Orbea Lifetime Warranty - only on paper

[h2r]

Got a '22 Orbea Wild FS a few years ago, have ridden roughly 2500 km on it in total, plenty of jumps and such.

The aluminium rear triangle has developed a crack on the right seatstay at the weld next to the cassette.
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The rocker link arm progressively bent slightly (the rear section bent upward), and I've noticed the bearing holes/seats on the rocker link arm have oval holes, probably not what you want for round bearings...
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Notice that the bike is officially ASTM category 5 rated, which is a downhill bike standard, meaning Orbea allows you to hit jumps etc. and it shouldn't bend/break.
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Talked to my dealer about these issues, they sent some photos to Orbea, but Orbea refused the warranty claim, stating that rear triangles are not covered by the lifetime warranty and neither is crash damage.

That's strange. Their very own lifetime warranty policy explicitly says that rear triangle is included, quote:


I also have no idea why they think this is a crash damage, there are just minor scratches on the frame, nothing you wouldn't expect on an enduro bike that's actually being used as one.
Sure, there were some minor tipovers, but the bike has never see a major direct impact, plus it still wouldn't explain any of the issues the frame has.

My dealer agrees this should've been covered by the lifetime warranty, but there isn't much they can do, as it's Orbea's decision now that the statutory warranty period is over.
The best offer they were able to get from Orbea was 250 euros for a replacement seatstay, but I believe they're still trying to negotiate.

When I bought the bike, the lifetime warranty on the frame has been a major decisive factor for me.
I certainly wouldn't have paid the insane full price knowing that warranty only exists on paper.

I'm disappointed.

... maybe finding a good welder in the area? Someone skilled and certified in welding high end structural stuff. If done properly you will be stronger than when you started out.

To me, with some limited material science background, that looks like a fatigue crack that formed due to improper welding and insufficient heat and surface treating (ball brushing/polishing).

 

[skizzian]

... maybe finding a good welder in the area? Someone skilled and certified in welding high end structural stuff. If done properly you will be stronger than when you started out.

To me, with some limited material science background, that looks like a fatigue crack that formed due to improper welding and insufficient heat and surface treating (ball brushing/polishing).

it's the heat treating / post weld aging that local welders seem to get wrong...
I've had welds done on Cannondale's (Snappydale's) that lasted 1 ride...

 

[G-Sport]

I find it frustrating that ASTM paywall their tests. So a bike gets rated Cat5 say and we the consumer are just expected to take that on trust. They make millions of dollars gatekeeping the classifications yet are a "not for profit". Many of the other (EU) bike tests are stupid, fork tests where the steerer is clamped along it's entire length with a huge stress concentration at the lower clamp for example. And the test loads are often trivial, so why should we trust tests that we know nothing about?
I too prefer the energy method of assessing strength, much better to have all the parts in the system absorbing energy where they can, than each part rigidly resisting a regulated load.

Absolutely sucks that Orbea aren't honouring the warranty. To many of these big companies 4 years of use is "plenty" and they want you to just buy a new one, not recognising what a huge amount of money these bikes represent to a lot of us. It's a shortsighted view too, I'm pretty sure this thread represents way more than $250 of negative publicity.

 

[Suns_PSD]

Well I'm going to say that I'm not certain that anyone has sold as many CF enduro bikes as Orbea has over the last decade, and bending shock bolts is a new one to me. And there are certainly riders sending it much harder than OP is.

 

[Patrik]

... maybe finding a good welder in the area? Someone skilled and certified in welding high end structural stuff. If done properly you will be stronger than when you started out.

To me, with some limited material science background, that looks like a fatigue crack that formed due to improper welding and insufficient heat and surface treating (ball brushing/polishing).

Finding reliable guys for welding alu is hard. I'm only aware of a few in my country, and they certainly wouldn't do it for 250 euros, which is what Orbea is asking for a new seatstay, meaning I'm better off buying a new one.

I've also asked the dealer if they could ask Orbea what a carbon replacement rear triangle would cost.
I've had a few alu frames develop fatigue cracks at welds over the years, some of which were downhill bikes, but never had a Carbon frame crack, and since I plan on keeping the Wild for a while longer, at least until gearbox ebikes with bigger batteries become common, I would rather fix it now and never have to deal with it again.
The dealer told me that they've asked Orbea and are waiting for their response, let's hope they won't quote something outrageous.

