Land rover elite

[Grendel]

I am ordering a bike through Halfords (cycle to work, and that's another story) but I have been given a choice of two folding bikes as they can't get the one I want.
I'm looking for any comments on either the Dahon Espresso or the Land Rover Elite (which I understand to be a Dahon frame).
I'm looking to use the bike to do some Munro bagging, so it will have to be able to cope with some light off road stuff.
Any help?

 

[Mr Pig]

Hello and welcome :0)

I think you're looking for too much it one bike. I assume you must have a folding bike but to be honest I don't think that either of those bikes are up to off road riding. For a kick off you'll need proper off road tyres for your hills unless you like falling off a lot.

Do you really need a folding bike?

 

[Grendel]

I travel by train, and on the Inverness line you are limited to two bikes per train, however a folded bike is classed as luggage, not a bike. Therefore no need to book in advance, or worry about being refused access to the train as the two bike allocation is full.
I do have a mountain bike, but in the past have had difficulty getting booked on the train, especially at short notice.

I had ordered a Dahon Jack through the cycle to work scheme, however after SIX WEEKS halfords have now informed me that they cannot source a Dahon Jack, and that their supplier, Fisher are refusing to get one as they are ceasing to deal with Dahon.

As Halfords have my cycle to work voucher I am stuck with a limited choice. The rules of the scheme are that you cannot add to it, so having:
a) Phoned Halfwits to confirm they could get the bike
Obtained vouchers to cover the price quoted
c) Surrendered the vouchers to Halfwits.

I am now stuck. The rules are that once surrendered I cannot cancel, so I am stuck with a budget of £450 and a limited choice of bikes in the price range.

So, to cut a long story short, yes I would like a folding bike, with some off road, mainly dirt track, capability.
Are any of the above suitable, or are there any other suggestions?

 

[maurice]

Tough one. You really want a proper mtb for off road riding - but I've been there when after a 60 mile ride some jobsworth conductor has refused to let me on a near-empty train because the bike allocation was taken up.

Sorry can't be of help, but good luck.

 

[Mr Pig]

Six of us got on an empty train on the way out for a ride once and were told to get off by the ticket gestapo. Thankfully we managed to sweet-talk our way back on by I understand that you can't risk that every day. What a bummer.

I'd buy a slick, light-weight folder for work and keep the old MTB for the hills. You could maybe buy a cheaper folder and put some cash into upgrading the MTB. Either that or buy a used MTB if the old one isn't up to much. Loads of people buy bikes and never use them. About six-months ago I found a used GT MTB for a mate that was literally like brand new, it had never been taken outside the house, and cost £200 for a spec that would cost 400-500 in the shops today.

 

[Globalti]

Having taken my MTB on the train to climb Mt Keen I know the problem. Even though I had booked my bike on both legs of the outward trip it was touch and go whether I woud actually get on the train with it. It's a national disgrace that they make it so hard to take a bike on the trains. The ride in to Mt Keen wasn't particularly rough, so I reckon almost any bike except a road bike would have been okay. Many Scottish Land Rover tracks aren't as good though.

Here's a pic of my mate the Munro bagger on an awful hired bike, approaching our target

 

[Grendel]

I've cycled into a few hills on a number of bikes, but never a folder.
I have a Saracen Hyway and a Saracen Raw 2 which have both seen me in and out of Culra easily, so I know that my other bikes are up to what I'm after.
I was at Dalwhinnie and saw two chaps being turned away from the train as there would have been three bikes on the train, and after a long ride that wasn't what they wanted to hear (they had to carry on to Perth!).

I imagine that the Land Rover Elite will suit me for the limited use it will get. I do mean to use it occasionaly, and generally I rotate my way through my other bikes for commuting anyway.