Thule 9034 T2 Pro hitch bike rack review

If you have used a hanging style bike rack before, chances are you know the pain of trying to wiggle and jiggle your bike's frame into place. Add a few more bikes are things become hairy quickly. Platform style bike racks solve this problem by holding bicycles up by the wheels, and then hanging on by the top of the front wheel or by the frame. For years, the popular Thule 916XTR T2 was the bike rack of choice for this reason.

For 2016, Thule has updated the T2 as the 9034 T2 Pro. This rack is loaded with features that best nearly every competing rack out there, at a similar or better price point.

The new T2 Pro comes in a few different varieties. The 9034 fits 2" class 3 and larger hitch receivers, and can be used with the 9036 T2 Pro Add-On extension to carry up to 4 bicycles. The 9035 fits 1.25" hitch receivers, but it is probably heavy enough that you would not want to use it on a smaller capacity class 1 hitch. A class 2 hitch will let you carry 2 bikes. The 9036 Add-On extension won't work on the 9035 1.25" T2 Pro.

One of the biggest upgrades from previous versions is that the T2 Pro can carry up to a 5" wide fat bike wheel right out of the box with no adapters. Right now in summer 2016, this is the only full featured rack on the market that is capable of this feat. The competing Kuat NV can carry up to a 4" wide fat bike wheel when using a strap extender, but the rack wasn't designed from the ground up for fat bikes the way the T2 Pro was. Yakima's HoldUp design is really showing its age now, as it can't accept fat bikes at all. Road bikes and everything in between fit just as well as ever, as the proprietary front wheel baskets on the T2 Pro have grooves to accommodate thin wheels without any extra play or wiggle. The front wheel hooks on the T2 Pro are huge and feel very positive against front wheels of all kinds (front fenders need to be removed though).

Folded down, hatch open

When Thule was designing the T2 Pro, they had the Kuat NV with its lightweight aluminum bike arms as the main competitor in mind. Through multiple iterations, Thule decided they couldn't make the bike rack they wanted by going with lighter weight aluminum. The T2 Pro uses heavy duty steel construction throughout, and this gives the end user several big advantages after the rack is installed. The T2 Pro has a huge lower hitch bar that places the bike rack farther away from the vehicles than all the competitors. This means the best clearance for SUVs with the hitch tucked up underneath the bumper, which is unfortunately common now. The T2 Pro has its fold down handle located at the end of the rack for easy access - no more jamming your body in between your bikes and the car to try to reach the folding handle. With the rack folded down, rear hatch access is easy and bikes sit far away. Note that this fold down mechanism won't work nicely with four bicycles, as the rack simply becomes too heavy to drop and lift nicely.

Ratcheting wheel arm and locking cable

Steel locking cables hide away in the bike arms of the T2 Pro. These are keyed alike to the lock on the tension handle at the bottom of the rack (which is nicely protected by a forward steel shield). It's unfortunately that Thule is still using these puny steel cables. No thief worth their salt is going to have a problem steeling bikes from this rack with anything more than a pair of scissors. This problem is by no means unique to Thule - thin, braided steel cables are the defacto standard of the rack business. The Kuat NV's hidden away steel cables feel much more substantial than Thule's tiny wires, however. Yakima's HoldUp is about on par with the T2 Pro for locks.

Pros

• Fits fat bikes right out of the box.
• Beefy steel construction places bikes far away from the vehicle and gives heaps of room between bikes.
• Super easy to load and unload bikes with ratcheting front wheel arms.
• Best folding handle access on the market.

Cons

• Very heavy. It's a shame Thule doesn't have a lightweight platform option, because that would be the no-brainer rack for most cyclists out there who don't need to haul four huge downhill bikes.
• Locking cables leave a lot to be desired. These are not stopping any motivated thief or passing ne'erdowell.
• Boring silver on grey/black finish will leave you feeling Kuat NV-ous.

I expect this rack will become the best selling bike rack across North America because of a combination of the strong Thule name and the fact that it will fit essentially every bicycle out there. It is probably overkill for a lot of people, who might be better served by the lightweight Kuat Sherpa 2.0, arriving soon. I would definitely purchase this rack myself if I needed a fat bike rack or a nice downhill hauler.

Thule Excellence ultra-premium roof box

Thule recently announced the release of a new 18 cubic foot large roof box called the Thule Excellence. The box is a two-tone black and silver and includes design features like improved ABS plastic thickness, extra lid stiffeners/straighteners, an easy pull down handle, and a storage bag to keep the top looking nice.

Designed for sleekness, lightness, and aerodynamic superiority, the box will sell at $799.95 US (price circa 2009). SUVs, crossovers, and mid-size luxury vehicles are the main target for the Thule Excellence box, which debuts in March 2009.

Update May 19, 2016:

The Thule Excellence is still going strong. It is available in many markets worldwide under several different names and color schemes. In North America, it is possible to find the Thule 611 Boxter and 6119B Excellence, both of which are made in Thule's German box factory and imported. The 611 Boxter/Excellence series is very highly reviewed and is known for it's incredible stiffness and quality.

Compared to the 611, the upgraded 6119B has an internal shock cord netting system, an anti-slip surface in the base, an internal front shield to protect the front spring hinge, and a rear spring hinge-mounted LED light (which is a nice bonus but NOT sufficient to light the box in the dark). If you grab either box, expect to pay a big premium compared to Thule's top of the line North American boxes like the 612 Hyper XL (a poor imitation of the Boxter) or the spiritual successor the 606 Flow (currently made in Germany with amazing quality).

One very good reason to splurge on the Boxter/Excellence - it will carry skis up to 205cm+ while sitting far forward off of your rear hatch for full access. No need to scratch up your nice new SUV's rear door against an inferior box!

Box Review: Thule 686 Atlantis 1600 cargo box

Update May 19, 2016:

The Thule 686B Atlantis 1600 mold is still being used to make the current Thule 628 Force Large box. This box is a very popular size for modern SUVs with racks near the rear of the roof. It allows you to carry a ski up to 180cm+ while still avoiding the hatch on the vast majority of vehicles.


The Thule 686 Atlantis 1600 cargo box is a popular discontinued Thule rooftop carrier. The shortest, stubbiest box in the Atlantis series, the 1600 is perfect for wagon, minivan and SUV owners who need cargo capacity without interfering with the vehicle's rear hatch.

A common problem with long cargo boxes on modern vehicles is that vehicle manufacturers want to mount roof racks to the back of the roof to minimize the wind noise heard in the cabin. This makes it nearly impossible to center the cargo box between a vehicle's axles. On vehicles with hatches that open up, this tends to result in paint meeting box and scratch meeting paint. By going with a short style box, you minimize this effect or avoid the problem entirely. The downside is anything longer than a 180cm ski is going to have to stay home for this trip.

The Atlantis series of boxes are dual-side opening, which is ideal for loading and unloading the boxes, and makes installation a breeze. The QuickGrip mounting hardware consists of four knobs inside the box, each controlling a set of rubber-coated steel jaws below the box. A few cranks of each knob and the box is installed. This is by far my favorite cargo box to install because of the QuickGrip and dual-side opening. It's literally a 2 minute job, if that.

The Atlantis 1600 is available in 2 standard colors, a smooth silver and black. For summer '07, some shops have a few boxes with a limited edition carbon fiber or brushed steel look. While the box has a steep MSRP of $875 CDN, I feel the ease of install and ideal size and shape for vehicles with rear hatches makes the Atlantis 1600 one of the best cargo boxes going. Plus it has the Thule lifetime warranty. You can't go wrong. Strongly recommended.