Worst case, I can still buy a cascade link and get the seatstay welded, but I would rather avoid that, as that can open whole another can of worms.

 

[mmcengineer]

Consumer protection laws in the EU are completely useless.
Nobody respects them, so you have to take every case to court, and that takes many many years - courts have too much work, so they keep pushing cases further and further into the future, way past legal limits, but unfortunately, there are no repercussions for the courts, so...

Plus it's often more expensive to sue than to take the losses, because even if you win, if the costs you incurred in association with the proceedings are higher than the disputed value, you're not entitled to be compensated by the loosing party. Ask me how I know.

I tried contacting Orbea directly. My dealer suggested that and gave me a number to someone in Orbea's HQ, who, after realizing I'm not a dealer, connected me to their customer support line, where they told me warranty claims must go through the dealer.

Cool that they gave you a 2026 model as a replacement.
I was given no such offer, but I also don't really want the newer frame if it can be avoided.
I love my two removable batteries, which is not possible with the new frame.
Those 1125Wh I have right now (625 internal + 500 external battery) are perfect for 4h of shuttling local trails.

Consumer laws aren’t useless and it doesn’t take years in fact European laws especially consumer protection laws in Spain are actually better than in the Uk

Up to 10k it’s a simple case of small claims court , not fit for purpose i buy anything like this on a credit card

The whole practice of this European distribution and the UK shop being a middle man are the shit part , I’m assuming you are in the UK but if and they try to wiggle out of the responsibility follow the right process the shop quickly do what they are supposed to under the CRA a letter before action certainly brings their razor sharp focus

I’ve just had this with a Volvo ex30 where everyone wanted to play the it’s not us on the hook card , you will find the time it gets actually to court 8weeks in my case people rapidly change their stance and know that you aren’t messing

The major problem IME now after helping others with the same issues is that Facebook and forums where they get their info from Is full of huff and puff and blow your house down types who have never gone through the section 75 credit card ( you did buy this on a credit card at this value) or the small claims track and found out how big a hammer it actually is

 

[Patrik]

I'm not from the UK, I'm from Slovakia (part of EU), and I know these processes first-hand, they take years.

Besides, it's irrelevant in this case, the bike is outside its statutory warranty, anything Orbea helps with now is essentially their goodwill, not my right.

 

[mmcengineer]

I'm not from the UK, I'm from Slovakia (part of EU), and I know these processes first-hand, they take years.

Besides, it's irrelevant in this case, the bike is outside its statutory warranty, anything Orbea helps with now is essentially their goodwill, not my right.

Ah i assumed you were in the UK Slovakia i don't have a scoobies about that but in the interests of maybe arming you and a bit of a heads up to others who may fall foul of the shit companies try to pull by circumventing legitimate protection i wrote some stuff

I have just been through a shedload of this kind of thing with a swedish car firm thats owned by the chinese so have become a bit of an evangelist on UK stuff as the fuckers will literally try anything to weasel out of their resposibilities

I will say stick to your guns become enough of a PAIN in their ass they will help you ,some guy did this to giant and the social media backlash was mental

 

[DBuckett]

Tbh most life time warrantys are bs, most is lifetime of the material 5years for alloy. Santa Cruz are good in my experience for first owner, but they know most ppl who buy high-end bikes don't keep them that long.

 

[OffitThatM8]

@RustyMTB another example for you

 

[dezzracer]

Not as e-bike educated as you guys but the “explicit” warranty language you refer to on what a duel suspension “frame” warranty includes, it states the front triangle. You say in your post the rear triangle cracked. Just curious…

 

[b33k34]

Not as e-bike educated as you guys but the “explicit” warranty language you refer to on what a duel suspension “frame” warranty includes, it states the front triangle. You say in your post the rear triangle cracked. Just curious…

This is a link to the UK lifetime warranty page -

https://www.orbea.com/en-gb/p/orbea-lifetime-commercial-warranty

"In dual-suspension bicycles, the term “frame” includes chainstays, seatstays, links, and front triangles, excluding suspension forks and components considered spare parts."

"The warranty does not cover breakages or cracks resulting from negligent use of the bicycle, installation of non-original components, or improper handling or maintenance by the user or third parties. The user must keep the product in good working order, following the instructions in the manual supplied with the bicycle and those published on the Orbea website."

(that last point is the one that feels like it could cause real issues with e bikes as potentially motor/battery/controls might not fit the newer model frame)