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Electric4Me said:
Volusiano said:
U-Haul made good of their promise for a free hitch if I left the car with them for 3 days so they can use it as a model to design a hitch for it. I had it installed today for free. The hitch looks similar to the pic Phil posted of his hitch, except that it also has 2 diagonal bars from near the middle of the main cross bar back to the left and right rear with additional plates (hope I'm using the right term here) to bolt onto the frame, I guess for added support.
Pictures! :lol:
Is it a 1-1/4" or 2"?
Sorry, wished I had brought a camera when the hitch was still out before installation. If I took a picture now, it'd just look the same as any other pics already posted because all you can see is the receiver (1.25"). It took them about 1.5 hours to install. I did get a chance to see the hitch close up before installation and it looks very well constructed. I must say I was a little surprise to see the diagonal bars for added support. But if they want to design them in for extra safety, I'm not complaining.
 
Electric4Me said:
Christopher said:
blorg said:
Well, come on then, where are the bloody pictures! I want to see.)
I've got pictures of the gathering plus a video of Bill demoing his bike hitch on my web site:
http://crimdom.net/photos/2011/bay-leaf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ... index.html
Thanks for posting those! In this case a video is worth a thousand pictures! :D
For anyone who's interested, I've moved my post to a new thread.
 
I'd order one of these in a heart beat if I had a Leaf. Similar price as the Torlift Central receiver yet much better. You should advertise this under "Marketplace" or at least start a new thread as I don't consider this a "bike rack", it is actually a receiver which allows the use of ballmounts, bike racks, cargo carriers etc.
 
I can say this is my second most favorite mod/addition to my leaf, behind the seat heaters. Electric4Me has a fantastic product here. Pictured with my wife's very heavy cruiser on the bike rack.

Edit: make that my third favorite...EVSE Upgrade, Seat Heaters, Receiver hitch for my bike rack.

20110716-040829.jpg

20110716-040909.jpg
 
muus said:
I'd order one of these in a heart beat if I had a Leaf. Similar price as the Torlift Central receiver yet much better. You should advertise this under "Marketplace" or at least start a new thread as I don't consider this a "bike rack", it is actually a receiver which allows the use of ballmounts, bike racks, cargo carriers etc.
Haha... You're right, I should start a new thread!

palmermd said:
I can say this is my second most favorite mod/addition to my leaf, behind the seat heaters. Electric4Me has a fantastic product here. Pictured with my wife's very heavy cruiser on the bike rack.

Edit: make that my third favorite...EVSE Upgrade, Seat Heaters, Receiver hitch for my bike rack.

Thanks Michael! Looks good! I've made a few improvements that I'm happy about since your version too!
 
Electric4Me said:
muus said:
I'd order one of these in a heart beat if I had a Leaf. Similar price as the Torlift Central receiver yet much better. You should advertise this under "Marketplace" or at least start a new thread as I don't consider this a "bike rack", it is actually a receiver which allows the use of ballmounts, bike racks, cargo carriers etc.
Haha... You're right, I should start a new thread!

palmermd said:
I can say this is my second most favorite mod/addition to my leaf, behind the seat heaters. Electric4Me has a fantastic product here. Pictured with my wife's very heavy cruiser on the bike rack.

Edit: make that my third favorite...EVSE Upgrade, Seat Heaters, Receiver hitch for my bike rack.


If you attend the BayLEAF meeting this Saturday, Feb. 11, Electric4Me will demo the installation of the receiver hitch on my LEAF at about 8AM. The latest version has some improvements over the earlier one installed in his LEAF. You can watch while having some refreshments.

Meeting Location:
Silver Spring Networks
555 Broadway St
Redwood City, California

Hope to see some local BayLEAFers there for the meeting that starts at 9AM chaired by gascant.
 
linkim said:
Electric4Me said:
muus said:
I'd order one of these in a heart beat if I had a Leaf. Similar price as the Torlift Central receiver yet much better. You should advertise this under "Marketplace" or at least start a new thread as I don't consider this a "bike rack", it is actually a receiver which allows the use of ballmounts, bike racks, cargo carriers etc.
Haha... You're right, I should start a new thread!

palmermd said:
I can say this is my second most favorite mod/addition to my leaf, behind the seat heaters. Electric4Me has a fantastic product here. Pictured with my wife's very heavy cruiser on the bike rack.

Edit: make that my third favorite...EVSE Upgrade, Seat Heaters, Receiver hitch for my bike rack.


