Originally Posted by
mattbike
It's probably not the right thread to mention this but i'm pretty dissapointed in Dahon's overall build quality. It could be that i just got a dud but i bought the D3 partly because i wanted a reliable bike requiring a low amount of maintenance but i think it's had it's had more than it's fair share of niggles. Still, it looks cool and that's the other reason i bought it, so thats OK hehe!
I agree to some extent. My Curve D3 had a rear hub replaced and the bottom bracket rebuilt with less than 400 miles on her. Some of that was possibly the result of shipping damage. When I received the bike which was mail ordered I noted and photographed some damage but when I assembled everything it worked fine. Later the damage compounded from riding. Not sure if I would have bought it from a LBS if they would have fixed it straight away though.
Anyway, I got the bike for a super deal at $360 USD. I don't know many other bikes that would have sold me into folders for that price. The competition was $60-$100+ and I wasn't even considering higher quality bikes retailing over $600 because I wasn't sure if I would even like the whole experience.
Now that I've had the D3 for over a year I definately would replace it with something very high quality because I really think it has a utility and I enjoy it. I'm just not sure if I would go with Dahon again.
Perhaps Dahon would be better served assembling a more elite line of products in the USA and charging a premium. I'd be willing to pay 20-50% more if the build and component quality was higher.
Fender does this with guitars so why can't Dahon.