Decoy Warranty Fail.

[seamarsh]

To be honest, Im Starting to regret my purchase as well. I’ve been going up and down and owning the bike for about a month. I live in the US, and while support has been super solid, I’m starting to get annoyed with the fact that I have to tinker And fix shit after every ride. Now the bike is creaking like a haunted house and sill have to start tearing the frame apart to find the source of that problem as well. I honestly have not done 2 consecutive rides without working on the bike and they’ve sent me multiple warranty parts.

While I’ll never own another specialized because I despise the company, I wouldn’t question someone from paying the premium for a Levo. At least they get multiple rides before a failure...

thats just called owning a bike... always a few things to get sorted in the beginning.. once you get it dialed it should be good to go. I’ve had very few issues and awesome support in California. I wouldn’t sweat it or regret it. Think I’m at about 1000 miles so far.

creaks are always a problem on new bikes.. don’t think it will be pivots, this is a really good design in that respect. Check all the other usual suspects... headset, seat posts, derailleur hanger, rear axle etc.

I’ve always had to go through initial period like this on any new bike I’ve had.

 

[Ymersmoelf]

Sold my Decoy. Would not recommend YT to my worst enemy. Great bikes and solid marketing but absolutely ends there full stop ?

 

[seamarsh]

Sold my Decoy. Would not recommend YT to my worst enemy. Great bikes and solid marketing but absolutely ends there full stop ?

Not in the USA, great support.. but I’ve heard it sucks in U.K. a distinction worth making

 

[Jk 123]

Hi,
I posted in another thread about my Decoy warranty issue.

Nearly 10 weeks ago I had a battery failure. The battery was completely dead out of the bike so no ambiguity about the problem or complex diagnosis needed.

I raised a warranty claim and was told I would have to return the whole bike as batteries can't be shipped separate. I sent it back to YT and they told me that due to Covid it would be a 4 week turnaround. After almost 8 weeks they confirmed that the battery was faulty (duh) and said that they would not have a replacement available until October (12-14 weeks from my claim).

I suggested that as they had some Decoys in stock that they could take a battery from one of these and replace it when the new stock arrived. They said that they would not do that but gave no reason.

So 12-14 weeks for a simple component swap. Given this experience I will not be recommending anyone buys a YT decoy even though I own 2 YT bikes and love riding my Decoy. You can't enjoy riding a bike you do not have

 

[Jk 123]

Hi lee I feel your pain I got my decoy last September and it’s been one problem after another ,fox shock sent back 3 times to fox uk it keeps cavitating ,e thirteen cassette replaced ,sram code rsc levers sticking ,had to service kit both of them ,and at the moment my di2 derailuer has packed luckily I’ve had them dealt with in the uk hope your saga gets sorted soon ,this is my second yt ,but now I’ve definitely lost faith in the brand I think I’ll be a Levo next from a local bike shop

 

[seamarsh]

Hi lee I feel your pain I got my decoy last September and it’s been one problem after another ,fox shock sent back 3 times to fox uk it keeps cavitating ,e thirteen cassette replaced ,sram code rsc levers sticking ,had to service kit both of them ,and at the moment my di2 derailuer has packed luckily I’ve had them dealt with in the uk hope your saga gets sorted soon ,this is my second yt ,but now I’ve definitely lost faith in the brand I think I’ll be a Levo next from a local bike shop

All the problems you listed are with non yt parts.. How could you have “lost faith in the brand” makes no sense.

 

[ebnash]

thats just called owning a bike... always a few things to get sorted in the beginning.. once you get it dialed it should be good to go. I’ve had very few issues and awesome support in California. I wouldn’t sweat it or regret it. Think I’m at about 1000 miles so far.

creaks are always a problem on new bikes.. don’t think it will be pivots, this is a really good design in that respect. Check all the other usual suspects... headset, seat posts, derailleur hanger, rear axle etc.

I’ve always had to go through initial period like this on any new bike I’ve had.

I appreciate the feedback and I’ve owned lots of new bikes. Very few have had this many tweaks and attention needed.

