Darryl
Reviewed in Canada on January 8, 2025
Great product very easy to use and setup, took probably about 10 minutes to install on my car. 👍👍👍👍
DaveMS
Reviewed in the United States on September 12, 2024
Overall, this rack is ok. It's not as expensive as many of the others but does function fairly well. I purposely waited to review until after I made a long trip with it and after about 600+ miles it did well. It does wobble alot but it held my bike securely and is fairly easy to work with. It will scratch the frame so I do recommend getting some sort of pool noodle or foam to correct that. I don't know if it's like this for every vehicle but I am using this rack on a Nissan Rogue and there is no way for you to put 2 bikes on here without the possibility of scratching the back of the vehicle or the handlebars coming in contact with the back glass as you drive down the road with the amount of wobble in the rack. You will definitely want to buy an extender for the hitch.
Jay
Reviewed in Canada on December 5, 2024
It’s heavy that’s the downside of it.Wasn’t hard to set up by going through the instructions. I used it for moderate distances less than 60 kms. Structure is strong enough not to swing.Fits two bikes with no issues. Each bike was like 8 kg. Wish there was a way to lock the bikes so I can leave them on the car for a coffee stop without having to worry
Customer
Reviewed in Canada on July 15, 2023
Let me begin by writing that I've been a Thule guy for decades. This XTC2 replaces a Thule Apex hanging bike rack that rapidly became impractical for mounting an MTB. Constant blow-back in the wind at high speed etc etc.Based upon recommendations from fellow cyclists, I was urged to get a platform rack. Having researched them for weeks and not being independently wealthy, I decided to get the Swagman rather than Thule. This unit does not disappoint!Assembly was easy but I suggest using an Allen key socket on a ratchet to get better and complete torque on the two bolts that mount the rack to the tongue. Wheel cradle and top hook placement took a bit to figure out as I have two bikes (one road and one MTB) with different top bar styles and wheel bases. That said, you set them and forget them.Placement on the car back from the bumper is a few inches more than the previous Thule but no biggie if you remember the rack is back there. You can see the upright post in the mirror. It does not wiggle any more or less than the Thule. I can open my trunk without difficulty even with the wheel cradles folded up.Mounting the bikes takes seconds rather than minutes and I no longer need to use a preponderance of bungee cords or straps to prevent sway or blow back. If you're concerned about theft, buy the Swagman threaded lock pin like I did to keep midnight shoppers from helping themselves. As for the bikes, I added a Master 6 foot coated locking cable (available on Amazon) to secure them to the rack should a post-ride visit to the pub be required.Bottom line ... A great rack, a great design, and an economical well made product from a CANADIAN company !
Javier R
Reviewed in Mexico on September 17, 2022
Es de buena calidad y muy fácil de intalar
HECTOR ZEQUERA VALDES
Reviewed in Mexico on November 29, 2018
Entrega en tiempo, fuerte para las 2 bicicletas, fácil de armar, queda a la perfección para el tirón de 2",lo lleve y traje de Querétaro a Ixtapa y sin problema, lo recomiendo ampliamente.
