Best warranty

[Leccy]

Value... We have a Bosch-powered Pro Connect in Hampton Wick now, with 2014 Performance Motor & 400Wh battery. It's priced at £1895 while the equivalent KTM appears to be at least a couple of hundred pounds more and arguably not as well-equipped. The Pro Connect i8 with Impulse 2.0 and 612Wh battery is still less expensive than most of the KTM bikes as far as I can see and offer greater range, power, lighting, etc.

Warranties - it's 2 years on all the Kalkhoff bikes. However, the batteries have an expected lifetime of 1100 charge cycles rather than the usual 500. Also, we've recently been informed that the battery ageing rate in the largest packs is around half that of usual i.e. 1-2% (about 0.2Ah) per year rather than 2-5% (up to 0.55Ah/year) for other chemistries.

Showrooms We have another showroom opening in Bristol later this Spring too and we're looking for another showroom in somewhere like Cambridge or Norwich. You can try Bosch, Impulse 1.0, Impulse 2.0, Xion and whatever else we have at each showroom.

Thanks. I think the nearest store you have to me is Loughborough.

A bit too far to visit for me normally but will try to get down there in the next few weeks.

 

[KTM Bike Industries UK]

The British ebike market is suffering some ridiculous marketing hype currently, KTM dealers being particularly shameless in that regard.
Tom

Hi Tom.

Is there any chance you can give us a bit more detail about this comment? We're always interested to hear feedback, on the perception of what we and our dealers are doing.

Pushing the brand, and indeed eBikes generally is something I employ people to do, so I'm pleased you're seeing more of the brand. But I don't think anyone is over hyping anything, that I'm aware of.

We've got a quality product that we're proud of, and we've got a dealer network that is clearly liking selling the product, which is why they are all saying nice things about the bikes.

We only sell KTM to cycle shops that do multiple brands, so whenever you hear a dealer praising KTM you can be fairly sure that they are doing it from a perspective of working with multiple brands and being happy with KTM.

We don't sell direct, and we don't sell to shops that do exclusively KTM because we don't believe in those business models. We like the people selling KTMs to have a choice of what to sell so customers know their are being given sensible advice and a fair choice with things to directly compare our brand too.

We appreciate that some brands will sell direct and cut out the retailers and therefore be able to do things cheaper. However we value our network of dealers and want to ensure everyone in the industry makes a decent living so things are sustainable. Lots of shops have tried being specialists in one brand in the cycle industry and in the long term it doesn't really work, which is one of the reasons why we've not gone with this model.

Your thoughts would be appreciated.

Regards
Col.

 

[wissy]

From personal experience I can say that the bike manufacturer's warranty is a waste if time and not fit for purpose. if the motor has an issue it would be Bosch's fault.. If it was the dial also Bosch. if it was the brakes then that manufacturer, gears then that brand manufacturer, rims, suspension, etc etc etc. They also do not respond to customer's emails and fob you off. They also quote agreement, small print and tell you to refer to x brand manufacturer etc etc etc and weeks can go by..... Oh and they just tell you to deal with seller whcih is fair enough but not when they are given tat information in first place. i am assuming that KTM have learnt from their experience and have improved the feedback they give to their retailers. needless to say i do not rate KTM UK suppliers much. The retailer I do rate .. Without any quibbles at all they went above and beyond ehat they needed to do despite hassles they had through no fault of their own.

the experience I had with KTM UK will definitely affect the brand I buy next time.... Booo Hiss baaa!

 

[KTM Bike Industries UK]

hmm, the processes you have described.

1) your warranty being with the dealer you bought the bike from

and

2) that brands like Bosch / Shimano / Rockshox etc etc handle the warranty process for their components themselves.

are 100% correct.

So if you break a Rockshox fork, you take your bikes to the dealer you bought the bike from, and they contact Fishers Outdoor Leisure who are the UK service centre for Rockshox for them to be fixed.

This is I'm afraid how the warranty process works for all bike brands in the UK who use branded components. There is nothing we as a brand can do to change this.

We're glad your dealer helped you out, and this is 100% what they are there to do. We can't be dealing with all the thousands of KTM customers direct I'm afraid - its not our role.

The problems with your case, from memory (I could be wrong) were all caused by the fact that you live about 300 miles away from the dealer you bought the bike from.

If you can in a few lines explain how you would have preferred things to be handled I can pass this onto the brands concerned, but I'm afraid systems are in place that the whole cycle industry has to work with.

Regards
Col

 

[Wicky]

The problems with your case, from memory (I could be wrong) were all caused by the fact that you live about 300 miles away from the dealer you bought the bike from.

