Does anyone here regularly put adult mountain bikes in the back of their freelander 2?

I'm about to buy 2 adult mountain bikes. I'm wondering if they'll fit comfortably in the back, when the front wheels are off. I'd prefer not to mess around with a bike rack or roof rack.

Haven’t tried it but I doubt you’d get 2 bikes in the boot. Even with the seats down you’d probably have to put one on top of the other.

I use a tow bar mounted rack. IMHO it’s the proper way to carry bikes.

Ive had one bike in the back with the wheel off but if you go even remotely offroad remember they will be filthy when you put them back in to go home. Even if you wash them off you still end up dragging something oily across the roof pillar taking it out

No. Towbar mounted bike rack for me. The FL2 boot is too high a floor to stand bikes upright. My DS can manage it though.

I can fit a kids and an adult bike in but that's it. 2 adult bikes would at best become a frustrating tangle of pedals, chains and spokes. Plus you end up getting oil on the headlining, no matter how hard you try not to.... FL2 TD4 GS 60 reg Facelift - so many issues
2019 DS. Terribly unreliable.
Sold DS for a 2021 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV. Fingers crossed....
Sold Outlander for a 2014 SD4 SE Tech because I’m mental
Now greatly regret selling the Outlander. MPG of the FL2 is atrocious and so are the fuel bills. Fun though 😎
Couldn’t afford the fuel bills so back to an older Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV. Significantly better than I remembered it to be…

Like others, I tried it and it was a nightmare, ended up marking the roof lining.

I ended up buying a Thule carrier that hooks on the tow ball. Updated- Waiting for a Scotland v England 6 Nations home win. 24th Feb 2018
Gone-1972 88 SWB Soft top
Gone-1981 24v FFR Lightweight
Gone-2009 Freelander 2 TD4 GS manual
Gone before it bankrupted me- 2008 Discovery 3 TDV6 Auto
2013 Freelander 2 SD4 GS Auto

totally agree with only 1 adult bike in the back... your risking damage to 2 bikes and/or the interior of the car if you try

personally im not a fan of the basic tow bar bike racks (not tried the Thule type one)... probably because my bike is a a 22'' frame with 27.5 wheel but the ground clearance on the basic racks isn't good.

roof mounted carriers are ok I guess, but after a near miss where my bike popped out of the frame clamp on the M1 I wont touch them now, plus its a long way up to lift a bike (and im 6'2'' !! )

so I use a standard boot mounted bike rack that straps onto the top, side and bottom of the boot and have comfortably carried 2 bikes on it. Takes about 5 mins to fit after the first time so less time than it would take to fiddle 2 bikes into the back. Ive never had any problems with the weight on the boot handle but I have adjusted the straps so that it minimise the stress.

Last edited by RogB on 29th May 2019 9:19 am. Edited 1 time in total

Also found the inside is a bit tight for loading bicycles and leaving marks.
We use a Thule with no problems. Only have to keep an eye on bikes when parked here in SA....

 2013 SD4 SE (hers)
2013 SD4 HSE (mine)
Ex: 2008 D3 V8 HSE
EX: 2000 D2 TD5

Yes, those floppies strike when you least expect it! Eiishhh!!  MY13 HSE Lux.......faultless since new.

I carry my bike inside sat upside down on the handlebars and saddle tied down for stability. I have managed to fit three bikes in like this but it comes down to the size of the bike. And yes I have oil all over my roof but i'd rather that and know my bike is safe from thieves or potentially falling off a bike rack at high speed. Freelander 2 XS 2013
Freelander SE 2004 (Gone)
Freelander GS 2002 (Gone)

Dom your bikes must be very small then, mine barely fits in with the front wheel off and the bike on its side

It's an XL mountain bike, very long and slack and just fits in with all the wheels off. Probably wouldn't get an XL road bike in though due to the longer seat tube length. It's in the back of the car now, I'll take some photos later. Freelander 2 XS 2013
Freelander SE 2004 (Gone)
Freelander GS 2002 (Gone)

my current bike is an XL Marin MTB with a longer geometry than others. Ive not tried this one in the back but my last bike was XL GT and that would only just fit in on its side with the front wheel off.
If im going any sort of distance with bikes on the back then there are extra straps and bungees keeping it from moving and finished off with at least 1 bike lock for security.

Im not precious about the bikes, if they get covered in all sorts of on the trails why worry about a bit of rain or road spray.

SouthamFL2 wrote:

Yes, those floppies strike when you least expect it! Eiishhh!!

Thats for sure!  2013 SD4 SE (hers)
2013 SD4 HSE (mine)
Ex: 2008 D3 V8 HSE
EX: 2000 D2 TD5

RogB wrote:

Im not precious about the bikes, if they get covered in all sorts of on the trails why worry about a bit of rain or road spray.

It's for that reason I always hang my bike off the back (don't want the interior messed up with mud & oil)

Rack has 8 point contact, secured to bodywork.
Bike is then attached and secured to rack.
..... it ain't moving & it ain't going anywhere!

Click image to enlarge

 FL2 now gone and have a couple of items left for sale:-

Brodit active iPhone holder + Brodit dash clip,
Bluetooth Music Streaming Module.