I think ya done good by her. The problem with truly awful dept store bikes is, ppl buy them, they break immediately, and then the new riders decide that all bikes are crap. With you around to politely say " i told you so", your friend may decide to give it a more sincere effort next time.

I used to try to give ppl excellent bike-shopping advice, but I've found that neophytes who are extremely price-conscious will not listen to reason at all. I generally try to get them to pull the trigger on any bike, and then offer advice for bike #2 if/when necessary....