Frame broken on 2.5 year old bicycle

Dopey

Folks,

I was cycling home on my push bike today when the wheel started wobbling. It turned out that the frame and snapped at the back next to the wheel bolt.

The bicycle is brand is Specialized. It is my second bike from the same shop and manufacturer. The web site states that there is a "limited life time warranty" that includes cover for any manufacturing faults.

It's a mountain bike and I only use it for city cycling.

The bike shop say I can get it welded. An engineering friend says that the weld will be strong but generally weakens the area around the weld.

Do I have a case for a replacement?

Thanks

mjbo

Hi Dopey,

I would say that you certainly would have grounds to go back to the manufacturer. A few years ago I had a Raleigh bike where something similar happened - the frame snapped near the back axle and the bike was about 7-8 years old. I checked and found that Raleigh had a 10 year guarantee on the frame. I could have returned the bike for a repair (i.e. weld) or Raleigh offered a pro-rata refund against a new bike. I had to go to a nominated Raleigh dealer and have to say they were very helpfull making sure I was 'looked after'. Hope this helps but do certainly check the 'limited lifetime warranty' - 2.5 years is way to short in my opinion.