If you’ve ever hauled a motorcycle to a rally, trail ride, or track day only to tense up mid-drive worrying about your bike shifting, or worse, falling off the back of your truck, you know choosing the right motorcycle carrier isn’t just a matter of “getting something that fits.” As someone who’s been in the business of selling motorcycle carriers for 12 years, I’ve seen every mistake in the book—from customers grabbing a cheap carrier that’s three inches too narrow for their cruiser’s handlebars, to overloading a hitch mount beyond what their tow vehicle can safely handle. Most people think size is just about the length of their bike, but it’s a mix of your motorcycle’s dimensions, your tow setup, how you plan to use the carrier, and even local road laws. Today, I’m breaking down exactly how to pick the right size carrier so you never have to stress about hauling your ride again. Motocycle Carrier
First: Get The Hard Numbers For Your Motorcycle (No Guessing)
The biggest mistake I see is customers estimating their bike’s size and going off that. If you own a motorcycle, you probably have a general idea, but trust me—write down the exact measurements. I recommend pulling out a tape measure right now before you do anything else. There are three non-negotiable numbers you need: overall length, width at its widest point, and ground clearance at its lowest point.
Let’s start with overall length. This is measured from the very tip of your front tire (not the fender, that sticks out) to the very end of your rear fender or tail light, whichever is longer. Wait, don’t measure from the back of the rear tire—your bike’s rear overhang extends past that, especially on cruisers or dirt bikes with long swingarms. For example, my 2018 Harley-Davidson Street Glide measures 94 inches from front tire tip to tail light tip. If I went by the tire, I’d be 2 inches short, which is enough to leave half my rear wheel hanging over the edge of the carrier. That’s a recipe for catching a speed bump or a pothole and bending your rim.
Next, width. This is the most critical number people miss. You can’t just measure the handlebars—sometimes the widest point is the swingarm, exhaust, or crash bars. For my Street Glide, the handlebars are 16 inches wide, but the custom saddle bags I added stick out 2 inches on each side, making my total width 20 inches. If I bought a carrier rated for 18 inches, those bags would hang over the edge, and state laws (I’m in Ohio, where I know this) require overhang to be marked with flags after 12 inches. No one wants to attach a neon orange flag to their $300 saddle bags just to haul them. A dirt bike is even trickier—most standard dirt bikes have handlebars that are 28 to 32 inches wide, which is way wider than a cruiser. I once had a customer bring in a KTM 450 SX-F that was 34 inches wide and tried to put it on a carrier rated for 28 inches. He ended up with the bike leaning so far over on the highway that the handlebar bent when he hit a gust of wind. We ended up selling him a wide-body carrier designed specifically for dirt bikes, and he’s been a repeat customer ever since.
Third, ground clearance. This is the distance from the lowest part of your bike—usually the engine skid plate, exhaust header, or kickstand—to the ground. When your carrier is sitting level on your hitch, you need to make sure your bike won’t drag when you drive up the ramp, and that it won’t hit the carrier frame when it’s tied down. For most standard cruisers and standard-sized bikes, ground clearance is around 5 to 7 inches, which is the minimum we build our standard carriers with. If you have a dirt bike or a lifted adventure bike, that number can jump to 9 or 10 inches, and you’ll need a carrier with a higher frame or a beveled ramp so you don’t drag your skid plate. I learned this the hard way years ago when I tried to haul my buddy’s Yamaha Ténéré 700 on a standard carrier—his skid plate scraped the frame so bad leaving his garage that he ended up with a dent and a $200 repair bill. We added a 10-inch clearance option to our line-up a year later, and it’s been one of our most popular upgrades for off-road and adventure bike owners.
Match The Carrier Size To Your Tow Setup, Not Just Your Bike
Okay, so you have your bike’s numbers down, now you have to factor in what you’re hauling the carrier with. A carrier that’s perfect for a half-ton pickup won’t work for an SUV or a van, and even for pickups, there are two main types of motorcycle carriers: hitch mount and bed mount. I’m not here to argue which is better—both have their place—but size is totally different for each.
Let’s start with hitch mount carriers, which are the most popular for people who don’t want to modify their truck bed. Hitch carriers come in two standard lengths: 6-foot and 7-foot, and extra-long 8-foot models. Here’s the rule: your bike’s length should leave at least 10 inches of space from the back of the rear tire to the end of the carrier, and at least 10 inches of space from the front of the front tire to the front edge of the carrier. That gap isn’t just for airflow—it’s for when you turn your truck, or when you hit a dip and the hitch settles. If your bike takes up the entire 7-foot carrier, you’ll end up scraping the back of your truck cab on the carrier when you turn left, or having the front of the carrier hit your truck’s spare tire if you have one mounted.