In my humble opinion, it’s a rushed build that didn’t get any attention before shipping. In my experience, these are indications of rushed and “slap together” builds.

The support has been stellar from the crew in California. I have a lot of experience wrenching on bikes and all kinds of equipment, so it’s not a problem for me to overcome. I’m speaking more for the typical bike owner, who would be better served by purchasing from a competent local shop.

 

[seamarsh]

I appreciate the feedback and I’ve owned lots of new bikes. Very few have had this many tweaks and attention needed.

In my humble opinion, it’s a rushed build that didn’t get any attention before shipping. In my experience, these are indications of rushed and “slap together” builds.

The support has been stellar from the crew in California. The have a lot of experience wrenching on bikes and all kinds of equipment, so it’s not a problem for me to overcome. I’m speaking more for the typical bike owner, who would be better served by purchasing from a competent local shop.

I appreciate the feedback and I’ve owned lots of new bikes. Very few have had this many tweaks and attention needed.

In my humble opinion, it’s a rushed build that didn’t get any attention before shipping. In my experience, these are indications of rushed and “slap together” builds.

The support has been stellar from the crew in California. The have a lot of experience wrenching on bikes and all kinds of equipment, so it’s not a problem for me to overcome. I’m speaking more for the typical bike owner, who would be better served by purchasing from a competent local shop.

could be you got a lemon..?

regardless it’s a online only so when buying and getting a deal vs a shop you are acknowledging that you know how to wrench on bikes and figure it out... at least that’s how I see it.

personally, if you don’t know how to wrench on a bike, don’t buy an online only bike. Even if you buy it through a shop it’s not like unlimited free support!! You will be $$

not sure what kind concierge personal service people expect with online sales, but to say it’s a slapped together bike that people should avoid seems over the top.

it’s a great bike, great price no reason to be scared off owning one imo.

 

[Sapientiea]

Other than the grommets, our 2 Decoy's have been riding fine without too much maintenance. To be honest most maintenance is not YT related (dropper, fork, shock, tires, rims...) After purchase I removed all pivots and greased them myself, so no creaking. Only thing I worried about is the battery as there seems to be a shortage.

Maybe a direct sales brand is not for people who cannot or won't do maintenance themselfs. Go to your local shop and buy there I would suggest.

 

[Keisari66]

Maybe a direct sales brand is not for people who cannot or won't do maintenance themselfs. Go to your local shop and buy there I would suggest.

A direct sales brand should have superb customer service with no exceptions. Things like this battery case really put these brands off, I have considered a YT but will not anymore. It’s not enough that the customer service works well in, say 96% of the cases.

 

[ebnash]

thats just called owning a bike... always a few things to get sorted in the beginning.. once you get it dialed it should be good to go. I’ve had very few issues and awesome support in California. I wouldn’t sweat it or regret it. Think I’m at about 1000 miles so far.

creaks are always a problem on new bikes.. don’t think it will be pivots, this is a really good design in that respect. Check all the other usual suspects... headset, seat posts, derailleur hanger, rear axle etc.

I’ve always had to go through initial period like this on any new bike I’ve had.

Had to reread this...
Saying that is part of owning a bike is BS. On a new bike, it is very common to have to snug up the headset for a few rides, so I agree with that. Then, I'll need to fiddle with cockpit setup, but that is just personal preference and I'm very particular about this. Sometimes, axles will need to be snugged as things settle in and brakes adjusted. Maybe you'll need to adjust cable tension, as well. I'll give you all of these as normal new bike break-in.

But, if a bike is properly assembled, it should take some time before typical creaks set it. Anyone who has been trained in assembling a bike would be greasing or pasting interfaces to eliminate slippage or creaks related to clamped or bolted items. I'm finding all those areas dry as a bone. That is rushed or lack of giving a shit.

As for saying that pivot point creaks are not typical, I 100% completely agree. But you have to know this is a common problem on the Decoy's, especially when new. There are loads of posts and questions about this issue here, on facebook groups, and other bicycle related forums. Many are finding completely dry pivot points, where the service manual calls for grease. I even read about finding a completely seized bearing on a bike that the customer had been chasing a creak for a month. He didn't find it until he started to tear into the frame. I've never had creaks like this on a new bike. They typically develop over time as dirt and dust build up and bikes get washed with water or are ridden in the rare California rain.

