I've been using the Swagman XTC4 and it does OK. There is no disguising the weight back there, but as long as you're not going off-roading it should be fine. I take it a little easy when loaded up and have never had a problem. Of course I've got kids bikes loaded at the rear, which isn't quite as much weight as you're planning.

 

I've been using the Swagman XTC4 and it does OK. There is no disguising the weight back there, but as long as you're not going off-roading it should be fine. I take it a little easy when loaded up and have never had a problem. Of course I've got kids bikes loaded at the rear, which isn't quite as much weight as you're planning.

Thanks for the reply and the picture. It is good to know that a ~60 lb rack with similar length dimensions has been working well for you. I too would likely have kids bikes on the back - at least until they get older. Maybe I should just admit that I might have to get a new bike transporting option when the kids are older.

 

Think of each bike as using the rack as a lever on the hitch, then apply the law of the lever (force * distance) the get the force on the hitch.

Not information here to accurately work up the numbers, but suffice to say the total force on the hitch would be more than just the sum of the weight of the 4 bikes and the rack.

 

Thanks for the reply. I can't seem to find any hitch torque ratings anywhere, which would be nice to have in addition to the tongue weight rating.

If a 35 lb bike is 2 ft away from the hitch, that would be 70 ft-lbs of torque (assuming a weightless bike rack). That doesn't exactly mean 70 lbs of weight on the hitch, does it? If it does, what if I could theoretically place a bike 0 ft from the hitch? That would be 0 ft-lbs, which wouldn't translate to 0 lbs of weight on the hitch. I wish there was some sort of calculator online specific to hitches. Physics class was too long ago.

 

We use a Swagman Semi 4 (it's a 2 + 2) and heavier than the XTC 4. Carrying 4 bikes is no issue at all. I usually load the heavier bikes closer to the car, but I don't think it really makes much difference.

 

There really isn't a one to one comparison here. Hitches meant for weight distribution will handle torque loading better - and the Odyssey hitch isn't designed for that... But, the 350 lbs tongue rating is in addition to pulling/stopping 3500lbs, which it won't be doing with a bike rack. It probably mostly equals out.

The OEM hitch does feel over-deisgned for its 350/3500 rating though. I'd probably feel comfortable with a 4-bike setup from 1UP.

If I was going to be regularly carrying 4 heavy bikes (full sized), I'd change it up to a vertical-style carrier to bring the weight closer to the back of the vehicle, like this:

Recon Rack

Discover the Recon Rack, a durable vertical bicycle rack designed for easy loading and secure transport. Perfect for all your biking adventures!

recon-racks.com

(there are other options out there these days, don't take it as a recommendation for a specific rack)

I personally have a 2-bike Thule T2 hitch rack and and two roof-rack mounted T2 bases... But now we are a family of 5, so that'll get interesting in the future...

-Charlie