I once had a customer with a 2021 Ford F-150 who bought a 7-foot hitch carrier for his 92-inch long Yamaha V-Star. He didn’t leave any gap, and on his way to a rally in Indiana, he turned left onto a back road and ripped the entire front corner of his truck bed. The carrier was touching the cab so hard that it tore off the trim and left a 2-foot scratch. We ended up exchanging it for an 8-foot carrier, and he told me later it was the best $150 he’d spent all year. For smaller bikes, like 600cc sportbikes that are 80 to 85 inches long, the 6-foot carrier is perfect. You’ll have extra space, no overhang, and it’s easier to load and unload in tight driveways or parking lots.
If you have a larger tow vehicle, like a 3/4-ton or 1-ton truck, and you want to haul two motorcycles at once, that’s when size gets a little more complicated. A standard double motorcycle carrier is 8 feet long and fits two bikes up to 40 inches each, but if you have two cruisers with wide handlebars, you’ll need a wide double carrier that’s 48 inches total width. I always tell people: never try to cram two bikes into a single carrier that’s rated for less than their combined width. You’ll end up tying them so tight that you put stress on the frames, or so loose that one shifts into the other on the highway. I had a customer try to haul two of his dirt bikes on a standard double carrier last year, and they hit each other so hard on the highway that one’s handlebar broke off. Total damage: almost $1,000, and he had to call a tow truck. Don’t do that.
Now, bed mount carriers are a totally different story. These are the ones that sit in your truck bed, usually attach to the stake pockets, and require you to drive your bike into the bed. For bed mounts, the size is all about your truck bed. A full-size long-bed truck is 8 feet long, so a standard bed mount carrier will fit perfectly, holding a bike up to 100 inches long. If you have a short-bed truck (5.5 or 6.5 feet), you’ll need a “short-bed compatible” bed mount that sits further back in the bed, or you’ll need to use a tailgate extender. I always warn people with short beds: never haul a bike that hangs over the tailgate. Even with an extender, state laws require overhang lights if you’re driving at night, and it’s dangerous because the back of the bike is exposed to other drivers.
How You Plan To Use Your Bike Matters More Than You Think
Size isn’t just about dimensions—it’s about what you’re using your motorcycle for. If you’re a casual rider who only hauls your bike to local rides a few times a year, you can get away with a carrier that’s a little snug, as long as it fits your bike’s dimensions. But if you’re a road tripper who hauls your bike cross-country every month, or an off-road rider who loads and unloads multiple times a weekend, you need size that gives you a little extra wiggle room, and durability to match.
For example, I have a buddy who’s a full-time adventure rider, and he hauls his BMW R1250GS 20,000 miles a year. He used to use a 7-foot hitch carrier for years, but he upgraded to an 8-foot wide-body carrier after he started taking dirt roads and trails more. Why? His bike has crash bars and a skid plate, and the extra length gave him space to secure the bike without putting pressure on the crash bars. He told me he once hit a deer on a back road, and the extra space let him adjust the ties without unbolting anything, so he could get back on the road in 20 minutes instead of two hours.
If you have a sportbike that you only use for track days, you might not need a huge carrier, but you do need a low-profile one. Sportbikes have low ground clearance, so a carrier with a low frame and beveled ramp will let you drive the bike up without scraping the fairing. A lot of sportbike owners make the mistake of grabbing a standard carrier with a sharp ramp edge, and they end up scraping the front fairing every time they load. We have a specific sportbike carrier line that has a 4-inch high ramp instead of the standard 6-inch, and it’s saved hundreds of fairings over the years.
Off-road riders are the other group that needs to pay extra attention to size. Their bikes are wider, taller, and often heavier, so they need a carrier with a higher weight rating, and enough width for handlebars that stick out far. We make a dirt bike-specific carrier that’s 36 inches wide, and it fits all standard dirt bikes up to 450cc. For larger 650cc dirt bikes, we have a 40-inch wide option that’s made to handle their wider frames. I once had a guy show up with a brand-new Honda CRF450R that had 31-inch handlebars, and he tried to put it on a 28-inch carrier. He could barely get it up the ramp, and by the time he tied it down, the handlebar was touching the carrier frame. When he drove on the highway, the vibration bent the handlebar, and he had to replace it before his next ride. Now he’s our go-to guy for test rides on the wide dirt carriers.
