tell anyone I recommended it. The deer strike proved the point, and I’m done paying for cheap racks that lie about what they are. check the current price on Amazon for the Kuat, check the current price on Amazon for the Hollywood, and check the current price on Amazon for the Simple Houseware. You’ll thank me after the first dark, tired, wet loading session at 9 p.m. on a Tuesday.

Found This Helpful?

Have questions about bike racks? We reply to every email.

Email Us

More Bike Racks Guides