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Comment by fermentation | Hacker News Reader

I'm just now hearing about VanMoof failing. This is surprising, considering these bikes seem to have pretty meh build quality and are being priced much higher than one would expect.

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I've got an X3 that is rock solid even after me and the bike flying apart in an attempt to avoid collision with a truck. And its design is the primary reason why I decided to start biking again to begin with - I just find it so pleasantly satisfying I just want to ride it. So IDK, but I haven't seen a viable alternative yet.

What about it makes it so satisfying?

If you're not into bikes, try a few of them. I find any properly tuned bike to be an absolute joy to use, although I never tried a Van Moof.

For me, it's just nice/satisfying using a aesthetically designed piece of kit, even if not top of the line performance. Which is issue for bikes, since a well tuned bike makes a huge difference. I don't like looking at all the bits of gear drive system, I like aesthetics of single speed, but riding one PIA. Ended up with a slick belt drive + internal hub setup. Van Moof (which I was considering buying) was basically the only ebike vendor that had similar aesthetics, and cover for chain/belt drive option. Checked my aesthetic boxes enough that I was fine if performance was average because it's ebike and I won't be physically struggling if something goes out of tune anyway. Support killed it for me though, and it seems like killed the company as well.

Have you looked at bikes with the Pinion gear box? They recently launched an e-bike version too.

https://pinion.eu/bike-selection/

From what I see those bikes are crazy expensive.

Briefly a year ago, the tiny chain wheel looked silly but it's growing on on me. The ebike motor looks great though. I think this might be it.

Belt drive and gear hub is an awesome combo indeed. I'm spending a stupid amount of money to build a gravel bike with that setup, since it doesn't really exist.

I like a different aesthetic but to each their own. A bike you love is the best investment you can make.

There are some that use Shimano Alfine, like the Priority Apollo and Shand Leveret, and others that use Rohloff like MiTech R-Gravel and Shand Cycles Stooshie Rohloff. They're still much rarer that derailleur bikes, though the latest innovation is using a rear derailleur and a 2 speed gear hub with the Classified Powershift.

The S/X3 was the worst bike they made. I regret foolishly 'upgrading' from S3 to X3. The eshifter in it was notorious for reliability.

I'm convinced the S/X3 is why the company is going under.

The build quality is so bad they are going under in warranty claims. They also don't use common components, so very few bike repair shops in high-volume markets (e.g. Netherlands) are willing to touch VanMoof bikes.

Apparently they spent €8M on warranty claims, on an income of €83M, so ~10% of their income. It's not really clear to me if this is exuberantly high, especially since this may also cover non-traditional "warranty" like their theft recovery.

I think it is crazy high, should be well below 1-2% for any "mature" (simple) product, for more complex products (let's say cars) it should be below 5%:

Cars: https://www.warrantyweek.com/archive/ww20230511.html

Hvac/appliances: https://www.warrantyweek.com/archive/ww20230706.html

But there are outliers (wind turbines):

https://www.warrantyweek.com/archive/ww20230309.html

I ride BMX, road bikes and Mountain Bikes. I've tried a VanMoof two years ago and the build quality was terrible. You couldn't pay me to ride one.

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