Porsche Bike Rack (step by step picture of the installation)

[FredC057]

Finally received the bike rack.
I’m the first customer to receive it at my dealer so I took a lot of pictures and installed it again at home to be sure everything is ok before the holidays and to show you guys.
Rare in Belgium and in Europe, so I’m very lucky and happy.
The racks are still planned to arrive at the end of the third trimester 2022.
This is what you receive in a box on a europallet:

It fits in the boot no problem once folded

You have to remove the cache with the given tool

The left side has the plug

it’s the new type of plug in Europe

you have to put the bars in the holes and turn them

Same on the other side

You now have to put the rack on the holes but once you know what to do it’s easy. You should start with the rack in vertical

Flip it horizontally hard enough and it clicks into place and is locked

plug and twist the ring

Unfold the rest and it is nearly ready

There is a key for the plate holder

Same key to use for the bike holder otherwise you can’t move it

Ther is more rubber and protection than on the Thule I was using previously

You can fold it to open the boot
And if it’s plugged the boot doesn’t open if you press on your key but only if you press on the button of the boot

it’s really planned to have heavy electric bikes on it. There are small jacks to help you lifting the rack

I had to try it with an old bike first
It’s as easy as it was with the Thule

The boot is easily rechargeable as i’m used to with the previous racks

My driveway is quite steep so I had to try

I don’t know the angle but the Macan with the Thule bike rack was slightly touching here.
I’m on lift mode and it passes easily

The reverse camera is still working but not the sensors and it doesn’t beep all the time which is good.
The view is difficult but you can approach a car without touching it

I knew I was close

Like others said in the forum, once you get used to it, it can be placed and removed 5 min and is not taking much place and is around the same weight as the Thule.

Very happy I got it.
I will test next month how much range we’ll loose driving very fast to south of France as I just did the trip so I have a reference.

 

[Dom]

Thanks for the detailed information and pictures!
Still need to order mine. I didn't knew the waiting time is that long, so I better do it sooner than later.

 

[jasperp]

Thanks for the info, looks nice.
But looks also quite a lot of work to install. Not very practical compared to a Thule 910 Express.
In my family we use the bike rack a lot. We are adding/removing the bike rack 8 times per week. This would be very time consuming with a bike rack like that. I don't see my wife happily installing this heavy system under time pressure to be one time to get the kids.

But it looks like Porsche is working on a solution:
https://www.carscoops.com/2022/06/porsche-patents-new-active-diffuser-that-can-hide-a-hitch/

Would be nice to get that on the Taycan.

 

[FredC057]

Thanks for the info, looks nice.
But looks also quite a lot of work to install. Not very practical compared to a Thule 910 Express.
In my family we use the bike rack a lot. We are adding/removing the bike rack 8 times per week. This would be very time consuming with a bike rack like that. I don't see my wife happily installing this heavy system under time pressure to be one time to get the kids.

But it looks like Porsche is working on a solution:
https://www.carscoops.com/2022/06/porsche-patents-new-active-diffuser-that-can-hide-a-hitch/

Would be nice to get that on the Taycan.

I don't think it will be soon available on the Taycan, maybe the next version or refreshed model.

And for the rack, you can't compare it with the Thule 910 Express.
The express is done for exactly what you are using for, multiple small trips quickly put in place and light.

The Porsche one should be compared to the Thule Easyfold XT or the Velocompact.
With those ones, I can drive on the Autobahn not having to think if the bikes will move too much or if I'll loose something and still have access to the boot.
Compared to those, the installation process takes about the same time and I think that the 2 bars will make the system more stable.

The issue to produce those for the moment seems to come from the cabling and the plug as 2 factories that were providing those are in Ukraine.

 

[Poshfpg]

I am surprised Porsche haven't found a way to add a camera/sensors to the end of such an expensive, bespoke bike rack. I can get 4 road bikes on my Thule on the hitch so this is an expensive retrograde step and reversing will still be a nightmare!

Current one takes about 60 seconds to fit or remove, allows you to open the boot and is easily swapped between our Cayenne and ID3, just have to remember to change the reg plates.

On consumption I reckon it's 10% lost on the ID3 at motorway speeds so would expect to see similar.

 

[ciaranob]

Great post - thx for sharing.

I actually still have my OEM rack on order from June 2021 and still no sign!!

That said I have to say I like my custom bike rack made by forum member Will so much (arrived and installed it today) that I might just cancel my OEM order - apples and oranges in respect certain functions but Will's minimalist yet extremely sturdy and utilitarian design I think is a winner for me (will install my custom lighting solution and plate holder later today).

 

[FredC057]

After my travels and test with and without the bike carrier, I can conclude that speed and bike carrier kills the range by around 15%.

Before the trips, my range at 100% was 385 km
The first trip of 2100 km just 2 in the car, I averaged 28.5 kWh/100km with an average of 115km/h.

The second trip to the same location but this time 4 in the car, loaded with luggage and with 2 bikes on the back, I had to slow down to be able to reach some charging stations.
I averaged 32.0 kWh/100km with an average speed of 105km/h.
So where I could drive at 150 km/h, I had to slow down to 130 km/h to reach the same stop.

And now the range at 100% is less than 300 km.
It will go back up as soon as I slow down and drive alone to work but that's a big hit.
I reached couple of times some charging stations with only 2 to 5 % and I saw the little yellow turtle but I never had charging problems and it was always fast and ready to continue after max 20 min.

 

[thecoloradokid]

After my travels and test with and without the bike carrier, I can conclude that speed and bike carrier kills the range by around 15%.