If you attend the BayLEAF meeting this Saturday, Feb. 11, Electric4Me will demo the installation of the receiver hitch on my LEAF at about 8AM. The latest version has some improvements over the earlier one installed in his LEAF. You can watch while having some refreshments.

Meeting Location:
Silver Spring Networks
555 Broadway St
Redwood City, California

Hope to see some local BayLEAFers there for the meeting that starts at 9AM chaired by gascant.

Can any of you record a video and also show it from underneath?
 
not exactly what you were asking for, but here is a video...and pictures from underneath.

http://crimdom.net/photos/2011/bay-leafs-may14/pictures/bike-rack-demo.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://tinyurl.com/3pd6n44" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
 
Does anybody have experience with these 2 specific trunk mounted bike racks on the 2011 Nissan leaf? (Yakima). Are they safe? Will they damage the vehicle?
http://www.etrailer.com/partlist.aspx?pc=Y02621,Y02624" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Yakima QuickBack 2 Bike Trunk Mounted Rack. Yakima Y02621
Yakima KingJoe Pro 2 Bike Rack - Folding Arms - Trunk Mount. Yakima Y02624
 
roellis said:
Does anybody have experience with these 2 specific trunk mounted bike racks on the 2011 Nissan leaf? (Yakima). Are they safe? Will they damage the vehicle?
http://www.etrailer.com/partlist.aspx?pc=Y02621,Y02624" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Yakima QuickBack 2 Bike Trunk Mounted Rack. Yakima Y02621
Yakima KingJoe Pro 2 Bike Rack - Folding Arms - Trunk Mount. Yakima Y02624

The problem there is that the trunk/hatch mounted racks are supported from the top of the hatch with straps, and the LEAF has the big plastic spoiler there.

I have a Saris Bones 3, the best rack I have ever owned, but I have not figured out yet how to attach it to the LEAF in a safe way...
 
amtoro said:
roellis said:
Does anybody have experience with these 2 specific trunk mounted bike racks on the 2011 Nissan leaf? (Yakima). Are they safe? Will they damage the vehicle?
http://www.etrailer.com/partlist.aspx?pc=Y02621,Y02624" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Yakima QuickBack 2 Bike Trunk Mounted Rack. Yakima Y02621
Yakima KingJoe Pro 2 Bike Rack - Folding Arms - Trunk Mount. Yakima Y02624

The problem there is that the trunk/hatch mounted racks are supported from the top of the hatch with straps, and the LEAF has the big plastic spoiler there.

I have a Saris Bones 3, the best rack I have ever owned, but I have not figured out yet how to attach it to the LEAF in a safe way...

My solution was to get a robust bike hitch from Electric4Me, described here- http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=41&t=7829" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Now I don't have to be concerned with the strength of the hatch (spoiler) for holding the trunk-mounted carrier. Also the strong hitch allow me to use a cargo carrier when needed. Because of the design, the adapter for the hitch is removable and not visible when not used.
 
Installed my Torklift 2" hitch over the past two weekends. End result - superb. Well designed, solid, and perfect fit to spec. This is a great upgrade.

Ordered it 12/24; they shipped it 1/25. Well packaged with shrink wrap. The hitch looks very custom, and very professionally build. Solid and clean.

Disassembly of the underside cover is not remarkable. Locate the center frame support, jack up the rear end (be sure to chock the front wheels), set a couple jack stands to the far right and left frame supports, and go to work. Don't put the jack stands in the center - you'll need space to slide off the cover.

Mark the cover "clips" with a wax pencil - identify the bolts vs push pins. Or take a pix. Makes it easier when you reassemble.

Mark the holes Torklift identifies for the bolt fish. It will save you some aggrevation later if you pull the wrong holes.

This is the point in the install that challenged my common sense - how to fit the bolt-washer-brace into that little frame hole. I am an electrical engineer (maybe the problem) - couldn't figure it out, and gave up. A quick call to Jonny Couture at Torklift straightened me out. Assemble the bolt setup and fish it piece by piece. Common sense. The bolt fish technique works like magic – bolt, washer, and brace fell right into place. It can be a bit frustrating “fishing” the wire. Don't give up.

Once the bolts are set up, I put the hitch on the jack and lifted it into place. Fit like a glove. I added 5 "double bolts" to ensure nothing loosened up. Be sure to put the bolt back into the assembly you dropped to do the bolt fishing on the driver side.