Hi Col - I'm in North East Essex and researching into buying a ebike but there is a dearth of ebike dealers in the vicinity for test rides etc. So your quote doesn't inspire confidence esp if splashing out on a quality brand if things go wonky - and a KTM is on the list. I'm not a car driver and my only other means of transport is a motorcycle or train so getting a potentially problematic bike back to where I might potentially purchase it from would be err problematic and I wouldn't want my location thrown back in my face if things went tits up.

 

[KTM Bike Industries UK]

Hi,

I can't remember the exact details of the problems this lady had with her KTM, but I do remember she is in North Wales and the dealer is in Norfolk. So when there was a problem, (which is actually pretty rare - hence why I can remember this case) the dealer had to have the bike collected and brought back to their store to be fixed. The lady had problems finding a box, or couldn't be in when their couriers want to collect. I'm sure she can post the details so we can look at this specific case if needed.

These are problems you have when buying a bike, or indeed anything mail order.

This is no different with any brand or indeed any product. There are advantages to buying mail order or on-line, and equally there are advantages from buying local.

If you are looking at a KTM ebike, we'd always prefer you to buy local for the back up and to support your local shop. We do have a number of dealers in Essex, or if you have a local bike shop you'd like to use we could consider supplying them if there is no one set up as a dealer already locally.

Regards
Col

 

[Kudoscycles]

Hi Col - I'm in North East Essex and researching into buying a ebike but there is a dearth of ebike dealers in the vicinity for test rides etc. So your quote doesn't inspire confidence esp if splashing out on a quality brand if things go wonky - and a KTM is on the list. I'm not a car driver and my only other means of transport is a motorcycle or train so getting a potentially problematic bike back to where I might potentially purchase it from would be err problematic and I wouldn't want my location thrown back in my face if things went tits up.

Wicky...not sure how soon is your timescale but the London Electric Bike Company will be offering test rides for KTM on the excellent Redbridge Cycling Centre,North East London on May 18. Alternatively it's a trip to Hampton Wick,West London..which KTM bike do you want to test?
KudosDave

 

[Wicky]

Col There's a KTM motorcycle dealers close by in Halstead but they don't appear to have anything to do with ebikes. Hook of Holland/Rotterdam is closer in dry miles to an ebike dealer!

KudosDave - ta for the heads up was probably looking at a trip out to Kingston upon Thames area to see different dealers around that time to have a try out on different models depending if the NSA doesn't bring down the internet in the meantime ;-)

 

[trex]

there are only two ways of getting good warranty:

1. buy (a KTM) from local bike shop on your doorstep
2. buy direct from manufacturers (Ezee, Kudos, Rose, Woosh)

Or master the dark art of bike maintenance yourself.

 

[wissy]

Nope... Problem was not finding a box but was to do with the dial cutting out all the time and KTM not knowing what the problem was and the delay in manufacturers giving advice and correct information and the problem recurring. Snd yes the hassle sending it in a box when advice given to retailer was incorrect was a pain but that is nit what the problem was but rather an additional burden and costs to the retailer mainly. i just wanted a replacement to avoid all the ongoing hassle for retailer and me but KTM UK refused. It was more annoying when nobody at KTM seemed to know what the problem was.... Or didn't seem to care blaming Bosch? Anyhow.. Don't want to get into throwing accusations here but wanted to clarify that 'boxgate' was not the issue.. The fault was!

 

[Leccy]

Thanks for the posts. I think I'd want a local dealer reading this. Which dealers are based near York/Hull?

 

[KTM Bike Industries UK]

Nope... Problem was not finding a box but was to do with the dial cutting out all the time and KTM not knowing what the problem was and the delay in manufacturers giving advice and correct information and the problem recurring. Snd yes the hassle sending it in a box when advice given to retailer was incorrect was a pain but that is nit what the problem was but rather an additional burden and costs to the retailer mainly.

I've now checked our files on this, and I can confirm that you were told that it wasn't possible to identify the fault without the bike going to a dealer. So Electrifying Cycles collected the bike from you.

This is how the system should work, the retailer has the responsibility of dealing with customers.

i just wanted a replacement to avoid all the ongoing hassle for retailer and me but KTM UK refused.

of course we refused, I'm sorry but do you really expect a replacement full bike, when there is a slight problem with a small part. If your brakes fail on a car, BMW won't give you a whole new car!

It was more annoying when nobody at KTM seemed to know what the problem was.... Or didn't seem to care blaming Bosch?

It was a fault with the Bosch part and the bike needed to go back to the dealer for testing and to fit the new replacement parts. This really could have been a very very quick fix.

I'm sorry you don't seem happy with the system, but I really don't see how we could have done anything differently from our side.

Regards
Col.

