Lolo Racks, launched in the Pacific Northwest in 2016, first caught my attention when I spotted one at a trailhead in Bend, Ore. The innovative vertical hitch bike rack design, capable of carrying four or six bikes, intrigued me.
Since then, I’ve tested various rack styles, both horizontal and vertical, but none seemed to meet all the criteria for our family and team adventures. Just when I was considering giving up on testing racks altogether, Lolo introduced the 6-Bike Rack with Foot-Activated Tilt, and my curiosity got the better of me.
For the past 8 years, Lolo has been crafting durable vertical racks in Portland, Ore., using 100% American materials. These steel racks are meticulously welded and assembled by fellow riders and parents who share a love for taking their families and friends on outdoor excursions.
Impressed by the ongoing reputation of these seemingly bombproof, US-made racks, I decided to give one a try. As my kids grew and their bikes outgrew our car’s storage space, the need for an upgrade became evident. As event organizers, parents, and professional adventure racers who rarely ride alone, the choice became clear and we went for the 6-Bike Rack with Foot-Activated Tilt.
Over the past few months, my family and I have embarked on numerous bike adventures across diverse road conditions, hauling various bike styles on our Lolo rack. It has exceeded my expectations in carrying capacity, bike compatibility, and ease of loading and unloading bikes.
In short: The Lolo 6-Bike Rack with the Foot-Activated Tilt ($1,150) is a robust, 100% USA-made rack capable of effortlessly transporting up to 240 pounds of diverse bikes on the roughest roads — all without you feeling the extra weight while driving to your destination.
Lolo Racks 6-Bike Rack With Foot-Activated Tilt
Specs
- Weight 76 lbs.
- Number of bikes 6 (also comes in 4-bike version)
- Carry capacity 240 lbs. total (roughly 40 lbs. per bike, suitable even for a heavy 55-lb. e-bike positioned in the middle)
- Hitch receiver options 2"
- Locks Yes, locking hitch bolt and the option to use your cable and U-lock.
- Type Vertical, handlebar hang
Pros
- Impressive carrying capacity
- Foot-activated tilt
- Accommodates all types of bikes (and even snowboards and skis!)
- Durable and proudly made in the USA
- Avoids bike compatibility pitfalls of some other vertical racks
Cons
- Does not come with an integrated lock for bikes
- Heavy and requires significant storage space when taken off car
- Expensive
Lolo 6-Bike Rack With Foot-Activated Tilt: Review
We used the Lolo rack for 2 months to transport our bikes to start day trips and an overnight bikepacking trip. We traveled with bikes over bumpy gravel roads behind Smith Rock State Park and at highway speeds to our cabin.
After getting to our biking destinations, both the rack and the bikes were always steady and secure. Having a rack that has enough clearance — and keeps the bike securely in place time and time again — means that we can relax during our drive instead of worrying about the state of our bikes.
The best part about the Lolo rack is how easy loading and unloading the bikes is. Even with my 5’1″ stature, I can easily load and attach the bikes to the sturdy steel rack with the durable and UV-resistant bungees. Equally noteworthy for my younger riders is the ability to still sit on the tailgate and eat snacks by using the foot-activated tilt system to lean the rack — with or without bikes loaded — away from our vehicle.
During the test period, my family and I attached many different styles of bikes and covered hundreds of miles with the Lolo rack. We even camped in the back of our truck with the rack and instead of being inconvenient or in the way, it proved to be a great place to hang our kitchen set and lanterns for nighttime cooking.
Bike Carry System
The Lolo rack can carry all types of bikes: gravel, mountain, road, fat, kids’, and e-bikes, all of which are easy to secure on the rack. The rack has six handlebar hooks/cradles with two bungees that keep the handlebars secured in place.
Unlike other vertical racks that support the bikes by the fork or the front wheel, the Lolo’s handlebar carry system avoids some of the compatibility pitfalls that can plague the other styles. Most notably, it can carry bikes with drop bars and kids’ bikes without any modifications.
At the bottom of the rack, the lower crossbar has six large nooks that can fit any tire width, including wide fat tires (about 5.5 inches). Short bungees loop through the rear wheels and hold them tight against the lower crossbar.
Unlike most other vertical racks, the Lolo holds bikes with the wheels of the bikes pointed away from the car and the rack angled slightly toward the vehicle. This gives the rack enough clearance for rougher roads and keeps the weight closer to the vehicle for a smoother ride.
I found that it took me 2 minutes to load or unload my family’s four mountain bikes on the Lolo rack. Our son’s 20-inch bike fits easily while our youngest son’s 16-inch bike requires the rear wheel to be attached via a ski strap or cam strap. For e-bikes, downhill bikes, and road bikes — all of which can be carried by the Lolo Rack — I learned a few attachment tips.
