Carrera bikes....value or not?

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luther

New Member
Picked up a Subway Zero for the fantastic price of £192 for my brother last night...... Built it up today (chopping 80mm off the handlebars) and it looks and rides great.

Haven't encountered such good VFM for a long time..... well happy :smile:
 

cyberknight

As long as I breathe, I attack.
I have a subway 1 for winter commuting and a virtuosso as a better weather bike.

For the money they are great bikes,sure you can get a specialized or a trek with a similar spec but they will cost you up to another couple of hundred quid,if you can twiddle a spanner you can soon set up the bike,especially given the amount of information available on the interweb.

People do Poo Poo Halfords but for many of us they represent easy access to cycle related stuff,the nearest what i would call decent bike shops around here (not including mercian but that's a whole other ball park) do not offer fitting or test rides etc so its halfords or nothing.

As for poor mechanical skills i took my front wheel to be retrued at the LBS as it needed completely redoing after a lot of potholes and all they did was tighten a few loose spokes and yet the guy at my Halfords knows what he is doing .
 
OP
OP
chewy

chewy

Well-Known Member
Location
Devon
Well i'm really chuffed with my sub. Very light, but solid with nice gear changes and responsive brakes. Really looking for a nice long session now!
As for the build, not much to do! Fit seat,front wheel and handlebars. Run the pre-attached cables and slightly adjust the brakes and done! Though I have checked every bolt on the bike too! And no doubt I shall be tweaking for a bit. All in all, bloody good value for a £500 bike. Even better when I only paid £280 :-D
 

Paulq

Bike Rider, Beer Drinker, Biscuit Eater.
Location
Merseyside
Picked up a Subway Zero for the fantastic price of £192 for my brother last night...... Built it up today (chopping 80mm off the handlebars) and it looks and rides great.

Haven't encountered such good VFM for a long time..... well happy :smile:

Is that the price that Halfords are selling them for at the moment? Can't see it on their website and am after a Subway as s knock about bike and when I go out with t'other half.
 
Son has a Gryphon disc spec (2nd hand ebay buy @ £100) excellent for the money.
Ship I work on has a Subway, again survives the rigours of various size and shape seamen riding it.

Setups on both needed a small amount of tweaking but both have been decent bikes
 

cyclingteen

New Member
there not all that they are cracked up to be your mainly just paying for the name fo instance the new valour at 300£ doesnt even have disc brakes which isnt good at all and as you work up the ladder to the vulcan they dont even have good brand forks they are sr suntour which is and entry level cycling brand when you paying £420 you would expect a little better and its using s ram x4 gears which are what you would expect on a £300 bike you would be better off lokking at brands like decathlon rockriders for instance there 8.1 2011 is only £499 it has the new rock shox recon silver with the new pop loc it has sram x7 derailuers and shifters and has avid elixr 5 hydraullic brakes making it much better value for money .
 

jay clock

Massive member
Location
Hampshire UK
Welcome. Translation for the over 40s......

They're not all that they are cracked up to be. You're mainly just paying for the name.

For instance the new Valour at £300 doesn't even have disc brakes, which isn't good at all, and as you work up the ladder to the Vulcan they don't even have good brand forks. They are SR Suntour which is an entry level cycling brand. When you are paying £420 you would expect a little better.
Also it's using SRAM X4 gears which are what you would expect on a £300 bike.

You would be better off looking at brands like Decathlon Rockrider. For instance their 8.1 2011 is only £499. It has the new Rock Shox Recon Silver with the new PopLoc. It has SRAM X7 derailleurs and shifters and has Avid Elixr 5 hydraulic brakes making it much better value for money.
 

Tyke

Senior Member
Some of the road bike spec was lowered mid season last year check the one you buy.

Riding Vanquish great value on C2W.
 

snailracer

Über Member
you also take your chances with the quality of the bike; not just staff and set-up

I'd say that they clearly appear to offer good value for money BUT perhaps it's a false economy. IMO you'd be better off spending a little more and getting a Specialized (IMO they make excellent 'cheap' bikes) or even a Boardman (if you really love Halfords)
Didn't Specialized just recall a whole bunch of bikes for brakes that break? To me, that is the definition of poor quality, despite how fancy they look.
 

alecstilleyedye

nothing in moderation
Moderator
i'd ignore the spotty teen. the valour is a road bike, which just don't have disk brakes (even the pros'), and it's a bit opinionated for a first post imho.

carrera are great bikes for the money, just be wary of halfords spanner monkeys who can ruin them with ham fistedness (not all halfords' mechanics are rubbish, but some are and these seem to be in the majority).

the op has done with wise thing of buying online and putting it together himself…
 
Holy Thread Resurrection!

Well gives me a chance to recommend the Subway 2 again, love it for my commute and is good for trails etc You'll probably want to upgrade the grips and/or the seat to avoid soreness but its a good solid bike.
 
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