Carrera Vengeance Ultimate - good buy or donkey?

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Comments

  • Bob the Newbie
    Bob the Newbie Posts: 14
    Guveture - I had the bike built by the guys in the local Halfords, no problems. The same guy who sold me the bike built it. He seemed to know his stuff and the bike feels good. I am sure an expert might find fault but not me. Happy bunny with bike and the service.

    Mac Man - thanks for the tip on the pads, will give it a go. Thanks

    Lovepasty - Come back and let me know what you think. I am sure you will love it but good to get another view
  • hoysy7
    hoysy7 Posts: 19
    been lookin at this bike today,looks great,would love to here more comments on it if possable
  • lovepasty
    lovepasty Posts: 53
    Collected mine today....took it for a short blast tonight on some cycle paths...I'm no expert but aside from the shoddy halfords build (gears not indexed very well, brakes rubbing (this may sort itself after a couple of rides?)) I'm very happy

    I was riding a hybrid 29er before, I will feel more confident on my local XC trails with this one
  • Fifenewbie
    Fifenewbie Posts: 44
    Pick my Vengeance Ultimate up tonight - stunning bike ( well I think so) - £270 off retail price - buzzing! 8)
  • lovepasty
    lovepasty Posts: 53
    Well I had to take mine back to halfords today...

    Lock out on forks no longers locks out (not sure if it ever did TBH)...need it back by COP on Weds as going aways for a few days, they had better sort it quick :?
  • Slamdunkin
    Slamdunkin Posts: 355
    There's an extra 10% off at the moment £359.98 if you order on-line and you can still pick up instore to.

    http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_165499
  • hoysy7
    hoysy7 Posts: 19
    this bike must be a steal at this price
  • Ryan Jones
    Ryan Jones Posts: 775
    I hadn't seen a Carrera fury till yesterday on the trails, i was shocked by just how slick a piece of kit it is, and the frame looked very burly (put my old saracen mantra to shame), i think if i was in the market for a bike around that price i know where i'd go :)
    My Nukeproof Mega TR
  • Fifenewbie
    Fifenewbie Posts: 44
    Slamdunkin wrote:
    There's an extra 10% off at the moment £359.98 if you order on-line and you can still pick up instore to.

    http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... yId_165499

    Bollocks! oh well still a bargain at 400 :D
  • hoysy7
    hoysy7 Posts: 19
    offer back on :wink:
  • sparkysliders
    sparkysliders Posts: 2
    Hello everyone!

    Well I've succumb to my aparent mid-life crisis http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/7935114/Mid-life-crisis-Get-on-your-bike.html and bought myself a Carrera Vengeance Ultimate.

    Lovely looking bike but not having much fun on it yet! Didn't feel right when I rode it back from Halfords to my house, found the tyres had about 10psi in them. Went on my first ride today and the chain snapped after less than a mile. Took it back and the blokes at the shop put a new chain under warrenty.

    Rode from the shop to continue the ride and guess what, chain snapped again at almost the same spot! It's back at the shop now and they are going to replace the crank assy. The teeth on the front cogs seem very uneven, several teeth hooked and missing points, though the same was true of another one still on display.

    Just wondering if it's a manufacturing problem and if anyone else is having any trouble?
  • teknicolourfox
    teknicolourfox Posts: 34
    hmm, had decided to go for this bike but sale ended yesterday, with 10%online discount and 7.5% discount on gft vouchers would have cost about £340... will have to wait for Halfords erratic sales/prices to drop again...

    bummer
  • Slamdunkin
    Slamdunkin Posts: 355
    sparkysliders are you using all the rear gears when on the big and small front cogs?
  • leaflite
    leaflite Posts: 1,651
    Are you sure the spec list is correct? A while ago it was stated as having dart forks on the spec list as well as the introduction-they just copied the standard vengance spec list.
    Therefore, are you sure it has alivos and not deores or sram x-5?
    GT Hardtail
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    Titus FTM Carbon
  • lovepasty
    lovepasty Posts: 53
    Has alivio shifters and Tora TK forks
  • Slamdunkin
    Slamdunkin Posts: 355
    leaflite wrote:
    Are you sure the spec list is correct? A while ago it was stated as having dart forks on the spec list as well as the introduction-they just copied the standard vengance spec list.
    Therefore, are you sure it has alivos and not deores or sram x-5?

    Deore and Sram x5 are better than alivos...Shimano Mountain Group Heirarchy


    XTR
    Deore XT
    Deore LX
    Deore
    Alivio
    Acera
    Altus
    Tourney
    From http://www.sheldonbrown.com/shimano.html
  • leaflite
    leaflite Posts: 1,651
    I know that! I just thought it was weird for a bike with toras to only have alivo gears, considering a GT Aggressor xc3 has alivos for rrp £450, and that a decathlon rockrider with toras has sram x7 gears.
    It just seems that theyve only spent money on the forks
    GT Hardtail
    The Apollo Project
    Titus FTM Carbon
  • Slamdunkin
    Slamdunkin Posts: 355
    The RRP on this is just the usual halford marketing ballsh't

    If the normal price for a Kraken is £379 and the fury £530 then this Vengeance is worth about £399/420
  • leaflite
    leaflite Posts: 1,651
    Its got worse gears than a kraken though, according to the spec list!
    GT Hardtail
    The Apollo Project
    Titus FTM Carbon
  • Slamdunkin
    Slamdunkin Posts: 355
    I think the Truvativ Isoflow Chainset on the Kraken is better than the Shimano FC-M311 on this Vengeance as well.

