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Bike rack on Dolphin


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Hello

I'm wondering if anyone has had a bike rack installed on the back of their Dolphin, and if so, did they have a 'hitch' fitted, or use the place where the spare wheel is attached at the back? Any input received with gratitude.

 

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I tried putting a spair tire mounted bike rack on our Escaper with disconcerting results. It seemed like too much torque on the back wall of the camper. I switched over to a bike rack that slides into a receiver hitch that bolts onto the square bumper. This meant that I needed to replace the rusty old bumper. It is still holding up, although I would have liked to have had a heavier gauge steel used for the 4 in bumper. 

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I use a 2 bike Swagman that attaches to the square bumpers with U bolts ... works great. I also bungee a couple camp chairs 

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  • 3 weeks later...

If you have a ladder I’ve had success using a ladder bike rack.

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Any rack added to rear mounted tire, ladder or even bumper should only be done after you make sure that everything is still solidly mounted. Rear walls have been known to be 'punky' and tires and ladders compromised. Adding extra weight with bikes might be the 'last straw'!

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I agree! On my rig the ladder is built well compared to others I’ve seen. I replaced all the mounting screws with larger SS screws. Very secure! Unless your rear bumper is reinforced I’d be concerned about a bumper rack. There’s lots of bouncing back there when driving!

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Yes, I was in question of the bumper’s ability to bear the weight of two bikes over the bumps of the road. So I secured the hitch mounted bike rack to the spare tire also. It’s a quick connect/disconnect that dampens the bouncing of the bike rack and distributes the force between the spare and the bumper. 

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  • 1 month later...

Wow, Chrisanglehart, that thing looks beefy.  What size bike are you going to carry?

I am considering doing something similar to carry around a little 180cc.


I have a hitch on the back of my Dolphin as well, the previous own said that they used to tow a Honda CRX.  But I would think that would have been terrible to tow with these little motorhomes.

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Nice!

My dolphin has a plastic bumper and not the metal one. I have not looked into a hitch, but that is my next stop. I bought a used 'spare tire rack' for 2 bikes, but the angle of the spare wheel is too much hanging away from the vehicle and so is no good, one bike wheel nearly scrapes the ground when i go out my drive, and i didn't like it anyway. 

 

Thanks for the replies!!

 

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  • 3 years later...
On 8/23/2018 at 10:38 AM, chrisanglehart said:

I recently had a 2 inch receiver welded onto my 1982 Toyota dolphin. See pics below. It is solid.  

IMG_1167.jpg

IMG_1168.jpg

I know this is an old thread but figured I'd try... Who does this kind of work? Get a hitch and take to welder or  a trailer shop? Thanks.

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This is a job that requires you do some research. You need to know what they can handle. There are plastic tanks and wiring under there that could be destroyed by welding. Do you just want a bike rack or will the hitch be required to hold more weight. An RV place would be the safest but probably also more expensive. This place is in Bend and they do hitches

About Us | WA & OR RV Repair, Boat & Trailer Services | Pro World (prorvbend.com)

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Linda S

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