Has anybody tried to fit a bike in the fully expanded cargo bay? Does anybody know what the approximate (volumetric) dimensions of the cargo space might be with rear seats folded down?

I understand the EX does not come equipped with a trailer hitch, but is it capable of receiving one? I would not be using a hitch for towing of course, only for accommodating a swingaway rear carrier if sliding my road bike into the cargo bay is not an option.

Transporting my bike is not something I do all the time & perhaps one of the more portable rear/trunk carriers might even be preferable to the hitch mounted Thule I have on my Xterra now (which would really overwhelm & junk up the rear of this vehicle.)

The only thing which is not an option for me is a roof-mounted carrier, since I don't have the arm strength & won't always have a pair of biceps to borrow whenever I get the spare time to throw on my bike & spontaneously head out somewhere for a fitness ride.

So I just wondered if there are any cyclists on this board who've figured out how to cart their bikes around with this car yet.

Thanks in advance for any input from members of this forum which might help me make the decision on whether or not to get the EX . I truly love it & I'm all set to pull the trigger on it, but am hesitating just until I get this issue settled.

I posted earlier my experience with trying to transport a mt. bike in the EX. If you can remove the front tire,it will fit in the hatch. My bike has a lefty fork and the front tire is not easy to remove. I checked with a hitch company that builds aftermarket hitches, and they have not yet seen the car to see if they can develop one (Curt Mfg). Since the muffler is adjacent to the bumper, I do not see any trailering hitches available.

My solution is to go with Yakima or Thule cross bars and a bike carrier attached to them. A rear carrier attached to the hatch is not an option due to the spoiler on the top of the hatch. Infiniti parts show Yakimaaccessories in their inventory catalog. Good luck!

Thanks Widman. Removing the wheel is not something I'd be thrilled to do evry time I wanted to take it somewhere. And hoisting it up on the roof is something I don't think I'd be able to do unless I took up weightlifting. My bike is super light but I am a super-wuss & a klutz to boot, so I know I'd wreck my bike & my car trying to do that.

I think you may be right about that spoiler interfering with the hatch mounted unit; I hadn't even thought about that. Also while reading reviews yesterday, I learned that some people are less than satisfied with these. It seems they can damage the paint where it contacts the vehicle.

A new EX owner on another forum said that he just resorted this week to having a custom hitch made for his bike rack for about $480 dollars. That may be what I'll eventually have to do.

Meanwhile,we can hope HiddenHitch sees a great opportunity here & gets a unit into production for this vehicle soon.

I saw that saris has a new rack that supposedly fits the ex 35, so take a look at that. I remove the front tire and stash the bike in the back - not much trouble at all once you get used to it. I also saw great pricing for new ones on ebay, so should you decide to pursue it, check prices there as well.

I just got an EX two days ago and have already racked it with a Thule roof rack. See here for info and pics:http://g35driver.com/forums/sh...10873

I have heard that a bike with the front wheel fits nicely into the rear with the seats down. From eyeballing it, I think it's no problem.

Don't rule out putting a rack on and putting your bike up top - it's a piece of cake and not a hard reach. Certainly not like the Honda Pilot I just traded for the EX which was one helluva reach to get it up there.

curt hitch , Curt Class I Hitch (Part Number:CT11500) at drawtite.com. i will probably get this , dont know how it will look, but i dont have many options since i dont like roof racks. if i have it installed i will post pics. take care, nick

Thanks for the tip for the Curt hitch @ DrawTite. Please do post pics when you get yours installed Nick.

Someone on another forum posted pics of his dealer installed hitch for his Thule rackhere . (I hope he doesn't mind me posting the link.)

Don't know what brand his was but it looks pretty good. I'd thought that a tow hitch might muck up the car's architecture, but his turned out just great I think. See for yourself:

Link to pics now including the full rack, including fairing, bike mounts and bike:http://g35driver.com/forums/sh...10873

Hi waltaz, I have one question. Does the bottom of the fairing actually touching the roof? If yes, does it have some kind of padding to prevent scratching the paint? Thanks for sharing the pictures!

hi lexa, that hitch is discreet enough for me. i wish we could find out what hitch model that is. maybe if i can go on that forum as a guest, i could contact the person and ask him/her what hitch model it is, or get the part #. do you remember what forum that was? thanks nick

Check your email, I've sent you a link, Nick.

acarnut wrote:Hi waltaz, I have one question. Does the bottom of the fairing actually touching the roof? If yes, does it have some kind of padding to prevent scratching the paint? Thanks for sharing the pictures!

Yes, the four fairing arms/feet each have a thick adhesive pad on the bottom where it touches the roof, plus Thule provides four squares of clear film to apply to the roof where the foot pads contact it to prevent any fading, etc.

More pics...I like these best...http://g35driver.com/forums/sh...10873

thanks for posting the pics. roof racks look very cool but i could see myself scratching the roof, or driving into the garage with the bikes on. when i get dehydrated i get klutzy. with my hitch rack i really only have to concentrate when the car is in reverse and i use my rear view mirror so i will remember "bikes on board"i am uni-tasked and over 50.

LOL Nick!

