Thule VeloSpace XT 3 bike tow bar carrier no. 939

Developed for heavy bikes, such as eBikes. It's also a great option if you have a fat bike. Its full length wheel trays makes it equally suitable for smaller bikes too. It's got a greater distance than usual between each bike making loading easier, especially if you've got electric bikes or chunky downhill forks. The upright isn't quite as large as many tow bar racks. As a result there are some very large bikes that won't fit in this rack (e.g. some full-suspension eMTBs where you cannot attach the bike arm lower down on the bike because of the battery or suspension).

It's a decent rack and has a foot operated tilt function accessed from the front of the bike carrier, near the lights - this is a major plus point. The tilt mechanism allows you to open the tailgate without removing the bikes, which will always be useful. The lockable bike holding arms can easily be repositioned, when unlocked, so you won't have the common problem of finding that one holding arm is in the wrong place for the last bike, and all bikes have to be taken off and the holding arm repositioned before loading the bikes again. The AcuTight tightening knobs have a built-in torque limiter so will click when the right tension is reached.

The VeloSpace 939 is supplied largely pre-assembled, and is suitable for all types of tow ball. When you place the rack on the tow ball it stabilizes itself, allowing you to position it correctly before pushing down the handle.

There's a range of useful accessories available to ensure you get the most out of your bike rack - shown below. These include an optional loading ramp to make loading and unloading much easier. A transportation wheel accessory can be attached to the rack making it easier to transport to and from the car.

You can even add an easily accessible cargo box (BackSpace XT cargo box no. 938300) to convert this bike carrier into an all-round load carrier, a good option if your roof is already taken up with other gear.

Other specifications:

• Max load capacity: 60kg (tow bar nose weight limit permitting)
• Weight: 20.6kg
• Fits frames 22 to 80mm
• Fits tyres up to 3.5" - extra long wheel straps (available as an accessory) will even take fatbikes up to 4.7"
• Maximum wheelbase: 1300mm
• The upright can be folded for easier storage
• The 939 comes with a 13 pin plug for 13 pin continental type electric sockets (we include a free adapter if you have a 7 pin socket).
• Use adapter 939400 if you have a rear mounted spare wheel; this will take up one bike space, i.e. you can carry 3 bikes with adapters 938100 and 939400

Technical specifications at a glance:

Max number of bikes: 4 (with adapter listed below)

Fits bolt on tow ball: yes

Fits swan neck / detachable tow ball: yes

Dimensions: 135 x 73 x 79cm

Weight: 20.6kg (+2.6kg with the 4th bike adapter)

Max load capacity: 60kg

Max weight per bike: 30kg

Maximum wheelbase: 130cm

Spacing between bikes: 19cm

Tilting: yes

Integral lighting board: yes

Lighting board plug type: 13 pin (7 pin adapter available if required; shown below)

Bike carrier to tow ball lock: yes

Bike carrier to bike lock: yes

Possible to tow when in use: no

Fits with a spare wheel: yes (with adapter listed below)

Guarantee: 5 years

Useful information:

The maximum permitted load you can carry is also determined by your nose weight; you will need to check you don’t exceed this before using any tow ball mounted bike carrier.

Fits most tow balls - check this diagram for more details:

Deciding which bike carriers to buy is not always easy, especially as you may not have had experience of using bike carriers before. We hope that our buying guides provide useful guidance about which bike carrier 'strategy' will be most appropriate for your circumstances, as well as highlighting the best features of particular models. We also have troubleshooting FAQs - for example, some customers struggle at first to fit four bikes onto a tow ball carrier, and wonder whether a different carrier would allow the bikes to be spaced wider apart. (It won't, but we have some good tips which make bike fitting much easier.)

Our bike carriers Exchange Scheme covers roof mounting and tow ball mounting bike carriers only. Rear door mounting / strap on carriers are not included, and nor are roof bars. It allows you to exchange within 90 days of invoice date. Most exchanges are for roof mounting upgrades, or are tow ball carriers with very basic tilting systems being exchanged for easy to use sliding / tilting carriers.

