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Cars really aren’t designed for carrying bikes. There isn’t room for a fully-assembled bike inside most of them and you need add-ons to attach them anywhere on the outside. Security is a big issue with all forms of carrying a bike that leave your bikes exposed or visible. Lock the bikes to the rack when you stop, and don’t leave a car with bikes on the rack out of your sight.

In the Trunk of a Compact Car

If you’ve got a sufficiently large trunk, you may be able to get your bike in it with only minimal disassembly. Just drop out the front wheel and away you go. You’d be surprised how small a trunk you can squeeze a bike into with both wheels off and the saddle out, though.

Pros: Bike is as safe as possible; very convenient; easily loaded; no extra cost

Cons: Not much room for anything else

In Larger Vehicle

The big load space of an estate car is ideal for bikes, especially with the rear seats folded. With a load liner to protect the carpet you can get in a lot of bikes stacked vertically with the front wheels out.

Pros: Bikes safe from the elements; reasonably secure against theft; negligible effect on fuel consumption; no extra cost

Cons: Inside of car gets dirty; have to drive round in a box all the time

Roof Rack - Many Type

The traditional way of carrying bikes, roof racks use all that empty space above your head. Most designs require you to take off the front wheel, but some have an extra arm to grab frame bike so will take a complete bike.

Pros: There’s plenty of room up there so carrying up to four bikes is feasible; bikes can’t damage car paintwork; roof bars are handy for other things

Cons: Extra lock etc needed to prevent theft; look out for low entrances to car parks & garages; worst for fuel consumption; awkward to load; bikes get wet or dirty in bad weather; can’t be quickly removed or fitted