Carrera Hybrid/City Bikes - Any Good?

donal7

Hi All,

Anyone know if the Carrera brand of bikes being sold in Halfords are any good?

I was looking at the Carrera city/hybrid bike. Seems good value for just over €300?

Cheers

CheGuedara

I had a Carrera Subway 2 before.

It's 'adequate' as commuter mtbs go. I will say that it isn't the lightest machine (read as heavy) and the componentry won't set the world on fire.

An alternative use of €300 that might grab you attention is the Giant CRS 4 (€315-330). It has 700c (racer diameter wheels) and more gears.

colm ó maonaigh

After having had a 'road bike' for almost 30 years I decided to change to an hybrid because my main passion is touring and could no longer spend a day on the drops. So on the spur of the moment I bought a Carrera Subway 2 in Halfords June 2007. Since then I have done an average of 20 miles a day 4/5 days a week, 2, one day spins to Donegal (from Dublin) and put up about 2.5 k miles touring in France over 2 summers on this bike and I gotta say I get to love it more every day. I have only punctured once.That's the only thing that has gone wrong with the bike.
As a daily reader of this board I have always felt I had an inferior bike (not because of anything anybody has said), altho if you Google it you will read nothing but good reviews. I know the mechs. in Halfords don't get good press but I (as I mentioned here before) was very lucky on the 1 time I took it back for it's 1st free service. The mechanic knew his stuff altho he told me he once owned a bicycle shop.
Perhaps I have been lucky and someday soon it will disintegrate on me but to be honest I think it has been great value for money.

DirkVoodoo

This was my very first bike a few years ago. A very solid if unspectacular commuter. If you want to get from point A to point B without spending huge amounts of money or dressing head to toe in lycra, this is a good machine.

shamama

I've had a Carrera for 2 years and only problem I had were with the gear but that's when it was new and I've never had a problem at Halfords either...although my next bike will be bought local for sure. As mentioned, some of the components are kind of cheap, but mine is light and reliable...what more can you ask for?

TinyExplosions

They aren't a bad bike at all -decent value for money etc. I think the main reason they don't get recommended more is the hit and miss nature of Halfords with regards to people in there knowing how to put together a bike, and the fact that you can tend to get a better spec online for the same price (or slightly more).

The Carrera's are pretty decent though, as are the Boardman range (which are exclusive to Halfords)

kenmc

Yeah I think the general consensus is that the bikes themselves are decent, nothing special but solid, however the caveat is the 'risk' you take in buying it from a car accessory shop, and the potential for a hit and miss pre-purchase advice/initial setup/service.

I popped into the one in carrickmines a while ago for some motor stuff (JoeyD doesn't really have a great range of windscreen wipers unfortunately - wonder why? - ah - it's a bike shop...) and stuck my nose around the bike section for curiosity sake, and the PFY 'salesman' was telling a woman in her mid-20s that the E150 dual-suspension 'mountain bike' (shaped object) was the perfect thing for cycling around town, despite the fact that there were far more suitable bikes on display at the time.

roysteve

Recently purchased the Carrera Subway Limited online, Shimano Gears (21) Shimano Disc Brakes and a sadldle which brings tears to the eyes! Very good spec for €284. Shame about the finish. Paint work excellent but the welding is brutal, all it needed was a quick grinding to smooth before the paint job. I have changed the saddle and the bruises have nearly gone...