Tips on Attaching Different Kinds of Bikes
- Dual crown/downhill bikes: Lolo sells a separate attachment for these styles of bikes that works well. It can also work for mountain bikes so you can keep it on your rack permanently.
- Kids’ bikes (under 10-16-inch wheels): For smaller kids’ bikes with wheels that are under 20 inches, use a ski strap or bungee to attach the bottom wheel to the rack.
- Fat bikes: The tires fit, but taking the bungee off can be challenging if the tires are fully inflated. I recommend either decreasing the tire pressure or using a ski strap.
- Road and gravel bikes with drop bars: These fit best on the ends of the rack to reduce the chances of interference with mountain bike handlebars.
- E-bikes: For e-bikes over 44 pounds, Lolo recommends attaching them by the support mast in the middle of the rack for better weight balance. You may also have to take off any handlebar computers.
Foot-Activated Tilt
The foot-activated tilt system makes it easy to access tailgates and hatches even with the rack fully loaded with bikes. While holding the rack with one hand, and pressing my foot on the tilt-release lever, it’s possible to tilt the rack away from the vehicle into any of three different angled positions with the bikes on.
Or, you can move it all the way down without bikes on it. This is much easier to use than the pin system on the standard version, and makes it possible to adjust the rack’s angle by yourself and with bikes loaded.
The tilt feature gets high praise from our younger mountain bikers, as they can still use and enjoy the tailgate of our truck while we are getting ready. We also tested the rack on our much smaller Nissan Leaf, and we could easily access the back of that car for all of our needed gear.
Security
The Lolo Rack comes with a heavy-duty hitch pin and hitch pin lock to secure the rack to the vehicle. The hitch pin also serves the purpose of tightening the rack in the hitch receiver to reduce the amount of wobble while in transit.
While this works fairly well, vertical racks still tend to wobble more than other rack styles when loaded with bikes. So, adding an aftermarket anti-wobble hitch-tightener is never a bad idea to keep it as stable as possible. We used one when testing the Lolo, and found it to work very well, even on rougher gravel roads.
The Lolo rack does not come with a lock for the bikes, but it has a large metal loop to pass an aftermarket cable, chain, or U-lock through to secure them. Lolo Racks sells a cable lock and U-lock as accessories, or you can use the bike lock of your choice to add a layer of bike security.
Variations and Add-Ons
Lolo offers several rack options to cater to diverse needs and user preferences. Along with the 6-bike version I tested, the brand also offers a 4-Bike Rack with Foot-Activated Tilt ($1,080). Standard-Tilt models (using a pin system) are available in 4-bike ($820) and 6-bike ($899), or you can buy a DIY 2-bike rack to mount to your campervan ($319).
Add-ons like the Foot-Activated Tilt ($275) or the Boss Swing-Out ($1,085) provide upgrades for van or SUV owners who already own a Lolo Rack. Despite being pricier, these options enhance the overall user experience, making Lolo Racks a versatile choice for varying needs. As long as your car has a 2-inch hitch receiver, Lolo ensures you can get the setup that suits you and your riders.
A Year-Round Rack
One of the main drawbacks of most vertical bike racks like the Lolo is their size and weight, making it more difficult to move and store them when they aren’t on your vehicle. While many users (like my family) might use the rack for year-round bike excursions, others need a place for it to go during the winter months.
Fortunately, Lolo has directions on its website to turn the rack into a garage bike storage system by mounting it to the wall when not in use. This keeps the rack tidy and off the ground and provides you with a place to store your bikes.
Lolo also provides tips on turning the rack into a ski and snowboard carrier by attaching a ski rack to the cross bars. While I have not mounted my rack in the garage or used it as a ski rack, it looks easy enough to make the Lolo a functional year-round rack whether it stays on your vehicle or not.
Lolo 6-Bike Rack With Foot-Activated Tilt: Conclusion
The Lolo Racks 6-Bike Rack with Foot-Activated Tilt is one of the most functional and high-quality bike racks I have used. I have yet to find any road that is too rough or any bike that can’t fit on this rack.
After hundreds of miles on bumpy gravel roads and loading and unloading bikes many times, I was impressed with its versatility and durability. The foot-activated tilt makes it easy to access the back of my vehicles even when fully loaded and the handlebar cradle design carries all of my family’s bikes without much fuss.
The fact that it’s welded together in Oregon by riders with 100% American-made steel makes me feel good about my environmental footprint. The fact that I can carry up to six of my family and friends’ bikes without compatibility issues — and easily access our gear when we get to our destination — gives me extra energy to focus on more important tasks, like riding!
