Hybrid Choice | Commuting General | Commuting | Forums - BikeRadar

chrishumes · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 6:54 pm

right, im going for a hybrid as its gunna suit the route i need. may get a road bike next year of i get into it properly. so choices are:-

giant rapid 1 2010 - £800
trek 7.7 fx 2010 - £1200
trek 7.9 fx 2009 - £1430

im the sort of person who wants the best of everything, but as this is cycle to work I want the best deal as well, so I would put the extra cash to the £1000 limit.

my heart says go for the 2009 model, but is it really worth paying nearly double against the giant??

cheers guys

ride_whenever · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 7:10 pm

eeeerm, you usually cannot top up the voucher... They're also cracking down on this practice.

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456!
silly little bike

g00se · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 7:13 pm

Hi,

I'd disagree - sorry, I was told topping up was OK - provided you do it out of your own cash at the time you pick up the bike and not as part of the salary deduction. Best check with the shop you plan to buy it from.

chrishumes · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 7:18 pm

i can top up, ive checked

ride_whenever · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 7:20 pm

If you're planning on spending that much, buy a road bike, if you don't get on with c2w then you'll be able to recoup more money from it.

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456!
silly little bike

chrishumes · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 7:33 pm

no mate, ive read all the debates about hybrid/road and want a hybrid!

prawny · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 10:43 pm

I can see the point of hybrids, I'd actually quite like one (sorry guys I've been drinking) but do you need to spend so much on one if you're thinking of getting a roadie next year anyway?

The hybrids at £6-800 are pretty much spot on for commuting anything over that is relly overkill, I paid £450 for my road bike and I've done nearly 4000 miles since June, the shifters are worth about £200 Laughing

Also if your new to the road cycling lark don't underestimate the cost of peripherals, I reckon to get all the stuff I want, helmets, waterproofs, shorts, shoes etc I'd want to spend about £500.

FCN 9 - Saracen Dirttrax Disc
FCN 5 - Boardman Road Comp

DesWeller · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 11:57 pm

Bicycles are mature technology and have been for ages. Little point paying a significant premium for next year's model IMO.

I would resist the temptation to spend a lot on a hybrid, as prawny states, road shifters are muy expensivo (£150+ for Shimano) but the MTB shifters on hybrids are a fraction of the cost.

Of course all this depends on how much importance you place on having the latest model. I would recommend putting aside some of your budget for a bike fitting session though. It really affects your power transfer efficiency and comfort over long distances.

- - -
FCN 4 - BeOne Storm 1.0 (hairy legged roadie)
FCN 8 - The Winter Beast (panniered hybrid)

biondino · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 12:18 am

dilemna · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 12:46 am

+1 to all the above comments. If you plan to buy a road bike next year why not just get one now and forget the hybrid? No hybrid is worth spending £1,400 on!!!! You can get perfectly good ones for £400-500 if all you are going to ride it for is commuting. Road bikes are in a totally different league to hybrids. If you go on a club run you WILL wish you were riding a road bike as you will not be able to keep up on a hybrid, seriously, and compared to a road bike on a long fast run they are nowhere near as comfortable.

The difference you will notice between a £400 - £500 and a £1,400 hybrid will be marginal. Put your money toward a decent road bike. You will not regret it. Unless of course you just won a lottery and have money to burn. But then why would you need a hybrid for commuting as presumably you would have given up work for a life of leisure Laughing

.

I have a Trek 7.5FX hybrid which I think cost about £300 back in 2001 which I used just for commuting 25 miles a day. It has been brilliant and cheap. Bits have worn out and been replaced with better in the sales. The frame is light, strong and durable. I wouldn't dream of taking it on a club run as I would soon be dropped. I spent more money on a road bike, £900 end of season sale price down from £1,200 if I remember, on a Trek 1500 with full Ultegra spec which was then the out going model at the end of 2004. It has performed faultlessly. If you buy next year's model you are paying top dollar. As I say great if you have a wad of cash burning a hole in your pocket ....

Life is like a roll of toilet paper; long and useful, but always ends at the wrong moment. Anon.
Think how stupid the average person is.......
half of them are even more stupid than you first thought.

MonkeyMonster · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 9:30 am

Will you roadies lay off the man! He wants a hybrid AND you can notice the difference between better spec components that knock the price up.