The Fine Print: Weight And Law, The Most Overlooked Size Factors
Wait, I said size, and I’ve been talking length and width, but there’s one more “size” factor that’s just as important: weight capacity. A carrier that fits your bike’s dimensions is useless if it can’t handle the weight of your bike. That’s where a lot of people get tripped up. A standard cruiser is 600 to 800 pounds, a dirt bike is 250 to 400 pounds, a sportbike is 400 to 500 pounds, and an adventure bike can be 700 to 1,000 pounds. The carrier’s weight rating has to be at least 200 pounds more than your bike’s total weight, to account for extra accessories like saddle bags, skid plates, or even a fuel tank that’s full.
I’ll give you an example: my Street Glide weighs 820 pounds full of gas and with saddle bags. The carrier I use is rated for 1,000 pounds, which is 180 pounds more than my bike’s weight. That extra 180 pounds is for when I’m driving on rough roads, or if I have a slight lean to the bike when I tie it down. If I got a carrier rated for only 800 pounds, I’d be over the limit, which is not only dangerous—it’s a violation of federal highway safety laws. Most states require that any towing setup follows the manufacturer’s weight limits, and if you’re in an accident and you’re overloaded, your insurance won’t cover damage to your bike or your truck.
Also, don’t forget your tow vehicle’s towing capacity. Even if your carrier is rated for 1,000 pounds, your truck or SUV might only be able to tow 500 pounds total, including the carrier and the bike. That’s where a lot of people miss the mark. I had a customer with a tiny Honda CR-V who wanted to haul his 750-pound V-Star. He bought a 1,000-pound carrier, but his CR-V only has a 2,000-pound total towing capacity, and the carrier itself weighs 200 pounds. So total weight was 950 pounds, plus his bike was 750, that’s 1,700 pounds total—wait, no, his tow capacity was 2,000, so that was okay. But he thought he could haul two bikes, which would have been 1,500 pounds plus the carrier, that’s 1,700? No, wait, no—hitch carriers add to the tongue weight too, which is the weight that pushes down on your hitch. His CR-V’s tongue weight limit was 200 pounds, and a 1,000-pound carrier plus a 750-pound bike is way more than that. He ended up with his back end sagging so much that his headlights were pointing at the ground, and he couldn’t drive over 50 mph without swaying. We ended up selling him a lightweight aluminum carrier that cut 100 pounds off the total weight, and that fixed the sway.
Final Check: Before You Buy, Do This 5-Minute Test
Once you’ve got all your numbers—bike length, width, ground clearance, carrier type, weight rating—there’s one quick test you can do to make sure you’re picking the right size. Draw the outline of your bike on a piece of cardboard, or even on the floor with chalk, using the exact measurements you wrote down. Then, lay the carrier’s dimensions on top of that outline. If there’s at least 10 inches of space on all sides, great. If not, adjust for your use: if you only haul the bike on local roads, 5 inches is okay, but if you’re road tripping, go for the extra space.
I always tell customers, if you’re unsure, reach out. I’ve been in this business long enough that I can tell you exactly which carrier fits a specific bike before you even send me the measurements. Last month, a customer sent me a photo of his 2022 Indian Scout Bobber, told me he had a short-bed Toyota Tacoma, and wanted to haul it to a rally in Texas. I looked up his bike’s specs, confirmed the length was 88 inches, the width was 18 inches, and recommended our 7-foot aluminum short-bed bed mount. It arrived a week later, he texted me a photo of the bike loaded, and said it fit perfect, no overhang, no scraping. That’s the whole point of this business—making sure you don’t have to deal with the headaches I see every day.
Ready To Find Your Perfect Motorcycle Carrier?
Picking the right size motorcycle carrier doesn’t have to be overwhelming. It’s just about taking the time to get the right measurements for your bike, matching them to your tow setup, and thinking about how you’ll use your ride. No more guessing, no more scraping fairings, no more worrying about your bike falling off on the highway.
Go Karting If you’re ready to stop stressing about hauling your motorcycle and get a carrier that fits perfectly, reach out to our team to discuss your specific needs. We can help you find the right size, whether you have a cruiser, dirt bike, sportbike, or adventure bike, and make sure your next ride is as safe and easy as possible.
References
- Motorcycle Industry Council. (2022). National Motorcycle Dimensions and Towing Guidelines. Retrieved from industry safety publications.
- U.S. Department of Transportation. (2021). Towing Safety Standards for Hitch-Mounted Carriers. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
- National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. (2020). Roadway Safety Risks of Improperly Sized Motorcycle Carriers. Traffic Safety Facts Report.
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