I do have air springs. Towing or hitched bikes is the chief reason I have not replaced with coil overs.

The bikes are not terribly heavy. The basket is probably the heaviest at under 30lbs. The new fatty is next. All 4 together would probably be a little over 100lbs. It's rare that I would carry all 4, but I would move the heaviest ones to the front tray closest to the body, of course.

The hitch and the 3 trays are aluminum, so they are probably not over 50lbs. That swing away though is massive. I'd say it alone is nearly 50lbs. So, fully loaded, I am probably at 200lbs on the rear. While it is concentrated further outbound, I figure it's about like hauling a couple good size people or animals in the rear.

I have hauled as many as 4 bikes with my old carrier. It was also closer to the rear axle. But I have covered from Colorado to South Florida with a couple of VERY heavy bikes without a problem. Gas mileage does suffer by about 20%, but I attribute that to drag.

With my investment in this carrier exceeding what I can get for 189k mile 2004 X5, I am pretty married to the platform. I do like flexing a tow muscle though so if I can tow again I will jump at the chance. We are headed on a 6-700 miler later this month. I expect at least one bike in tow. Probably 2. At least two.

Amazeballs graphics, BTW. You could do that for money!

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