Noob here, 51 years old and started riding last September with a Kawi Versys, a 650cc bike but it has been a good starter bike for me. I love the Versys and I love riding! But I also love to RV and explore forests on forest roads, etc., and I am thinking about a KLX250S for something light enough to hang on the back of my Subaru, with the Subaru being towed behind my RV.

This would give me something good to charge around forest roads and run errands in town, using a backpack to hold a small amount of groceries and goodies, etc. I am 3 years away from retiring and traveling full time, so I have time to decide, and enjoy the bigger bike.

Does this all make sense? Any suggestions?

 

Hi Chuck, Sounds like your getting ready to have some fun. I don't know the hitch rating on a subaru, but it sounds like it might be too much to hang off the back of it. I assume your talking about a receiver mounted bike carrier? Can you mount a 2" reciever on the front of your RV? If so you could load the bike on a hitch mount bikie carrier on the front of the RV and hitch the subaru to the back. Maybe you could modify/fabricate something to sit in-between the RV and the car.

 

That looks like the same carrier I've been looking at. Subaru I have can take 350 lbs., if I get a new one it will handle 400. I will look into a front hitch, but I'm concerned about putting that much additional weight on the front axle. Thanks for the pic and reply. And yes, I do plan on having some fun!

 

Dan, did you build that bike rack, or buy it? I have been thinking about building on, and wondered if its worth the time and effort, or better off to just pay the $$ and get one done.

 

Hey Chuck, welcome to the forums. Get rid of the Subaru and pull a small truck. Throw the bike in the back of the truck and be done with it. Actually they make a pass through hitch that would allow you to have the bike on a carrier on the RV and still pull the car.

 

 

As long as you are only pulling with a tow bar and not adding weight down, then this might be just what you're looking for.

 

I like the pass through hitch idea, but if you want to leave the RV at camp and drive 100 miles to save knobby wear then put it on the car. I'm sure it can handle it. Either way have fun.

 

I use the Versa-Haul and it works great. One problem that I have experienced is because my motorhome has a very long overhang. The trailer hitch receiver was a bit high so I used a drop down hitch adaptor. Big mistake. It occasionally bottomed out when going through abrupt changes in slope. I removed the adaptor and it both moved the carrier closer and raised it. I still got very infrequent bottoming, but infrequent was still too much. By turning the step down adaptor over, it becomes a step up adaptor, completely eliminating the problem. If you don't have a long overhang, it also would not be a problem.

I think my final solution will be to just mount the motorcycle on the Jeep Wrangler I am pulling. However, I will still mount the Versa-Haul directly to the motorhome when pulling the boat or the motorcycle trailer or when not pulling the Jeep.

 

I got it on Ebay, for $100 shipped. I think from these guys http://stores.ebay.com/Discount-Ramps. I can't seem to find it on there now though. The reciever tube is steel but the rest of it is aluminum, which is nice when your lugging it around. I have logged a few thousand miles with the bike on it. (Lots of highway running.) It was hard to get used to at first. I was nervous about it falling off, and I think I was watching the bike in my mirror as much as I was wathcing the road in front of me. Bike has never shifted, and once the ramp part is fastened to the carrier I strap a 5 gal gas can on to that.