I worked in a shop in the mid-late '70s that sold Motobécane bikes, among other European brands. Great bikes. Buying a bike today, though, I'd recommend a Motobecane from BikesDirect. I've bought two (one aluminum, one carbon) over the last 15 years, and I'm very happy with both, and with the fact that they cost about what the equivalent Trek or Specialized bike would have cost me at an employee discount, if I still worked in a bike shop.