Customer Service/Warranty.. Trek .... Beware... Also, Manitou Axel forks are JUNK..

[Krylon..]

So I bought a Trek 6500 in the spring of '05. Bought the bike without researching and am paying for it. I usually take my time and research a purchase to read reviews and such. BUt we were out one day and stopped by a local shop. The guy gave me a good deal and I had a Trek that lasted me a long time in the past, so I figured it would be a good buy... I was wrong..

I did post about some trouble with a leaky fork on here not long after I bought it. Well it still has never been fixed properly!

I first called up my bike shop where i bought it. When i called I was nice told them my problem. They had me brin it in. Then they called and accused me of beating the bike and said I'd have to pay for the repairs. Mind you this was on a bike that was ridden 3 times. All three times were mostly road rides(about 11 miles each) and very little off-road rides.(trying to get in shape since I was 30, have asthma and am overweight)... I explained to them all this and they still said I had to be beating on the bike. Trek said I had to go through the dealer. So I called Manitou to see what they had to say. They called the shop and covered all the repairs. But then the fork started leaking again after about 1/4 mile into my first ride. So I contacted Manitou directly this time. I had to pay to send the fork to them, but they fixed it for "free"... Got the fork back and it leaked again after the first 1/2 mile or so. Hung the bike in my garage for late fall and winter. Haven;t rode it since. went to pull it down the other day and found a puddle of fork fluid under the bike. These forks are JUNK!!!!

So where does Trek CS/warranty come in? I contacted them again about a week ago. Sent them a sort of nasty e-mail.... This is ridiculous. I paid $500+ for a bike and have barely been able to ride it maybe 6 times. I have less than 50 miles on the bike. When I contacted them, they told me that the fork is not their product and that I have to contact Manitou. What? If I buy a GM car and a strut blows out, they dont send me to Bilstein or whoever to get it fixed.... So basically they told me to piss up a rope... I'll never buy another thing from them...

Another thing that is a piece of crap on the bike is the wheels. They are out of round already.. I dont jump the bike and any off-road riding I have done has been pretty smooth... yet I can go down the road and watch both wheels wobble and hit the brake pads. In my e-mail to Trek I mentioned this. They said that the wheels are their product(WTB) and to take it into my local shop to have them service them and that this is normal... Normal for wheels to go out of true after only 50 miles? My brother has a GT MTB that he bought in 96 or so. It has Mavic wheels on it that have never been touched and they are still going strong!!

I am very dissappointed in Trek and like I said, will never buy another one of their products. Should've bought a Kona or Jamis.....

[fourlofirst]

I boght an 04 Fisher HKEK (basically same thing i think-Trek=Fisher) and it had Rock shock Pilot SL shocks on it. I had a problem with them as well (air shock) and the shop rebuilt them free. (My friend bought a 6500, and it had the same shocks as mine, but mech discs. Other than that, pretty similar)
Too bad for you

[Krylon..]

Originally Posted by fourlofirst

I boght an 04 Fisher HKEK (basically same thing i think-Trek=Fisher) and it had Rock shock Pilot SL shocks on it. I had a problem with them as well (air shock) and the shop rebuilt them free. (My friend bought a 6500, and it had the same shocks as mine, but mech discs. Other than that, pretty similar)
Too bad for you

Ya, this local shop was super nice when it was time to spend money. But on my first problem with the bike, they wanted to hose me and have me pay for their time and the parts. I should've spent the extra $$ and got the discs and Rock Shox, but I didn't liek the way the discs felt so I stuck with Vbrakes. But the disc on the 6500 model they had were hydraulic... Anyhow, ya this sucks. Looks like on top of what I paid for the bike, I'll have to buy a new front fork.

[Gummi Bear]

Donate the fork to a bicycle charity, and write it off. Low end Manitou forks have sucked the big one for years (remember the elastomer forks?)

Look for a closeout Fox Vanilla fork or something similar. I'm not real jazzed about the current lineup of Rock Shox right now either, but they're still decent.

About your wheels:

They are machine made, meaning that a machine spoked them up. The tolerances on them are for shit. If you wiggle the spokes, you'll find all kinds of different tensions on them. Go ahead and pay a real bike tech to re-tension and true your wheels. This is a learned art/science to build a good wheel. Machine wheels are for shit, in the future, any bike you buy, negotiate a wheel tensioning and trueing into the asking price.

I haven't bought an off-the-rack bike in years due to this kind of stuff. I buy components and frames, then have wheels built for whatever application I'm using it for. My current do-all bike is ~30 lbs hardtail, but fits my style and riding preferences (urban, DJ, and riding in the neighborhood with my family) I had a long run of breaking parts, and learned all this the hard way.

A 6500 is a decent bike, and yeah, you're getting hosed on the fork, but that's the nature of the bike business. Nobody wants to warranty anything. That's why I have gotten to the point that I run DH parts on nearly everything.

