TESTED: EziGrip Enduro 2 Bike Rack

Words and photos: Nick Waygood

Bike racks are just part of the equipment needed to ride for many, as we can't all be lucky enough to live riding distance to trails. While it would be easy to think that bike racks are an industry dominated by vertical bike racks, there are countless different styles of racks out there to transport your bike, or more than one bike, to the trails. New-Zealand brand EziGrip have recently released the Enduro 2 – a lightweight, bang-for-buck offering for the towball-mounted bike rack market. A quick hop across the pond, the New-Zealand made Enduro 2 comes loaded with features and suits a large range of analogue-powered bikes while being affordable, simple to use, and compact to store when not in use.

A CLOSER LOOK

The EziGrip Enduro 2 is a 2-bike platform-style bike rack designed in New-Zealand, and available in Australia through Bikecorp. The rack features a 30kg weight capacity across two bikes, with very generous 250mm spacing between the 2 mounts, to avoid any risk of pedal-meets-carbon scratching and mashing. The centre post features adjustable bracing, and folds down flat to allow easy access to the boot of the car. Wrapping up the key features, EziGrip’s Enduro 2 features adjustable wheel trays, which we found very helpful in mounting different length wheelbase bikes to the rack. It will take wheelbases upto 1400mm.

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Mounting the bike rack to the back of a car is a 15-second, one-person task thanks to the rack weight of 7.8kg; drop the rack onto a standard 50mm towball and tighten, and then tension a pinch-clamp to keep the rack straight and securely mounted to the car. Included in the $449 price tag is the light board attachment, which snaps on to the end of the Enduro 2 supports, and clips in to the standard 7-pin plug.

The supplied cable-ties kept the cable for the 7-pin plug tucked against the rack supports and away from any risk of snags. Lastly, a lock is integrated to the 50mm towball mount to keep the rack on the car and out of the hands of the jealous. As long as you have your accessory number plate – this thing is plug and play!

Out of the box, the Enduro 2 was simple to assemble and came with the required tools; a Phillips-head and 4mm allen key. Also included in the box were additional ‘camlock’ style straps for added peace of mind when strapping the bikes down for longer trips. With the Enduro 2 mounted to the car and the bike rack plate installed, I was ready to load up and head to the trails.

LOADING AND UNLOADING

Bikes are loaded onto the EziGrip Enduro 2 using 3 ratchet straps with each bike; one on each wheel, and one on the toptube/downtube of the bike. I found the ratchet straps effective in securely mounting the bike to the rack, and were plenty long enough for long-wheelbased bikes. The frame strap featured softer rubber to protect the frame, while all straps featured a rubber sleeve to help protect the rims and frame from any nasty scratching while in transport.

The adjustable wheel trays were easy to reposition, and proved effective in adjusting the trays to suit different length wheelbase bikes. When loading this particular style rack, I secured the bike to the centre post with the frame ratchet strap, before securing the wheels to the wheel trays and setting off down the highway.

ON THE ROAD

With the rack properly fitted to the towball, the Enduro 2 was solid on the car. Adding a couple analogue enduro bikes had us approaching the total weight limit of 30kg, though the bikes were securely mounted and the rack showed no signs of wanting to move while driving down the road.

With two bikes loaded on the road, the Enduro 2 does flex a small amount – particularly over bigger bumps, as to be expected. We were near the weight limit of 30kg with the enduro bikes we had mounted, with lighter bikes resulting in less movement from the bike rack. I was a little tentative with the excessive movement at first, though grew confidence in the lightweight yet robust design of the bike rack. Through a two hour drive, no ratchet straps loosened and the bikes remained in the position I had mounted them in.

The lightboard is a great addition, helping keep me legal in the eyes of the law and also providing a place to securely mount a bike rack plate. Just a reminder, you cannot make your own accessory plate!

OUR TAKE

For $449 EziGrip offers the Enduro 2 as a budget-friendly 2-bike horizontal rack that securely mounts to any 50mm towball. This rack will suit most cyclists. It’s a rack that’s very user-friendly in assembly, car mounting, and bike mounting, while also offering a strong base of features that have this rack suit a wide array of bikes.

The Enduro 2 suits couples or weekend warriors alike with its adequate weight rating, secure ratchet straps, and ease of storage when not in use with its compact design and 7.8kg bike rack weight. With a 15kg bike limit anyone with an e-bike will need to look elsewhere, as will people with bigger enduro or downhill bikes, or those with more than 2 bikes to move! But for everyone else this is incredible value and a very versatile design.

RRP: $449

From: Bikecorp.com.au

HITS
– Kiwi designed
– Light bike rack weight & ease of storage
– Easy to use & Budget friendly
– Fits a variety of bike styles
– Lightboard & Numberplate holder
– 250mm spacing to avoid scratches

MISSES
– Low bike weight rating restricts the use of heavier long-travel Enduro bikes
– Some cheaper plastic assembly parts that may deteriorate over time