Motobecane Grand Sprint

Price Paid:  $995.00 at bikesdirect

Model Year:
2007

Bike Setup:
Stock

Summary:
Reviewing 2009 Motobecane Grand Sprint -
I catch a lot of flak and get a lot of sideways looks from local roadies who scoff at my "off label" bike. But I run Ultegra front and rear and levers/FSA K-Lite full carbon compact cranks/Cane Creek headset and brakes/ALX440sl 1470g wheelset/Ritchey cockpit/Sella Italia saddle/Michelin ProRace3 tires and a comfy ALU-carbon seatstay frame, nicely fitted, for under $1K, getting great exercise, having fun, taking fair share of pulls on the front.

Strengths:
Price simply cannot be beat.
Lightweight: 17 lbs.
Solid performing components. No cheapies.

Weaknesses:
Low glam factor, but Hey, I got bills to pay, too!

Similar Products Used:
Specialized Allez Sport

Price Paid:  $940.00 at Ebay bitting

Model Year:
2007

Favorite Ride:
Mahattan central park

Bike Setup:
was said in the summary. planning to change to carbon front rims.

Summary:
I don't know why can't I select the year 2009, the bike I ride is a 2009 model, with completely different parts. Full shimano ultegra front and rear derailleurs, shifters, and sprocket. Veulta XRP pro superlite wheels, FSA SLK hollow carbon crank. Ritchy handlebar, stem and seatpost. This bike is great compare to prices to other name brand companies. the total weight of this bike is 17.3 pounds. I've ride this bike in Manhattan and it feels great. The overall looking of this bike is beautiful too. it is not like the picture shown in this page. Anyways, I truly loved this bike and it is a great choice for someone who wants to feel the speed and can't afford that much money on bikes

Strengths:
PRICE!!!!!!!!
overall components
good looking
smooth ride with carbon fork and seatstays

Weaknesses:
customer service is not that good. the brakes was broken and they took long time to negotiate this problem, and it was still not solved.

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Price Paid:  $1000.00 at bikesdirect

Model Year:
2007

Bike Setup:
currently adjusting to fit my comfort needs:
adding 80mm stem
adding selle italia slr
adding carbon 250mm straight non setback post stella azzurra handlebar tape
easton carbon bars
db45e computer
keo classic look pedals

Summary:
baught the 2009 model on bikes direct. just put on 1000 miles. few HONEST words about the bike= the pedals, stem, and seat NEED to be replaced almost immediatly. the spd pedals that come with the bike WILL kill you..you CANNOT unclip from them. the seat is a BIT uncomfortable but what do you expect...its a low quality seat and its understandable that one has to find a seat that fits right. also, the bike comes with a 100mm stem.. a bit long! especially with the setback seatpost, you stretch a bit on the bike. Also, make SURE you flip the stem, its on a negative angle when u first get it, just flip it to raise the bars a bit, your back will defintly thank you. also, raise the stem to the max space height for maximum comfort. the vuelta wheels can def. take a beating, they are a bit heavy but they are strong. i have gone over gravel, pot holes, ran off the road, everything, and they are completely perfect and tight. the kenda tires that come with the bike get better with time...the bareness in the middle gets ultra smooth but the sides stay threaded, defnitly stick nice even in rain. the ultegra shifters are amazing, but the deraillers are tricky to adjust out of the box. also, the ritchey bars on the bike are way too wide for a 52 inch bike. they put the same bars on the 58 as they do on the 52.

Strengths:
nice flex to frame
durable wheelset
ultegra shifers
30 speeds (youll never use all of them)

great beginner bike, but you will defintly be changing parts soon to fit your style

Weaknesses:
components NOT matched to ratio
examples:
long stem on short frame
very wide bars
bars have akward drops
tricky derailler adjustment
a bit heavy! defintly not under 19 out of the box
pedals and seat are garbage ( im serious)

Similar Products Used:
trek madone

Price Paid:  $996.00 at bikesdirect.com

Model Year:
2007

Favorite Ride:
Niagara Falls to Youngstown NY

Bike Setup:
stock 2008 as on bikesdirect.com website

Summary:
I needed a bike for sprint triathlons and to keep up with by buddies that have super slick bikes. I have a couple kids and couldnt afford more than $1,000 for a bike (still too much but...). After an exhaustive search which included online searches, review of the reviews and trips to several LBSs - I chose the 2008 Grand Sprint based on absolutely unmatched value. The Kinesis frame that I was looking at at the LBSs (Fuji, Trek) appeared to be the exact same as this bike but the shops were asking minimum $1400 for last years model and max of $2200 for current year. These bikes were not even close to the same level so far as components are concerned. One LBS in particulair said that the frames ARE the same made by Kinesis http://www.kinesis.com.tw/
Please dont think I am a shill for Motobecane - I could care less, I just want the absolute best deal/ride possible. This is the first installment/review as I just received the Bike - So far so good but if the bike stinks I will let you know.

Strengths:
Unmatched value Unbelievable components
Beautiful Bike -so far

Weaknesses:
BikesDirect - no good phone number and only one person appears to be in customer service...

Similar Products Used:
Trek and fuji

Price Paid:  $995.00 at bikesdirect.com

Model Year:
2007

Favorite Ride:
Current

Bike Setup:
As spec'd on bikesdirect.

Summary:
Old bike: Specialized Crossroads
Me: 37y, M, 6'1", 230 lbs

I am in a state of amazement at the Grand Sprint. My experience with other bikes is limited, but this bike is just solid and fast, right out of the box.

Have to admit I was pretty nervous about ordering online. The bike arrived in 4 days, nicely packaged, and was easy to put together. Came with American Classic Sprint 350 wheels and should have been Vuelta Pro SL's. I'm new enough to cycling to not really know the difference. So far the AC's seem fine, light, and they roll forever. I've asked them to ship the advertised Vuelta's so I can compare the 2.

The other components are top notch. Ultegra all around, and it shifts like butter. I need to have a LBS adjust the front trim on the double but overall, I'm super impressed with the quality.

My first thoughts as I test rode it were that the geometry is definitely not as relaxed as my Crossroads. This would not be a great distance bike unless you get a different stem and/or some spacers. The bars also are a little small for me but some new gel tape might fix that. Advanced riders might like the geometry better than myself. I don't like having to force my neck up quite that much.

First long ride was about 20 miles. My neck hurt afterward, but that's not all the bike's fault. I was impressed by a) how fast it was on climbs. WOW! Hills that used to feel like my legs were going to fall off, now feel like I could do them twice. Just stand on the pedals and it takes off like a rocket. Lower grade hills feel flat. b) the double is geared perfectly (53/39) for climbs and downhills. I was worried about this, but it was not a problem. c) Smooooth. The CF fork and seatstay do wonders to make this a cushy ride. d) the wheels are fantastic. I found that I could usually coast for as long as I wanted, even on low grade climbs.

Control is snappy but confident too. I haven't tested any super hot corners yet but the ones I did try held the line like a Porsche 944. I'll admit that maybe any good bike would be an improvement, compared to the ol' Crossroads.

I still need to make some adjustments, but after my first week I am really happy with this bike. Can't wait to get some shoes for the clipless pedals.

I'm not sure what to say about the saddle. Nicely padded compared to others. It was adequate for the 20 miles. I'm sure there are better ones but I'll stick with this for awhile.

Strengths:
Components, weight, wheels

Weaknesses:
the Cane Creek brakes feel soft to me, but I may just need to adjust them.

Similar Products Used:
Specialized Crossroads, Specialized Allez Elite