Kellie Collins
Reviewed in the United States on September 21, 2015
(Written by my husband since he made the additional purchases and so far has always loaded up the bikes)Finally, peace of mind on the roadAt least as far as the bicycles being secure, that is. After fidgeting around for years with a strap-mounted rack that has the bikes hanging, it has been refreshing to use a product that feels solid and secure. We have two adult 26” steel frame “hybrid” bikes, which are by nature heavier than street/road bikes. After about a half-dozen trips under our belts, we couldn’t be happier with the XTC-2.Assembly is straightforward and only took a few simple hand tools, and at 34 pounds, the assembled rack is not unwieldy enough that my wife would have any issues removing it from the wall storage and sliding it into the receiver. We have a 2008 Camry with a 1 ¼” receiver (by U-Haul, about $180 installed), and the offset-shank is definitely a must for the low ground clearance of the Camry and steep driveway aprons.We purchased a few of the reviewer-recommended add-ons: Locking hitch pin, ratcheting box wrench, and a couple of the Master 131T padlocks to secure the ratcheting arms. When installed, the XTC-2 is far enough away from the trunk that the trunk lid swings open easily, but that may not work with two bikes mounted on the rack. The locking hitch pin means if someone really wants to steal the XTC-2, they’re gonna have to work at it – really work at it. The ratcheting box wrench will save you much frustration installing and removing the rack from the receiver. The only wrinkle with the Master 131T padlocks is that they are a very snug fit in the ratcheting arms. Good for theft prevention, but you might find that the lower ratchet arm interferes with the logical position of the upper arm when it comes time to secure the padlock. It can be done, just takes a few passes to get the hang of it on the first few uses.We just returned from a vacation involving a 300-mile drive, and the XTC-2 performed flawlessly, even with my wife doing her best to take corners on two wheels. The only thing that needed a slight twist to tighten was one of the “hoops” which hold the wheels; it slid when I folded up the rack for storage. I used a dot of white paint to indicate where the hoops will normally be positioned for our bikes, so there’s no guesswork when the rack is used for the next trip.Concur with a few of the other reviewers who recommend touching up any spots that get scraped, as surface rust will quickly develop on exposed bare metal – but that is true of any metal item that is exposed to the elements.Overall, no hesitation recommending this rack for ease of use, secure transport, and good value for the money.
nc2345
Reviewed in the United States on July 31, 2012
This rack is easy to load when only one bike is involved. 2 bikes is a pain since I have to remove both hooks to clear the tire when the upright needs to pivot back up (for a 26in med mtb bike). You don't want to load the inner bike with the upright up since you will likely scratch your car. There is also quite a bit of tweaking that needs to take place when 2 bikes are loaded to keep them from rubbing each other, via the tire hoops. If you use the locks recommended for this rack it is easy to use the leverage from the lock itself to tighten and untighten the hitch pin to avoid excess swaying, no need for a wrench, plus the tiny locks give you that nice false sense of security that your stuff is safe. If you have a hatchback with no independent window opening your hatch will need to remain closed once the bike(s) are loaded and during loading (I have goofed and loaded the rack with the hatch open, which then won't close, doh) Other than these 2 minor annoyances (might be major if you always load 2 bikes or access your hatch area often) this rack works great for my weekly riding treks. I considered the 1up racks because they look like quality and do *everything I needed, but at 500d I would be worried about my bike AND the rack getting stolen.2apr15 update: rack doesn't hold up to road salt, outer ratchet tooth has worn off so no engagement. Still useful for only 1 bike, but not 2.2mar17 update: rack is still functional. still a pain to load 2 bikes. I don't think I mentioned above that the vertical post can be unhinged and used to secure your back tire to serve as a workstand if your working on the chain, etc. which is neat, just let it drop down on the back tire with the front tire on the ground and it will hold the bike up. The grey enamel on the wheel hoops and the hold-down hooks is peeling off. Also, the hooks have holes for padlocks to prevent the hook ratchets from releasing, however, I am able to release them even with a padlock installed (same size padlock that fits the hitch pin). Maybe swagman can re-engineer this release so it actually locks using off the shelf matching padlocks (same for hooks and hitch pin). I would be happy to buy the upgraded hooks and breathe some new life into my rack.28may20 update: Steel is real baby! rack is still going strong, replaced bike hooks after I ran one over. It's been hit 3 times by other cars and bent, but it's steel so I bent it back, using a blow torch and a fat guy. I'm probably going to drill some holes to make it work as a camping hammock stand, along with some longer poles. This rack has a lot of annoying shortcomings which are overcome by the fact that it lasts probably longer than you want it to; as of this review the rack is still working after 8 years of being on the car 95% of the time.2021 update: Still working fine! The grooves on the tower wear down over time and the hooks can come loose, also the teeth on the grab hooks can wear down if you always run them up/down without releasing the spring tension. For the tower, you can just dremel the grooves at the point where the hook tightens down on your bike so that they grab again. I tend to tuck the hooks and the wheel hoops towards the center when this stays on the car, people occasionally graze it with their car in the parking lot.