Before the trips, my range at 100% was 385 km
The first trip of 2100 km just 2 in the car, I averaged 28.5 kWh/100km with an average of 115km/h.

The second trip to the same location but this time 4 in the car, loaded with luggage and with 2 bikes on the back, I had to slow down to be able to reach some charging stations.
I averaged 32.0 kWh/100km with an average speed of 105km/h.
So where I could drive at 150 km/h, I had to slow down to 130 km/h to reach the same stop.

And now the range at 100% is less than 300 km.
It will go back up as soon as I slow down and drive alone to work but that's a big hit.
I reached couple of times some charging stations with only 2 to 5 % and I saw the little yellow turtle but I never had charging problems and it was always fast and ready to continue after max 20 min.

Fred:

Here are real world efficiency stats when I used Will's custom bike carrier that many of us from this forum have purchased. His bike carrier system is lighter, and less bulky than the Porsche one, but it still has an affect on aerodynamics, and efficiency.

Earlier in August, I went almost 1,200 kilometers from Denver to Idaho Falls, ID in one day in sunny and warm conditions. There was plenty of altitude gain, and I was also not shy with the speeds. I have 20 inch wheels, so that helped lessen the range impact, but regardless, people should be aware that transporting a bike on a CT - either on top or on the back - will have at least a minimum 15% impact on range while causing at highway speeds.

 

[faithnomore]

Would you know how to fit the license plate? I see you are from the same country

I have a typical black plastic license plate holder, but if I put that on, you can't rotate it into horizontal position anymore. How did you solve this?

 

[FredC057]

Would you know how to fit the license plate? I see you are from the same country

I have a typical black plastic license plate holder, but if I put that on, you can't rotate it into horizontal position anymore. How did you solve this?

I saw your other post.
I don't have the bike rack close to me as we left it in our secondary home so I can't verify.
But I don't have your issue.
I don't recall but when I look at my pictures where I have the plate and the bikes I don't see a plastic holder for the plate.
I assume I used heavy duty 3M tape to stick it.
Driving at more than 200km/h on the autobahn the plate didn't move and if it falls it's a copy and not the original plate so no issue.

 

[snstevens]

Finally received the bike rack.
I’m the first customer to receive it at my dealer so I took a lot of pictures and installed it again at home to be sure everything is ok before the holidays and to show you guys.
Rare in Belgium and in Europe, so I’m very lucky and happy.
The racks are still planned to arrive at the end of the third trimester 2022.
This is what you receive in a box on a europallet:

It fits in the boot no problem once folded

You have to remove the cache with the given tool

The left side has the plug

it’s the new type of plug in Europe

you have to put the bars in the holes and turn them

Same on the other side

You now have to put the rack on the holes but once you know what to do it’s easy. You should start with the rack in vertical

Flip it horizontally hard enough and it clicks into place and is locked

plug and twist the ring

Unfold the rest and it is nearly ready

There is a key for the plate holder

Same key to use for the bike holder otherwise you can’t move it

Ther is more rubber and protection than on the Thule I was using previously

You can fold it to open the boot
And if it’s plugged the boot doesn’t open if you press on your key but only if you press on the button of the boot

it’s really planned to have heavy electric bikes on it. There are small jacks to help you lifting the rack

I had to try it with an old bike first
It’s as easy as it was with the Thule

The boot is easily rechargeable as i’m used to with the previous racks

My driveway is quite steep so I had to try

I don’t know the angle but the Macan with the Thule bike rack was slightly touching here.
I’m on lift mode and it passes easily

The reverse camera is still working but not the sensors and it doesn’t beep all the time which is good.
The view is difficult but you can approach a car without touching it

I knew I was close

Like others said in the forum, once you get used to it, it can be placed and removed 5 min and is not taking much place and is around the same weight as the Thule.

Very happy I got it.
I will test next month how much range we’ll loose driving very fast to south of France as I just did the trip so I have a reference.

I loved the step-by-step instructions, and thanks for sharing the mileage impacts.

One small suggestion - When I store something like this near my Taycan I use a bungee cord and two eye-bolts to securely attach it to the wall (in your case to that shelf. That way there is no chance it will accidentally fall and hit the car.

Thanks again!

 

[Poshfpg]

Did a drive to the Alps last week with the bike carrier and 2 bikes and at French limits, 130kmh I was getting 1.8mi kwh! Met another Taycan at IONITY who was finding the same thing. His theory was that deep section wheels were like a parachute.

On Winter tyres at Easter and 15-20c cooler i was getting 2.4 without the rack and had been running 2.8-3.2 recently on Summers. The roofbox and rack is significantly more efficient, 2.4-2.6 so the roofbox must deflect air around the bikes somehow.

 

[Bruce Brodiwski]

I am thinking of getting a cross tourismo. Is it even possible to fit a mountain bike or road bike inside of the car?

 

[FredC057]

Yes, no problem to fit the bike inside the car if you remove the front wheel.
I think I even placed 2 bikes one on top of the other once with some padding in between but I can't find any photo.

 

[ODC]

A big thumbs up for you FredC057. This is just what I searched for. Never found something, how to install it, on YouTube.

In the time you have used it never had any problems with it?
Is the removal from the cache difficult with the tool? I'm little bit scared I would break some plastic part.

Another important question from my side: does it work with a race cycling bike (smaller tires)? Normally I put my bike inside the car but there is always a moment I hit something on the interior which creates marks/scratches but these are expensive cars so I want to keep my interieur clean and nice.

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