I recently ordered a SeaSucker rack for my Honda civic, and after looking at my roof it has a decent amount of scratches. it feels fairly smooth running my finger over it but there are definitely tiny lips where the scratches are if I use my fingernail.

I am wondering if anyone has experienced issues with mounting these types of suction racks overtop of imperfect/scratched paint, or if it has worked fine?

I bought one about a year ago and have traveled to see the grandkids, about 8 hours away. So far, no problems, but I was very nervous at first. The picture here is my wife's car, which was fairly new at the time, but I don't think that scratches will be a problem. Dents, a different story.


Sea Sucker bike rack

I would check with Sea Sucker and see what they say. Me personally I don't think I could put any of my bikes on a car with suction cups. I know it is a well tested system but I still have enough reservations on it that I don't want to test it with any of my babies.

I've used SeaSucker for years on many different cars, and have never given a thought to paint scratches and never had any issues. Thinking about it now, I'd imagine that the rubber of the vacuum cups would deform into typical paint scratches that are just microns deep. Gouges might be a different matter, but just because you can feel a scratch with your fingernail does not raise concern to me; the advice to check with SeaSucker is well-given, however, since the rack is already on the way, I'd just try it out. I'd think that any gouges too deep to seal with the cups just wouldn't pull a vacuum in the first place, but certainly just test sticking them for a few hours in the garage or driveway would confirm the situation. I'm not sure how long they should hold vacuum, but I've taken 5hr drives with mine without any apparent loss of vac strength.

It is also quite the conversation starter. At the group ride. At the highway rest stop. At the gas station.

Or these forums! Although these products have been on the market for 15 years and have a proven history of reliability and effectiveness, every time a post appears on the forums, someone quickly responds, claiming they would never use one, regardless of the question being asked.

Can someone test the Sea Sucker on a car with hail damage? My wife wants to ride with me more, but a second rack on the back of my 1up rack on the car will increase the ground strikes getting in and out of parking lots. I don't want to have to drive the farm truck if I don't have to.

update: got the rack and tested it, and it holds for the most part. there are a few spots I can't put it as the suction cups lose vacuum within 10-20 minutes. the spots that didn't lose vacuum held for 5+ hours no problem.
overall, if your roof has scratches deep enough for you to feel them with your nail, unfortunately the vacuum most likely will not hold.

Buff the scratches out (also make sure the roof is clean) , or put a little (very little) EVOO on the suction cup. Wife got me one a while back. I don't use it much, but I've never had a problem with it. The plunger should be lubbed every so often too. I weigh 170(ish) and I can hang from it no problem.

We use one. A tandem and a mtn bike or 2 Road bikes or two mtn bikes.

Speed tested to 100 mph.

Just got back from a road trip to visit the grandkids. 8 or 9 hours total, each way. Checked at every stop, which was way too many, and never lost a bit of suction. Of course I worried about it, but flawless.