[Festus2]

Our '08 Cougar has that same "bike rack". At first, I thought it was a great idea but after a few trips I gave up trying to fasten them on the rack and ended up putting them inside our 5th wheel.

In order to shorten the length of the overhanging slide out rack, I drilled another set of holes in the supports. While this resulted in less overhang and stress it also shortened the distance between the back of the RV and the "hitching post" so the bikes were really close together and almost touching the rear wall. Padding had to be added to prevent the handlebars from rubbing against it.

In order to secure the bikes, I found I had to use tie downs and bungee cords. This not only took considerable time but really didn't look all that great. As I said earlier, the rack has never carried another bike again.

I think the best idea is to have a receiver hitch welded to the frame which will accept a "real" rack - one from Thule or Yakima. Then get rid of the tire on the bumper and put it in the bed of the truck or mount in underneath the RV.

Good luck with your venture. Check out our forum search feature and type in "bike racks" and you'll get plenty of reading material about what others have done about bikes and bike racks.