While I might not have the fitness that allows me to keep up with some roadies at 25+ for long periods, the frame and gearing will allow me in future (once I get the finger out), Comfort of riding position is good too.

As for the hybrid - I wouldn't get this years model, unless the components are far better. Save money on the bike price and get better locks and more gear that will help make the rides more comfortable.

Modified Cannondale M500 [98]

FCN: 8

fenboy369 · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 10:30 am

Right then. I have a hybrid, it was purchased for a 5 mile ride, train trip then another 5 mile at other end. It doesnt mater if it gets battered one train, it rides nice in the city and is a nice bike. I enjoy riding it, can keep an 18mph average for the 18 miles ride in. But now I am riding all the way, 18 or 15 miles depending where I go from. I wish I had got a road bike, but I'll be getting one soon, so I'll have the two plus my mtb, so every cloud and all that! Wink

Just have a think as to if you want to future proof yourself a little by getting a road bike. Or get a hybrid, get fitter, get a road bike, then single speed the hybrid!

09 Pitch Comp - FCN (why bother?) 11
07 DewDeluxe (Shall I single speed her?) (No. My legs aint man enough yet....) FCN - 8

Onan · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 11:00 am

The hybrid/road bike thing is irrelevant in this thread. Guy wants flat bars, that's what he should have.

I do think though, spending nearly 1500 on a commuter is a bit much. I wouldn't want to be hammering a bike that expensive every day on winter roads. Not when you could get something perfectly adequate for half that.

But I'm pretty cheap.

Drink poison. Wrestle snakes.

The Beginner · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 11:15 am

I've just put together a Hybrid commuter based on a touring frame but with MTB overtones using nearly new parts for £240......much more my kind of budget!

Simon

FCN9 using a home built hybrid (believed to be a Carrera touring frame) also building an MTB from a Kraken frame.

0scar · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 11:59 am

Have you thought about the Scott Sub 10? I had a Sub 30 and it was fantastic, the difference between the two seems to be better components and finishing kit. 26" slicks give you great acceleration out of the lights and a lower centre of gravity than 700s. If you've decided against a road bike I guess you're happy to lose a bit of top speed, so the benefits of disc brakes should compensate for their weight. The highest ring on this is a 48 tooth and the lowest is a 26 which you will never need commuting so you could always upgrade to a 30/39/50.

It's £650 in the Evans sale and CRC have FSA chainsets down to £30- £40 so for £700 you would get a lot of bike for your money.

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/scott/sub-10-2009-hybrid-bike-ec016303

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=10290

No Logo racer. FCN 7

ride_whenever · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 12:14 pm

If i was dead set on getting a hybrid for that money, i'd seriously consider going into a GOOD independent bike shop and getting them to build me one with a rohloff. Basically maintenance free other than an oil change every few thousand miles. Nice wide range of gears and you can get something a little different.

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456!
silly little bike

Stevo 666 · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 12:18 pm

I would go for the 2009 model unless of course you really have to have the 2010 colour scheme.

I can recommend my Hybrid (see sig) which comes in a variety of specs and prices all of which should be in your price range. You just have to get over the idea of buying from Halfords - plenty of other threads on that one...

You'll always get some people (roadies) Wink

trying to put you off hybrids: in the end its horses for courses and like you, I chose a hybrid because it was the most suitable thing for me do my commuting. Also probably plenty of threads on that subject as well.

Happy shopping Cool

Steve.

'09 Giant Anthem X1.
Boardman Hybrid Pro Ltd.

Wallace1492 · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 12:37 pm

I was going to get a hybrid, but then got taken by the Dark Side, and now commute on a Tricross. Best decision I ever made.

Kona Caldera - nobblies back on
Specialised Tricross - rack mudguards and panniers

FCN : 9/7

"Encyclopaedia is a fetish for very small bicycles"

The Hundredth Idiot · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 12:39 pm

MonkeyMonster · **Posted** Mon Nov 9, 2009 12:41 pm

I scare (most) roadies on a slicked mtb and given the state of my hips it's likely I couldn't handle the road bike position so won't ever get one... Its when I next re-upgrade the chainset to a 52+ road one (its 48 atm) and then scare them even more I'm looking forward to Twisted Evil

Modified Cannondale M500 [98]

FCN: 8

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