Streamlined and Stellar-Looking: The Küat NV 2.0 Hitch Bike Rack Is Easy to Use and (Mostly) E-Bike Friendly

A good bike rack is essentially an extension of your vehicle. During the summer, I always have a bike rack installed on my hitch, even if I’m not biking that day. A good bike rack isn’t just good at holding bikes — it also keeps your vehicle functional. The Küat NV 2.0 is just that.

This new rack is so easy to use, you’ll never want to take it off. That’s thanks to a buttery-smooth foot-assisted pivot system. It lets you tilt the bike rack (one-handed or one-footed) from its folded-up position to down. Then you can seamlessly open your trunk or tailgate.

For my birthday, I set out on a 1,500-mile road trip across the Western U.S. with the all-new NV 2.0 rack. I had two goals: to buy a bikepacking and gravel bike — and to break it in with a ride through Monument Valley, Utah.

In short: The streamlined, simple-to-use, and aesthetic two-bike Küat NV 2.0 ($989) was designed to live on your vehicle. It’s packed with all the features you could want, like integrated bike and hitch locks and an easy-to-operate pivot system. It has simple, sleek cradle arms and a unique built-in bike stand. There’s a 60-pound weight rating (which works for most e-bikes). And additional after-market accessories are available for those wanting to build out their rack.

Check out our other top picks in the Best Hitch Racks buyer’s guide.

Road Tripping and Gravel Grinding Through the Southwest: Küat NV 2.0 Rack Review

For my big road trip, I left my home in Gunnison, Colo., with the NV folded up in storage mode. I drove north to Glenwood Springs to pick up a new-to-me Salsa Fargo. Once I put the bike on the rack, it was time for a long drive to Southern Utah to find some of the country’s most picturesque gravel roads and break in the bike.

I camped out of my Ford Focus hatchback for this trip, which required tilting the bike rack out of the way to access my camping supplies and biking gear at every stop. Additionally, the integrated hitch lock and cable bike locks gave me peace of mind, allowing me to leave my bike unattended in parking lots and restaurants during the trip. Lastly, the Focus’s low ground clearance limited me to non-4×4 gravel roads, which is the boundary of what the rack is rated to handle.

My first gravel ride was a 17-mile out-and-back through the Valley of the Gods in Utah during peak spring wildflower season. All around, the trip ended up being a great success. It was a perfect way to cover substantial highway and gravel road miles with the new NV 2.0 Bike rack and to test all of its features. 

Easy to Operate

After using the NV for an extended period, I could start to see where it shines. I had the rack for a month on my Ford Focus and for another month on my Ford F-150. For both vehicles, I frequently tilted the rack down to open the hatch and tailgate for loading gear on a daily basis.

Smooth Tilt

Unlike my 1Up Heavy Duty rack — which takes some effort to unlock the tilt mechanism and tilt the rack — the NV unlocks and tilts easier than opening my car door. Unlocking the rack with the foot pedal or one hand, and quickly tilting it down, makes using the rack a breeze day to day.

Simple Loading/Unloading

Loading the bike onto the rack is just as easy as the tilt mechanism. First, I swing each arm open, which takes a little effort. The tradeoff is that each arm stays in whatever orientation you leave each one in.

Next, I press the unlock button and extend each arm. The basket easily cradles the tire and offers three positions, so you’ll never have to worry about a seat rubbing on the handlebars of another bike on the rack.

Audible Ratchet

Once the bike is loaded, swivel the arm back above the front tire. Make sure the hook is placed as close to the front brake caliper or fork crown as possible. Locking it down requires gentle, steady pressure on the top of the arm. You can feel and hear each click of the ratchet. I like to do one firm push to get an extra click before driving at highway speeds.

Room for Improvement

The rear tire is held on with a simple, passive ratchet strap. This design isn’t my favorite, as there’s no mechanism for tightening the strap. You need to manually push/pull the strap through the spring-loaded buckle by hand.

Stylish and Durable

Part of what makes the NV a good daily driver is that it’s both stylish and durable. It’s a heavy-duty steel with a glossy metallic powder-coat finish. You can choose either a black metallic with gray anodize or a gray metallic with orange anodize. In my opinion, the orange nicely pops on the back of a car. It’s a true statement piece for any gear lover.

In terms of durability, I logged over 2,500 miles on the rack over a 2-month test period. Despite getting the rack covered in dust and debris, a trip through the car wash made the powder-coated finish look as good as it did from the factory.

On my lower-clearance car, I managed to accidentally drag the lowermost rack over some steeper driveway entrances and street culverts. A few scratches now live there, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised with the durability, even on high-wear parts. The anodized telescoping tubes of the Trail Doc (the integrated repair stand) and the front wheel hooks are holding up well. This rack really is a long-term investment.

