downwinded

Just tighten the QR before you ride?

intransit1217

Pretty much what my lbs said when I took mine down this morning. Plus, they were given, like 5 skewers so far. Really, who is going to give up their bike for an undetermined amount of time over this.

And while they were ready to replace mine, I politely declined. I think it's a nuts issue. I can see mine while riding and have it so it "wraps" the fork. If I am really worried, I'll flip the damn thing.

But there's this. it will bring customers in and if they buy something while having the skewer replaced........who knows.

acidfast7

Personally, TREK deserves the cheapshot. They've moved from "Made in the USA" with the old great 520 range, to made in Asia with no reduction in price.

I'm OK with made in Asia. However, I want it assembled and tested in the EU before I put my money down (keeping the money and some workforce local).

Also, I'm really shocked are how the American market supports those high costs, so TREK really had it coming (has money in the bank for a recall/class action).

Cube assembly in EU:


These guys (Steppenwolf) are hand-welding frames in the EU for less than the cost of a TREK in the US:

Steppenwolf - URBAN

Andy_K 

But you wouldn't get a new skewer and a $20 Bontrager credit that way!

Seriously though, I took my bike in to a local shop last year to have a fancy carbon fork installed. When I got it back I noticed that they had flipped the skewer around to the other side. It didn't even occur to me why they did it, but I trust this shop so I left it that way. Now I know. I don't think my skewer opens that far, but having it away from the rotor just seems like a good idea. Closing the QR before riding is also a good idea, of course.

Gresp15C

I've already tipped my hand in the forums, that I'm unreasonably skittish about QR's. But to play devils advocate...

From a mainstream engineering standpoint, this is a user adjustable feature with a single fault failure mode that could result in injury or death, with a fairly simple way to design around the problem. That's going to trigger a pretty drastic response, even if it doesn't seem all that dangerous.

acidfast7

I agree ... TÜV would have eliminated the possibility to market a QR that went beyond 180° like was done on my CUBE even though it came with standard M551 hubs ... just seems like an oversight by the US market and/or laziness/cheapness by TREK, hence my aforementioned comments.

DaveLeeNC

But this time your disk brakes won't heal.

dave

side_FX

This deserves a +.

TinkerinWstuff

The data seems to support a .0003% chance of injury

FBinNY 

That assumes that people randomly leave QRs open or closed. The reality is that knowledgeable riders have a near zero risk because they close their QRs and or put the lever on the opposite side. Those who don't know how to use a QR have a much higher risk, because it's 3 out of the much smaller pool of people like them.

acidfast7

The real issue (at least in the US) is that it made a CNN article (sign) and a recall.

I weep

wolfchild

I have converted all my front shimano hubs from quick release to solid nutted axle. I just prefer nutted axles all around. I am also shocked how many cyclists I've seen with improperly tightened quick releases.

Lanovran

Yeah, pretty much. This is why Trek also published a couple of videos about how to properly use QR levers along with the recall announcement.

I agree with you on this. Being a fan of Trek, I'm admittedly a tad biased in their favor, but it seems to me that a lot of people are going to take this out on Trek without fully understanding that the recall is not based on anything produced by Trek/Bontrager. Instead, it's all about the potential for user error of a third-party quick-release lever interacting with yet another party's disc brake rotor. Trek is merely the first (and so far, only) bike brand to have recognized and addressed the issue in a proactive manner, offering free skewer replacement plus a $20 gift certificate to offset the trouble of having customers take their bikes in to the shop. I wouldn't be surprised to see other companies following suit before too long, given that the same QR11 quick-release levers are out there on lots and lots of non-Trek bikes as well.

no motor?

I've never had a problem with QR levers becoming too loose on my bike with rim brakes, and every time I loosen it up to take the wheel off I wonder how quick the process is supposed to be - it sure doesn't seem very quick to me then.

mconlonx

They don't "deserve" the cheap shot, and it has nothing to do with Trek moving manufacturing overseas.

Trek does some manufacturing/assembly in the USA, and lots of if not most testing in the USA as well.

The American market "race-to-zero" means they need to manufacture in Asia. Ref.: Cannondale as well. The European market may very well be different...

