john m flores 

My first folder! After stalking Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace for a month, I got a good deal at Costco - $299. Could not resist the 23 lbs.

Ask me anything about the bike!

wesgreen

How do you like it so far? It looks somewhat like a Dahon Vitesse copy, but with a real, not "integrated", crank and chainring, and a derailleur instead of the Vitesse standard igh.
If it's built well, you got a deal!

downtube

This is a great price, however it seems unsustainable. I saw Costco is selling these with a 25% off coupon and free shipping. Assuming shipping across the country is $50 ( for oversized dim weight ), then Costco is paying no more than $150 ( probably less ). Trump's duty ( which was just removed temporarily ) makes this unsustainable. Especially since Costco's return rate will be positive, I expect it to be super high.

This is a really bad market, everyone is having a hard time. These type of deals can be seen as liquidation. This will put pressure on Citizen and other entry level competitors.

Thanks
Yan

Doc_Wui

Nice. That price would be worth rejoining Costco. I never used my prior memberships much.
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linberl

Costco has it back at $349, which is the price Zizzo direct had for their holiday sale earlier. Costco does that a lot - have a short-term discount for a week or so on stuff. So either they got a great promotional price from Zizzo or it's a loss-leader during an in-store event. They also have deals with vendors where all returns are accepted by the vendor, so not a problem for Costco. Must be nice to be so big you can dictate all the terms.

DVC45

Is this a copy of the older version DownTube Nova?

john m flores 

Initial impressions - wow, this thing is pretty well built! Out of the box, the wheels were pretty true. There was a little brake rub front and rear so I let out a little cable and it's good now. Braking is solid - I can do a stoppie with the front. Front wheel bearings are good. Rear is good but feels a little tight. May have to look into it. Frame hinge solid if a little tight; need two hands to work the safety and release. It's very digital - it's either locked or not, there's little feeling of progression as you move the lever through its arc of travel followed with a final lock. Do other folders behave similarly?

Likewise with the seatpost quick release. I had to tighten it to prevent the seat from drifting down, but now locking is very digital with little progressive feel.

Contrary to specs, mine's got a Shimano rear cassette. Shifting is solid. Tweaking the cable tension to get it just right. Replaceable derailleur hanger is a nice touch.

Took less than a mile to adjust to the 20" wheels. Bike is agile and fun to ride. You can feel bumps and potholes more, but I'm used to riding racing bikes with 23mm 115 psi tires and am used to unweighting the saddle.

I haven't put it on a scale but it sure does feel like it's 23#. Makes me wonder how they made it comparatively lighter than others at this pricepoint.

At the train station, I folded it, kept the seat extended and rolled it around. It was ok if a little clumsy. Rolls more easily unfolded.

It's early miles still. We'll see how it holds up over time. Right now, I'm loving it!

wesgreen

I think that's a great frame design, a classic. Two hands? You want that hinge just tight enough to minimize movement wear, but you could also destroy it by overtightening it, esp. with an aluminum design.

Bonzo Banana

Thats a great price for a fairly high spec folding bike. I've seen people pay much more to get a much worse folding bike than that. The frame is 6066 aluminium which might point to the real manufacturer of the bike being fuji-ta in China which is the world's largest bicycle manufacturer by volume. Their high end aluminium is 6069 or 6066, 6066 is also a high end aluminium used by Merida but they are expensive frames and seems unlikely to be sourced from them. Dahon also buy from fuji-ta in fact their Jetstream model is a brand slap on one of fuji-ta's models.

HANMA8 - Tianjin Fuji-ta Bicycle Co.,Ltd.

I've seen an engineer on youtube criticise slightly poor manufacturing tolerances of fuji-ta bikes which were sold under the Cannondale and Specialized brands but that was racing bikes, typically the bottom bracket shell wasn't machined completely accurately and other minor symmetry issues so they represent a sort of mid-level quality manufacturer but then they are hugely efficient and manufacture bikes quickly and cheaply. For the price you paid and the components fitted an absolute bargain I really don't think you could do better for the price for a new bike.

Of course it may not be fuji-ta but 6066 is a fairly high end aluminium and while there are 100s of large bicycle manufacturers in China fuji-ta is by far the biggest supplier to the OEM market and importers in the US and EU as well as other countries. It's amazing how many low end to high end brands are all using frames from fuji-ta.

