Raleigh Pioneer Metro GLX

[fsa259]

Is the Raleigh Pioneer Metro GLX worth £315? What about its younger siblings the LX, or just the Metro?

Or is there another similarly priced model which offers better value for money and reliability?

In essence, I'm after a hybrid road bike. Daily commute of about 10 miles to cover. Short of that, I am a complete biking noob.

I would consider buying a second hand one....but am not clued up enough to make sure I'm not being sold a dud.

Any advice?

 

[mickle]

Raleigh aren't great bikes I'm afraid, much as I would like them to be. They never have been much cop to be honest (apart from the hand-built models from the lightweight division), not when they were made in Nottingham and particularly not now that they are built in Indonesia/Cambodia/Singapore. If they were Taiwanese they'd be built to a standard but Raleigh in all their wisdom are forever seeking new ways to reduce costs, even when it has a substantial negative impact on their quality assurance. The last batch of Raleighs I was involved with had their tyres blow off and misaligned drop-outs. The first is an obvious danger, the second would result in a lifetime of broken rear axles if not sorted. Shocking lack of quality control. Avoid.

Look at Giant, Trek, Specialized, Kona... anything but Raleigh really.