Functional Accessories: Integrated Locks, Anti-Wobble, Extended Straps

The NV rack comes out of the box with a handful of functional accessories. My favorites? A hitch lock and integrated cable bike locks that both share the same key set. This means the rack is locked to your vehicle, and your bike can be locked to the rack, making theft much harder.

Those integrated bike locks are sized perfectly to go through your bike frame. They easily store away inside each tray when not in use. Despite my highway and gravel miles, the bike locks never came out when not in use. That’s unlike the integrated bike locks on my Saris MHS rack, which had a tendency to fall out of their respective storage.

Another handy element: The integrated, tool-free anti-rattle hitch cam system can be tightened by hand. The design expands the rack inside the hitch receiver, eliminating wobble without requiring special tools.

With my 1Up Heavy Duty rack, I have been in predicaments where I needed to remove the rack in the field, but I left my security tool in the garage. Not needing a tool for this rack is nice.

The rack comes with a strap extender kit for large tires, like fat bikes with 3-5” tires. There’s also a 20-24″ wheel adapter for securely holding kids’ or BMX bikes to the rack without needing to buy an extra accessory.

Other aftermarket accessories are available, too, like an extender to add another one or two bikes. There’s also a ramp (which is helpful for e-bikes), license plate mount, and various hitch adaptors.

Integrated Bike Stand

Küat offers a unique element in this rack: Introducing Trail Doc, a built-in bike stand that extends from the top of the rack when it’s closed and unloaded. That way, you can easily work on your bike at the trailhead or on your road trip.

Installation

When assembling the rack, getting the Trail Doc to seat into its hole took considerable effort. In fact, one GearJunkie field tester could not accomplish the task. I used the helping hand of a rubber mallet. Once in place, it worked as intended.

Field Use

The repair stand can only be used when the rack is completely unloaded from bikes and tilted into its upright storage position. The stand does feel flimsy and can be slightly more awkward than a traditional bike stand when getting your seat post to lock into position. While the interior clamp has some rubber, I feel it could use more to be better protective of bikes.

With a bike in the Trail Doc, I found it to be slightly unstable, especially with any wind, without having the front tire also touching the ground, and

When using the rack on a car (versus a high-clearance truck), you couldn’t get the bike fully off the ground in the stand.

Room for Improvement

After using the Trail Doc several times, I actually found it was easier and more secure to leave my bike in the platform of the rack for basic maintenance. There, I lubed the chain and wiped down the stanchions.

Part of me thinks this could be a useful tool in practice. But it also seems better on paper than in the field.

All in all, kudos to Küat for pushing the innovation on this one. Maybe the bike stand on the NV 3.0 will be more stable and secure. The brand also offers a standalone tripod base called the Tri-Doc, which is compatible with the removable Trail Doc work stand top.

Cons & Tradeoffs

While I loved using the rack every day for bikes (or not), there are a few tradeoffs. As I explained above, the Trail Doc bike stand is flimsy and borderline gimmicky on top of being hard to install.

The rack doesn’t have as much clearance as more off-road–oriented racks like the 1Up Heavy Duty. As a result, this rack can scrape the ground during basic city driving.

Next, while the rack is rated for e-bikes up to 60 pounds — or most pedal-assist e-bikes — that is only in the two-bike configuration. Each additional bike tray reduces the carrying capacity of each platform by 10 pounds. When you add a third bike, the limit becomes 50 pounds per bike. Meaning, a four-bike setup wouldn’t hold four e-bikes.

Lastly, it’s important to note that the NV 2.0 isn’t rated for standard RVs or extreme off-road driving. Küat’s warranty explicitly excludes damage caused by things like rock-crawling or off-grid vehicle jumping. While standard dirt roads to a trailhead are perfectly fine, mountain bikers who frequently tackle rough, technical 4X4 roads to remote tracks should keep this limitation in mind.

That said, while the NV 2.0 is technically not rated for large RVs or travel trailers, Küat does officially cover it under warranty if it is mounted to a Class B motorhome (camper vans like a Mercedes Sprinter or Ford Transit conversion) as long as it’s plugged directly into a 2-inch chassis hitch.

Who Is This Hitch Rack For?

So, who is this bike rack for? The NV 2.0 rack is perfect for the average biker looking for a higher weight capacity that’s capable of carrying an e-bike, fat bike, or both — as long as they’re only carrying one or two bikes versus three or four.

This design is great for cyclists who won’t use the rack on an RV. It’s a solid contender if the majority of your off-roading is on gravel roads versus gnarly 4X4 routes.

If you want a rack that’s easy to use, durable, and includes all the necessary elements — including a bike work stand and integrated locks — right out of the box, this one is it.

At a price point right below $1,000, the new NV is a solid option that looks appealing while serving as a year-round daily driver and road-tripper alike.