Bike Shop/Online

[Hawkz1]

Is it wise to buy on line?
As opposed to a local bike shop?
TIA Craig.

 

[Smaug]

It really depends on the vendor.

For example, if you bought from a bike shop that also happens to have an online presence, that would likely be a good experience.

If you buy from a company with known good customer service like Lectric or Priority, that too would likely be a good experience.
When you need mechanical service down the road, you'll be happy you supported your loca shop though. They usually include one free service to address things like cable stretch throwing off the indexed shifting, and so forth.

What I've been doing lately is buying the bikes online, then supporting the local shops as much as possible with accessory purchases. They make more money from that anyhow. Selling bikes is mostly just to support accessory sales, I think. ;-)

 

[Hawkz1]

Thanks. You probably do your own maintenance then.Get the feeling that if the online place you get your bike refuses (my worry) to be of much assistance, you're pretty much left finding a YouTube video to help you. The couple bike shops I have talked to won't work on something they haven't sold to you. TIA for your comments.
Craig.

It really depends on the vendor.

For example, if you bought from a bike shop that also happens to have an online presence, that would likely be a good experience.

If you buy from a company with known good customer service like Lectric or Priority, that too would likely be a good experience.
When you need mechanical service down the road, you'll be happy you supported your loca shop though. They usually include one free service to address things like cable stretch throwing off the indexed shifting, and so forth.

What I've been doing lately is buying the bikes online, then supporting the local shops as much as possible with accessory purchases. They make more money from that anyhow. Selling bikes is mostly just to support accessory sales, I think. ;-)

 

[Smaug]

…The couple bike shops I have talked to won't work on something they haven't sold to you. TIA for your comments.
Craig.

THAT’S pretty short-sighted of them. Your money is not good because you bought the bike elsewhere?

They didn’t do that back in the day. They would take our money based on their hourly rate, no matter WHERE the bike came from.

Leaving you with the choice of buying a $2k+ bike from them and they will service it or buy online for half the price and servicing elsewhere? They’re running themselves out of business.

 

[pagheca]

if there is one way to irritate a potential buyer, it is to make a negotiation sound like blackmail.

I bought from a store, but one that is part of an online network from which I could have ordered directly, with delivery to their shop or my home. This is only because I live on a small island, and in case of warranty issues it would not have been easy to send the bike back.

 

[Hawkz1]

Thanks. Found local shop that sells Aventon Soltera2.0 for $400 off. May go that route.

 

[FrankR]

My advice to folks getting started is:
It depends on how handy you are and what kind of service you are going to seek.

If you expect to seek service, and you can comfortably afford buying from a local dealer, and that local dealer has a good service reputation, always do that above buying online.
If you can't afford that, and you still expect some level of service, choose the online source very carefully. Examining things like service reputation, warranty, and parts availability.
i.e. a company like Lectric - not the slew of no name companies.

If you are handy, not afraid of working on the bike yourself, and think you can find electric parts yourself, then search the ocean of online options. In this scenario, you Can get more function/value for your buck. [With accompanying risk and potential hassle.]

 

[tgianco]

Well, I bought my first ebike, a Himiway Cruiser, direct from Himiway. Now, trying to be a good guy & support local, I bought the new Himiway A7 Pro from a local dealer & am having an absolute nightmare of an experience. Next time, I'll either go to a much bigger shop or buy direct again. Even though I have not taken possession of the new bike (I've ridden it around their parking lot, but the throttle isn't working as expected/ advertised), but the shop is basically saying "come get your bike" and there's no returns. At least buying direct, you usually get a 14- or 21-day free return period.

 

[pagheca]

Well, I bought my first ebike, a Himiway Cruiser, direct from Himiway. Now, trying to be a good guy & support local, I bought the new Himiway A7 Pro from a local dealer & am having an absolute nightmare of an experience. Next time, I'll either go to a much bigger shop or buy direct again. Even though I have not taken possession of the new bike (I've ridden it around their parking lot, but the throttle isn't working as expected/ advertised), but the shop is basically saying "come get your bike" and there's no returns. At least buying direct, you usually get a 14- or 21-day free return period.

I'm sorry. What imbeciles! But frankly, I don't think they can say "come get your bike, no return." There are specific warranty conditions and a return period, I guess, even in the US, right?

 

[Smaug]

Himiway reels people in with low prices, big promises (of which they fall short) and a flashy website. But their quality and customer service are junk, I'm afraid.

