Giant Bicycle Inc. TCR 0

Price Paid:  $1600.00 at Private Seller

Favorite Ride:
Big Cottonwood

Bike Setup:
Giant TCR 0, Ksyrium SSC, Full Dura-Ace Look carbon stem, Leader Carbon post.

Summary:
Good light bike, sleek looking and oh yeah, light. No problems ever with the integrated head seat. Very comfortable frame. The long carbon post probably helps absorb a lot of vibration. Bike handles well at high speed. I rode a Cannondale Caad 3 frame which was super stiff but I never could keep up on the decents. Now I usually lead the pack. For the money you get a lot of bang here. This is a good bike but as a climber I really would like a stiffer rear end.

Strengths:
Did I mention it is light?

Weaknesses:
Noodley rear end. When I'm out of the saddle climbing i don't feel a very strong transfer. I can easily bend the stays with my bare hands. I've had some problems with noise but attribute that to BB not the frame.

Similar Products Used:
Cannondale CAAD 3

Price Paid:  $450.00 at private seller for f

Favorite Ride:
any

Summary:
a superb frame with terrific looks and awesome performance. i have had this bike for over one year and almost 2k miles. great for climbing, very stiff and light due to its compact geometry and lack of a clear coat.

overall, an excellent bike with great value, with performance easily rivaling Specialized S-Works or Trek 5000 Series for much less money.

Strengths:
light; stiff; much cheaper than competitors; great looks

Weaknesses:
none

Price Paid:  $4000.00 at Cyclepath

Favorite Ride:
Collingwood

Bike Setup:
stock as per giant web site

Summary:
Love my bike from day one! Super light great climbing and sprinter. Looks cool too! Not had a single problem and have put around 3,000km on it to date. I find the frame comfy, the carbon forks/post must soak up alot of the typical aluminum jarring. Full Dura-ace for $4,000cnd and ksyriums cn't miss.

Strengths:
Super light, responsive, comfy for alluminum, looks cool.

Weaknesses:
Engine could be stronger(I'm working on that!)

Price Paid:  $4500.00 at Bike dealer

Favorite Ride:
Giant TCR ZERO

Bike Setup:
Giant TCR ZERO equipped with Campagnolo Record Carbon 10 speed, Mavic open pro wheels

Summary:
I've had a Giant TCR ZERO the past 6 months and I have mixed feelings about it. It is equipped with Campagnolo Record Carbon 10 speed, which is good, maybe too good for the bike...After only 3 months the bike started creaking when I stand out of the pedals, appartently normal for aluminium bikes, but non the less very irritating. The integrated headset stiffens up quickly and needs almost weekly adjustment - Very irritating agian !!! On the whole the bike does not deliver, it looks cool, but the ride isn't

Strengths:
Looks, only looks

Weaknesses:
Stiffness (squeaks), noise, intergrated headset

Similar Products Used:
Fortunately none

Price Paid:  $1600.00

Bike Setup:
Shimano Ultegra with Mavic Cosmic wheelset.

Summary:
Just purchase a brand new Giant TCR Zero frameset using Shimano Ultegra groupset with Mavic Cosmic wheelset. Unfortunately after riding the bike for about a week, I decided that the bike needed a wipe down.

What happen next is that when I wipe the frameset, the edges of the Giant decals seems to be peeling off !!! Subsequent weeks later, got caught in a heavy downpour and guess what the peeling got worse after the wipe down.

An email to the local distributor and also Giant in Taiwan did not get me anywhere. Giant Taiwan indicate that they could not ship the decals because it might get damage during shipment.. huh ??? no UPS in Taiwan... Secondly they also invited me to visit their factory when I happend to be in Taiwan and they would gladly give me a set of decals/ stickers for the bike. Wow..... I could buy a new frameset for the cost of my butt being in Taiwan.

Anyway wanted to know if any Giant users out there share the same frustration and how did you get around it?? Change the decals to Colnago maybe ????

Regards

Eddy

Strengths:
Light and responsive

Weaknesses:
Decals/ Stickers is peeling after a few washes. Apparently found out later that this is a feature to save weight. (no clear coat on decals). Worse cannot get a replacement sticker/ decals.

Similar Products Used:
Torpado Super Racing/ Super Light. Holdsworth Avanti.