MotoTote MTX Sport Review
Trailers take up loads of space, and if not stored in a garage, they can make your yard look, well, trashy. Enter the MotoTote MTX—a line of carriers that acts as a receiver and mounts the motorcycle parallel to the vehicle’s bumper, and takes up practically no space.
Built by Texas-based D&D Design, the MotoTote MTX Sport accommodates street bikes up to 550 pounds (a lighter-duty, 450-pound capacity dirt bike version is also available). I tested the Sport with motorcycles up to 500 pounds on multiple vehicles.
The powder-coated MTX Sport, which weighs 63 pounds, assembled, inserts into a two-inch hitch—Class III or better—and will transport motorcycles with rear-tire widths up to 215mm. Assembly of the aircraft- inspired beam structure unit, which uses high-quality cap screws and Nyloc nuts, takes about 15 minutes. The MTX inserts into the hitch with a Zero-Wobble attachment—a standard bolt (not metric!) that recesses into the receiver’s hole, where the pin and clip usually reside.
The loading ramp, which attaches to the MTX when not in use, features a tire track of formed tube and wire construction. The ramp provides optimal traction when loading the bike, and its skinny-fat-skinny track design helps guide the tires into position.
Even when used on higher trucks such as a Toyota Tacoma, I am able to stand alongside my running Ducati 1198 and guide it into the MotoTote’s wheel chock while controlling clutch, throttle, and front brake. Once in position, the 120/70 front tire stays put inside the wheel chock, keeping the bike upright while I secure the 1198 to the four points on the Sport.
Make sure the front tire is secure, however. On one occasion, I was unloading a Honda RC51 track bike and loosened a front strap too quickly, causing the bike to fall—my fault, but be aware.
Scraping has not been an issue, but if the bike is low, the carrier— adjustable for wheelbases up to 65 inches—has rounded edges, so no gouging of expensive bodywork occurs.
The MTX Sport can also be assembled for right or left loading, and features three attachment holes for the receiver, allowing the carrier to be used with a large bumper or spare tire. An optional LED Light Kit with integrated brake, turn signal, and taillight functions is available. It connects to the vehicle’s lighting system via a standard four-way at connector.
Be sure your vehicle’s tongue weight is robust enough. For example, a Toyota Tacoma has a tongue weight rating of 600 pounds, which is fine for the total weight of my 1198 and the MTX Sport unit—about 465 pounds. If you don’t know the tongue weight capabilities, find out.
The best part? Once back from a track day, show, or any other event, simply unbolt the single bolt in the receiver, detach, and lean the seven-foot MotoTote MTX Sport against the wall. Next, enter you clutter-free yard in happiness.
For a cheap, easy way to get a bike around, these things aren’t bad, but they do have their warts. Slinging 500-700 pounds on the tail end of a vehicle is going to change the way it handles, and not for the better. Take it easy whilst driving just as one would with a trailer. The bike needs to be very well secured, too.
Hi Ulvetanna, According to MotoTote specifications, the total weight of the bike plus the MotoTote itself (60 lbs) should not exceed one tenth (10%) of the vehicle’s total towing capacity. This will insure that the vehicle handles properly and safely. The reason for this is that for a vehicle to be rated to pull a 5000 lbs. (for example) trailer, it MUST be able to safely support at least one tenth of that trailer weight at the bumper.
Hi Ron, Great review! We seem to have lots of Ducati owners as MotoTote customers!
Let me just clarify that I don’t suggest that the vehicle will not behave properly with the carrier installed and loaded. But any time one loads any kind of vehicle in a way which differs from the norm (luggage well outside the passenger compartment in this case) the vehicle’s weight and balance is shifted significantly and the driver must remain mindful of this.
Also one must bear in mind that keeping the load under the rated tongue weight may be acceptable, but the towing vehicle will handle quite differently with a hitch platform of a specific weight, as contrasted with a trailer adding the same tongue weight.
That is to say if I tow a trailer weighing 5000 pounds, and have a 500 pound tongue weight, my towing vehicle is going to handle quite differently than if I have just the 500 pounds of weight on the tongue.
The trailer, if properly loaded and set up, actually has a stabilizing effect on the towing vehicle. The tongue weight has little tendency to impart instability because the trailer has wheels on the ground and stabilizes the combined vehicles.
That’s not the case with a hitch platform; due caution is needed no matter whether one uses a trailer or cargo platform because the handling of the vehicle is going to be affected in some way.
So secure that bike well, and adjust your driving to suit the additional load.