This is a review of the Thule 9032 Easy Fold Electric Bike Rack. This ebike rack is designed to transport up to two electric bikes weighing up to 66 pounds each. Clearly, this rack is intended to be much stronger than the average bike rack. If you are thinking of transporting an electric bike or two, you should seriously consider this rack. The post includes a video that shows how easy it is to install this bike rack – straight out of the box!
The last time we got a bike rack, we were constrained by the fact that our hitch is 1¼ inches. When we saw the Thule 9032 Easy Fold Electric Bike Rack in the showroom, I was worried that it would not fit our hitch. But they have figured that out now! This bike rack ships with an adaptor, so it can be used on 1¼ inch and 2 inch receivers.
I had been planning to get a ramp-style rack, because they are more solid and secure for transporting heavier bikes, such as our two electric bikes. So I liked the Thule 9032 immediately I saw it. Once I was told that this bike rack is rated for handling the weight of two electric bikes (each up to 66 lb), I was sold. Our bikes weigh around 50 lb each.
The Thule 9032 Easy Fold Electric Bike Rack Requires Zero Assembly
Once we decided on this bike rack, it was a cinch to install. This bike rack is fully assembled in the box, so there is pretty much nothing to do.
The salesman just took the rack out of the box, removed the 2 inch adaptor with the included hex wrench, carried the rack out to the car – and a minute later, it was installed! Really impressive. You can see that in this video:
Transporting Two Electric Bikes with Our Thule 9032 Easy Fold Electric Bike Rack
The real question is always: how will the bike rack work? I am kind of an anxious guy, and have been known to almost have a car accident because my eyes were focused on the rear-view mirror to keep a check on my bikes on the bike rack. Well, this bike rack has reduced my anxiety to zero. I actually forget to keep an eye on the bikes. They are simply rock solid on this rack.
Of course, you do want to take it easy over speed bumps, otherwise the bottom of the rack may bump on the road. Other than that, we do not notice any weight difference or driving quality difference transporting our two bikes with this bike rack.
Using the Thule 9032 Easy Fold Electric Bike Rack
So basically, to use this bike rack, I first fetch it from the laundry room. This is where we store it. It folds up like a suitcase, so it is not a problem to keep it neatly in the laundry room. Our last rack was seriously damaged by an anonymous hit and run driver in a parking lot. So now we never leave our bike rack on our car any more. Fortunately, with this one, it is so easy to remove and replace. It is also light enough that both my wife and I can carry it around.
So I carry it down to the garage, where I slide it onto the receiver with complete ease due to the fact that it is so light. I tighten down the Snug-TiteT receiver lock (which almost completely eliminates any hitch rack movement in the receiver). Then I use the large Thule key to lock the knob. I am so happy the key is large, so it is easy to find on my crowded key ring
Then, I press the releases to fold out the two sections of the ramp, pushing them down to the horizontal. After that, I lift the two bikes onto the ramp, and tighten a large clamp around each of the bike frames.
Then I cinch down the wheels with the flexible, quick-release, cable wheel anchors, and we are good to go!
The very first time we did this, it took us a while to figure out the optimal placement for both of our bikes, and where to position the cranks. Now, we have it down to a fine art, and can do it in a couple of minutes.
Things I like about the Thule 9032 Easy Fold Electric Bike Rack
No. 1: Our bikes are safe and solid; we can just relax.
No. 2: Because of the ramp style, you can carry any bike, regardless of size or frame shape. For example, we also transport our grandkids’ bikes on our Thule 9032 Easy Fold Electric Bike Rack.
No. 3: We can fold it up like a suitcase, carry it upstairs, and slide it into the corner of our laundry room. Can you even spot it here? Note that the bikes in front of it are our grandkids’ bikes, so they are really small bikes. It’s amazing how small this bike rack looks in our very small laundry room.
No. 4: This rack has nice big reflectors on the back, which I have not seen on other bike racks.
Extras that Come with the Thule 9032 Easy Fold Electric Bike Rack
The Thule 9032 comes with an aluminum loading ramp that I have never taken out of the box, because we just lift the bikes onto the rack. I have heard that some users find the loading ramp too flimsy for electric bikes, so I am happy we don’t use it. The plan is to stay strong enough that we never need it. The exercise of carrying the bike rack and loading the bikes will help us achieve that goal!
The rack also ships with an extra strap that we use to cinch together the two sections of the platform when no bikes are being carried and the rack is folded.
Bottom Line on Our Thule 9032 Easy Fold Bike Rack
We have owned a lot of bike racks, and the Thule 9032 Easy Fold Electric Bike Rack is the best one by far. The main thing is that it keeps our expensive and much loved bikes safe on our car.
This bike rack has empowered us to start planning long-distance trips with our ebikes. Portland, here we come! Some people think it is quite a lot of money to spend on a bike rack – but we paid the same price for a slightly inferior rack almost ten years ago. So we think this is excellent value for money, and are very happy that we bought it. If you have heavy bikes that you love and want to transport safely, this is the bike rack for you.
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