Clarity - Any ideas on a bike Rack?

  • Thread starter Thread starter cowgomoo
  • Start date Start date
  • Replies Replies 172
  • Views Views 60K
Rob_v1 said:
I’m picking my car up tomorrow morning at their shop with their very first production hitch installed. I’ll post some photos.
Click to expand...
If you had the hitch installed to mount a bike rack, please include a photo of the rack carrying a bike from the view of a following driver. Curious about the visibility of the Clarity's brake lights and turn signals when carrying a bike. Thanks!
 
Sure. BTW, they offer both a 2-inch and a 1.25 inch receiver. I opted for the small one, to make it less conspicuous. Our Thule Helium can fit either. This is primarily to hold a tandem bike, but sometimes we carry singles, too. With the tandem, the wheels go in the trunk, because the frame is so long. I'll shoot pix of both bikes.
 
Hitch_1.webp Hitch_2.webp Hitch_3.webp Hitch_4.webp Hitch_5.webp Hitch_6.webp

Some photos. The last one is with the bike rack pushed forward as far as possible, but without the safety pin in place. The one change I would make, and will probably make, is to drill a hole in either the receiver or the bike rack to allow the safety pin to be inserted with the rack pushed forward completely. This would minimize the length of the vehicle/bike combination, and also reduce the chance of dragging the plastic tightening knob on the ground, which has happened in the past.

I believe this is a good design, with the receiver exposure minimized vertically and horizontally--that is to say, it doesn't needlessly stick out aft of the bumper, is close to the bottom of the vehicle, and as far away as possible from the ground. It is also powder-coated, so should be rust-free for a while. I was told it can support up to 200 pounds of dead weight. That would be a lot of bikes!
 
Last edited:
I forgot to ask, but I think this installation provided the last inputs to the design, and production was to commence shortly. They also made a video of the installation process, which I believe will be posted on line.
 
@Rob_v1:

Very nice! Thank you for the photos.

Looks like a thoroughly professional job with both the manufacturing and the installation. I see no signs of cutting or drilling. Is that right; were you able to install it without having to drill or cut anything on the car?
​
 
Rob_v1 said:
They installed it for me. Yes, they removed some plastic where the hitch protrudes, just forward of the bumper.
Click to expand...

So this isn't a DIY install, then. But it is a very nice installation. I remember seeing photos of another custom trailer hitch installation posted to this forum where there were some obvious cuts, and one of them went further than necessary. Looked rather amateurish. I don't remember if that was on a Clarity PHEV or not. Was that a U-Haul custom job?

This installation -- is that by TorkLift? -- is much better. :)
​
 
Yes, they designed it and installed it. Their engineer did 3D modeling to get the fit they wanted. One of the changes he said they made, late in the process, was to make the receiver flush with, or even slightly recessed from, the aft edge of the bumper.
 
Thanks for the updates @Rob_v1! I did reach out to them again on Friday for installation instructions and they said to reach out again next week. Hopefully your installation means we are close.

Do you know if the steel hitch makes direct contact with any of the aluminum parts on the car, or did it only touch other steel parts?
 
Don't know about steel to aluminum contact, but I know that the hitch is powder coated. Hopefully that reduces the potential for electrolysis.
 
Got a confirmation email today that my hitch is being shipped out. Also a nice surprise - Tork is refunding me $106 because it appears that they are lowering the price of the hitch. They did this without me asking. Pretty stand up move.
 
@Rob_v1 - I hope you are right. Earlier in this thread I think someone posted some issues they had with their TorkLift hitch mounted to a Tesla. It looked bad. I know much of our 'frame' is steel, so hopefully we won't have that problem.

@peekay - thanks for the update! I emailed them again today inquiring about the installation instructions. I just want to see how much cutting is involved (and see if I can figure out the aluminum vs. steel question) before I place an order.
 
According to the Honda documentation, the rear bumper beam is Glass Fiber Reinforced Plastic ("World's first") and this beam mounts to 270MPa steel. Assuming Torklift is doing what they've done with other models, they are sandwiching the mount plate of the hitch in between the frame and the bumper beam. I'd want to know if the bolts that installed the beam are long enough to allow for the additional thickness present in the joint and fully engaged the threaded holes in the frame or if they had to be replaced and if they were replaced, were bolts of an equivalent strength used. The Torklift webpage for the hitch no longer shows the hitch assembly by itself, but the picture I saw there previously had only one bolt hole at the top of each mount plate, whereas the Honda image of the bumper beam attachment shows two holes at the top.
 

Attachments

  • Hitch_Attach_Points.webp
    Hitch_Attach_Points.webp
    19.1 KB · Views: 62
@Steven B, I was able to get the installation instructions from Torklift - it does attach behind the bumper beam. And, as you indicated, I believe that area is all steel so there should be no issues. Either way, when I install it I will double check with a magnet to be sure.

They do include new bolts, washers, and lock washers with the kit and they are Class 10.9 M12-1.25 x 50mm (even calls it out on the instructions). I'm not sure what the original bolts were, but it certainly seems someone put a lot of thought into it over at TorkLift. They even give the torque spec.

TorkLift has asked me to give one of these hitches a shot and give them my feedback (I'm an engineer by day...) I'll definitely post back once I get it installed.
 
Interested in the Torklift, not sure if I want to pull off my bumper, though. My previous hitch for my Civic Hybrid mounted around the back wheels somehow and was a pretty straightforward DIY job.
 
@aapitten. Anything you can share on the instructions for installing this? Do you need to take the whole back end apart as is done in the earlier posted Torquelift Subaru installation video? Also, does anyone know if the 270MPa steel has any issues with the type of stress loads that would be possible with a 200lb tongue weight? I have an ebike I'd like to haul with a 60lb Hollywood ebike rack and wonder if the 200 lb tongue weight is credible on the Clarity or if that is a general reference to the receiver hitch construction.
 
Hi @Tom S - I agree I was a little nervous about the install but after seeing the installation guide I'm feeling better about it. I've attached the guide for you. Given the fact that there are no alternatives out there I'm definitely willing to give it a shot (literally biked once this year as opposed to my usual 20-30 times just due to not having a hitch.)

It does require a complete rear bumper removal but I've had my front bumper off already and the rear looks way simpler (I already have pulled the sides of it off when I was installing my mudflaps and, while it is always a little nerve-wracking pulling a bumper out of the plastic clips and hoping nothing breaks, it really wasn't nearly as bad as I expected.

I haven't received my hitch yet but, once I do, I'll post back with how the install went. I'll try to take some photos along the way if there are any spots not clear in the guide.
 

Attachments

You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top