Whispbar 2 bike tow bar carrier no. WBT21

This bike carrier is also known as the Cykell T21; Yakima purchased the Cykell business in February 2016, and have now rebadged the Cykell tow bar carriers with their premium Whispbar brand name.

There are so many innovations in this carrier, and it is relatively so easy and satisfying to use, that it’s no surprise that it won a prestigious Red Dot Design Award.

Most of our customers have never used a tow bar bike rack before, so won’t know what to expect, or be in a position to try out different racks. We therefore want you to take our word for it that this carrier really is different, really special, and if you can afford it, it will over time prove to be very good value for money.

In our opinion there are two stand-out features:

• Ergonomics: Carrying and fitting the T21 is so easy because when folded it’s basically vertical, not basically horizontal. Stand above it - no back strain - lift it, place it on the tow ball and push down on the outer wheel tray. It automatically adjusts and self-tensions for your particular tow ball. Fitting couldn’t really be faster, and we're sure it couldn’t be easier.
• Design competence = low stress: When you come to remove the carrier, there’s no bike holder frame that needs releasing and lowering, no jumble of bike holder arms that will then keep getting in the way – you just lift the wheel tray frame to the vertical, sandwiching all other parts out of the way, and lift the carrier, straight up, off the tow ball.

There are many additional touches that have been borne out of experience of using other carriers, for example:

• The outer bike wheel holder is higher than the inner ones, reducing the potential for bikes bumping against each other, and making it easier to find optimal positions for the bike holder arms.
• The bike holder arms are very easy to remove, when unlocked. This makes bike fitting much quicker, much easier, with no need to remove all the bikes and start again if you can’t get a good grip on the outer bike, or have forgotten to position a bike holder in the correct place during fitting. (Most of our customers who’ve used tow bar carriers before will know what we mean!) A good tip is to take off the second bike holder before fitting the first bike, and aim to hold the bikes by their seat posts.

Other features:

• These carriers have a ‘Just click’ fitting system; when you hear a reassuring 'click' and see a green indicator then you know that a fitting process is complete, and you're good to go.
• The T21 is a 2 bike carrier which will carry up to 2 electric bikes (maximum weight of each is 30kg, so you may need to remove the battery before loading.
• A 3rd bike adapter is available. This also has a 'Just click' fitting so you can install and remove it in seconds - without the need for tools.
• The carrier tilts, with the bikes fitted, to allow easy access to the car boot – this is controlled by a foot-operated pedal below the number-plate.
• The T21 has 25cm between the wheel-holders, 5cm more than usual, making it easier to load chunky downhill MTBs and eBikes, and minimising the risk of the bikes rubbing together.
• The T21 includes a storage space for the optional loading ramp, designed to make it easy to load eBikes.
• The wheel trays pull out to accommodate almost all bikes - from kids bikes to 29" MTBs.
• The light bars also slide out, to keep you legal; slide them back again to make the carrier compact enough to store in the car boot, out of harm’s way when parking on the street or in car parks.
• The rack can be folded into an upright position, out of harm's way, when it's on the towball, e.g. in a car park.
• The lights are ‘5 function’, including fog lights and a reversing light; they come with both a 7 pin and a 13 pin lighting socket.
• Everything is lockable; the rack is locked to the car and each bike is locked to the rack, all using the same key (3 keys are provided).
• The extra bike adapter and loading ramp are listed below, as well as a wall hanging bracket for smart storage, and a storage cover.
• There's a 5 year guarantee. All components are of top quality, including a 300 hour salt-proofed steel frame, and epoxy-coated aluminium wheel holders.
• The carrier fits all tow balls, but please note that it does not fit the Land Rover Discovery 4 (2009 onwards) unless an additional electric socket is mounted below the bumper; the Discovery’s in-bumper electrical sockets are blocked by the tubes of the bike holder ‘upright’.

This rack tilts far enough to open the tailgate on vehicles with all but the most vertical tailgates. Owners of larger vehicles with vertical tailgates (such as vans and bigger MPVs) report that the rack doesn't tilt far enough back to open the tailgate. If you have a vehicle with a vertical tailgate you may not be able to open it with this rack. We would recommend taking a look at the Atera Strada DL.

Important information if you have a bolt-on tow ball. These racks only work with 'extended neck' bolt on / flange tow balls. If you have a standard ball you will need to purchase an extended neck version instead - listed below. It's very easy to change your ball over.

In summary, we've been selling tow ball carriers for 20 years now; it's a market we know well. The T21 and T31 include innovations that put them at the very front of it.

View Specs Sheet PDF

Max number of bikes: 2 (3 with adapter, shown below)

Fits bolt on tow ball: yes

Fits swan neck / detachable tow ball: yes

Dimensions: 100cm (width) x 77cm (depth)

Weights: 17.3kg (+ 2.5kg with 3rd bike adapter)

Load capacity: 60kg

Distance between bikes: 25cm

Maximum wheelbase: 128cm

Maximum tyre width: 3.25"

Tilting: yes

Integral lighting board: yes

Lighting board plug type: 13 pin (7 pin adapter included)

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: no

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.

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 that we can only collect exchange scheme 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 of other items

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?
Most Express delivery orders will arrive on the next working day, if the order is placed before the cut-off time (see above). Some will arrive on the second working day if there has been a "split-delivery". 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.