Trek Madone 5.2 Road Bike Reviews

Price Paid:  $3900.00 at TREK San Diego

Model Year:
2009

Bike Setup:
Ultegra

Summary:
Fellow Road Riders
I was shocked when TREK wouldn't repalce my Madone 5.2 frame after all of the issues it has. BB had worn and new bearing sets would fall out after being installed. Frame had linear indications and TREK offered to cut the frame up and repalce it if there were actually cracks or if no cracks I would just be frameless! Trek shops are great but the warranty process is slow with no results. I'm a fairly high mileage ride probably 7,500 per year and TREK frames just can't keep up. Sorry for TREK in San Diego.

Price Paid:  $0.00 at LBS

Model Year:
2011

Favorite Ride:
Mountains of Chattanooga

Bike Setup:
Full ultegra, keo pedals, custom wheels

Summary:
I have a 2006 Madone 5.2 and was in a position to purchase a 2011 Madone 5.2 through the Trek friends and family deal a friend of mine gets for racing for a trek sponsored team. Even though the 2011 is made in Taiwan and not OCLV the difference in technology of the frame design is incredible. I'm 6'2 weigh 185 and the 2011 is stiffer than the 2006. The bottom bracket is 90mm and extremely stiff. I notice zero flex in the frame. The bike is 3/4 pounds lighter and screams down the descents. I think Trek makes the best bike for the masses and this one is a home run.

Strengths:
stiff frame
handles well on descents
all the power goes right to the pedals

Weaknesses:
Bontrager Race wheels are heavy and don't have good track record for reliability

Similar Products Used:
2006 Madone 5.2
Fuji Team Pro

Price Paid:  $3000.00 at LBS

Model Year:
2008

Favorite Ride:
Anywhere with hills and sun

Summary:
!!!!HEY!!!!! Madone owners are you feeling like your crank isn't quite as stiff as it once was? Well your not alone!!!

That's because Trek has a design and or manufacturing flaw with the 2008/09 madones where the carbon fiber bottom bracket socket that holds the bearings wears out and the bearings are no longer able to seat snugly. Trek's fix is to hammer a over-sized bearing "known as the V2 bearing". Their is a whole forum post on this site that goes into why this is a crappy fix "I use the term fix loosely as this is really a patch" as I guess they are hoping you will crash or sell the bike in the time it takes to wear the socket out again.

Strengths:
While the bike worked as advertised it was a fair all around bike.

Weaknesses:
Trek appears to be putting more effort into avoiding valid warranty issues than focusing on the customer service that made them successful to begin with.

Similar Products Used:
Felt, Giant, Ridley, Wiler, Look, Time

Price Paid:  $0.00

Model Year:
2007

Summary:
Great Bike please read great review on:

http://bikestuffreview.blogspot.com/

Price Paid:  $0.00 at Trek Store of KC

Model Year:
2007

Favorite Ride:
Country around KC

Bike Setup:
Ultegra drivetrain except for the 105 cassette (why couldn't they just add 50 bucks to the price and make it full Ultegra???)

Summary:
Drop down wouldn't allow 2011 in model year. This review is for a 2011 Madone 5.2.

After significant hassle with the manufacturer trying to get a replacement for a failed steerer tube (and subsequent, ugly crash), they finally relented and did the right thing. They didn't have another 2009 4.7, so they offered a 2011 5.2. After the year this mess took, I was ready to sue. I picked up the 5.2 replacement yesterday. After 1 mile on this bike, all was forgiven. I love the bike. The ride is crisp and peppy. You push the pedals and there's no bs from the bike. It goes. Moreover, it's comfortable, even without a professional setup. This may be the first bike I've owned where I am truly the limiting factor in the whole setup. I think it's faster than I am or will ever be. This was going to be my backup bike to my S-Works SL2 Roubaix. I'm afraid S-Works will become the backup. Today, I went my standard 38 mile loop in about my usual time (2.5 hours), but my average heartrate was about 3 points lower than normal...All else equal, I can only attribute it to the bike. It really does make the road eaiser to pedal on.

Strengths:
Frame is rigid and light and comfortable. No compromises at all in any area. For the money, I don't think you can get a better frame/drivetrain/wheelset out there.

Weaknesses:
The Ultegra setup leaves me a little underwhelemed...In certain gear combos, it just won't trim out. The 28 tooth gear is unusuable in the the big sprocket up front. I realize I should use this crossover gearing, but it would be nice if it would actually shift into that gear.

Similar Products Used:
2009 Roubaix SL2 S-works. 2009 Madone 4.7. 1991 Pro 2300 (still have this and use it).