Strengths: The Breezer Liberty is a though bike I had sevre chrash avoiding a squirrel. Had my bike shop reajust the steering not a problem since.
Weaknesses: Generator noisy
Bottom Line:
The Liberty is an excellent bicyle rides well and comfortable. I have over 2300 miles on this bike. Key is to get your bike shope to fite you to the bike. It came with tires prone to get flat very easly I replaced the tires after a month with Schawlbe Marathon Plus 700X32 tires greatly improved ride and handling have not had a flat since. The only negative is the generator creats quite bit of drag and noisy with Schawble tire but illumintion is adequate. I have gone on rides 50 pluss miles keeping a 16 mile per hour pace was not a problem but it is no match for my Colnago.
Similar Products Used: Finesse, Salsa, Trek, Villager, Venturi
Bike Setup: Shimano, well chosen parts with techtro brakes, really works well, even if not all top line parts! Mustache bars were my wifes preference over the MTB style bars.
Strengths: nice looking, pedal-powered light stays on at stops
Weaknesses: crummy tires, components spec'd on web site are not the same components the bike comes with, unable to adjust to an upright biking position, shifting can be problematic.
Bottom Line:
I’ve had my Breezer Liberty for about 2 weeks now. I purchased it for both frequent weekend/evening rides (less than 5 miles) as well as occasional longer rides to work (25 miles round trip). I purchased it because it came with everything I would want: pedal powered lights that stayed on at stops, a kickstand, a rack, high quality components. I’m not a bike fanatic, and I wasn’t interested in spending a lot of time shopping and piecing together the perfect bike – I wanted something that suited my needs off the rack, and I was willing to pay for this.
The Liberty has thus far been disappointing. The day I rode it home from the bike shop the bike started shifting by itself. It turned out that a wire had gotten stuck under the headlamp causing this to happen. A mechanic at the bike store noted that this was an unfortunate design flaw. This was easily corrected, but I can’t help notice that this bike doesn’t shift as smoothly as other bikes I tested (Batavus comes to mind).
For a short, comfy ride around town a lot of cruiser style bikes would be better. The handlebars can’t be lifted very high, so an upright riding position is not possible.
For longer rides, the tires have proven to be a major issue. 2 out of 3 twenty-five mile rides have resulted in flats. One in the front, one in the rear. Both flats were caused by common Austin burrs. I never had problems with these types of flats with my crappy bike, so it’s extremely disappointing that a bike that costs over a grand doesn’t come with puncture resistant tires. It’s a commuter bike after all. I would also like to note that the tires spec'd on the web site are NOT the tires that come with the bike.
Strengths: This really is an "off the rack" commuter bike (see setup details below); all I have added to the bike is a seat bag to hold a multi-tool, flat repair kit and spare tube; I use bungee chords to hold my backpack on the rear rack for commuting. The heavy-duty wheels and touring tires are built to carry a serious load, but still sporty enough to keep up with traffic when necessary.
Weaknesses: The bike is advertised to come with a Basta Quattro generator, but mine was delivered with a Basta Duo. I don't know if there is a significant difference between the two, but the Duo induces a TON of drag. I ride with my lights on all the time, for visibility, so this is a significant issue for me. Breezer offers the zero-resistance Shimano Nexus generator hub on their top of the line Uptown city bike; why don't they offer it on their top of the line 'Range' bike? I wrote them both a snail mail and an email to ask this very question, but got no answer.
Even the Large 22" 'Direct-X' frame is small for my 6'3", 240lb. person; I would have appreciated and Extra Large 24" model.
Bottom Line:
I purchased my Breezer Liberty in August, 2006, at City Bikes in Washington, DC. I ride the bike 5 miles each way between my home in Gaithersburg, Maryland and the Shady Grove Metro station, 3 or 4 times a week. I purchased the bike specifically for this commute.
Similar Products Used: Specialized is coming out with its '07 Globe City 6.1 model in January; it has essentially the same equipment list as the Liberty, but comes with a larger, conventional frame and the Shimano Nexus generator hub, but costs nearly $100 less; watch out Breezer!
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