Yakima King Cobra Bike Rack
By Jon Sharp

One size fits all. One size fits all? Are you kidding me? How many times have you tried on a hat labeled "one size fits all" only to discover you weren’t included in what the manufacturer meant by "all"? When I saw Yakima's new "one size fits all" King Cobra upright roof-top bike rack, I was a little skeptical. For a long time, roof-top, upright bike carriers have been plagued with the down-tube clamp design. Although this works for many bikes, there are plenty of bikes for which this won't work. Fork-mount bike racks also have their problems. Try loading a bike with a 20mm through-axle, or even a Cannondale Lefty. The King Cobra (and its younger brother, the Cobra) are designed to overcome all of these shortfalls and produce a one-rack-for-all-occasions bike carrier.

The "big secret" to Yakima's design centers around the front wheel. Here's the idea: All bikes have wheels. Holding on to the front wheel has the same effect as clamping a fork onto a rack (though, perhaps, not quite as stable). There are two U-shaped bars that cradle the front wheel. These bars can be adjusted to fit wheels sized from 20” on up to 29” mtb wheels. When a bike isn't attached, the bars can be lowered for better clearance. Unfortunately, even when lowered, part of it rises up high enough to produce significant wind noise when the tray is facing forward (so the bike faces forward when mounted). We talked to Yakima, and they recommended a wind fairing to reduce this noise. Once that was installed, we never had the problem again. Also, we experimented with the tray mounted in reverse, and we didn't have nearly the wind noise problem. The main difference between the King Cobra and the Cobra is that the King Cobra has a built in cable lock (accepting Yakima's SKS locking cores) that can be looped around the down tube of your bike for security.

Loading up a bike is quite easy. First, set the front wheel loop for the appropriate-sized tire. Then, unfold the front U-shaped bar, put the bike on the tray, and roll it forward. As the front wheel rolls forward, it picks up the rear U-shaped bar and gently rocks into place. Next, secure the rear-wheel strap on the tray (this is important--more on this later). Finally, tighten the red hand-bolt on the front wheel cradle to secure the front wheel between the two bars. That's it, your bike is secure and ready to go. When it's time to remove the bike, loosen the red hand-bolt on the front wheel mount, undo the rear-wheel strap, and roll the bike backwards.

The design is slick and easy to use. What's more, once the bike is loaded, it's pretty solid. One thing we learned on a long drive through freezing fog from Utah to Oregon: Check the tightness of the red hand-bolt on the front wheel mount often. I made the mistake of going for about 10 hours without checking. The front-wheel bolt had loosened completely. As a result, the bike could rock from side to side a little more than usual. Fortunately, the secure rear-wheel strap keeps the bike from rolling backwards, and that is the only way to remove the bike from the rack, so there was no danger of losing the bike. Now, however, on trips more than two or three hours, I always check the bolt when I stop for gas.

Summary: The King Cobra works really well. It lives up to its promise of delivering an upright bike rack that can fit almost any bike out there, from DH to BMX to Road bikes. Our only problem was with the wind noise and the loosening bolt. Fortunately, the design is such that even if the bolt loosens all the way, the bike is still secure. At $120, the price is about on par with the rest of the industry. I'd recommend this bike rack to anyone looking for a durable, universal, and easy-to-use upright roof-top bike rack.

Jon Sharp is a contributing editor for GearReview.com specializing in mountain biking.

For more information, contact:
Yakima Products
1385 8th Street
Arcata, CA 95521
USA
1-888-925-0703
www.yakima.com