ButchA

I recently stumbled upon the mail order website Bikes Direct .com and was curious what you all thought. I looked at a very basic, entry level, type of road bike from Motobecane, the Mirage S model.

Save Up to 60% Off Road Bikes - Motobecane Mirage S

Here's a larger view of the black one:
https://www.bikesdirect.com/products/...black_2100.jpg

Very simply put and very direct question: Would you even consider buying it, if you had $400 bucks to spare? Or would you go to an LBS and get a way better bike for double/triple the cost? I'm curious, that's all. I don't own a road bike but seriously want one. I just don't want to spend the equivalent of a mortgage payment (or more!) on a bicycle...

What do you think of Motobecane?

Edit: A little more detail... I don't intend on racing. That's not my style. I just want to get out on the road and enjoy the scenery and ride 25-30 miles on a decent road bike. A nice "endurance" type of road bike would be perfect for me at 6'0" and 210 lbs.

Nachoman

Meh.

rms13

BD is very well known around here. They offer good value. That bike in particular seems like a good value at $400. Search the forum and you'll find plenty of threads on BD.

Keep in mind if you are not comfortable setting up a bike and doing your own maintenance you may end up having to take it to an LBS and that may cost another $100

unionmade

I bought my bike online from competitive cyclist, and seriously considered Bikes Direct. If you are comfortable with buying on-line, know your size (I highly recommend the competitivecyclist.com fit guide), and are willing to do some minor assembly, then I say go for it.
As to the Mirage, I'm a "larger" rider like yourself. I'd recommend a steel bike for what you say you want to do. You're not really clear on budget, but if you can swing $800, then take a look at this Save Up To 60% Off Pro Level Steel Road Bikes | Commuting | Commuter Bikes | Motobecane Gran Premio PRO Better components, more forgiving frame.

halfspeed

It's worth $400.

link0

+1

You will most likely need to take it to a shop for proper assembly, check, and derailleur tuning.

DowneasTTer

You might even try Bike Island BikeIsland.com - Bicycle Parts, Accessories and Clothing at Affordable Prices with Free Shipping. That Bike Direct's scratch and dent site. They have some pretty awesome deals on bikes with paint scratches and the like. As others have said BD is the Rodney Dangerfield of bike shops around here. But, for the right person they make sense. That said if I REALLY had a choice to buy a BD/BI and use a LBS it would be NO question...... LBS all the way.

goenrdoug

No, I think I'd go used before going with a brand new 7-speed. You can find 9/10-speed options on CL/ebay for less than that and, after spending a little to tune them up and dial them in, come out the other side with a better bike.

Also worth noting: Only the 62 CM is in stock.

enator

I bought the same bike in 2007 or 2008 and rode it for a cpl yrs for exercise and commuting. Loved it until I got hit by a car and it just didn't ride the same afterwards. Used the insurance payout from the guy who hit me to buy a Dawes SST in 2009 or 2010 that I still ride today. I actually just bought another bike from them yesterday through Bike Island too. They're good bikes, just realize that the marketing on them is kind of hokey. They manufacture the bikes themselves and sell direct to consumer. Just make sure you tune it up (take it apart and grease everything, or take it to a shop) before you ride it, and you shouldn't have any problems.

rms13

Visit the single speed/fixed gear side. If you are looking for an entry lever bike 100% of the answers you'll get are Kilo TT from Bikesdirect

kc0bbq

They used to shill hard core around here, and IIRC you had to shill at various forums to get their best price. They've changed, but if you were around while it happened it kind of left a bad taste. They behave now, but it can be hard to escape the past.

If you don't care about branding you can get a pretty decent bike from them, you just have to know what you're getting into and pay attention to where they put cheaper components to meet their price points, but that's not much different than most bikes.

ButchA

Thanks for all the replies, I appreciate it. I didn't know how many on here really felt about Bikes Direct. Now I know...

