# SeaSucker bike racks



## roadie92

SeaSucker makes a vacuum-mounted bike racks. Has, or would anyone use this? It seems like an interesting product but pretty sketchy.

SeaSucker Vacuum-Mount Bike Racks


----------



## danl1

roadie92 said:


> SeaSucker makes a vacuum-mounted bike racks. Has, or would anyone use this? It seems like an interesting product but pretty sketchy.
> 
> SeaSucker Vacuum-Mount Bike Racks


http://forums.roadbikereview.com/ge...cup-roof-rack-239170.html?highlight=seasucker

http://forums.roadbikereview.com/ge...-bike-carrier-232145.html?highlight=seasucker

There's at least one more thread out there, but I can't find it now.

//It turns out that I like both my car and my bike, so, no.


----------



## allroy71

http://forums.mtbr.com/car-biker/seasucker-587996.html

I posted my experience on MTBR. I don't use the rack often, but I would trust it for frequent use.


----------



## roadie92

thanks!


----------



## dcorn

My GoPro has a suction cup mount that is super strong and it's probably half the size of the ones used in this rack. I'd trust it to hold a 20 lb bike on the car.


----------



## CleavesF

they put it on a stock car... I think it works

best part is that the rack and be an indoor rack as well!


----------



## MShaw

I've seen a car with em on at a few cross races this fall. Seems to work OK

M


----------



## marshall21205

The shop I work at is a seasucker dealer and for some reason the suction on every system we've sold has failed. Luckily none failed while driving for thecustomers but they all changed back to Yakima, Thule, saris etc...


----------



## dcorn

marshall21205 said:


> The shop I work at is a seasucker dealer and for some reason the suction on every system we've sold has failed. Luckily none failed while driving for thecustomers but they all changed back to Yakima, Thule, saris etc...


Every one? 

Operator error? If you put a suction cup on a dirty car, its probably not going to stick. Wonder if that was an issue.


----------



## zma21

If the name has suck in it, it's not for me.


No but seriously, even if it worked 98% of the time, I'd always be wondering when I was going to fall into that 2%, literally.


----------



## waldo425

I think that it works well when you put it on right. If I had a car at all (or one that needed it) I would trust it.


----------



## marshall21205

dcorn said:


> Every one?
> 
> Operator error? If you put a suction cup on a dirty car, its probably not going to stick. Wonder if that was an issue.


10 out of 10 man...if it was 4 or 5 out of the 10 I would give opp error the point but when it's 10 of 10 I have a hard time believe it's not a faulty product...

they all simply lost the ability to create suction, and like i said before the customers were really glad that it wasn't an event that took place while the car was in motion


----------



## Glynis27

I've had my GPS windshield mount fall too many times after hanging there happily for a year.


----------



## cdhbrad

The company is located in Palmetto, FL, the owner sometimes joins our group rides. I don't know too many who own them, but the owners of our LBS uses the system for their Griffen Tandem and go all over the state with it attached to a Lincoln Continental. Knowing the owner, I'm pretty sure it has seen speeds of 90mph+.......so far, so good.


----------



## ProEdgeBiker

roadie92 said:


> SeaSucker makes a vacuum-mounted bike racks. Has, or would anyone use this? It seems like an interesting product but pretty sketchy.
> 
> SeaSucker Vacuum-Mount Bike Racks


Did you ever get one?


----------



## jason07

I get down the 1/8th mile in my drag car at 135mph with a Go Pro suctioned to the outside of my car on the quarter panel.....yeah....I see no problem with these racks holding onto a bike going 65 MPH.


----------



## My Own Private Idaho

jason07 said:


> I get down the 1/8th mile in my drag car at 135mph with a Go Pro suctioned to the outside of my car on the quarter panel.....yeah....I see no problem with these racks holding onto a bike going 65 MPH.


That's different than hitting a few potholes on the interstate, or going over a few speed bumps in a neighborhood.


----------



## Opus51569

I believe in science. I trust science. But you could provide the most iron-clad scientific proof and I still wouldn't trust a suction cup to secure my bike to a car.

It reminds me of that old SuperGlue commercial where they glue a hardhat to a crane and a guy hangs from it in the air.. I'm sure it works, but I sure wouldn't do it.


----------



## ProEdgeBiker

You cant think of these racks as a "Suction Mount" these are vacuum cups that have a hold strength of 200-210lbs per 6" cup. 

I suggest going to an LBS that carries them and putting 1 cup to the test. It will really change your perception of these racks.


----------



## Blackbeerthepirate

I have seen these things used for marine applications several times before. From what I saw, they never failed to fail.

The thought of my beautiful bicycle flying off the top of my car, hitting the highway at 70, and being run over by the truck following me,makes my a** pucker.


