Like the Gliss, a plush ride, but with a more tempestuous attitude toward the less developed path. Ground hugging handling with the short wheel based spunk. Commute, cruise, tour... and put it away wet, it'll bounce back.
Strengths: Beautifully designed, strong frame
Perfect seating/crank position
Incredibly stable at speed
RANS seat
RST Sprite AET front forks (honest!)
Weaknesses: Wrong configuration from factory
Could be a long stepdown for shorter riders
Mildly higher crank could frighten newbies
Bottom Line:
Put bluntly, the Vivo comes from the factory configured completely wrong. Poor tires, poor chainring selection, poor cassette, poor rear shock. HOWEVER, all are easily fixed, and once corrected, the bike is transformed into a remarkable machine. It took me a year to get my Vivo dialed in, but once I did, it has become a magical ride. A Cane Creek rear shock completely changed the nature of the ride - it's now Cadillac quality. Schwalbe Big Apples are a breakthrough - they are amazing all-purpose tires, and perfectly match the Cane Creek. The gearing was uselessly tall for this bike - I switched to an 11-34 rear cassette combined with all new mt crank/ring set to gear down a magnitude - now it climbs virtually anything, yet will still run downhill to almost 40mph.
This bike's seat/crank relationship is between the Tailwind and the Rocket, and it may be the best combination out there.
Gotta call out one piece on the 2003 model which IS a sleeper/keeper - the RST Sprite AET front suspension fork. Earlier models were non-adjustable - this one is air on one side, spring over polymer on the other, both are adjustable for damping/travel - I don't know of any other 20" fork with this much technology and adjustability - it's as good as the previous versions were weak.
The Vivo is, at it's core, a "long" short wheelbase, which means stability AND responsiveness, perhaps like a Giro were it suspended. But it's suspension dynamics set it apart from anything out there. It winds up being fast, unbelievably comfortable, and well balanced, suited for just about anything. I've put Specialized Spanky tires on it for mild single track, and swapped my custom road wheel set on for fast road spins. The Schwalbes provide 90% of both, and are more comfortable.
Bottom line - if you're willing to invest some time to make it yours, you will find the Vivo unmatched as an all-around, flexible, quality ride.
Similar Products Used: Many recumbents, many mountain bikes
Bike Setup: Shimano Exage 500 LX mt triple crankset
Matching Shimano LX100 mt triple front dr
Custom Real chainring set (58/46/34)
SRAM 5.0 11-32 rear cassette
KoolStop Salmon mtn pads
Schwalbe Big Apple tires
Cane Creek AD-5 rear shock
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Dblott
a Recreational Rider
from Seatle, WA
Date Reviewed: December 19, 2002
Strengths: Great seat. Handles well. Comfy Ride. Good Bright Color. Versatile. Very fast down hill, Cool...
Weaknesses: Terrible stock tires are heavy and roll poorly. No Stock rear rack available. Seat clamp could be better. Shock in under sprung for full size riders, Limited car racks will work to haul it around.
Bottom Line:
Great bike with a little part swapping. Great price for what you get. I can ride it all day long in comfort.
Similar Products Used: Bike E. Specialized MTB. Various Upright Road Bikes.
Bike Setup: Added Super Zzipper tinted fairing (+2-3 MPH), Swapped tires to Primo Comets 1.35's (2-3 MPH), swapped to Cane Creek Ad-12 shock (lighter and better..on the trade-in deal),Specialized Astro light, Cat eye comp.,Egg beaters or clipless pedals area a must. Basic back pack to back of seat for now. AngleTech Aero Trunk in the near future.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Steve
a Recreational Rider
from Darien, WI, USA
Date Reviewed: July 29, 2001
Strengths: Very comfortable ride, handles hills better than most recumbents, ability to make tight turns, best seat on the market, hydrolic brakes stop on a dime.
Weaknesses: A bit heavy but thats expected with a dual suspension bike. Slight cramping in the arms due to the position of the handle bars. The handle bars are hinged and can be adjusted slightly but I think under seat stearing would be more comfortable.
Bottom Line:
The bike I got was an incredible value. The pre-1999 models were selling for $2400 but I was able to pick mine up for the same price as the 1999 models (and I got the bag thrown in, too!). The component set before 1999 was a bit better. Todays models are still great bikes but if I were to rate todays models, I would give them a 4/5 for value. These bikes are heavy and I would like to see rans make an effort to lighten them up a bit. Still, this is not a racer, it a touring bike and thats what it does well. The `bent seating position is perfect for scenic rides. The vivo holds its own going up hills and can outrun just about anything on downhills. On flats its about as fast as a road bike. But if it were lighter... I recommend this bike to anyone looking for a bent and wants comfort. It fits large and small. If speed is what you are looking for, perhaps a go with something like a Rans Rocket or look at Vision bikes.
Purchased At: Wheel & Sprocket - Hales Corners, WI
Similar Products Used: Rans Tailwind, Rans Rocket, Vision
Bike Setup: I have a late model 1998 Vivo. This one has the improved 1999 frame with the pump peg and flip down handlebars but still contains the better 1998 component package with hydrolic breaks. I added a rans bag, a vision computer mount, a Cateye computer, and shimano clipless petals (ones with platforms so that I dont have to "clip in" if I start out on a hill).
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Tim T
a Commuter
from Portland, OR USA
Date Reviewed: July 14, 2000
Strengths: Comfort - Nice Seat very plush dual suspension. Very nice compoenents, 27 speed, Fast bike good looking bike.
Weaknesses: Seat rail - the seat is too easy to move back. Tires are a weak choice
Bottom Line:
Nice Bike very good looking (I like the dual 20" wheels) I knew I had to have it once I saw it. I find that the only thing that get tired on rides is my legs.
Similar Products Used: 1994 BikeE (5 years) Test drove a RANS Rocket and VREX
Bike Setup: Stock except replace tire w/ ACS RL Edges High Pressure
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Mark Evans
a Recreational Rider
from Dothan, AL USA
Date Reviewed: June 18, 2000
Strengths: plush ride,stable, Rans great seat
Weaknesses: poor choise of componets for price, poor tires
Bottom Line:
The Vivo at $2000 is not a bike for the occasional rider nor is it for the speed freak, it is for the rider that rides alot and has a appreciation of a plush ride. The components are under par for a $2000 bike, mostly sram. Desine and craftmanship of the frame is vary good.
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