Joselg97

So, I am looking for a new road bike and the closest small dealer I have is a Motobecane one. They offer free service for life, and the guy tells me he has "the best deals in town".

He said that I could get a good beginners bike around $500 that I would have to pay 700 somewhere else, and that doesn't sound bad to me. However, I don't wanna spend $500 and then regret it.

If you know this brand and think is worth it, could you give me some advice as to what kind should I be looking at.

I was not able to find any thread or anything online with reviews on this bike, If you have some information of that kind, I will also appreciate it if you post it.

StanSeven

Do a search here for that and Bikes Direct

Nachoman

Try it like this
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ghlight=search

Rand

bikesdirect.com who advertises here sells them and if you google search that brand a ton of stuff comes up.

roadwarrior

Motobecane was, back when it was a bike company, made in France. I raced on them one season when I was overseas. It's now MBK and they do scooters. I think they finally pulled the plug on bikes. A few years ago they were the sponsor of the "Young Rider Jersey" in the Tour de France and also provided bikes to one of the French teams...can't recall which one off the top of my head.

It is now a "brand". In other words, bikesdirect has the rights to use the name and puts a sticker on a generic frame they buy from a manufacturer. There's nothing wrong with that, but that same frame could have a different sticker. Bottecchia, Dawes, Windsor, and whatever other names they are using.

If you are not a bike mechanic, know that "some assembly is required", so you may end up at a bike shop getting the build completed. Also, if you have a warranty issue you will be sending the bike back to them rather than dealing with people face to face as in a shop. We build 10 or so Motobecane bikes a year for customers.

You have to weigh all that to decide if that distribution system is best for you.

hodie21

They make good bikes. Most of their frames are made in Taiwan. Just like everyone else. I have owned one of their Ti bikes and it was extremely well made and rode well.

jrobe

Reminds me of a old George Carlin skit where he said he went to "Al's College." Motobecane is probably the "Al's Bikes" of cycling.

Of course, that doesn't mean that they won't ride very well. I even bought one for my wife because she doesn't ride enough to tell any difference.

deacon mark

I have a Motobecane Immortal Spirit and have about 2000 miles on it and so far it has been tremendous could not ask for a better bike.

Marauder9

Can't comment on the Motobecane brand but if LBS is offering free lifetime service then sounds a good deal IMHO.
Thing to make sure tho is if the LBS has a good reputation for giving good quality service as if they are not very good then you might as well do it yourself.

On the other side of the coin doing your own services allows you to be more in tune with your bike and how it works etc which is always a good thing IMHO and gives you great satisfaction when you are spinning along the road on a newly fixed bike.

newsman787

Roadwarrior says it well in earlier post. I have a Motobecane Ti Heat I got months ago and on which I have had many pleasureable rides. I did, however, call on my local bike shop for final assembly. A good bike has been matched up with a super shop with excellent service. I have since spent lots of dollars at the shop so that it has been a win/win for all.

rogerstg

Not really. They simply contract with Kinesis or one of the other mega frame manufacturers to build frames to their specifications, just like most other bike brands do. Nothing really generic about it, relative to how other bike brands operate.

The OP is buying the bike from a bike shop, so there should be none of these requirements/shortcomings

urbanknight

I thought the Bikes Direct brand is "Motobecane USA", disassociating itself (and not requiring approval) from the real Motobecane???

halfspeed

You can't just add "USA" to the end of someone else's trademark without permission. I'm sure BD picked up the US rights to the name in a bankruptcy proceeding somewhere along the way.

Velo Gator

You live in Jacksonville?

Palomar01

Currently own a '11 Motobecane Le Champion Ti.

Love the bike. Nothing but positive experience with Bikes Direct. They are way better than the Local Bike Shops in my area in terms of customer service and follow up. The bike has been a joy to ride--lightweight (advertised at 17 lbs. and it weighed right on), efficient, fast, comfortable, and smooth. Frame is made in Taiwan.

I would not hesitate to buy another MB from Bikes Direct. I did buy another bike from BD for my wife and that experience too was very positive.

BikingGrad80

I bought the Immortal Force back in Oct 2010. I now have 1700 miles on it and am very pleased with it. I had some initial problems with the dropout channel being to narrow for the axle to pass through (a few minutes with a round file fixed it) and I swapped the jagwire shift housing for Dura-Ace because it did not shift well with the jagwire and plastic ferrules.

If you know your size, can wrench, and are not afraid of being seen with a generic bike then you really can't beat the value.

Palomar01

I think using the word "generic" to describe the brand is stretching it a bit. Motobecane USA's frames are not based on anybody else's frame (unlike Mercier, Windsor, and Dawes USA). However, they share many design elements of other frames from other brands. In any case, Motobecane USA is just like today's Schwinns, GT's, Scattante, and many other brands who have their frames built in Taiwan and China. The only difference is that the bigger brand names like Cannondale, Specialized, Trek, etc., do have a design team here in the USA and spend tons of money in racing. MB USA does not and they pick from designs made available by Kenisis and other frame makers. Nevertheless it doesn't affect the bike's performance.

I actually enjoy passing people in Felts, Specialized & Cannondales CF high end bikes....especially uphill where it's slow enough for them to see the big, bold lettering, which reads: "MOTOBECANE".

jrobe

Of course, riding nice bikes doesn't correlate well with power output, it just correlates with how successful people have been in their working careers (which is what they are likely thinking as you go by)

tanguy frame

I bought 2 Motobecane bikes back in 1978 from a LBS in Boston. 1 for me, 1 for my dad. They had Reynolds 531 frame and forks, and mostly campy NR components, except stronglight cranks with french threaded bottom bracket. Great bikes. Awesome components. really good deals too. Don't know what happened to the brand since then.

mmmdonuts

There is nothing wrong with the brand or bikes themselves and you are one of the few who get to ride a Moto before buying. Try it out.

Palomar01

You would be very surprised.

There are many people who believe riding a brand name bike helps them go faster. Seriously. Just listen to many people who think they will go faster if their bike was 2-4 lbs. lighter.

jrobe

I would be one of them. I have several bikes in my garage including a couple Cervelo's and a Motobecane. The Cervelo's are definitely the faster bikes (stiffer, lighter, more aerodynamic, etc.). Of course, they also cost considerably more. Like always, you get what you pay for but you can certainly have fun cycling on less expensive bikes.

Malloric

Damn Freds.

Palomar01

I understand.

Eventually, you have to be able to take a step back and see it for what it is: they're only bicycles!

Having said that, people with the disposable income to buy the expensive stuff and want to spend that much is fine in my book. If you worked hard for your money then you deserve to enjoy it.

Personally, I like to stretch my $$ to a point. To most people the thought of spending $2k on a bike of whatever brand is simply ridiculous! To the enthusiast, $2k may just be the tip of the iceburg.

deacon mark

Which Motorbecane are you comparing to your Cervelo this I do not think? A modern Moto CF bike from BD is every bit as fast as any Cervelo with the same rider, they are not stiffer or made faster due to some design.