I have owned and ridden it for several years, and it has held up well, and looks good. It's a fun ride. I ride the Siskiyou (metric) Century every year, and its a great ride.

Pedals, stem, tires and seat. Pedals I exchanged for to enable shoe clips. Exchanged the stem for a high rise to shift my posture for comfort (am an older rider). Put on Continental Gatorskin to help combat against goathead thorns prevalent in our area. The seat was OK, but I think the

Ordered mine after considerable review of what I wanted/needed. The items I exchanged (above) were what I would say are comfort items. Not expensive and I expect I'd want to replace them on most any bike I'd get. I have many thousands of miles on it, and rather than trade it in on an expensive new complete bicycle, I'd rather upgrade the gearing and wheels. I'm not a racer, I'm a rider, and this bike goes the distance, 10, 20, 65 miles, day after day. Used to use it for commuting home from work (rail and bus to work), 24 miles along the American River. Wow, them were the days. Highly recommend it for commuting with and general riding, especially distance. Now that I am retired I'm considering riding it to NY (from CA). Not sure if I'm up to it, but I'm sure the bike is.

This bike is now going on seven years and still going strong. The only thing left of the original is the frame, front fork and stem. I really like the weight and riding position. For what I have paid for upgrades I could have bought a good carbon. However, I like the push/pull gearing and the ride.

All of the weaknesses have been upgraded from pedals to crank, cassette, chain, derailleurs and wheels. With the upgrades I took off about pounds and it wasn't a heavy bike to begin with. However, it still has the same ride only better

Obviously there are newer bikes with higher end materials. I have been tempted but nothing I have seen so far has tempted me to change.

Price.. Cost US$260 here in China. Wow!!!! Eat your heart out guys!. Tyres narrow enough to keep up with a road bike. Clean lines, simple, no frills. Shinao gears etc.

As yet, undiscovered. Oh, come on guys, the pedals on all bikes are only there to let you ride it home! Get real. You need to buy ones that you use bike shoes with. Duh!

I used to ride 10,000 km a year, when I was in training, so think I know bikes a little. My own one is top of the line Giant, Durace, Carbon fibre etc etc.. Bought this for my girlfriend, because it was "love at first site". (Bike, not her). She was used to riding a mountain bike, so this suited her perfectly. We had almost bought another mountain bike at another shop, but they would not let her test ride it! Crazy. So it was fortunate we walked out in disgust and went to the next shop. Thinking of buying one myself, as a "knock around bike".

Light weight, fast enough for all around street riding and a great gear ratio.

Pedals that come with this bicycle are useless so I changed them out for a cheap pedal and I am very very happy with the bicycle.

I think I have owned this bicycle for about 3 years now and I thought it was time to write a review. I am 58 years old and I have been riding bicycles almost everyday since I was 5 years old. I live in New Jersey by the Hudson River and I ride in rain sleet and snow. This is one of the three bicycles that I own and I really enjoy riding this bicycle the most. It is very light and maneuvers easily around the many hazards that we have here. I like the upright position of the handle bars and with the extensions it is great for climbing hills. The gears shift very smoothly and the range of gears are great for where I live. I also like the carbon front fork that makes for a smoother ride.

Fast, dependable, shifts well for lower end parts..(not bad though)

The stem.

Best dang bike I've found for the money. I take it with me just about everywhere. The only things I've done to it is swap out the stock rubber for something better in the same size.. Pedals next. Oh...added Freddy Fenders too and nuked the adjustable stem. I really highly recommend the shop I bought it at too. ICS in Indy.

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Trek 7.3

Relatively light, gears shift fine, good balance of comfort and speed.

Don't like the grips on the handlebars at all, will probably replace them. Also, the pedals admittedly suck. I replaced them for 20 bucks with pedals that I could add toe clips to. I gave this 4 stars b/c of those two issues.

I recently decided that it was time to buy a new bike after several 10-15 miles rides on my mid-90s specialized hard rock sport. I wanted something that wouldn't be so sluggish, but also, I didn't mind sacrificing some speed for comfort, as I have no plans on competitively riding. The Giant FCR 3 has worked out perfectly for my needs (i.e. someone who wants to go on long rides, but doesn't care about having the absolute fastest bike with the absolute best gear). I think way too many people buy into all the hype about bicycles, and spend way too much money, when really, the most important thing is how you feel when you ride it. I feel very much at home on this bike. It's light (at least in comparison to my old hard rock), responsive, and just a blast to ride. And I bet I could beat at lot of people with bikes that cost 5 times as much, as the most important thing is what sort of shape you're in. I recommend this bicycle to anyone who wants to really enjoy their ride, but doesn't want to break the bank.

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I looked at some Treks, but the Giant was the most reasonable, price-wise.

Comfortable ride
Decent shifting
Decent weight
Excelent value for the price

Pedals

I started road cycling about 2 years ago with a "retail store" mountain bike. After a long pause of about a year I restarted on February and by March I decided it was time to get something for the road.

Due to some back problems I didn't want a traditional drop handle bar so I looked for a hybrid. Very fortunate for me since the starting prices for road bikes are sooo expensive.

I test rode other brands (Jamis, Cannondale and Trek) and at the end decided to go for the FCR based on reviews and $$.

I decided to go for the basic model (FCR 3) mainly because I was not sure my back and knee will keep up with my new hobbie. I've been riding about 20 miles 4-5 times on weekdays and about 40-50 once a weekend with the local road riding group.

After about 1000 miles on it I must say I'm extremely happy with it. My experience with road bikes was zero before, so I don't have anything to compare it with but by riding with the weekend group with ciclysts that average well above U$ 1000 bikes, I noticed the FCR3 can keep up with them. Many of the other riders noticed my bike and are surprised how well it rides.

I plan to change the stock 32 width tires to a 28 and if possible to a 25 so I can increase even more my speed. Of course I know I will loose some of the comfort. However with the stock equipment I can keep up with the 20-22 m/h group.

Since I got so much into this sport, I plan in the non so distant future to upgrade to a better road bike. For entry level ciclysts I strongly recommend the FCR3 or the 2 or ven the 1 if you have the extra money and don't mind a little less comfort.

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None, except for the "retail store" mountain bike

Fast, light, comfortable, affordable, sturdy, and it looks awesome

Handlebars are a little uncomfortable after an hour or so but not enough to really complain

I've ridden old Walmart and various cheap comfort bike 4-5 a week for about 8 years now. I'm only 18 and I enjoyed the exercise and overall experience of riding, so I decided to invest in a better bike. I saw Giant was highest rated in Consumer Reports, so I found a dealer near me and went to check out their bikes. I enjoyed the comfort of my old bike, but I really wanted to get a faster bike. I tried out the Cypress and thought it was really comfortable, but it was rather heavy and slow. Then I saw the FCR 3 and instantly fell in love. Not only did it look like a beast, but it rode well!

I test rode it and new I had to buy it. It was fast, light, sturdy, and surprisingly comfortable. I wasn't manly enough to get a full on road bike with the seats that squash your naughty bits, so this was definitely the next best thing.

I've had it a few weeks now, and I love it. I've been averaging 10-20 miles a ride on it, and found it travels quite fast with little effort. I even bought some of those spicy bike shorts, so now I'm hardcore! I don't know much about bikes, but I do know its an awesome bike and well worth the money.

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Nothing similar to this beast of a bike

Comfortable frame geometry. Gears shift smoothly.

Stock brakes are not very good.

I own a 2008 FCR3. Good fitness bike.
Average ride is 10-15 miles. Frame is woth upgrading. Would suggest a road bike if you want to ride longer. Overall very good bike for the money.

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Specialized Sirrus, Trek FX