----------



## ProEdgeBiker

My Own Private Idaho said:


> That's different than hitting a few potholes on the interstate, or going over a few speed bumps in a neighborhood.


----------



## Britt819

roadie92 said:


> SeaSucker makes a vacuum-mounted bike racks. Has, or would anyone use this? It seems like an interesting product but pretty sketchy.
> 
> SeaSucker Vacuum-Mount Bike Racks


I sell them thru my online store and so far, I have several hundred happy owners. I personally use the Mini Bomber 2 bike rack that I trust to hold my Argon 18 road and tri bikes. Check out the customer reviews on my site to get a better feel of what others are saying about them. 

I have outfitted everything from a Fiat 500 to SUV's. They pretty much fit on any vehicle. 

https://www.trivelosports.com/SeaSucker-s/298.htm


----------



## OldZaskar

Ya know you have to constantly monitor the vacuum - as in check it, "top it off", etc. It loses vacuum strength over time - days. I'd hate to loose $10,000 worth of bikes because I forgot to pump up my rack. 

And then there's the theft issue. It's not lockable. My Yak/Thule system is locked to the roof and the bikes can be locked to the rack. Oh I know - anyone can steal anything if... But that SeaSucker is just stuck to the glass/roof. Now you'd have worry about your empty rack being stolen.


----------



## Britt819

OldZaskar said:


> Ya know you have to constantly monitor the vacuum - as in check it, "top it off", etc. It loses vacuum strength over time - days. I'd hate to loose $10,000 worth of bikes because I forgot to pump up my rack.
> 
> And then there's the theft issue. It's not lockable. My Yak/Thule system is locked to the roof and the bikes can be locked to the rack. Oh I know - anyone can steal anything if... But that SeaSucker is just stuck to the glass/roof. Now you'd have worry about your empty rack being stolen.


The racks are great for going to local group ride or trailhead. Yea, make sure you pump them up first. For the most part, they solve rack problems for sports car owners or travelers. Anybody can steal just about anything these days.


----------



## josho

*works great*

I was skeptical at first but I've had mine for nearly a year now and have had no issues. Works great on the roof of my G35 coupe and rear window of my wife's SUV.


----------



## metoou2

Sea what?


----------



## tvad

I use a SeaSucker Talon on my Porsche, and it works great. 

No regrets or worries whatsoever.


----------



## r1lee

Here's mine


----------



## ProEdgeBiker

r1lee said:


> Here's mine




Pure sweetness.


----------



## Mr_Clean

I "product tested" a Seasucker Talon set a few months ago. No issues whatsoever. I mounted my friend's burly mountain bikes and drove past the speed limit. Well, I'm from Manila, so we rarely have speedtraps, and the bikes weren't mine. The rack was very stable. They're much better than the strap on types for sure. I eventually mounted my bikes (both road and mtb) without any worries. If you have many cars, or couldn't find a rack that fits, this is the best alternative solution. Make sure that your roof/windshield is clean. Moisten it a bit before you start pumping.


----------



## ProEdgeBiker

OldZaskar said:


> Ya know you have to constantly monitor the vacuum - as in check it, "top it off", etc. It loses vacuum strength over time - days. I'd hate to loose $10,000 worth of bikes because I forgot to pump up my rack.
> 
> And then there's the theft issue. It's not lockable. My Yak/Thule system is locked to the roof and the bikes can be locked to the rack. Oh I know - anyone can steal anything if... But that SeaSucker is just stuck to the glass/roof. Now you'd have worry about your empty rack being stolen.


yes of course it loses vacuum over time, but why would you leave it on for Days? it literally takes 1 minute to put on and seconds to take off..

I had a friend last month get a $5k MTB stolen from his thule rack with a cable lock going thru it.. Had another get his whole rack stolen from a trailhead.. its sad but when a scumbag wants something for free, he'll get it.


----------



## Rekless1

I've used one on a number of different vehicles (There are pics on here somewhere) and haven't had any issues. Like anything else , they need to be installed and used correctly. When done so it is quite sturdy and solves many issues for certain bike racking problem vehicles.


----------



## Monk

Seems the opinions are all over the place? I use the exact same vacuum-type mount for work several times a day. When I first saw this rack system I wondered what the real world experiences were going to be? In my experience, the vacuum holds well for my application as long as the surface is clean, the suction cup is undamaged, and the pump doesn't leak. 
The second any flaw develops on the suction cup or the pump fails, it will lose suction-Quickly! The size of the suction cups look plenty powerful, I think using common sense and watching these issues should be more than adequate for their intended purpose. If I owned a set I would check the pump pressure periodically while in use, start with a clean surface and inspect the pumps and suction cups before each use as well.