[Krylon..]

Gummi, thanks for the response! I emailed Manitou one last time. They want me to call them. The bad thing is I should have called right when it started leaking again. But it was late in the fall and already cold. So being fed up that it leaked again, I just put the bike away for the winter. Im sure I'll get shit about that. But I wasn't too pleasent in the email. I am sure they'll want me to mail it in again at my expense and then get t back and it will still leak. And the lockout didn't work before either(after I got it back from Manitou service).

Originally I wanted to build my own bike from the ground up.. But after I started pricing everything, I would've spent close to twice what I spent on the Trek. Sure it would've been worth it, but I couldn't afford it at the time. Of course, I bought this bike way too spontaneously... Usually i research things, this time I didn't and got hosed. But if you search the MTB forums and the net for the Axel fork, you'll see many reviews of leaky Axel forks. I'd never buy a Manitou again. they were nice to deal with and never gave me crap, but why cant their own service department get the fork to not leak? If you ask me, since they have some many case of leaky forks, they should do somethign about it. But they wont.

I'll keep you updated on my conversation with Bobby over at Manitou.

And also, any links or info on the bike donation stuff? I ave my old Trek 820 that I could donate. It needs a little tuning, but would make someone a good bike!

[fourlofirst]

Originally Posted by Gummi Bear

Go ahead and pay a real bike tech to re-tension and true your wheels. This is a learned art/science to build a good wheel. Machine wheels are for shit, in the future, any bike you buy, negotiate a wheel tensioning and trueing into the asking price.

I haven't bought an off-the-rack bike in years due to this kind of stuff. I buy components and frames, then have wheels built for whatever application I'm using it for. My current do-all bike is ~30 lbs hardtail, but fits my style and riding preferences (urban, DJ, and riding in the neighborhood with my family) I had a long run of breaking parts, and learned all this the hard way.

A 6500 is a decent bike, and yeah, you're getting hosed on the fork, but that's the nature of the bike business. Nobody wants to warranty anything. That's why I have gotten to the point that I run DH parts on nearly everything.

The bike shop where I bought mine, they do FREE lifetime maintenance, and free install for a year on a parts (bought there). Another shop had my bike for 30 bucks less, but then wanted a $100.00 "warranty" extra...
Go Summit!

[Krylon..]

Originally Posted by fourlofirst

The bike shop where I bought mine, they do FREE lifetime maintenance, and free install for a year on a parts (bought there). Another shop had my bike for 30 bucks less, but then wanted a $100.00 "warranty" extra...
Go Summit!

There is a Trek dealer not far from me, but didn't have any models on the floor other than the 4300... I wanted somethign alittle better. Went to this shop and they had the 6500 and higher. Thoguht this guy would've been good with service. But I got the shaft from him and the other guy probably would've treated me great.

[Noel Tabor]

I'll let you guys know how my trek ownership goes. I have 30 mile son my bike and it needs to be adjusted already. Tis ok i figure a normal breakin is all ok. GOing to take it in next week.

[Krylon..]

Originally Posted by Noel Tabor

I'll let you guys know how my trek ownership goes. I have 30 mile son my bike and it needs to be adjusted already. Tis ok i figure a normal breakin is all ok. GOing to take it in next week.

Whatt model do you have?

[rckjeep]

I worked for a few shops and for a bike company for many years in warranty/CS. And it wasn't trek. But let me try and explain a few things to you. Now I don't know you from Adam which was the case will 99.9% of the warranty calls I took over a 3 1/2 year period. So with what you said, you are 30(me too) and a bit over weight. Now every bike I can think of(regardless of size) is built for around a 160lb. rider and most shops don't take the time to dial in suspension for a customer, especially on a $500+/- bike. So being over weight(remember I don't know how much you weigh) but if it's over 200lbs your weight (if bottomed out hard)could have blown the seals in the fork causing it to leak. But in your defense manitou forks have sucked for a while, especially their lower end stuff. Now the shop is in business to make money and bike companies don't credit labor on warranty, like the car industry does. So the shop would be out $, which being in the virtual age a shop can't survive that way. The internet has taken so much profit away from small independent dealers it's insane. So they make it up as best they can on labor. If the bike has some scratches on the forks or it's muddy or something I could see how a shop would want to charge for the repair. Now, speaking from a manufacting stand point trek didn't build the fork, nor do they know much about fixing it. So it's up to the fork manufacture to repair it and hopefully do it correctly. I also noticed that you said you hung it up for storage. Some forks Fox included will leak oil if hung upside down. They may have been an issue as well. I know this doesn't make you feel any better or fix your fork but I can tell you that the bike industry is much better at CS than any car dealer or manufacture that I've ever dealt with. Good luck with your problem I hope it gets resolved to your liking. Oh and remember everything I've said is just from my experiences as a warranty rep for a major bike company and nothing personal against you in anyway.

