A word of warning to all bikehubbers thinking of buying a bike from bikemarket.co.za - especially if you are buying online.
I bought a Merida Ninety-six 800 bike from them late July 2022 online. Everything looked good from the pics and description. The salesperson Gavin mentioned that he had checked it and the bike was all good.
They delivered the bike to me and I took it for a ride and was satisfied.
After my 3rd ride I noticed the front tyre not holding air. I inspected it and noticed there was a plug in the tread (attached).
It is well known in the community that MTB tubeless plugs are a temporary, get you home fix and this kind of repair shouldn’t be seen as a permanent fix.
I emailed bikemarket:
The response from Gavin of bikemarket:
I gave them until the end of this month to take corrective action - which they have failed to do thus far. That is why I am letting everyone know of this poor business practice of bikemarket.co.za.
A new Maxxis Ardent tyre costs just R800 from Cyclelab and they could have fixed the issue but they have shown their stubbornness.
To lose a customer for life and potentially many from bikehub over R800 when they are clearly in the wrong is just disappointing.
Shows that companies that look good from the shop can treat online buyers very badly and take advantage of them.
I would say avoid bikemarket especially if buying online. Rather buy from a reptutable seller here on bikehub or buy new.