FolderBeholder

Sounds to me like Zizzo hit the lottery by partnering with Costco...This deal will undoubtedly mean accelerated growth and brand awareness for Zizzo bikes.

This could as they say really put them on the map. And be good for the folding bike market in general.

As a longtime EuroMini/Zizzo owner I can vouch for the quality and dont believe Costco will experience high return rates on these bikes.

tds101 

@john m flores - I have a HUGE request,... If you see this baby on sale again, PLEASE PM me, or quote me and post the info in this thread I'll buy this IMMEDIATELY!!!

linberl

It is $359 right now shipping and handling is included. Zizzo has it on their website for $429, Costco doesn't usually keep the same items for very long, so if you want it, I'd snag it now. You can always get Costco to do a price adjust if it goes down in the next month.

downtube

FolderBeholder the problem is Costco is a reseller. They are not paying more than $200 for the bikes. With the Trump duty ( which is temporarily suspended last week ) Zizzo paid the duty for these bikes. They did not pay much less than $200 landed cost. Throw in a positive return rate and this is a horrible deal for Zizzo.

I would encourage anyone interested to buy one soon. I can't imagine this can continue for long.

Thanks
Yan

Doc_Wui

I almost bought it on impulse, but with the cost of renewing Costco membership, and sales tax, not such a great bargain. No N+1 this month. Already own four 20 inchers.


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linberl

You don't have to be a member to shop online at Costco, but without a membership, you'll have a 5% surcharge. But unless you spend thousands of dollars at Costco, the 5% surcharge can end up being less than the membership fee.

tds101 

Naw,...I'll wait to see if it goes cheaper. Then, maybe, maybe not. I have so many bikes, and I have so little room in the basement, my wife would KILL meh if I didn't get it for a song and a dance. I value meh life,...

linberl

Haha, don't want you murdered. I don't think it will get cheaper at Costco; they will just run out and not restock. But - last year Zizzo had some "returns" on their website for incredibly good prices so you might check there off and on.

Javier

Is the main hinge system similar to the hinge system of most folding brands? Hopefully it will be long-lasting, and not prone to any catastrophic failure.

kayakindude

I bought the Via last Christmas for my daughter. Hinges and particulars very similar to our Dahon Mariner. Biggest difference is the frame and handlebar releases have a push button safety feature. The company puts out a solid product and no issues over that period of time.

wesgreen

The hinges are the reason why it can take a little more mechanical aptitude to keep a Folder running than a regular bike. Keep a close watch on them for wear and movement. They should be set correctly for delivery, but need to be adjusted periodically. If you're concerned, you could go to a shop where they sell folders, and let them show you how tight they set the hinges on Dahons.

FolderBeholder

Your comment sounds a little “competitively envious” to me Yan. If it wasnt a good deal for Zizzo they probably wouldnt have done it...

In my business trying to reverse engineer a competitors big take down into a “they’ll be sorry they got THAT business” doesnt net anything.

downtube

Either I'm jealous or honest and correct. Time will tell.

Thanks
Yan

CrewFan

Just got this little guy as a Christmas present from the wife and would have to echo the above sentiment... Bike seems solid and stable. I don't have a lot of miles yet, but the set up was simple and it had a nice feel to it. This is my first folder, so I don't have a lot of extin this segment.

john m flores 

One hand operates the safety and the other flicks the release. When unfolding it takes just one hand to lock with a firm press.

iBugz

I was looking to get my first folding bike, and came across the same Costco sale. Got Zizzo Liberte without doing any research. The first one came in and was damaged during shipping with untied parts in the box. Costco was great exchanging it immediately. The second one also came in a box that was damaged, but the bike inside was packaged OK with no broken parts. Not Costco's fault, but I think the packaging could be a bit better, tighter. There is no protection in that box from side bumps, and I would think that cross-continent shipping would leave a lot these boxes, if not bikes, damaged.
If not for the great sale, I wasn't even considering Zizzo (was about to get Giant Expressway 2). But now I am a Zizzo owner, and saved a few hundred in the process. It looks great, folds easily, hope it works well in the long run. I'll probably take it to the shop to make sure all parts are aligned properly, as I have no experience with folders whatsoever.
I do have a couple of questions though: is it safe to store on a balcony during NYC winter?