What you just said made me think, though. I wonder if the hitch/rack/bike setup will obstruct the view of the rear view camera?

you can only go so fast in reverse, and you will hear something,the bike being crushed, before there is damage to your car, if you don't have the radio on loud.the camera will be somewhat obstructed, so will must go by the mirrors i guess.

EX owner Nick, who just had a curt hitch installed (see related thread) has also just asked me to post some great pics of his new Saris Thema 3 rack. The Thelma also comes n the 2- bike & 2+juvenile configurations for cyclists thinking about this one. (I'm getting the Thelma 2 - 26 lbs, easy on & off!)

He says "I had to buy a new bike rack and sold the “ Yakima ” one I had as it was too wobbly with the adaptor on it. This rack is specific to 1 ¼ hitch receiver and the grey color looks ok with the ex. The mrsp for the bike rack is $330.00. I should get a discount from the bike shop and I got $100.00 for the old rack. The new rack is very fast to get bike on/off. It folds nicely but blocks the lic. Plate it that the position and the bumper sensor beeps when you put the car in reverse. This only occurs with the rack in its folded “not in use” position."







Thanks Nick!

Saris is 2 miles from our dealership and use our cars as templates and to check fitment. If you can get a hitch...they make several reciever style bike carriers.

Your trailer hitch looks pretty slick. Is it a 2" receiver? Thanks. Just got EX today; neat car.

hi, nope its 1 1/4 hitch

Thanks. That leaves me back at square one. I already have a bike rack for a 1/4" receiver.

Welcome to the forum, alfanut!

alfanut wrote:I already have a bike rack for a 1/4" receiver.

I assume you meant 1-1/4"?

FWIW, the standard sizes for receivers seems to be:Class I & II hitch = 1-1/4" squareClass III hitch = 2" square

You should be able to get an adapter for your 2" receiver to allow insertion of a 1-1/4" appliance (though you need to be mindful of the length and vertical offset, etc, you need).

Cheers,David

waltaz;

Could you please provide the maximum distance in inches that you were able to get between your cross bars? I have read that the max is 19inches but I assume that was with factory cross rails. I am still working on getting a boat properly secured to the roofrails and 19 inches for a 16ft canoe is not good. I would appreciate you taking a measurement of your Thule set up for me. Thx!

Thanks again David. I meant my current rack needs a 2" reciever. I'll just wait awhile before deciding what to do. If I'm lucky, Infiniti will come out with a 2" hitch on the 2009 that will work with the 2008, or possibly they or aftermarket will come with something that works with the stock roof rail/cross bars. I had a restless night thinking about spending much more than I really wanted to and sould have gotten something more practical, but after getting in this morning and driving, was amazed what an incredibly neat and fun car to drive. Paul

Hello, I see you have a hitch and bike rack on your EX.. I just had to have my hitch removed because it apparently bent my bumper support brackets.. guess thats where the hitch is attached to..I dont know how this would happen, I only had one bike on it..my entire rear bumper was lowered.. would you be able to email me pics of the installation underneath, have you had any problems with the supports?? email me at [email protected]

that shoudnt happen unless it was the wrong hitch or not installed correctly. call the people that make the hitch, maybe they can help . or check with who installed it. both the hitch and bike rack have wieght limits as well.

alfanut wrote:If I'm lucky, Infiniti will come out with a 2" hitch on the 2009 that will work with the 2008 [snip].

Hey Paul,

It's unlikely we'll ever see an EX hitch with a 2" receiver because this size is typically on hitches rated Class III (or higher). Such hitches are rated for towing 5000 to 6000 lbs, whereas the EX is only rated to tow about 2000 lbs (the range of a Class I hitch).

Coincidently, I was at the shop this morning getting a hitch installed on our Subaru and asked about ones available for the EX. No matter which supplier they looked up, only Class I hitches were listed.

Cheers,David

littlerascal wrote:I just had to have my hitch removed because it apparently bent my bumper support brackets.. guess thats where the hitch is attached to..

I agree with npeckio that it's either faulty installation or the wrong hitch (i.e. it wasn't designed to carry the weight of a bike rack, or you need a design that's not just attached to the bumper).

The website of one hitch supplier states, "Some hitches in this class may attach to the vehicle bumper or trunk pan. Most other Class I hitches attach to the vehicle frame." Click here for the quoted source.

Your experience is certainly a cautionary tale for all of us thinking about putting a hitch on our EX.

HTH,David

littlerascal, the pictures I posted were of npeckio's curt hitch/saris rack. I see he responded to you on this thread. About the other hitch/thule rack, check your email, I've replied to the one you sent me.

Please come back to this thread & tell us when you figure out what the problem was (faulty installation/ wrong hitch/ EX design flaw etc.)

I haven't installed one on my EX yet, but I think I may hold off until we find out what went wrong with yours.

The pictures posted are of the Curt 11500. What scares me is that people are assuming because a 3 bike rack will fit in your Class I receiver, They can haul 3 bikes. Read your Owners instructions, and follow them carefully.

The maximum capacity tongue weight is 200lbs. If you figure out the weight of the bike rack, plus the weight of the hitches, then the distance the bikes are from the receiver tube. 3 bikes at 35lbs will put you over your maximum capacity and the hitch or bike rack can fail.