Originally Posted by
PDKL45
It sounds like a decent deal, yes. The black model was the base model with steel forks, as opposed to carbon forks. Better for front racks, though, and still has very decent ride qualities, as compared to alloy. There are a couple of things to look out for with the Sequoia, though.
Specialized used a proprietary headset on those bikes, so they can be hard to get replacements for, although I am not 100% certain that applies to the steel forks on the base model. Also, their wheels are fairly awful and probably the worst feature of the bike. Relatively good frame and other components, although the frames can develop cracks, but very ordinary wheels. I'd personally factor the cost of a new wheelset into buying a Sequoia, because it's a matter of when you'll need it, rather than if you will.
Also, be aware that Specialized has stopped making the Sequoia, and its older brother, the AWOL. Not a huge deal, but it does have issues for warranty replacements, etc.
Great insights and much appreciated. Good to know about these no longer being in production and something to consider. I did read one other place about complaints concerning the wheels.
After thinking about it, this is totally the bike for me. In its use and just all about value. I tend to ride things lightly. When I moved to Miami in 2017, I bought a Vespa to add to my mini fleet and as of today it doesn't have a scratch on it and about 1800 miles. Very lightly used tires with little to no wear. Same with my car. In fact I'm still rocking an iPhone 6+ first model (yeah, do for an upgrade), but I'm not one of these crazies we all know who get something and burn into the ground in a year. If I can get 4-5 years out of this bike (with the wheels/tires that comes with it) and sell it for $300-$350, which seems to be the margin for resale, I'm totally good with that.