'Dead' Sirocco CDL

[John5001]

I had a similar issue but this was after an accident. My findings with this bike is you basically get what you pay for.
I changed the saddle and tyres, and was advised by my local shop the gears and brakes were of the lowest level quality wise.
I have had the bike 3 years and it cuts out sometimes. The brakes also need constant adjustment.

 

[Warwick]

Well, I did get the bike cheap on eBay, but it was immaculate and only had 200 miles on the clock. Since buying it I too have replaced the saddle and seatpin, the wheels and tyres and the lights. I also replaced the front disc brake with a very powerful Avid BB7. I am tempted to upgrade the gears. I fitted cassette hubs, so I could fit an 8-speed set up, but I'll hold fire until I'm sure the bike's going to last and make the change worthwhile.

The suspension fork is horrible. A real clunker and heavy as well. I've got a rigid fork to swap over, but, again, I'll wait to see if it's worth bothering.

I appreciate that it's built to a budget, and it's not a bad machine when it's going, but I'm disappointed that major control componentry has proved so vulnerable in only 1100 miles. Were I the original buyer with more consumer rights, I'd be looking for at least a contribution from Woosh for the repairs.

Having said that, they have been very quick to get back to me, so the customer service is rapid to respond.

 

[John5001]

Well, I did get the bike cheap on eBay, but it was immaculate and only had 200 miles on the clock. Since buying it I too have replaced the saddle and seatpin, the wheels and tyres and the lights. I also replaced the front disc brake with a very powerful Avid BB7. I am tempted to upgrade the gears. I fitted cassette hubs, so I could fit an 8-speed set up, but I'll hold fire until I'm sure the bike's going to last and make the change worthwhile.

The suspension fork is horrible. A real clunker and heavy as well. I've got a rigid fork to swap over, but, again, I'll wait to see if it's worth bothering.

I appreciate that it's built to a budget, and it's not a bad machine when it's going, but I'm disappointed that major control componentry has proved so vulnerable in only 1100 miles. Were I the original buyer with more consumer rights, I'd be looking for at least a contribution from Woosh for the repairs.

Having said that, they have been very quick to get back to me, so the customer service is rapid to respond.

Yes customer service is first class but a shame you need to talk to them so often.

IMO Its better to pay more for a quality bike, and have peace of mind. I don't regret buying this bike new, as I have had reasonable usage and genuinely enjoyed my rides.

Next bike will be German though. Tiger tank quality!!

 

[Warwick]

OK, an interim update: I bought a refurbished display, cabling and controller from Woosh. £72 all in. The controller was on a sale or return basis.

Andy from Woosh sent me some instructions which came in useful. I fitted the display and cable and fired it up. Unfortunately I got an error 30 message. Not wanting to wait around for more instructions (though Andy has been quick to get back to me) I assumed this meant a borked controller, so swapped it. The snap-on connectors made this a simple task. I fired it up again and no error message. I'm hopeful this has fixed things. Hopeful, because when I went for a test ride, the battery was as flat as a pancake. It's charging as I write. Fingers crossed.

One issue I encountered was that the old cable would not pull through the frame, so I have had to cable tie the new one under the crossbar. Luckily it's a black cable on a black bike, so it's relatively unobtrusive, but there is a coil of cable behind the controller box, because that routing is much shorter than through the frame.

 

[trex]

try the old cable and LCD - they may still be OK.

 

[Warwick]

No, nothing. I needed to replace the lot. Why, I don't know and I hope it doesn't happen again or the bike is toast. It's a bit of a Trigger's broom now I've replaced the controls, the wheels and tyres, brakes and forks.

I am going to go down the conversion route in the near future with a much better bike as the basis for the conversion.

 

[John5001]

I feel much the same albeit an accident triggered my failed controller. But also, the durability of the brakes and gears over the long term is questionable.

Quite frankly once four years has clicked over, I will bin the bike and pay for a quality one although will be four times the price.

 

[Warwick]

Well, I guess I'm lucky as I have a very good bike to convert and have got my hands on a kit very cheaply. I'll soon have 27 speeds of goodness to propel me along with a bit of electro-mechanical assistance.

 

[Warwick]

Another disappointment, the most recent in a list! The battery got a full charge, the display powers up and displays speed, but there is no power.

Ho, hum. I am getting rather fed up of this now. I'm not spending another penny on this machine. Woosh have stated that I 'do not have a direct relationship with them', meaning that I bought the bike secondhand and am not the original buyer. I was annoyed at this response, to be honest. This machine has been a regular source of trouble in the six months I've had it and for a company to hint that I am lucky to be receiving their help is rather poor.

Had the bike been clapped out when purchased, I could understand it, but the machine had exactly 200 miles on the clock and was as new. Harumph!

