Yakima DoubleDown trailer hitch bike rack - tailgate doesnt clear

[richl025]

Hoping to save other people the aggravation - the Yakima DoubleDown tailgate rack is supposed to angle backwards to allow you access to the back of your vehicle. It doesn't _quite_ go down far enough for the tailgate to fully drop, however!


(In all fairness they have pics of SUVs with the rack, none of pickups...)

They do sell an extender that pushes the entire rack another 8" or so to the rear - I'm not super happy about increasing the lever-arm effect, but that's kind of my only option.

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[SpaceEVDriver]

You could also get a 2" to 6" drop/rise adapter instead of an extender.

 

[Zaptor]

You could also cut the extender to the bare minimum needed to clear, and just redrill the hole for the locking pin. Sawzall with a metal blade, then scribe the hole from both sides while installed, hit it with a good cobalt bit of proper size, and you'd be golden.

 

[richl025]

You could also get a 2" to 6" drop/rise adapter instead of an extender.

Darn good idea, thanks....

 

[richl025]

Follow-up on my original thread.

Yakima makes an extender that moves the whole unit several inches back. It also comes with the same thru-bolt system to reduce swaying - but unfortunately it was just an inch or two too short still! The tailgate was still resting on the base of the unit

So I tried SpaceEVDriver's suggestion to use a 2" drop attachment. I was a little concerned this would cause a fair bit of sway, but my local Lowe's had a neat U-bolt accessory that clinches the extender against the receiver - this looks like it will fit the bill nicely!

I have a tailgate pad for just driving around town, but it's nice to know I have this option for longer trips (ie camping) where I will need to put a bunch of stuff in my bed...

Picture below showing the extender and the anti-sway U-bolt accessory...

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