Got the bike yesterday, it was damaged in transit somewhere. Something got smashed into the left rack wheel and flared the frame out where it is anchored, and there are also a couple scratches in the paint.
I reached out to Brompton through their contact form today. They said they'd get back to me within 3 business days. A few hours later, they got back to me and offered me a new bike and to have FedEx pick up the damaged one. I'm working on the details of that now. Good after-sale support so far! They could've blamed the shipper and put me through the ringer...
Looks like someone ripped the box by pulling out on the carrying hole. It's the wrong angle for something to have caused the damage to the roller wheel...
Looks like the roller wheel took a hard hit at the bottom at some point, flaring open the tube into which it's press-fit:
...and bubbling the paint.
This protective piece fell off, it's a known issue with the adhesive for it. I'm told an upgrade of double-stick tape or RTV-ing it on can help.
Superficial scratches in the top tube below the 'C'.
More scratches on the left chain stay, down to the steel
I don't know where that damage occurred, but they could do a better job packing the bikes for shipment; providing guarding and bits of foam and so forth. Brompton used environmentally-conscious packing. Not much plastic and no foam. But cardboard blocks could've been used, zip-tied on in strategic places. I've had several heavy eBikes delivered with much better packing.
1st impressions from the 4 miles of riding I managed to get in:
+ I like the 12-speed arrangement. Middle gear in the 3-speed hub is the efficient 1:1 and the 4-speed derailleur has decent range there. I could probably do 80% of my riding just in that middle hub gear without losses. The low gear will be needed for climbing, and the lowest gear could be a bit lower. I'll plan to go to a smaller chainring in the future.
+ The ride is not bad at all. The shock bumper on the rear helps a lot, and the flex in the frame, seatpost and handle post all help. It rides about as well as my 20x1.95" folder. It rides better than my road bike. (Trek Domane w/70c x 32mm tires) About as well as my gravel bike with 70c x 40 mm tires)
+ The derailleur shifting is impressively fast, and indexing was proper right out of the box.
+ The OEM seat is pretty good; a dished shape where it should be. I'm not sure I'll upgrade this.
+ Good after-sale support, so far
+ Brakes are good
+ Shifters are good
+ Bell is good
- The seat post is barely long enough. It's at full extension and I don't quite have enough leg extension. (31" inseam) I ordered size M. I could move the seat back on its rails a bit, and still be OK, posture-wise.
- Poor packing job
- Poor choice of adhesive for protective plate
- Something should be included to keep the clamps aligned while spinning the wing bolt fasteners down. It's a cheap & easy fix; not something that should need aftermarket purchases.
+/- I feel like a kickstand should be included on any kind of city bike, though it does have "kickstand mode".
First commute; too bad he's going back. :-(