----------



## ProEdgeBiker

Monk said:


> Seems the opinions are all over the place? I use the exact same vacuum-type mount for work several times a day. When I first saw this rack system I wondered what the real world experiences were going to be? In my experience, the vacuum holds well for my application as long as the surface is clean, the suction cup is undamaged, and the pump doesn't leak.
> The second any flaw develops on the suction cup or the pump fails, it will lose suction-Quickly! The size of the suction cups look plenty powerful, I think using common sense and watching these issues should be more than adequate for their intended purpose. If I owned a set I would check the pump pressure periodically while in use, start with a clean surface and inspect the pumps and suction cups before each use as well.


Each 6" cup is rated for 200-210lbs pounds of holding power. 

I had a customer email me saying that he hit a toll booth @40mph not being used to a bike on the roof of his car. Needless to say, the bike broke in half and all the seasucker did was slide back about 1ft on the roof of the car not loosing any vacuum whatsoever (so he said). He was amazed at the holding power and i must say that so was I. He was using a Talon 1 bike holder.


----------



## jlowe

I have one, its the big one. It has 4 cups on it. I only install it when i'm gonna use it and make sure the cups and roof are clean. I have had no problems. I feel like if it were to fail sureley only one cup would fail at a time not all 4 simultaneously. I believe if used properly and taken care of it will last a long time and serves my purpose very well as a rack for traveling.


----------



## leonloke

*Seasucker failed me yesterday*



jlowe said:


> I have one, its the big one. It has 4 cups on it. I only install it when i'm gonna use it and make sure the cups and roof are clean. I have had no problems. I feel like if it were to fail sureley only one cup would fail at a time not all 4 simultaneously. I believe if used properly and taken care of it will last a long time and serves my purpose very well as a rack for traveling.









This is how I mount my bike. *My Seasucker failed me for the first time today and I almost lost my Santa Cruz Bronson. The rear sucker came off the roof and the bike was tilted to my right door, I cannot even open my door ( Right Hand Drive) without the help of a passerby . I have use this product for a year , and this is the first time it happen to me. I get really worried to use this product, by the way , the sucker was moist when I use it. I didn't expect this to happen as I have been using it for almost a year. My CRZ suffer multiple scrathes from the roof to the door (Right). I did not manage to take a photo of how the bike ended up on my car as I could not open the door. This is not meant to defame Seasucker as I am a proud owner of seasucker and has been recommending my friends to use it until what happen yesterday.


























*


----------



## looigi

How long after putting the sucker on the car did it take before it lost vacuum and let loose? 

That's been my concern with these things: you get a hair, scratch or something else under the edge of a suction cup and it can gradually lose vacuum without you knowing it.


----------



## tihsepa

looigi said:


> That's been my concern with these things: you get a hair, scratch or something else under the edge of a suction cup and it can gradually lose vacuum without you knowing it.


Exactly. My Thule has never came loose. Never.


----------



## leonloke

looigi said:


> How long after putting the sucker on the car did it take before it lost vacuum and let loose?
> 
> That's been my concern with these things: you get a hair, scratch or something else under the edge of a suction cup and it can gradually lose vacuum without you knowing it.


I actually drove approx 35 minutes for 40km distance @ 105km/h on the expressway. Exit from expressway and drove approx 8km before reaching the parking lot and the bike fell off my roof.


----------



## mtsheron

That is why I will stick with my hitch mounted Thule!!!! Sorry dude for the damage I do wish it had not failed but suctions give eventually.


----------



## mtsheron

looigi said:


> How long after putting the sucker on the car did it take before it lost vacuum and let loose?
> 
> That's been my concern with these things: you get a hair, scratch or something else under the edge of a suction cup and it can gradually lose vacuum without you knowing it.


So true!


----------



## leonloke

*Another case of seasucker failure*



mtsheron said:


> So true!

















This incident happened yesterday to my friend's bike , fell off the roof on to the Highway.


----------



## ProEdgeBiker

Interesting that a failure happened to you & your friend. 
I saw your post on SS's FB page and you said in the 1yr you had the rack you have never serviced it. Remember that the pumps suck in hence why the manuals instruct a service & lube of the pump's internals.

Wonder if your friend ever serviced his?


----------



## tihsepa

ProEdgeBiker said:


> Remember that the pumps suck


You heard it here first.


----------



## redroab

I've been using a seasucker for one season on my car that is non-hitchable. I haven't had any issues. I'm definitely more concerned now with leonloke 's experience, although I'll just continue to be vigilant. Although is anyone else dubious of someone who has only posted about a product failing? Especially on two separate occurrences, when no one else in this thread has any trouble. (I realize the irony of this, given my post count).