I agree that bicycles that are sold direct to consumer, come with a different level of support. This meaning that you will not be able to take your bike into the shop where you purchased it and get immediate help with issues. You will need to make phone calls, send emails and troubleshoot problems over the phone if you are savvy. In some rare cases, you might even need to go through the hassle of shipping your bike back to the location from where it was assembled. This has to be accepted by the consumer as they are benefiting from the lack of a "mark up" middleman in the purchase process.

In my opinion, this means that the direct to consumer brand needs to be more diligent to ship out products that have received the required attention to minimize these hassles. They, like the shop, are going to be judged on the 1st impression and experience of taking ownership of the bike. It's just that simple... I would rather receive the bike less assembled, so I can proactively assemble it correctly. What's the purpose of shipping a bike that is 90% assembled, when I will have to tear it all down to check all of their work?

To be honest, I kind of blame myself because I almost always tear down new bikes and go through them, not trusting that the shop took the time to do it right.

In my case, I experienced the following:
1. Motor bolts were loose
2. Headset was sloppy loose in the box. Not even snug, much less preloaded.
3. Crank arms were loose
4. Brake rotors were both badly warped. (they shipped me new ones without question. This tells me that they must see this often. This should have be caught by the bike assembler.)
5. Caliper bolts were over-torqued and I had to clean up the surfaces that were marred and now wanted to keep going back to the poor original position.
6. The cable kept slipping in the YT branded dropper lever hold down bolt. I had to keep resetting the cable and after 4 times, the screw stripped out. I looked a little closer and found that the screw used was too short. This is a design spec issue. They admitted over email that the many people have complained about this very problem and shipped me a RaceFace lever. Why the hell are they shipping bikes with these levers when there is a known issue?
7. Seat post was installed dry and slipping/making noise. Added carbon assembly paste and was fine. They knew it needed it, which is why they give you a tube with the bike. They could have applied the paste themselves...
8. Front and rear axle thru bolts were dead dry, so I added grease.
9. Seat Rails were dry, so I added grease. This was fine with me because the YT seat might as well be a steel hand rail and needed to be swapped out.

This is a bike with all of 4 rides.

Now, I'm going to remove the motor and break down all the pivot points to see if they greased those, as the manual specifies.

 

[Graham Henderson]

Hi,
I posted in another thread about my Decoy warranty issue.

Nearly 10 weeks ago I had a battery failure. The battery was completely dead out of the bike so no ambiguity about the problem or complex diagnosis needed.

I raised a warranty claim and was told I would have to return the whole bike as batteries can't be shipped separate. I sent it back to YT and they told me that due to Covid it would be a 4 week turnaround. After almost 8 weeks they confirmed that the battery was faulty (duh) and said that they would not have a replacement available until October (12-14 weeks from my claim).

I suggested that as they had some Decoys in stock that they could take a battery from one of these and replace it when the new stock arrived. They said that they would not do that but gave no reason.

So 12-14 weeks for a simple component swap. Given this experience I will not be recommending anyone buys a YT decoy even though I own 2 YT bikes and love riding my Decoy. You can't enjoy riding a bike you do not have.

Hi Lee,
I have a similar problem just starting. 2WheelsOnly in Tamworth had a Decoy in with a good battery (for a replacement motor). They dropped everything on their busy schedule to swap batteries while they had one, and my bike worked, proving the battery was faulty. I sent the 2Wheels report and have asked YT to send a new battery. I have heard nothing and your experience doesn't exactly fill me with hope!

 

[nickfrog]

I really feel lucky and I sympathise with people having had poor build issues. My May 2020 base Decoy was very well put together indeed, for balance. Only issue was a creaking headset as zero grease in there... So perhaps there is pattern of I consistence QC at play here.

