Review on CHINOOK Hitch Mount Bike Rack by Swagman by Brad Blake

Pros: - Decent quality of metal used for construction. Doesn't feel like pop steel. Doesn't look really high quality. But better than I expected - The wheel seats are metal. It was hard to tell from the pictures. But they are metal. - High quality wheel straps and protective rubber buffers. - Bikes are held in place when riding on unpaved, bumpy construction roads. - Protective silicone over the retaining clips to prevent scratches and slipping in the hand. - Locking clips. - Can be tipped away from the rear of the vehicle to allow trunk access and looks like most liftgates and hatchback doors. - Huge wheel supports. You'll see in my photos that my 29x2.2 men's tires fit easily. Suitable for 2.5-2.8. Maybe 3.0? Tons of free disk space. But they have another small niche for road bikes. See also the picture where these tires are also sticking. A wonderful thought process flowed into her. I wish I could say the same about ratchet locking systems. Cons: Is the ratcheting part of the clip that holds the bike in place plastic? The smaller model, which costs almost $80 less, uses durable steel. Why switch to plastic on this model? (This is the main reason for the 4/5 stars) - The main part of the trunk, which allows you to fold it and separate it from the car, has about 1/4 inch of play/wiggle (see video). That can be good or bad. The good thing is that with the extra clearance, it doesn't get stuck with sand and dirt. The bad thing is that I'm worried about the two heavy 29er mtb a's in the rear that they could put a lot of stress on this gear on bumpy roads and cause it to fail. Swagman seems to have a great warranty, but will they replace a $2,000+ bike that just fell to the ground? Probably no. It's built pretty solidly so I'm not overly concerned, but I move my bike every day. So it is tested. - Again, I know. But this is a big minus for me. PLASTIC ratchets. A good chisel and hammer will break this mechanism in one fell swoop. Don't trust this as a lock other than a quick run to the store. It's like an idiotic design flaw that their budget model isn't a sturdy, reliable steel ratchet, it's plastic. WTH Swagman? - Won't fold into a compact position on my empty car, a '98 Saturn SL2. This means it won't be possible on any S-Series Saturn (See anyone with a Saturn or hitch further under the bumper) so far for the price. That's what you expect. I'm worried about all the plastic parts. But it looks and feels like high quality ABS plastic. But it's hard for plastic to resist the Arizona Valley sun. Let's see 🤷‍♂️