 

[tgianco]

Himiway reels people in with low prices, big promises (of which they fall short) and a flashy website. But their quality and customer service are junk, I'm afraid.

My experience with Himiway has been great. My first Cruiser, which i still have, kicked butt (still does), and the company has always been responsive. It's the dealer who has been bad here. They are giving dealers a bad name. You buy from a dealer, you're stuck with it.

 

[Smaug]

My experience with Himiway has been great. My first Cruiser, which i still have, kicked butt (still does), and the company has always been responsive. It's the dealer who has been bad here. They are giving dealers a bad name. You buy from a dealer, you're stuck with it.

My neighbor bought a Cruiser last year direct from them. It came with a defective seat clamp or something; obviously a quality issue. They made him pay $25 for the part, and considered that to be covered by warranty.

It's OK now, but he has a bad taste in his mouth over it.

Looking at their website, some of their stats vary depending on where you look, which doesn't fill me with confidence.

 

[pagheca]

They made him pay $25 for the part, and considered that to be covered by warranty.

Sorry, I do not understand what you mean, @Smaug. Can you clarify?

 

[Smaug]

Sorry, I do not understand what you mean, @Smaug. Can you clarify?

Reading their warranty, I found this on parts and components:

Parts & Components

Original Himiway parts and components are covered by a 2-year limited warranty. (If more than 15 days have passed since the date of receipt of the bike, the replacement of parts within the warranty period will require shipping costs.)

He was apparently not quick enough to make the claim within 15 days of receiving the bike. (he has a new baby and is very busy)

If you read through the warranty, you can see a lot of ways they can refuse to take responsibility.

Further down in the Parts & Components section:

This Limited Warranty does not cover:

1. Parts compromised by corrosion due to exposure to the elements (moisture, heat, etc.);
2. Damage or deterioration of the surface finish, appearance, or aesthetics of the product;

This means their paint job and chrome are not warranted at all.

3. Labor charges for part replacement or changeover;

This means they only have to send you a part, but installing it is your problem.

Under Warranty Claims:

Defective displays, batteries, motors and controllers are eligible for replacement under the warranty. Customers are responsible for covering shipping costs, which typically range from $35 to $80. Himiway will assist in coordinating the return process with the carrier.

$35 shipping for a controller is basically just selling us a new controller. Batteries are very expensive to ship, due to Hazardous Material shipping costs.

Note, however, that defective accessories generally do not need to be returned unless specific circumstances are specified by the individual vendor, such as a specified battery requiring a return. At this point, there will no longer be a shipping charge but will be charged a refundable $99 deposit.

Here, they allude to batteries being too expensive to ship. So they just take your $100 as a shipping cost. (which probably covers most of their cost of a new battery. It's like selling the user another battery at mfr. cost, rather than a proper warranty.

Please note: For frame number starting with 185 and FLE, except for the battery to be returned, the other three accessories (displays, motors and controllers) do not need to be returned, shipping fee will be charged for replacement.

Oh, look. Here they admit to it. They are just selling us replacement parts at cost. Very sketchy for "warranty" policy. When I had my heybike, and I couldn't stop the brakes from screeching, they asked for a video. Video has to be in an email, but won't fit in an email. So I would have to upload it to YouTube. To be safe, I would have to have someone else shoot the video. They will make us jump through hoops.

Himiway will not replace any part without first seeing photos or video of the damaged product. Customers must provide this evidence by email.

Not a newby-friendly warranty.

 

[pagheca]

that's crazy. I would never ever buy an item with a value >10 US$ with that warranty. Unless it's the only company providing that specific item in the whole Galaxy (and I am addicted to it).

 

[Calsun]

Once a bike is assembled, if there is a problem it would be difficult to ship it back to the seller. With supporting a local shop with their employees it is not a problem to take the bike to the shop to have anything done on it.

Posts about problems with Canyon bikes mention how it has taken months to get anything fixed and the owner is without their bike for that time.

 

[Calsun]

There are too many bike related items for any local bike shop to stock them. I buy bikes at local shops but my bike helmet and tires and rack I bought online. I try to find owner operated e-stores as much as possible and keep the money in their local economy with their local employees.

 

[Smaug]

There are too many bike related items for any local bike shop to stock them. I buy bikes at local shops but my bike helmet and tires and rack I bought online. I try to find owner operated e-stores as much as possible and keep the money in their local economy with their local employees.

If you want to support the local shop & economy, you should try to buy accessories from them. Have them order what you need. They make a lot more money on accessories than bikes.