----------



## Fireform

Buddy of mine has started using one on his BMW. I'm a skeptic.


----------



## crit_boy

I am a skeptic. 

Unless company company comes out with a 100% replacement for any bike and car damage, I won't try it. Even then, I don't think I would use it. 

I have pulled bikes and kayaks off of roof racks only to discover some part of the rack was loose. However, none of those something messed up situations caused a bike/boat to fall off of the vehicle. 

The problem with the system is that there is not a bit loose situation. There is only catastrophic failure.


----------



## OldZaskar

Electric car drivers have what's been dubbed "Range Anxiety" - constantly watching their battery gauge, wondering if they'll make it. So now we'll have "Suction Anxiety" - watching the clock wondering if we should stop and check or top off the rack. Man... can you imagine driving an electric car with a SeaSucker. 

Also, what if my car is dirty? I don't have to wash my car before using the Yak/Thule. 

This is a tough challenge for SeaSucker. Other products/industries have faced similar "fear" obstacles. Drive-by-Wire cars is a great example. The technology has been ready for over a decade - to replace the steering column, brake assembly, etc. with joy stick like controls. All the data shows it's safer, cheaper, etc. But, it scares the *#$& out of consumers.


----------



## looigi

redroab said:


> I've been using a seasucker for one season on my car that is non-hitchable....


Non-hitchable? I'm skeptical. I know guys with hitches on a Jag and 911s. You can find off-the-shelf 911 hitches on line. The Jag hitch was custom fabricated.


----------



## OldZaskar

redroab said:


> I've been using a seasucker for one season on my car that is non-hitchable.


As looigi said - not an issue. I used to do a lot of autocross racing. There were so many sports cars with receiver hitches (for trailering track wheels/tires) and all of them were custom. I saw a couple that rotated - hidden behind/below the bumper, rotate up and around the bumper. When you're using the hitch for such minimal weight, e.g. 300lb trailer, 3 bikes, etc., you can get pretty creative.


----------



## SpeedNeeder

looigi said:


> Non-hitchable? I'm skeptical. I know guys with hitches on a Jag and 911s. You can find off-the-shelf 911 hitches on line. The Jag hitch was custom fabricated.


Just an FYI, you can definitely go custom - in my case, 2008 infiniti G35, there is a premade hitch I would love to use, but requires me to cut out part of the bumper (just the plastic), and I choose not to do that and use a seasucker instead. I would describe the seasucker as an imperfect solution, but it has worked for me so far. If I could mount a hitch without cutting my car, I would. I have a 4 bike rack for the wife's SUV that I prefer to use.


----------



## redroab

looigi said:


> Non-hitchable? I'm skeptical. I know guys with hitches on a Jag and 911s. You can find off-the-shelf 911 hitches on line. The Jag hitch was custom fabricated.


I have a transverse mounted muffler, so that makes it difficult. 

But since you mentioned it.. I decided to look further! Last season why I researched this no one had one, but now that I've looked again U-haul now makes one!! Thanks for doubting me!


http://www.ft86club.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=57946&stc=1&d=1385244406


----------



## ProEdgeBiker

OldZaskar said:


> Also, what if my car is dirty? I don't have to wash my car before using the Yak/Thule.


SeaSucker doesn't ask for a clean car, just a clean surface where you're going to mount it. I personally have a wet rag with me that I use before I apply it.
I'll be the 1st to tell you that this rack isn't for everyone out there but it sure does work for the thousands of people who have no other option.

I'm still bewildered on how that gentleman & his friend both had failures of all the suckers at once. 
Each sucker holds 210lbs of pressure and for all to fail in one shot for 2 people that knew each other????? I'd be buying a lotto ticket ASAP.

FYI - just do a quick search of "bike fell of my bike rack" and you'll think SeaSucker is the safest rack out there.


----------



## tvad

ProEdgeBiker said:


> SeaSucker doesn't ask for a clean car, just a clean surface where you're going to mount it. I personally have a wet rag with me that I use before I apply it.
> 
> I'm still bewildered on how that gentleman & his friend both had failures of all the suckers at once.
> Each sucker holds 210lbs of pressure and for all to fail in one shot for 2 people that knew each other?


Right on target on both accounts. Excellent.


----------



## ProEdgeBiker

Pretty Sick Sneak Preview:


----------



## SpeedNeeder

That's a good look!


----------



## jeeper31

Anybody know the best way to lock bike to car without damaging car? How well does a cable lock work? Do you leave it on while driving?

Thanks


----------



## strathconaman

I bought a Sea Sucker for my 911, and I have transported two bikes (two very high end TT bikes no less) at speeds up to 80 mph without issue.


----------