The cut diagram on the instructions is accurate - do not cut out the bolt clip. Cut only a flap (do not remove) - then slide the cover back into place. Easier said than done, but nothing that a little time and positioning doesn't fix. The "flap" sits perfectly under the hitch receiver box.

This hitch looks great – tomorrow I am off the Mira Mar Lake to test it out with a 68mph run down the I-15 express lanes.

Hats off to Torklift for this creative solution.
 
roellis said:
Does anybody have experience with these 2 specific trunk mounted bike racks on the 2011 Nissan leaf? (Yakima). Are they safe? Will they damage the vehicle?
http://www.etrailer.com/partlist.aspx?pc=Y02621,Y02624" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Yakima QuickBack 2 Bike Trunk Mounted Rack. Yakima Y02621
Yakima KingJoe Pro 2 Bike Rack - Folding Arms - Trunk Mount. Yakima Y02624


I tried the Yakima Quickback 2 and after a couple months pulled it out of service. You cannot trust the strain those straps put on the spoiler - no matter how well you adjust the straps, it will still "bounce" at freeway speeds. Never could relax with that setup. Look at the hitch options if you are serious about hauling bikes.
 
I just installed my receiver hitch today from Torklift Central today as welll and It looks great. It is an amazingly well engineered piece of hardware. Fishing the installation bolts through the frame was a bit challenging for me as well. You can't mess up installing the bolts or you would have a needed bolt sliding around in the frame. I had to strengthen the included bolt fisher as it broke through the 1st bolt of 6. They use exiting holes in the frame to mount the receiver so there is no drilling.

For those of you who were wondering, I got the 1 1/4" receiver and it has a rated tow capacity of 2,000lbs. I dead lifted mine into position from underneath whith the back tires up on a few 2x8 pieces of wood. It took about 3 hours to install and put the car back together. It is awesome.


LeafPowerIsIxE said:
Installed my Torklift 2" hitch over the past two weekends. End result - superb. Well designed, solid, and perfect fit to spec. This is a great upgrade.

Ordered it 12/24; they shipped it 1/25. Well packaged with shrink wrap. The hitch looks very custom, and very professionally build. Solid and clean.

Disassembly of the underside cover is not remarkable. Locate the center frame support, jack up the rear end (be sure to chock the front wheels), set a couple jack stands to the far right and left frame supports, and go to work. Don't put the jack stands in the center - you'll need space to slide off the cover.

Mark the cover "clips" with a wax pencil - identify the bolts vs push pins. Or take a pix. Makes it easier when you reassemble.

Mark the holes Torklift identifies for the bolt fish. It will save you some aggrevation later if you pull the wrong holes.

This is the point in the install that challenged my common sense - how to fit the bolt-washer-brace into that little frame hole. I am an electrical engineer (maybe the problem) - couldn't figure it out, and gave up. A quick call to Jonny Couture at Torklift straightened me out. Assemble the bolt setup and fish it piece by piece. Common sense. The bolt fish technique works like magic – bolt, washer, and brace fell right into place. It can be a bit frustrating “fishing” the wire. Don't give up.

Once the bolts are set up, I put the hitch on the jack and lifted it into place. Fit like a glove. I added 5 "double bolts" to ensure nothing loosened up. Be sure to put the bolt back into the assembly you dropped to do the bolt fishing on the driver side.

The cut diagram on the instructions is accurate - do not cut out the bolt clip. Cut only a flap (do not remove) - then slide the cover back into place. Easier said than done, but nothing that a little time and positioning doesn't fix. The "flap" sits perfectly under the hitch receiver box.

This hitch looks great – tomorrow I am off the Mira Mar Lake to test it out with a 68mph run down the I-15 express lanes.

Hats off to Torklift for this creative solution.
 
Went with a INNO seems to work fine I will do my usual 65 mile drive tomorrow and see what I lose in mileage hauling one bike then try with two bikes.
Usually after this trip from 277gids (100% charge) I end up with between 20-25 miles left but I am hitting 80 mph on the xpressway

I drove around the block with my road bike and the wind noise is excessive even with the deflector (That does not seem to do much) but this is to be expected. Also I can feel the drag.
I will post my numbers tomorow
 

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Brightonuk said:
wind noise is excessive even with the deflector (That does not seem to do much) but this is to be expected.
If I had to guess, I'd guess that the wind deflector also increases drag compared to not using it.
 
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