After more than a decade of not making a roof rack available for any of its sedans, GM’s Cadillac luxury arm is now somewhat easing the situation for its more active customers by offering two SeaSucker roof-mounted bicycle carriers in its accessory store.
SeaSucker Talon bicycle carrier with bike mounted on a car roof.
The SeaSucker Talon carrier is suitable for one bike, and has an MSRP of $299, while the SeaSucker Mini Bomber can carry two bikes and is priced at $489. Each of them can handle a load of 45 pounds per bike.
The key to both is the use of vacuum cups (three and four respectively) which are placed on the roof and can then be emptied of air with the built-in pump. The fact that there is no mechanical connection between the carrier and the roof may seem disconcerting, but the effect of the Earth’s atmosphere pressing down on a cup with almost no air inside it should not be underestimated.
For now, Cadillac is offering only these two items as accessories, but the SeaSucker range is much wider than that. It also includes carriers for skis, snow boards, paddle boards and even pieces of tech equipment such as tablets, GoPros or phones. All of these can be purchased without Cadillac’s involvement.
The advantage of the SeaSucker carriers is that they can be fitted without drilling into the car’s bodywork (an undesirable outcome for any car, but especially a luxury sedan) in order to fit an aftermarket roof rack. This would be unavoidable with a Cadillac, due to the marque’s mysterious policy of not offering a roof rack system or roof rack of its own, or even mounting points for an aftermarket one. Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Tesla – four of the most obvious rival manufacturers – all offer roof racks and convenient ways to mount them.
It seems to us that Cadillac would be well advised to catch up with the competition and offer its own roof rack and mounting points, but until that happens the SeaSucker carriers will remain a very acceptable alternative.
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Comments
Sweet car/color!
Imagine how this will go if not installed properly?
You need to haul something buy a truck.
C8.R: That was my thought as well. They could buy a small SUV or big one or a small truck. Where I work, I see idiots coming in all day long trying to use cars as heavy haulers! haha. My other thought? When, like you said, it’s not done properly, the poor innocent drivers behind them with junk flying and hitting their vehicles and/or causing accidents.
Those who think that buying another car, truck, or SUV is a viable option need to reconsider that line of thinking.
One does not need a truck to carry a bike or some skis while also having the interior free to carry four people (hence without folding the seats). The competition named in the article offers the ability to safely and securely carry things on the roof rack. Cadillac does not.
C8.R – I have been using this rack on my Corvette for a few years now. Even when the vac pressure gets to be lower than desired, it’s hard to imagine it coming off in the way you describe. One has to be a complete moron to mess up the “installation” of this rack.
Worthless… Not securable from roaming thieves.
I see euro cars all the time with ski,and bike racks on them in NYC and I really don’t thing they are being used for that purpose I believe its for the look, “hey look at me I’m cool see my snowboard”
I know what you’re referring to, but I’m not sure I agree with the assessment that the racks are not being used for their intended purpose.
Yes, but it does set the right ‘tone’ for the glitteratttii. Come on, you know who they are…they are the ones in the gym on their cell phones between sets on the ab cruncher.
Mostly they just wonder around the gym with their cell phone and leer at the women.