They did not have it coming, and I doubt there's "money in the bank" to cover this, although they probably are doing well enough to have insurance for something like this.

You can find all kinds of videos of USA Waterloo WI plant manufacturing and assembling bikes stateside.

Cost of Steppenwolf Tano 5.0 is comparable to Trek FX 7.5, not cheaper. Some bike shops which ignore Trek suggested MSRP sell it marginally cheaper than a Steppenwolf... at current exchange rates. At currency exchange rate a year ago, the Trek is very much cheaper than the comparable Tano.

spare_wheel

Trek sells a heck of a lot of plastic bikes and most of those frames are manufactured in the USA (since Trek discontinued use of TFT):

Trek Factory Tour Part 3: US Based OCLV Carbon Bike Production

asmac

if you have a Trek and disc brakes, you are going to die!

Bad news. Even if you don't have a Trek with disc brakes you're still gonna die.

fietsbob

how many million bikes a year do they make?
What do they Wholesale for to Dealers? (Trek sells on a rotating credit plan to dealers and ships freight free if the order is large enough)

Trek welds NO Aluminum frames in the US in 2015, so your Teutonic Touting is Off target.. You know if there is Export Subsidies to make that stuff , there ?
Only the Carbon top of the range Trek race frames are made in Wisconsin , as people in the country here have to get paid more for skilled craftsmanship.
(in spite of Walker the Governors wanting wages to fall )

so the rest of the bikes <as is common practice now for Multiple brands Is the contract is filled by one of the Huge Taiwan based companies ..

Merida, Giant , Maxway,etc. all fill contracts for export . Shipping German products into the US is Dwarfed by the Huge quantities coming out of Taipei and Shanghai.
Specialized and all of them . horse is long out of the barn Guys, ... jobs went overseas because they produce forLess ..

Hypno Toad

+1. I don't get it at all.

I have two bikes with front disc brakes and quick release (it's a QR issue, not a Trek issue - many bikes used the QR in this recall). I will check my bikes tonight to see if they go beyond 180 degrees. But Honestly, I NEVER ride with the QR open, so.... not going to be an issue for me.

My 2015 Pugley left me scratching my head (until now), it has QR on the rear wheel, but a hollow axle with bolts on the front. You can change out to QR, but then it's your problem, not Surly's. I'm guessing that this front hub choice has something to do with this recall.

no motor?

I forgot to point that out earlier, thanks for doing so.

asmac

Of course it's a Trek issue. They don't make most (any?) parts on their bikes but they do specify all the items and put them together into a bike. It's their responsibility to make sure things all work together. In any event, with due sadness for the poor guy left a quadriplegic, it's doesn't seem to be some enormous lack of ethics or irresponsible practices. It was, presumably, a serious oversight that won't happen again.

Hypno Toad

My point is less about about Trek's responsibility and more to let people know that you should check all bikes that have a QR and disc brakes.

To your point (and my earlier post), why the hell did anybody EVER make a QR lever that could open more than 180 degrees. There is no need for this range of motion, and it could still cause issues with non-disc bikes by getting into the spokes.

On a slightly related note, I removed the required spoke reflectors from all our bikes after one got sideways and broke spokes and locked up my rear wheel. Damn happy it was a rear wheel.

asmac

Fair enough...

dynaryder

Incorrect. This is improper use of equipment. You're not supposed to ride with bike with the skewers open. I'm willing to bet the Trek owner's manuals even say something to this effect(pre-ride inspection). If you fail to tighten the lug nuts on your car,that's your fault,not Ford's.

What's TUV say about bolt-on skewers? That they have to be safety wired?

Srsly,what like,two people have been effected by this? This is not a design defect,it's pure user error.

edit: boom

page 4,Before Each Ride: Checklist
Make sure the wheels are attached correctly.
Lift your bicycle and hit the top of the tire with
a solid blow (Figure 1.4). The wheel should not
come off, be loose, or move from side to side.

Follow the manual,you won't have an issue. Always read your TO,even if QA's not around.

acidfast7

Those with disc brakes should open more than 180°. Pretty simple actually and following this would have resulted in one less paralysed person with almost no additional cost to the consumer.