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what is the best hitch or bike rack for my 2020 Highlander hybrid?


PFITZ

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I have a 2020highlander hybrid.   I need to carry 2 bicycles.  I have been looking at hitches (dealer wanted exorbitant amount of money) or bike rack.   The hitches seem difficult to attach.   One of them you have to drop the exhaust.       Thank you.   

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On 5/24/2021 at 9:50 AM, PFITZ said:

I have a 2020highlander hybrid.   I need to carry 2 bicycles.  I have been looking at hitches (dealer wanted exorbitant amount of money) or bike rack.   The hitches seem difficult to attach.   One of them you have to drop the exhaust.       Thank you.   

After a lot of research and owning three different racks, the best one in my opinion, bar none, is Kuat. It's also one of the most expensive. But you need to ask yourself some questions:

1. Hitch mount? You've already figured out this one because you're asking about hitches.

2. How much hassle are you willing to put up with? This will help you answer whether to go cheaper with a frame rack or much easier and more expensive with a tray rack

3. How much do you care about your bike(s)? This is sort of related to question 2 above. I say this because I tried a frame rack (Allen Deluxe) and found it difficult to keep the bikes from hitting each other as you drive. It's also difficult just mounting them to the rack without them hitting each other and figuring out a good way to pad them from each other. If you just want to mount the bikes and go and take them off and ride when you get there, then tray racks are way easier. Tray racks (Kuat and Thule are the two I have had) are super quick and easy and tilt backward if you want to get into the tailgate. You can also buy swing away options so the rack swings away like a door. I opted not to get that part as it adds weight and bulk and we have a 3 bike setup but it wouldn't be bad with a 2 bike setup. If I do any more cross country trips I'll probably get one though just to use on the trip (it's an add-on with Kuat but can't remember about Thule or Yakima as you may have to buy them that way from the outset)

I've found Kuat's customer service to be excellent. I will say that right now it's difficult to find ANY good bike rack in stock. We waited about five months to get ours.

Regarding the hitch- U-Haul has them for a reasonable amount of money. I think they are about $350 installed (2" receiver) I would have gotten the hitch receiver with the Highlander when we bought it but we have a Limited and they don't offer hitches on Limited or Platinum. It's totally lame that they don't but I believe it's because the hitch would interfere with the tailgate kick sensor. Why Toyota can't just design a hitch and/or move the kick sensor is beyond me but that's why I decided to get the U-Haul which will also end up disabling the kick sensor. I never use it anyway so not too worried about it.

Hope this helps.

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 1 year later...

Hi. I'm obsessed with riding. On my Highlander 2018, I keep a bike rack. I enjoy riding my bike in the mountains. Before I acquired a new job in town, I used to go there every weekend.
I purchased a Hitch-style Bike Rack from here.
This rack style was chosen because it enables for the safe movement of a bike from one location to another. The type of bicycle rack you need will be determined by the vehicle you drive. A hitch-mount rack is also useful for vehicles such as minivans.

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