 

[seamarsh]

Had to reread this...
Saying that is part of owning a bike is BS. On a new bike, it is very common to have to snug up the headset for a few rides, so I agree with that. Then, I'll need to fiddle with cockpit setup, but that is just personal preference and I'm very particular about this. Sometimes, axles will need to be snugged as things settle in and brakes adjusted. Maybe you'll need to adjust cable tension, as well. I'll give you all of these as normal new bike break-in.

But, if a bike is properly assembled, it should take some time before typical creaks set it. Anyone who has been trained in assembling a bike would be greasing or pasting interfaces to eliminate slippage or creaks related to clamped or bolted items. I'm finding all those areas dry as a bone. That is rushed or lack of giving a shit.

As for saying that pivot point creaks are not typical, I 100% completely agree. But you have to know this is a common problem on the Decoy's, especially when new. There are loads of posts and questions about this issue here, on facebook groups, and other bicycle related forums. Many are finding completely dry pivot points, where the service manual calls for grease. I even read about finding a completely seized bearing on a bike that the customer had been chasing a creak for a month. He didn't find it until he started to tear into the frame. I've never had creaks like this on a new bike. They typically develop over time as dirt and dust build up and bikes get washed with water or are ridden in the rare California rain.

I agree that bicycles that are sold direct to consumer, come with a different level of support. This meaning that you will not be able to take your bike into the shop where you purchased it and get immediate help with issues. You will need to make phone calls, send emails and troubleshoot problems over the phone if you are savvy. In some rare cases, you might even need to go through the hassle of shipping your bike back to the location from where it was assembled. This has to be accepted by the consumer as they are benefiting from the lack of a "mark up" middleman in the purchase process.

In my opinion, this means that the direct to consumer brand needs to be more diligent to ship out products that have received the required attention to minimize these hassles. They, like the shop, are going to be judged on the 1st impression and experience of taking ownership of the bike. It's just that simple... I would rather receive the bike less assembled, so I can proactively assemble it correctly. What's the purpose of shipping a bike that is 90% assembled, when I will have to tear it all down to check all of their work?

To be honest, I kind of blame myself because I almost always tear down new bikes and go through them, not trusting that the shop took the time to do it right.

In my case, I experienced the following:
1. Motor bolts were loose
2. Headset was sloppy loose in the box. Not even snug, much less preloaded.
3. Crank arms were loose
4. Brake rotors were both badly warped. (they shipped me new ones without question. This tells me that they must see this often. This should have be caught by the bike assembler.)
5. Caliper bolts were over-torqued and I had to clean up the surfaces that were marred and now wanted to keep going back to the poor original position.
6. The cable kept slipping in the YT branded dropper lever hold down bolt. I had to keep resetting the cable and after 4 times, the screw stripped out. I looked a little closer and found that the screw used was too short. This is a design spec issue. They admitted over email that the many people have complained about this very problem and shipped me a RaceFace lever. Why the hell are they shipping bikes with these levers when there is a known issue?
7. Seat post was installed dry and slipping/making noise. Added carbon assembly paste and was fine. They knew it needed it, which is why they give you a tube with the bike. They could have applied the paste themselves...
8. Front and rear axle thru bolts were dead dry, so I added grease.
9. Seat Rails were dry, so I added grease. This was fine with me because the YT seat might as well be a steel hand rail and needed to be swapped out.

This is a bike with all of 4 rides.

Now, I'm going to remove the motor and break down all the pivot points to see if they greased those, as the manual specifies.

like I said, maybe you got a lemon?

I agree though.. when you get a new bike it’s best to go through it yourself. Last bike I bought new was Santa Cruz hightower, amazing bike, but had many of the issues you describe. I’ve been riding for 20 years and always have had to re-prep any bike I get. Same goes for motorcycles! Brand new ktm’s often ship without enough grease in pivots etc...

sure, iN a perfect world you wouldn’t have to do anything but you are not a sponsored rider on a factory team... All bikes will need to have things done to them after the first few rides... it’s just part of owning a bike.

nothing that you have said would put me off owning a yt.

once you get that shit sorted you should be good.I have 1000 miles no issues!