 

[KTM Bike Industries UK]

Col There's a KTM motorcycle dealers close by in Halstead but they don't appear to have anything to do with ebikes. Hook of Holland/Rotterdam is closer in dry miles to an ebike dealer!

KudosDave - ta for the heads up was probably looking at a trip out to Kingston upon Thames area to see different dealers around that time to have a try out on different models depending if the NSA doesn't bring down the internet in the meantime ;-)

yes, I'm afraid being a KTM motorbike dealer doesn't give a retailer the automatic right to sell KTM bikes. We do sell to a few KTM motorbike stores but they have to have the right staff and give the bikes the priority they deserve.

We have dealers in Corringham and Hadleigh, or as mentioned above there are plenty in London. Or if you can get a bit further north, Gear4 in Peterborough are an excellent source of all things KTM.

Regards
Col.

 

[Wicky]

Cheers for the answers Col - is that Hadleigh, Suffolk (relatively close to me) or Hadleigh, Essex?

 

[KTM Bike Industries UK]

Cheers for the answers Col - is that Hadleigh, Suffolk (relatively close to me) or Hadleigh, Essex?

ah, sorry its Hadleigh in Essex. Oh, and I forgot about The Electric Transort shop in Cambridge, they do a good number of KTMs, and we're about to open up a dealer in Bury St Edmonds, but I'm not sure if they will be selling eBikes.

However it does mean there are a good number of dealers relatively close.

Cheers
Col.

 

[trex]

wissy probably chose her (superior quality) bike for reliability. I am aware that the problem she experienced is a one off, however, as it's rare, she should be compensated for the aggro and the days that she could not use her bike.
I reckon that each day is worth about 0.002 (0.2%) of the invoice value.
The dealer should foot the bill.
wissy's story illustrates clearly that there is an optimal role for each participant in the distribution chain.
Problems are aggravated when the bike is sold by mailorder by an LBS.
Col, perhaps you should give LBSs that sell your bikes mailorder a wider berth.
I know of companies giving their retailers 5% 'marketing funds' when the products are nicely displayed and only sold in the shop.
With regard to the speed of resolving issues, I think one stop shops have the edge and the prize for the best warranty goes to...(insert your brand here).

 

[wissy]

The main issue was that Bosch reps said there was nothing wrong with the dials and so having followed their fault testing diagnosis checks there was nothing left to do but put up with this fault recurring, KTM UK would not replace (i think they agreed at one point?) under warranty so fault was 'allowed' by default to reoccur.... It came to a point where i just decided I had to put up woth the possibility the fault could continue and the poor retailer kept having to deal with this all the time. It seems there is a known fault with (not the dial headset thing) itself but if it is a. Tightened too tight or indeed b. Tightened to correct torque settings for dial on a KTM bike's handlebar .... something to do with handlebar thickness. The dials were absolutely fine and replacements ent and tested. So far the replacement dials work but i would not feel at all co ofrtable removing and replacing them or undoing the screw to make dial easily removable.

I do not want to quibble about what did happen / did not happen but wanted to let people know that in my opinion and experiences that KTM UK will not supply a replacement bike under warranty and that such claims by branded bike manufacturer may well be a load of codswollop.... I am allowed an opinion on this based on my experiences and this is it.

I do think it is completely unfair that the retailer is lumbered with having to sort out such issues and having pressures put on them (obviously) by customers and expected to liaise with different brands of component parts with all the additional costs accrued through no fault of their own. I have been ever so impressed with my retailer and the patience they have show and buy my spares from them and got bike serviced from them.

All i am saying is, from my experience, be they justified or not (KTM uk will of course debate this as they would be expected to unfortunately), i was not happy with KTM UK. I absolutely LOVE the bike but am stating that my experience with KTM UK on the warranty, communication, time etc issues has eroded my confidence in the brand and is the only reason why I would consider another brand (yes possibly back to consider haibike again) when I replace this bike.... That is a shame. this post is not meant to be a means to attack KTM uk but to use the forum to give my experience on the topic of warranty replacement of a complete bike. The retailer has gone above and beyond what I think should be expected of them and I have had replacement dials and also more recently screws, chainguard and a couple of dodgy lights on warranty. These were not related to the main issue of the KTM not working at all issue for a fair bit of time.

 

[Artstu]

I had a gear fault with the hub on my KTM, the mail order dealer I bought my bike from had stopped selling KTM bikes and suggested I find a local dealer.

I contacted FLi the KTM importer and explained the dealer issue and the fault. I had clearly identified that it was the hub that was at fault.

Fli handled my warranty themselves by returning the wheel to Madison the Shimano importer, who replaced the hub internals. All of this was done in an efficient and prompt manner.

The new hub internals worked perfectly. So FLi get a big thumbs up from me, a very happy KTM rider.