Yakima HighLite 3 Hitch Bike Rack

I first tried the Thule Helium for my Toyota Prius. Pros of Thule: ability to get into hatchback without having to use the rack's ability to lower (which would require removing the bikes off the rack first, which is a real pain).Cons of Thule: Distance from "arms" of rack to ground is such that I had to remove the front tire off one of the bikes to prevent hitting the ground while driving. Thule's distance from "arms" to ground is 6 inches less than Yakima (don't have to remove tire off bike when using Yakima's rack). Thule is also a real pain to assemble.Yakima Highlight:Pros: Don't have to remove tire(s) from bike(s) because of greater distance from arms to ground. Little and easy assembly!Cons: Cannot quite get into the hatchback when rack is in up position. Must remove bikes from rac

I used a Yakima hitch rack on my mini-van for 12 years and had planned to transfer it to my new vehicle, a 2014 Subaru Forester. I was disappointed to discover that my older hitch rack would not mount to the dealer installed hitch on my new Subaru. After consulting the helpful sales staff at REI, I purchased the Highlite 3, which looks solid and is less than half the weight of my previous rack -- an important feature since the Subaru hitch has a maximum 200 lb. tongue weight capacity. The problem is, according to Yakima's customer service representative (with whom I emailed and talked over a couple of weeks), a design change by Yakima reduces the depth the Highlight 3 base can be mounted in some hitch receivers to only about 1" -- not deep enough to securely fasten the rack. So, sadly,

I've only used it a couple of times but it worked very well. Installing and uninstalling it into a hitch receiver is a breeze.2 hybrid bikes are a very comfortable fit. It looks like carrying 3 bikes might require 1 or 2 front wheel removals so the handlebars can be turned for tight racking. The rack and bikes are very stable while driving.I spent about 1/2 hour practicing mounting and un-mounting 2 bikes in the confort of a garage so that when I used the rack to go somewhere I'd know what to expect. The practice is worth it because you figure out quickly how to use it without much time or effort.

I've only used it a couple of times but it worked very well. Installing and uninstalling it into a hitch receiver is a breeze.2 hybrid bikes are a very comfortable fit. It looks like carrying 3 bikes might require 1 or 2 front wheel removals so the handlebars can be turned for tight racking. The rack and bikes are very stable while driving.I spent about 1/2 hour practicing mounting and un-mounting 2 bikes in the confort of a garage so that when I used the rack to go somewhere I'd know what to expect. The practice is worth it because you figure out quickly how to use it without much time or effort.

Very light weight makes it very easy to install and remove on th

The rack itself is well built and goes on easy. I mostly liked the construction and locking mechanism.The first issue is the mounting system. I have very standard road bikes, and they never quite fit in the plastic mounts properly (interference from cable guides, etc.) The rubber straps are VERY stiff and hard to use while the plastic on the mounts is very pliable. I always feel like I'm going to break it when putting a bike on.The second and largest issue is capacity. I can't get 2 bikes on it without removing a wheel, and there is no way I could get 3 bikes on there. The handle bars and seats interfere with each other. I'm not sure what type of bike this was designed for, but it doesn't work with my road bikes at all.