All the things you mentioned are very minor outside of your time.. very basic stuff and like you said yt sorted you out!

why do they ship a dropper with a shitty remote? To save $$obviously! First thing I did was toss that remote and bought a wolf tooth. I paid for myself and didn’t even run to the internet to tell everyone how insulted I was!!

it’s all part of the game and I think you need to “lighten up Francis”

 

[Gemini2k]

8. Front and rear axle thru bolts were dead dry, so I added grease.
9. Seat Rails were dry, so I added grease. This was fine with me because the YT seat might as well be a steel hand rail and needed to be swapped out.

Uhhhh, what? You shouldn't need to be greasing those parts, lol. I've owned at least 20 high end bikes and assembled hundreds if not thousands. Never once have I greased or heard of anyone greasing their seat post rails.

 

[magnil]

Really sorry to see that YT have not been improving their warranty service since I owed one (analogue) three years ago. Was a real pita with many months without bike.

@Gary Maybe you have some input to this? Since you do not think the warranty handling is important ?

 

[d7e8wd]

I had an appalling experience with my decoy, actually posted about it here. Final got some money back (they kept 700 quid as I had done around 300 miles on it over 6 rides) but it was working for about 4 weekends of my 4 months of ownership. Never going with that trash company again. Just got my 2021 trek rail 9.7 and it's worth the extra cash every day of the week. The quality is a different league and if anything goes wrong the shop is 10mins walk away. No more dealing with Moritz and banging my head against my desk!

 

[seamarsh]

I had an appalling experience with my decoy, actually posted about it here. Final got some money back (they kept 700 quid as I had done around 300 miles on it over 6 rides) but it was working for about 4 weekends of my 4 months of ownership. Never going with that trash company again. Just got my 2021 trek rail 9.7 and it's worth the extra cash every day of the week. The quality is a different league and if anything goes wrong the shop is 10mins walk away. No more dealing with Moritz and banging my head against my desk!

Need 2 separate complaint threads, one for uk one for USA, totally different support experiences from
Both.

tl;dr

uk bad

USA good

 

[R120]

Its not just YT, user experience with various brands varies massively from country to country, but is does seem perplexing how bad it is over here, with issues that should be no issue to quickly resolve.

 

[ebnash]

Uhhhh, what? You shouldn't need to be greasing those parts, lol. I've owned at least 20 high end bikes and assembled hundreds if not thousands. Never once have I greased or heard of anyone greasing their seat post rails.

Thin coat of grease on those items is often used to prevent creaking. They are both metal on metal parts. Your not greasing for lubrication, but just to insulate the metal to metal contact, much like putting grease on the threads of a BB. High force and friction areas.

 

[Camstyn]

sorry, but there are 2 types of customers.
the ones that already bought a bike (thank you but now that we have your money - get lost...) and the very welcomed guys that have to pay 5 or 6 grand yet...

that’s pretty short sighted and that line of thinking will cost you a lot of loyal return customers. I’ve bought a 2018 Capra CF Pro, a 2019 Tues Pro Race, a 2019 Decoy Pro Race and a 2019 Capra LTD. add those up, that’s a lot of money. I was going to buy a 2020 Jeffsy Pro Race earlier this year and due to poor communication, I said screw you YT and I bought a $11,000 Pivot Switchblade instead.

I had two locals ask about my Decoy, I told them both it’s a great bike but suggested they really think twice about buying one because of the lousy customer service caveat. They both bought one anyways despite my advice but I could have probably talked them both out of it if I were more scorned and really wanted to.

Don’t turn your back on existing customers, it’ll bite you in the ass. There’s a decent chance I’ll be buying a new ebike next year and unless they change their ways it will not be a YT.