[Gummi Bear]

Originally Posted by fourlofirst

The bike shop where I bought mine, they do FREE lifetime maintenance, and free install for a year on a parts (bought there). Another shop had my bike for 30 bucks less, but then wanted a $100.00 "warranty" extra...
Go Summit!

Read the fine print in your sales agreement, many shops don't warranty the wheels in their service literature. Educate yourself, so you're not disappointed later on when you need to call on that warranty.

Many shops overlook, or ignore the importance of wheel maintenance. It's labor intensive, I understand that. Pulling the wheels, sticking them in a truing stand and getting them shaped up properly can do a lot to increase the longevity of the wheel. You shouldn't wait until you break a spoke or nipple, or have an egg for a wheel to address this important piece of maintenance.

If you're a big guy, you need to buy components that are designed for a big guy. Even when I was 160-170 lbs, I was breaking parts. I rode trials for a long time, so I was destroying everything that wasn't up the level of burliness that FR and DH parts are. Wheels, pedals, cranks, forks, frames, they all break, and I've broken them all. Now I'm 200 lbs, and ride a DS type of bike. Most shops will refer to the big guys, and the bikes they ride as Clydesdales (yup, the Budweiser horses). There is no shame in this, and don't worry so much about the overall weight of the bike. Lighter is faster, but being broken down on the trail sucks.

I typically have my wheels built. I like the feel of the CK, Paul & Phil Wood hubs. I've owned so many bikes, that I've become very particular about how I want things to feel. To me, the feel of the bike is more important than anything else. Maybe one of these days I'll learn to build my own wheels, but for now, I'll continue to pay the $100 or so in labor to have custom wheels laced up.

Wheel lacing and shock (frame or fork) rebuilding are the only repairs that I rely on the shop to do, mostly due to the specialized parts and tools required to do this work, not to mention the warranty if applicable.

[Krylon..]

rckjeep - ya, I am around 217... Even now my bike has very little wear. Hell, I've only ridden it maybe 6-7 times. Bobby from Manitou has called me but I haven't had a chance to call him back. I'll see what he has to say. thi time if offered, I'll just try and get them to send me the parts and I'll try and fix it. After I got it back from Manitou the lockout didn't work, so i probably couldn't do any worse!

I see your point on suspension being set up for differetn weights and such, but any bike shop should take that into consideration! these guys just want your money and want you out the door.. I'll never set foot in that bike shop again. They were total a$$es and will never see me or my $$ again.

[BayAreaWheeler]

OoOooOOo dont say that, i just ordered the Manitou Minute 2 last night...well see how it goes.

good luck with your bike - ive seen new rockshox judy's on sale for 99 bucks!

[rckjeep]

I agree that shops should take the time unfortunately most shops don't. The shops that do never have the best prices. So you are paying for that service. I worked at one shop (a pro shop) and when we'd build a bike we'd strip it down to the bare frame (no matter what the price point) and build it right. We'd grease the BB threads, headset cups, and even ever bolt thread. We'd set up the bike as best we could. We'd cut the extra seatpost off if it wasn't used(to save some weight) set up the suspension to the riders weight, narrow handlebars, change stems, etc. But They charged around $20-50 more depending on the bike. But They would charge $120-150 to build a bike that way if you came in off the street. Pro shops are few and far between but can be worth their weight in gold if you are willing to pay a bit more for your bike.

As far as forks go, I will only buy Fox forks anymore. Well I didn't buy any of them(people think working at a shop is cool, what till you work at a bike manufacture ) but I would. The mainstream fork guys have all stagnated or dropped their level of quality. Mantiou was good in the late nineties as was Rock Shox, Fox has just raised the bar and no one has caught them or even come close if you ask me.

[Krylon..]

If I knew I'd get the extra service and such, I'd pay the extra $$... But most shops(at least around here), just tack on the extra $....

[fourlofirst]

Originally Posted by Gummi Bear

Read the fine print in your sales agreement, many shops don't warranty the wheels in their service literature. Educate yourself, so you're not disappointed later on when you need to call on that warranty.

Many shops overlook, or ignore the importance of wheel maintenance. It's labor intensive, I understand that. Pulling the wheels, sticking them in a truing stand and getting them shaped up properly can do a lot to increase the longevity of the wheel. You shouldn't wait until you break a spoke or nipple, or have an egg for a wheel to address this important piece of maintenance.

Wheel lacing and shock (frame or fork) rebuilding are the only repairs that I rely on the shop to do, mostly due to the specialized parts and tools required to do this work, not to mention the warranty if applicable.

I've seen 'em truing my wheels . I hear you though. I am glad I found this shop, and have sent many people in there because of it. I'm no "hardcore" rider, but family/friends think so, so they tend to go to the shop I go to.