Though made with love and care in a proper factory, full testing, attention to detail all to German standards.
Yours on the other hand are probably cobbled together in someones shed in rural China.
I can understand your jealousy.
You are hilarious. I'm sure the people in your local bike shop think the same - but are all too glad to take your money.
So you've been totally taken in by the German engineering myth? I'm not saying German engineering is terrible, but it's not what it was 30 to 40 years ago. I have bought loads of German branded stuff over the years and I've often been disappointed, whether it's cars, washing machines, tools, fridge freezers etc. The frequency of disappointment has accelerated in the last couple of decades. You pay a lot of money for it, and yet it still lets
you down. Hence the thought of pouring more cash down the drain on a "German Engineered" bike does not appeal to me at all.
After all, we all know just how "honest" German engineering is don't we? We have proof of that with the VW (and others) Diesel scandal. So you want to buy bike technology with built in obsolescence? Want to buy stuff that is designed to go wrong deliberately so you have to buy new? Want to be locked into an expensive proprietary system you can't do anything with? Sure go ahead and get one those things with some TüV stickers on them.
I have been tempted in the past to get one of these Bosch mid drive motor bikes, but there is the expense of the initial outlay, then the expense of maintaining it, the expense of buying spare batteries/chargers etc (compared to generic stuff) and then there is no guarantee it will work reliably. I have spoken to bike shop technicians who have told me that they get a significant number of Bosch motor failures and usually it's a case of swapping out the motor for a new one and hoping for the best, they can't repair anything. Annoying, but OK perhaps while under warranty, but potentially catastrophic for a proprietary bike outside of warranty.
There is also the "feel" of riding a mid drive. To me it is horrible, like the bike is fighting you for control. It feels unnatural and annoying. With a hub motor it does what you tell it to do and it feels more natural.
Then a couple of weeks ago, I was sooooo glad I did not have a Bosch mid drive. I was miles from home in the middle of nowhere when my derailleur hanger snapped. It did a lot of damage, but I was able to get home thanks to the rear hub and ghost pedalling the PAS. If I'd had one of your "fancy" bikes I would have been completely stuffed.
When it comes to buying Chinese stuff, don't delude yourself into thinking stuff you buy in Europe has been made in Europe. Most of it will have been made in China. Years ago I did some temp work in a German car radio factory. The job involved unpacking car radios made in the far east, removing the flap from the cassette player (I hope this isn't wasted on you and you know what a cassette is?) and replacing it with one that had a Volvo logo on it. Then it went into a new box that said "Made in the EU".
It will be the same with a lot of the stuff you buy for your bike with a "German made" sticker on it. Yes, I buy stuff from China, or from companies that sell Chinese made stuff. But I do my own quality control. I take stuff apart and check it inside and out. Sometimes I completely rebuild stuff so that I am happy with it. I push my kit to the limit at times and part of the fun is seeing how far you can go before it breaks. You certainly learn a lot in the process. Also, in terms of the cost, it's a fraction of the cost of being trapped in the Bosch proprietary bubble.
So, thanks but no thanks to your "German made" stuff with genuine stickers.
hct-europe.com