 

[leftside]

Need 2 separate complaint threads, one for uk one for USA, totally different support experiences from
Both.

tl;dr

uk bad

USA good

USA/Canada good

 

[Dirtnvert]

Ya sucks about the cs the op is getting. CS in north smerica is good. Theyve been slammed but they always get back to me in a week give or take a couple days. The bike rides amazing after i through a 180 air shaft in the fork(cheap upgrade). Checked the pivots and they still have grease after 2000+km(the + is about 40 bikepark gondola days without assist/blown motor). The only problem i have with the bike is the shimano motor and shimani support. Less than confidence inspiring. The new e8000 does seem a bit quieter. Hope that means its a special one and will last/wishful thinking. It took just a little more than 2 1/2 months to get a replacement motor. For the most part thats on shimanos customer service , apart from yt speccing an e8000. Sucks , even without assist its one of the funnest bikes ive owned. Probably did over half a million vertical feet in the park without assist. Still choked i missed the bulk of the summer exploring though. In almost 40yrs of riding mtb ive never dealt with so much jumping through hoops between wacked bike shops and their lack of eeb experience, poor shimano support and driving 3-5hrs to find service and support. My next emtb purchase will have a lot to do with motor support, durability and serviceability. Factor in geo and the choices are slim but there are a few options and those options are expanding

 

[RazorBlade]

Uhhhh, what? You shouldn't need to be greasing those parts, lol. I've owned at least 20 high end bikes and assembled hundreds if not thousands. Never once have I greased or heard of anyone greasing their seat post rails.

yes you use gripper paste on the seat rails or live with creaky seat or over tighten it.

 

[seamarsh]

Ya sucks about the cs the op is getting. CS in north smerica is good. Theyve been slammed but they always get back to me in a week give or take a couple days. The bike rides amazing after i through a 180 air shaft in the fork(cheap upgrade). Checked the pivots and they still have grease after 2000+km(the + is about 40 bikepark gondola days without assist/blown motor). The only problem i have with the bike is the shimano motor and shimani support. Less than confidence inspiring. The new e8000 does seem a bit quieter. Hope that means its a special one and will last/wishful thinking. It took just a little more than 2 1/2 months to get a replacement motor. For the most part thats on shimanos customer service , apart from yt speccing an e8000. Sucks , even without assist its one of the funnest bikes ive owned. Probably did over half a million vertical feet in the park without assist. Still choked i missed the bulk of the summer exploring though. In almost 40yrs of riding mtb ive never dealt with so much jumping through hoops between wacked bike shops and their lack of eeb experience, poor shimano support and driving 3-5hrs to find service and support. My next emtb purchase will have a lot to do with motor support, durability and serviceability. Factor in geo and the choices are slim but there are a few options and those options are expanding

let Us know when you have found said new motor...not it sure it exists at the moment.

 

[Lee Dove]

Update: I have just had a phone call from the UK manager for YT. He apologised and is getting my bike back from Germany and fitting a new battery ASAP. This is the sort of customer service YT need. The are going to be handling all warranty stuff in the UK but it looks like I was a few weeks to early to get the benefit of that.

If all goes well then I will update here and probably change my view on YT as I do love riding their bikes.

 

[seamarsh]

Update: I have just had a phone call from the UK manager for YT. He apologised and is getting my bike back from Germany and fitting a new battery ASAP. This is the sort of customer service YT need. The are going to be handling all warranty stuff in the UK but it looks like I was a few weeks to early to get the benefit of that.

If all goes well then I will update here and probably change my view on YT as I do love riding their bikes.

these warranty fail threads are hilarious...

 

[Gemini2k]

yes you use gripper paste on the seat rails or live with creaky seat or over tighten it.

Gripper paste and grease are very different things. One might say they are literal opposites!

 

[RazorBlade]

Gripper paste and grease are very different things. One might say they are literal opposites!

not really gripper paste is a grease with suspended particles, yes it adds friction but critically they both prevent corrosion and seizing, so they are not "literally" opposite

its other common name is "carbon grease".

have a good read ......

Mounting and anti-seize pastes | BikeGremlin US

Mounting and anti seize pastes (“copper grease”, carbon paste etc.) that are used for bolt thread and part preparation before mounting and tightening.

bike.bikegremlin.com

Not all greases are lubricants, that is a total misconception.

 

[ebnash]

these warranty fail threads are hilarious...

Nothing hilarious about not having your bike for over 2 months because of a battery failure.

This should take about 10min to diagnose over the phone, or a week or two if the bike absolutely has to go back to the closest location.

They should just be sending out a loaner battery while he sends his back for evaluation.