As far as big time LBS's I love to check out the more upright endurance style of road bikes. I don't need to go from point A to point B in the fastest way possible. I can't see myself all hunched over, holding onto aero bars in a tuck position, pedaling my a$$ off at a steady 40 mph. It's just not me. I want to be comfortable but at the same time, still be able to get a good workout, riding a road bike 25-30 miles for starters.

I was curious about the Motobecane bikes from BD, and just looked up some no-name type of bike from Nashbar. Seriously, it has no labels, no emblems, no anything but a plain gloss paint job.

In all seriousness, if I had the money right now, I would go out to my LBS and get one of the Fuji Sportif (series) road bikes. I don't know what else to compare it to. Who else makes reasonably priced endurance frame bikes?

SundayNiagara

Look at the Cannondale Synapse series.

halfspeed

The label is the only significant difference between the BD and Nashbar bikes.

BikesAreSweet

I bought a bike off bikes direct before gmc Denali. I liked it and bike arrived in great semi assembled condition. So mote it be.

gc3

The good news is it won't say Scattante on the frame....

bonz50

*snork*

SolisticeCrye

I just bought the Mirage S last week and I love it! From what I've read, BD's bikes are not bad at the price point. It seems that they make money by selling large quantities of bikes. It was my first road bike and as a broke college student who wanted to get into road cycling, it seemed like a pretty good choice. I haven't had any problems with the bike but I've read on multiple forums that BD has a pretty good customer service. It took me a few days to fit the bike, adjust the front and rear derailleurs. I think it's definitely worth the money if you're willing to assemble and tune the bike yourself. The components on it were pretty good but you might want to replace the seat and the pedals.

Worknomore

I assembled a 600.00$ BD mtb for my neighbor. It took about 30 minutes with no adjustments necessary. The bike was acceptable quality for that price.

Chandne

My first road bike was a basic Specialized Roubaix- 2002. It was on sale for around $1,000 and I still have it. Sadly, they are around $1,800 now- MSRP. It looks like you can't beat a $400 bike for value but it is built to the cheapest price point possible. Since I'd want 105 and decent wheels, I would not buy it.

aubiecat

Motolegs

I bought the Mirage about 4 months ago and have been liking it a lot. The brakes needed lots of adjustment out of the box, and a simple tightening once since then. They are pretty powerful I found out today during a heart pounding emergency stop. The gears snick into place perfectly after the initial out of box adjustment. The bike is easy on the eyes and draws compliments.

It's my go to, commuter, all arounder.

At $350, a pretty darn good investment!

dwmckee

We bought two Dawes bikes from BD. The first was great so we bought the second. The second was poorly adjusted and had very bent rotors. BD said just bend the rotors back. We spent several hours fiddling and finally got the second one riding well. It would likely have cost us over a hundred bucks if we had taken it to a shop. For us BD is a mixed bag, and probably a better deal on the entry level bikes like you are looking at. If you are looking low end and willing to take a chance and do some work yourself BD CAN have a good value comparable to a sale price or closeout on an entry level bile at a local shop. I would not consider BD an option for anything over $800 or so though as I would not be willing to take a chance at that level. The brands they are selling do not have the reputation of a Fuji, Trek or Jamis and they are not worried about hurting their reputation with a cheap frame or bad setup so it is a crap shoot (in my opinion of course).

SumoMuffin

I've seen a few BD bikes and ridden a couple. My opinion is that they have awkward frames with poorly designed geometries. I rode a carbon Motobecane hybrid with upper level shimano components and a low-mid level Dawes road bike. Both handled poorly. I think they pass off inferior bikes by luring people into thinking they're decent bikes because of the parts spec. The frame makes a huge difference in how well a bike rides.

I have also ridden a Nashbar aluminum frame and was impressed. Basic, simple classic geometry, no dumb branding. I would recommend Nashbar over BD, and finding a good used brand name bike or going to a bike shop over both.

There's also something to be said of how BD has bought out old bike brands that used to be decent and is using their names to fabricate credibility for their bikes.

NormanF

BD's bikes are made in the same Taiwan factory that makes bikes for the big bike brands. You're paying a lower price because the middleman and big bike brand house costs are not passed onto the consumer.