    Whether the Tektro Auriga Comp Hydro's on the kraken are as good as the entry level shimano AM-445 Hydro's I don't know
  • sparkysliders
    sparkysliders Posts: 2
    Slamdunkin wrote:
    sparkysliders are you using all the rear gears when on the big and small front cogs?

    Think I was on the middle front cog and a lowish rear both times when it went going up a gentle slope. Should I stay out certain gears when using the big/small cogs?

    Just got the bike back today so fingers crossed the problems solved.
  • supersonic
    supersonic Posts: 82,708
    The Alivio is the new 2011 stuff, 9 speed now.

    I prefer Shimano chainsets to Truvativ.

    There has been 3 versions of Vengeance.
    GT ZASKAR CARBON TEAM

    VOODOO CANZO

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  • Steve_b77
    Steve_b77 Posts: 1,680
    Still no denying that Alvio is of a lesser standard than X5.

    Not a bad fork and teh difference in chainsets is negligble.

    So yes it is the usual Halford marketing machine kicking into play again, but for the money you can actually get the bike for it's good value.
  • connar626
    connar626 Posts: 15
    hello ppz thinken bout gettin one of these at christmas time , (if the offer is still on because its not worth rrp ) so keep the reviews comming please as im looking at a couple of bikes but cant decide . is the alivio chainset actualy any good?


    cheers :D
  • supersonic
    supersonic Posts: 82,708
    yes, the chainset is excellent, shimano simply make the best chainsets out there. Is a good looking new groupo, i expect it to be better than x5.
    GT ZASKAR CARBON TEAM

    VOODOO CANZO

    Come and see me at https://www.facebook.com/biketyke/
  • connar626
    connar626 Posts: 15
    ok mate thanx was in halfords the other day , defo looks the part anyway with the tora forks and white shimano brake calipers , cant wait :D cheers
  • Slamdunkin
    Slamdunkin Posts: 355
    supersonic wrote:
    yes, the chainset is excellent, shimano simply make the best chainsets out there. Is a good looking new groupo, i expect it to be better than x5.

    So you are also saying that Alivio is better than deore...Because Alivio is shimano's top end utility bike spec and deore is their entry level for real mountain bikes and you have said many times that X5 and deore are equals,

    Don't take this the wrong way supersonic, I know you are very knowledgeable and write for some of the magazines and that you are a big Halfords fan-boy which I don't have a problem with as halfords do some good kit for the price point...But you haven't said a bad thing about this bike...I'd respect your point of view if you at least tried to be a little objective.
  • Valy
    Valy Posts: 1,321
    That looks like a really good spec for the money, if a little heavy.

    All (well, the two) people who are saying this groupset is "budget" and "low end" - this is a bike for £400 after all, and having had an Alivio M410 chainset, I'm pretty sure the performance will be anything but "budgety".

    Pics people, pics are needed.
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  • supersonic
    supersonic Posts: 82,708
    Slamdunkin wrote:
    supersonic wrote:
    yes, the chainset is excellent, shimano simply make the best chainsets out there. Is a good looking new groupo, i expect it to be better than x5.

    So you are also saying that Alivio is better than deore...Because Alivio is shimano's top end utility bike spec and deore is their entry level for real mountain bikes and you have said many times that X5 and deore are equals. There is nothing bad to say about it.

    Don't take this the wrong way supersonic, I know you are very knowledgeable and write for some of the magazines and that you are a big Halfords fan-boy which I don't have a problem with as halfords do some good kit for the price point...But you haven't said a bad thing about this bike...I'd respect your point of view if you at least tried to be a little objective.

    Halfords fan boy? Hardly. Read some of my other posts. I look at the bikes. For 400 quid, a bike with Toras, 2011 9 speed groupo and hydro discs is excellent value.

    I think Deore is better than X5. I think Alivio, though I haven't tested will be better too. I said, expect it to. This is no more, or less, objective than your comments on expecting X5 to be better, is purely an opinion. It looks good, and first impressions at WMB are good too, well made and smooth shifting. Soon we will be testing many groupsets so will be able to make a better comparison then. But my Alivio 8 speed stuff is fantastic, and even Acera: I think it is very underated stuff. Tough, shifts well and lasts.

    As for chainsets, all Shimanos have excellent ramps and pins which I find to shift better than any other budget sets, and they tend to last longer too.
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  • Slamdunkin
    Slamdunkin Posts: 355
    Thanks for replying SS...I meant no offence, just I think as this will be a board favorite recommendation, some of the detail needs thrashing out, so thanks for the contribution
    Valy wrote:
    That looks like a really good spec for the money, if a little heavy.

    All (well, the two) people who are saying this groupset is "budget" and "low end" - this is a bike for £400 after all, and having had an Alivio M410 chainset, I'm pretty sure the performance will be anything but "budgety".

    Pics people, pics are needed.

    The chainset on this bike isn't Alvio...it is a Shimano FC-M311 which is Atlus.

    I haven't got anything against the bike and do concur that it's good value @£400 with the TK fork....I just think it's a good idea to discuss some of the weaknesses as well as the positives rather than being subjective.

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