GT Transeo 5.0, Carrera Subway or something else?

[Alexb01]

I'm looking of a Hybrid, do quite a bit of (almost all) road cycling at the moment but plan to do more next year at University. My budget is round about £250.

At the moment two that seem good contenders are the GT Transeo 5.0 2009 (£250 at Evans) or Carrera Subway (1 is £250, 2 is £300 at Halfords). I can get an extra 15% discount at Halfords making the Subway 2 about on budget - so if it's significantly better than the 1 it's still on budget.

After test riding the GT Transeo I was generally quite happy with it but was wondering whether it would be worth looking for something with slightly lower-profile tyres. What do you think?

I went to Halfords today to have a look at the Subway and was quite impressed. I got the Halfords equivalent of a test ride (a ride around the shop

). However the more I read about it the more I hear about big bits breaking and the terrible service/set up from Halfords.

While the subway looks good now I fear the components on the GT will age much better. And on top of that I'd feel slightly happier letting Evans set it up than Halfords.

Like I said, the GT seemed to have slightly more unnecessary beefy tyres, is it me being fairly naive thinking that I'd notice much difference?

Many thanks in advance,

Alex

 

[ianrauk]

The Subway bikes are pretty much bombproof. Have had one for 4 years and never had a problem. They are very well made bikes imo and think a fair few people here will agree/

I also have a GT (legato) once again very well made bikes, though some people don't like the shape of the frames

 

[thanos]

never had a subway (tried one on at halfords), but 1 vote for the transeo 5 (better quality build from my perspective)- went as much as a test ride in evans.

The frame of the transeo is a bit different, as a medium would probably suit someone up to 5'10-11. I had the seat up slightly on that model and the reach felt good enough for me.

Subway 1 should be at 200 online making it a real bargain.. did they end their promotion?

 

[Alexb01]

I think halfords latest round of deals is meant to finish today so it might go up in price tomorrow . I test rode a small in the Transeo (they only do small now as it's end of line) and it's fine for me (being only about 1.65m, not sure what that is in old money!).

 

[Alexb01]

In a fresh load of reductions this end of line Pinnacle Borealis 1.0 2009 bike has been reduced at Evans: http://www.evanscycles.com/products/pinnacle/borealis-10-2009-hybrid-bike-ec018127

Would this also be a good contender? Would it's pretty slick 700x28 tyres survive canal tow paths or slightly uneven cycle paths?

And so might this Pinnacle Stratus 2.0 be a better compromise:

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/pinnacle/stratus-20-2009-hybrid-bike-ec018121?

 

[Alexb01]

Anyone got any opinions on the Pinnacle bikes I mentioned above, in particular Stratus?

 

[Bond]

My uncle has had a pinnacle road bike for years and has had no issues and its still going strong. I have no experiance my self but they seem to be a great brand.

 

[km991148]

dont know about the other bikes mentioned but I remember looking at the subways a few years back and thinking the 1 would be better as the disk brakes on the 2 wouldnt be the best at that price point. They do seem to get good reveiws for bikes at that price point.

 

[Alexb01]

I'm starting to go off the Subway as I'd rather not have to deal with Halfords and also the 26" tyres seem a bit annoying. I'm also thinking that i'd rather get slightly wider tyres than those slick 28mm on the Borealis as I think the ride would just be more uncomfortable on some dodgy London roads and I wouldn't get too much advantage.

So on this train of thought it's between the GT Transeo 5.0 and the Pinnacle Stratus 2.0. On paper there doesn't seem too much between them although the stratus seems a bit more upright and has an adjustable stem, slightly slicker tyres and a suspension seat post. Given it's higher RRP I'd be inclined to say that it'd be a better option but that's a bit of a naive approach I guess . A further thing I might consider is that the Stratus is only available in small size (I'm a bout 5 Foot 6 without shoes). I did try a small GT Transeo and it seemed alright but people have been telling me I shouldn't get a small hmm... :/. And at the mo there are /some/ medium GTs at Evans. Either way I want to make a decision pretty soon as there's no advantage to sitting around and as they are end of line they might run out.