MattHartley

Which is the better choice-

a Motobecane 400HT at $330 or a Specialized Hardrock Sport at $390???

All things considered- value, components, performance on the trail, etc. which should I buy?

Thanks for your input!

Little Leo

The Moto-thing dose not look very good. I would go with specialized. Specialized Hardrock has some great things said about it and it comes in some snazy colors.

but I truly dont know any thing about Motobecane

the wonginator

it's not even a question. specialized hardrock. the motobecane is MARGINALLY better spec'd, but at that price point, the performance is the same. i'd rather take the V's over those discs. the specialized *will* have a better frame, not to mention that motobecanes are online-ordered, while you can support your lbs with the specialized. the specialized will be easier to warranty as well.

Temeraroius

My friend has the hardrock and loves it, I'd go with that. But, if i were you, I'd upgrade the fork later.

wheelhot

more people in this forum loves Hardrock

Little Leo

no, Im a stumper kind of person

Temeraroius

I would prefer the stumpjumper or the rockhopper but for the price i would go with the hardrock.

wheelhot

im a Anthem person

Little Leo

very true, very true

the wonginator

that's besides the point. i'm assuming he's buying new, try to find one at that price point. you can't.

Oleanshoebox

I'm just a mountain bike person, I haven't ridden enough bikes to tout one brand or another-but I would say that direct bikes doesn't have the best reputation and motobecane is one of their brands. I owned a hardrock for a short time and loved it. Go specialized for quality and reputation.

MattHartley

thanks for the feedback...keep it coming...

sounds like the hardrock is way ahead; i've yet to hear anything really negative about specialized products from anyone...of course, i'd like the rockhopper or stumpjumper, but budget is tight...i am watching craigslist and ebay for good deals on better specialized bikes, but it seems like everyone wants one and there's always somebody willing to pay more than me!

born2bahick

I was going to purchase one of the Motobecane Fly Team Bikes Two years ago, I sent an E-mail to their North American office, and never recieved a reply. I sent three alltogether and NOTHING! I won't bash their product because I have no first hand experience. (although I do see a lot of Motobecane road bikes)
But I do feel that their customer service is sadly lacking. If this is how they treat perspective buyers, I can't Imagine how hard it would be to get warrantee service after the sale. JMO

Bike Lover

The owner of BD has been visiting this forum in the road section and Road Bike Reviews as of late. It seems he has heard much criticism and is trying to improve BDs image. The consensus in the road forum is that BD offers very good value if you 1) know how to put a bike together and 2) don't need to try out a few bikes for size. Heck, one member just bought a Dura Ace (Shimano's top road equipement) bike with Ritchey Cockpit for something like $1400-1500. The parts alone are worth more than that.

Anyway, that being said, between those two bikes, revmonkey said it best: "the motobecane is MARGINALLY better spec'd, but at that price point, the performance is the same". Eventually, you'll want to replace the fork and the brakes on both or get a new bike with upgraded stuff. Either one will get you around and into biking.

The advantage the Specialized has is for only $60 more, you can pick it up and get to know your local bike store (LBS). Usually the LBS will also throw in a "tune up" so after you ride for a while and stretch the cables, it'll adjust the bike to keep the shifting smooth. Plus, Specialized has more of a reputation, especially around here.

Oh, and if there is an LBS around you that has KHS, you might want to check that out as well. They usually offer good value (I think all will have disc brakes this year).

snakehunter

specialized is good folk.... awesome customer service.... if you get the motobecane use it as a boat anchor

wheelhot

.....like I said, people in the forum LOVES HARDROCK because there is a Cafe named after it and the bike must be strong as hell because it is as HARD as a ROCK

the wonginator

or... maybe because many people here ride them, and really think that they're very good?

wheelhot

good point, but I love the name though, HARD ROCK...cafe?

Little Leo

Hard as a Rock

Flak

Moto, just to be contrary, and also because i think at this level they're all the same in practise despite whats on the spec sheet.

mlh122

well I'd probably vote for spec too. though i've heard moto bikes aren't bad, never ridden one though. can you test ride both? in my area we have a spec dealer but no moto dealers. that cut moto out of the picture for me, i don't know enough about bikes to buy one without riding it first. if you can do a test ride with both of them and let that decide. when i was shopping i really liked GF for their colors and specs. but i tried every size from 17 to 23 and hated them all. then tried a trek and it felt a lot better. however if you can test ride both of them don't get the spec just cuz of what people say, get what feels better. then if they both feel the same, maybe lean towards the spec because of the reputation, or go with whatever shop you like better.

MattHartley

let me throw in this curveball...what is this Fezzari bike all about??? anybody know anything about Fezzari???

mikebeau

I'm guessing You're about to get torched for that question. But I'm a noob so I could be wrong.

MillCreek

The Fezzari MTB, sold online at Costco and Fezzari, are rebadged KHS XC models with some spec changes to make a price point. Study the pictures of the Fezzari and the KHS models and you will see that they are the same frames and share many of the same components. I also heard this from a friend of mine who works as a buyer at Costco, although he is not the bicycle buyer.

Terrapin Ben

i bought and upper end hardrock a few years ago. it was really nice stock, but i started riding a lot more single track about three years ago and decided to upgrade it to make more trailworthy. itis a really nice bike that offers a good platform to upgrade to if your into that sort of thing. on the other hand, i spend waaaaay too much upgrading and ened up getting a new frame to better compliment the nicer components. long story short, i should have bought a brand new stumpjumper to save money. but then again, my bike is pretty sweet and custom and i know a lot more about mechanical stuff from building it up. stay cool bikeforums.net!