 

[trex]

there is always a risk when trying to fix a problem by swapping parts. You could have a damaged cable to start with (error 30 means damaged cable or damaged LCD), installing a new LCD or a controller on a damaged cable can kill the brand new part that you just swap in to test. If you can switch on the LCD, then the battery is still OK. If the motor does not spin up, you may have killed the new controller. You should consider letting woosh fix your bike for you, then get woosh to sell it and start again with the proceed and a different bike.

 

[Warwick]

trex, you make many assertions based on very spurious assumptions, I'm afraid. I tested the new display using the old controller and got the error 30 message. I then installed the new controller and coupled it to the new cable and display. At no time did the new controller come into contact with anything old. All this is stated in my original post above. Please read my posts before making such incorrect statements, as they add nothing to the thread but confusion.

I don't know what your relationship is with Woosh, but it may be clouding your input here.

 

[trex]

I test ride all woosh bikes over the years and make constructive comments.
The King Meter manual says that error 30 is communication errors. If I am wrong, I am wrong, only trying to help you while support is not available.

 

[Warwick]

Making incorrect statements by not reading a post then asserting I have fried the controller is not help...

In no way could I (honestly) sell this bike in its current form as anything other than for a 'spares or repairs' sale. It may well come to that, as I am near the end of my tether with the thing, but I'll give Woosh another chance to tell me what's wrong.

With the Karoo they seem to be moving in the right direction quality-wise, but the Sirocco is a collection of cheap, in some cases nasty, parts that have proved unreliable, at least in my case. Thankfully I will soon have a replacement machine.

 

[trex]

Woosh are limited on what they can find in China, same as all the other importers. I know so because I spent a lot of time assisting them with the Karoo development. 3 years separate your CDL and the Karoo, you can see the progress. Three years ago, they could not find Avid brakes in China. Now all their disc brakes are from Avid. That's just one example. The point I am trying to make is that any model of brake can stop a bike going at 15mph but because many people derestrict their bikes, they need much more powerful brakes that what was initially seen as adequate. Woosh do the right thing, install better brakes.
If you can convert your bike, you can get exactly what you want for about £1,000.

 

[John5001]

The Whoosh Sirocco is a cheap bundle of components lumped on a heavy frame. The Kenda puncture proof tyres punctured three times in the first month, gears kept slipping, and the brakes are just horrible.
Power still cuts out on a regular basis.

If in China decent parts are difficult to find, why end up selling a product not fit for purpose.

 

[trex]

The Kenda tyres have kevlar belt that protects against some but not all punctures. They are not puncture-proof.
IMHO, a bike for commuting needs to be low cost and reliable. Difficult combination. The answer is conversion. It's easy to pick up a good bike and put on it what is good from China: an 8-Fun motor and a Samsung battery. That's what my Giant D5 bike is in most respects.

 

[Warwick]

The Kenda tyres are truly crap. My first two rides saw two punctures. Awful, horrible tat, spuriously labelled as puncture resistant. The saddle was terrible and the front disc brake unfit for purpose, even at 15mph. The seat pin wouldn't hold the seat stem in place and my gears still slip despite all my modifications. Apart from that, it's great.

 

[trex]

for commuting, I'd replace the Kendas with a pair of Schwalbe Marathon Plus (£45) as matter of course, the zoom seat post with a non suspended seat post (£10) or an NCX seat post (£45). Gear slipping may come from worn teeth on the freewheel.

 

[Alan Quay]

Well, I did get the bike cheap on eBay, but it was immaculate and only had 200 miles on the clock. Since buying it I too have replaced the saddle and seatpin, the wheels and tyres and the lights. I also replaced the front disc brake with a very powerful Avid BB7. I am tempted to upgrade the gears. I fitted cassette hubs, so I could fit an 8-speed set up, but I'll hold fire until I'm sure the bike's going to last and make the change worthwhile.

The suspension fork is horrible. A real clunker and heavy as well. I've got a rigid fork to swap over, but, again, I'll wait to see if it's worth bothering.

I appreciate that it's built to a budget, and it's not a bad machine when it's going, but I'm disappointed that major control componentry has proved so vulnerable in only 1100 miles. Were I the original buyer with more consumer rights, I'd be looking for at least a contribution from Woosh for the repairs.

Having said that, they have been very quick to get back to me, so the customer service is rapid to respond.

I think you are being a tad harsh on woosh here.

You bought a second hand bike, presumably more than two years old, at a fraction of the (already very low) new cost.

You had some problems, both Woosh and Trex have done quite a bit to try to help you, even though neither are obliged to. You've not been overly polite to/about either.

At 3 years old your battery is quite possibly at end of life. This is even more likely if its been left unused for long period of time, as 200 miles suggests.

Bottom line is that if you buy second hand you really need to know what you are doing.

 

[Alan Quay]

Sorry, posted twice