These are the rules of the bike carriers Exchange Scheme:

• You are allowed one exchange only.
• The original equipment must be in "as new" condition, subject only to fair wear and tear.
• The replacement items must be different models from the originals.
• The replacement items must not be part of a package deal or be from our Bargains section.
• Roof bars are never part of the Exchange Scheme.

This is how the exchange scheme works:

• We charge in full for the replacement items, including the appropriate carriage charge and a charge for any packaging needed for the return of the originals.
• We pay the return carriage costs.
• When the originals arrive back here we refund you for their invoice value, but you won't get back more than the invoice value of the replacements. In other words, if the replacements are cheaper than the originals we won't be giving you "extra cash back".

Please note: we can only collect items from mainland UK.

Delivery charges and arrangements:

We charge a contribution towards delivery costs, depending on what you order, where you live, and how quickly you want the goods.

These are our standard charges; there are usually surcharges for all offshore destinations and some remote postcodes - for details please see our delivery information page.

Delivery times

Delivery times are calculated in working days (Monday to Friday, excluding Bank holidays).

Cut-off times for Express Delivery orders
Express Delivery orders placed before before the cut-off times shown below will usually be desptached on the date of order. Express Delivery orders placed after these cut-off times will be despatched the next working day.

Delivery FAQs

When will my order arrive?
There are no deliveries on Saturdays, Sundays or Bank Holidays, except for postable items where Royal Mail has a Saturday delivery. Express Delivery orders placed on a Friday (before 1pm) should be delivered on the Monday or Tuesday, Express Delivery orders placed on a Saturday or Sunday should be delivered on the Tuesday or Wednesday. The arrangements for Very Heavy Items are different and are shown above.

What about Next Working Day delivery?
We have offered a reliable Next Working Day service for well over 20 years but, due to the pressure on the couriers caused by the coronavirus crisis and the huge increase in online shopping, we can no longer be confident about the delivery date, which is why we now call the service ‘Express delivery’. Most Express delivery orders will arrive on the next or second working day, but some will arrive on the second or third working day, or be split between these days. So-called “split deliveries” happen when the couriers do not have enough trailer space for everything that should be moved around the UK, so they will load what they can and leave the rest for the next trailer.

Is my delivery day guaranteed?
No retailer or courier company can ever "guarantee" a Next Working Day delivery. As well as split deliveries, all courier companies occasionally have the same transport problems as can happen to everyone else, including snow blocked roads, closed roads, traffic jams, mechanical breakdown, an inability to find the delivery address, or to gain access to it if, for example, it's in a block of flats. We work with some of the best couriers in the business, and overall they provide an outstanding service.

Do I need to be at home?
We are very flexible with our deliveries and will aim to deliver to an address which suits you – this does not need to be your home address. Goods can usually be left without signature - we prefer this with roof boxes. There's a "Special Delivery Instructions" box in the checkout area where we'll ask you to choose a typical instruction and then amend it to suit your particular requirements.

Payment options:

We take the following cards, and also PayPal. Please note that the entry on your card statement will be from "The Roof Box Company".

Secure payments

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Bike carriers with 7 pin plugs

Wheel support bike carriers which are supplied with 7 pin plugs usually only include rear lights, brake lights and indicator lights, which is why they are often called ‘3 function lights’.

Unusually, Thule bike carriers with 7 pin plugs also include a fog light; this works when plugged into 7 pin electrics, but it does not work when plugged into 13 pin electrics via an adapter.

Bike carriers with 13 pin plugs

Bike carriers which are supplied with 13 pin plugs include a fog light and reversing light, as well as rear lights, brake lights and indicator lights – which is why they are often called ‘5 function lights’.

If these are plugged into 13 pin electrics then all 5 functions will work.

If they are plugged into 7 pin electrics via an adapter then the fog light should work, but the reversing light on the bike carrier will not work.

Please note

These notes assume that your tow bar electrics have been wired correctly!

Tow bar wiring in the digital age is much more complicated than it used to be when everything was analogue. Our experience is that if you are having lighting problems, e.g. a fog light does not work in 7 pin tow bar electrics, the problem is much more likely to be caused by the wiring, not by a dud bulb in the bike carrier.

To find the spare parts you need, please see the diagram below, identify the product codes, then choose them from the list below. If you need more than 1 of any item, change the quantities in the Shopping Basket.