Ah, that's too bad that they've got this design issue. I commute on a 2010 Jake The Snake and it's been trouble free since the get go. Kona Jakes (and variants) of different vintages are by far the most common bike used to commute at my place of work. Out of say, approximately 30 bikes that lock up where I do there are five Jakes of different years and four Jake the Snakes.

However, I don't see any Jakes newer than 2012 which may be indicative of this issue.