Seasucker bike carrier, Thule, Saris Bones

[markwm]

Need a bike rack, got an RS4 saloon so a towbar is not possible. Also got a fiesta.

The thule racks are expensive, £250-£300 to carry one bike. Hits the mpg, and I'd be worried about the hooks causing damage to the roof..?

The Saris Bones 3 is cheap, £100. Bit of a pain to fit, obscures the boot...

Then there's this seasucker suction cup thing that uses vacuum pumps to attach to the roof/windshield. http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/reviews/bike-locks-...

Anyone used one?

[SoliD]

Seasucker here, through the lack of other options, has been perfect in the 4 years or so I've owned it being used at least once every fortnight generally in that time.

[JustinF]

I'll never use a rear hanging rack again, pedals against paintwork, bikes rubbing against each other, the tensioning straps distorting the boot at point of contact...

[TheFungle]

Another vote for SeaSucker here.

Worth looking at ProBikeKit, they were very good on price and the often have flash sales, discount codes etc etc

[murray]

I've got the Seasucker talon but it has only a single point of failure for the rear wheel. Would recommend getting the flight deck extra bit that has two suckers for the rear and holds the front wheel. Had an issue at the weekend where one of the front pads wouldn't seal, luckily the other two pads stuck fine.

[AC43]

Not sure how racks on saloons work but isn't there a way of mounting two lateral bars?

If so you can then add Thule 591's at something like £60 per bike.

(I have an estate with roof rails and already had the bars so recently bought 4 x 591's).

With the addition of a small folding stool it's easy to get the bikes on and off.

Rubbish fuel consumption, though.

Just drove to Normandy and back with 4 x bikes and got some comedy figures.

[Eddh]

Seasucker on a 911 here, works really well!

[Mikeyjae]

Wow that looks like something I could be interested in buying. How long until the worry of it falling off subsides lol.

[m444ttb]

I've been really tempted by a Seasucker as I can move it across different cars with ease. However the thing im wrestling with is I'd quite fancy a roof box and therefore need the bars for that. Albeit a different set of bars for each car. I probably need to be honest about how often I'd use a roofbox on the 911 (this might change with kids I guess!).

[littleandy0410]

I've got a seasucker for my 09 Civic Type R, due to the lack of alternatives. No problems with it at all, although I'm still nervous using it due to the lack of physical mechanism to hold it to the roof. I fit it on the passenger side, with the front two suckers on the glass. (It clears the passenger side wiper blade by 1cm) This allows me to see the thing is still attached for peace of mind, plus it prevents the tin foil roof from denting/buckling.

A friend has an Aston V8 Vantage, and regularly carries his Enduro mountain bike with no issues- including the time he forgot it was fitted, and had a "spirited" drive home!

The only downside is not being able to secure it to the car, during motorway services stops etc.

[Ponk]

Good to hear these are out there now. When I was looking a year or two ago not many had tried them. I need to get past the irrational fear too.

[TheTardis]

"got an RS4 saloon.." "thule racks are expensive" "Hits the mpg"
Meh

markwm said:

Need a bike rack, got an RS4 saloon so a towbar is not possible. Also got a fiesta.

The thule racks are expensive, £250-£300 to carry one bike. Hits the mpg, and I'd be worried about the hooks causing damage to the roof..?

The Saris Bones 3 is cheap, £100. Bit of a pain to fit, obscures the boot...

Then there's this seasucker suction cup thing that uses vacuum pumps to attach to the roof/windshield. http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/reviews/bike-locks-...

Anyone used one?

[phil-sti]

Use the fiesta.