Very cheap new trikes. Too good to be true?

[BlackPanther]

Just noticed these have appeared on ebay.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/A1-PERFOR...300?pt=US_Bicycles_Frames&hash=item1e871a3fc4

Seems very cheap, especially with free delivery and the fact that there's a 'Best Offer' option which should mean another 5-10% of the price. A quick bit of research revealed they're made in Taiwan....not necessarily a bad thing though http://www.performer.com.tw/new/index.php?cPath=84 and a bit of a review on Bentrider shows that they're maybe better quality than the price suggests http://www.bentrideronline.com/?p=9425

Looking at the prices of new trikes available in the U.K. from the likes of Ice and Catrike, these seem like quite a bargain? Or am I missing something?

Carl.

 

[Mark Grant]

Free delivery but you'll probably have to pay import duty and VAT.

 

[BlackPanther]

Free delivery but you'll probably have to pay import duty and VAT.

Uh-oh I'd not thought of that, I'm so used to ordering from Europe and not having to stump up,. I suppose that even after paying, it's still a good saving. Mind you, if someone in Australia is importing them, then there may be Euro supplier? More research required.

 

[cosmicbike]

I'd be a bit concerned about backup and parts availability too...

 

[Aushiker]

BentRider have recently done a review of the Performer Trike - X. Performer bikes are quite common here in Australia.

Andrew

 

[mrandmrspoves]

Free delivery but you'll probably have to pay import duty and VAT.

According to the agent in Brisbane duties are prepaid before export.......I was dubious that this would be the case so calculated that a new model imported would come in at around £1300 - which is still on the cheap side if they're any good. Good review from Bentrider and others tempted me to go this route......

Great communication from the dealer in Brisbane and he told me to expect my trike within 3 weeks. It arrived on Tuesday.....and no VAT or import duty to pay! So purchased for a total cost of £1009.32 pence. I bought the 27 geared E trike model which comes in kit form - so not a task for anyone who will struggle with assembly, adjusting brakes, gears etc. but it took me about 6 hours from start to finish
Setting the steering tracking right took time to (hopefully) get right. The front wheel axle is bolted onto the main frame by 4 bolts which requires some lining up to get true. I needed to saw about 8cm off the boom as it wouldn't adjust short enough for my 29 inch (inner) legs.
. It may need minor tuning when I take it for a proper test run tomorrow. Initial thoughts based on riding it a few yards along the road outside my house, the Performer feels very different than my old Trice. The sitting position is more supported in the bucket seat and it feels like a better base to push from. The seat angle is adjustable but even in the most upright position it is more reclined than the Trice. The Performer seems less agile than the Trice, it is about a foot longer and has a wider turning circle but it is narrower than the Trice.
I will write a full review after a full test run....

The angles the photos were taken at make it look all out of line - but it isn't.

 

[mrandmrspoves]

Well a wet and windy day so no long test ride and a few teething problems to sort. I have rerouted the brake cables as they were drawing tight and applying the brakes on full lock. Gears were a bit jumpy partly down to my initial indexing and partly due to having routed the chain incorrectly over the under seat pulley rather than under the pulley. Now these little niggles are sorted, the performer rides like a dream. The very reclined position felt good with a little less wind drag than my Trice. The bucket seat feels comfortable and it seems easy to apply power through my legs from the solid base. The disc brakes feel ok - but not any better than the Sturmey Archer drums the Trice has and having a separate lever for the two front brakes and no rear parking brake is not as good an arrangement than the Trice.
Full lock is much less acute than on my Trice and the turning circle is much bigger so turning in the road is harder and may require reversing if the road is not particularly wide. Turning at speed feels less stable than the Trice but not particularly unstable.
The looks are of a long, lean speed machine and I guess that the performance will prove to be just that. The gearing is truly wide range with a 52/42/ 30 FSA Triple up front and Acera 7 speed 11- 34 at the rear. I was delighted to find my trike equipped with bar end levers rather than twist grip which was in the specification.
Overall, this is a great bit of kit for minimally over£1000 and I am extremely happy with my purchase.

 

[Scoosh]

@mrandmrspoves - Looks great and thanks for keeping us in the picture.

Hope you have many happy, comfortable miles together !

 

[mrandmrspoves]

@mrandmrspoves - Looks great and thanks for keeping us in the picture.

Hope you have many happy, comfortable miles together !

Thanks Scoosh. We plan to!

 

[Aushiker]

Looking great. Thanks for the update.

Andrew

 

[numbnuts]

With import duty and tax

Total customs value (CIF): £959.81
This is the amount that customs values your import at
- Duty: £143.97
- VAT: £220.76
Total import duty & taxes due: £364.73
This is the amount that needs to be paid to customs
Total landed cost: £1324.54
This is the total cost of importing, including product, shipping, insurance and import duty & taxes

at exchange rate of 1 GBP = 1.85 AUD

 

[mrandmrspoves]

With import duty and tax

Total customs value (CIF): £959.81
This is the amount that customs values your import at
- Duty: £143.97
- VAT: £220.76
Total import duty & taxes due: £364.73
This is the amount that needs to be paid to customs
Total landed cost: £1324.54
This is the total cost of importing, including product, shipping, insurance and import duty & taxes

at exchange rate of 1 GBP = 1.85 AUD

That's what I expected to pay! (but not what I did pay)

 

[mrandmrspoves]

I'd be a bit concerned about backup and parts availability too...

Well having had my Performer for 2 weeks all is going well - except for a rattly mud guard that wouldn't stay quiet. Today, I decided to add an extra strut to give it more support and when I took it off the trike I found the cause of the rattle was a snapped bracket support - which was not visible because it was under the headset for that wheel.. I took a photo and emailed Steve, the distributor in Brisbane and he has replied already saying he will get a new bracket to me by next week. In the meantime I ground the broken bracket down a little and have welded it so good to go and should my welding not stand the test of time (I taught myself to weld when I had a VW camper and paid a local garage to do some welding for the MOT - it wasn't cheap but it looked like the metal they welded had been glued on with chewing gum and I thought that if such poor work was to MOT standard, I could also achieve such a poor standard......and I did!) I will have a replacement ready. So it looks like excellent after sales service too!

 

[numbnuts]

Well that's good service, but I wonder why in broke so quickly in the first place.
Their trike’s looks very nice for the money.

 

[mrandmrspoves]

Well that's good service, but I wonder why in broke so quickly in the first place.
Their trike’s looks very nice for the money.

I have been given a tracking number for the replacement and the dealer has asked for a close up photo so he can try and identify the fault - so excellent after sales service!
The bracket is made from some form of alloy and I think that if you tried to bend it, it would snap quite quickly. My guess is that it was stressed while in transit, because the brackets came pre mounted onto the head set for each wheel and the wheels are pre assembled on the front chassis member - so easy for this little part to be stressed in transit, despite everything having been well wrapped.