Originally Posted by
BluesDawg
Once something breaks or needs service on the BSO, the owner, who knows little or nothing about bike maintenance takes it to the friendly LBS and learns a bitter lesson. If the bike can be repaired at all, it may cost more to fix than it cost originally.
There are documented cases of people having very nice experiences with BSOs. But I'm willing to bet this is more the exception than the rule. In addition to the problem you mentioned (repair costs/tune up greatly increasing the cost of the bike), I think there are a lot of people who think they don't like riding a bike when in reality, they don't like riding a crappy BSO.
To the OP: I understand and applaud your motivation. I'm just not convinced that this tact will lead to a better experience for people. That being said, I don't really have an alternatives either (buying a used bike if you don't know anything about bikes is hard; getting the right size on an internet bike is problematic if you have no experience).