A detailed Dahon Curl i8 review
 

Just found a detailed review of Dahon Curl i8. Some of my friends thought that Dahon was copying Brompton. After reading this review, they changed their opinions. Curl and Brompton are so different with each other. Each has its own
unique features.

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Hi superzxq, any chance of translating the review?

You are joking, right?

Attachment 594516Copy and paste the link into Google Translate. The translation into English can be quite entertaining. :roflmao2::lol:

Alternatively you can use Chrome, which does it automatically. However, I didn't bother, as the translations are woeful.

Nice pictures,...otherwise this post was a waste of time. Google Translate isn't up to translating the text, and all we get is nonsensical garbage to attempt to sift through.

So Dahons are mass produced but Bromptons are what? individually built? Custom built? Hand built? I'm at a loss. Is the difference price? Where it is built?


I'm baffled, maybe only the Asians can mass produce something?
Dahons are mass produced in Asia.
Bromptons are mass produced in England.

It's trolling nonsense. Bromptons are great - I've owned two - but discarding all Dahons as "mass produced", and having problems because of Tern, is a silly Brompton Cult comparison. Brompton, Dahon and Tern are all mass produced, and the only one I would avoid is Tern.

What's this? I was assured by some Brompton fanboys that the bikes are created by old world craftsmen at a handful of village smithies scattered about rural England. ;)

Attachment 594790

Yes, I will keep "going again" as long as I want. I've owned and ridden a ton of folding bikes and know of what I speak. You're welcome.

The red Curl looks very cute!! But not available in Malaysia now. Will make a review too when I got one :)

Yep ... tinkering involves a lot of trial and error, IME. Can be fun at times.

The wheel/tire size thing is particularly tricky. Brompton, of course, has 349 wheels. But I understand that it was a while before one could comfortably fit the widest tire available at that size: the Greenspeed Scorcher (40 mm wide). I keep thinking that my tikit would be better if it could comfortably fit 355 with Big Apples.

€1,399 = US$1,700

For that kind of money, it's not worth it. Just get a six-speed Brompton.

https://www.faltradxxs.de/dahon-curl...lieferbar.html

I agree,...for that price it's definitely not worth it.

Why would anyone choose to own a Dahon Curl at $1780!
I've seen the bike first hand in a bike shop, it weighs around 13kg

I used to own a Dahon D8 Jetsream, sold it after 1 month cause it rode so badly and you cannot roll the bike properly as you have to balance it on one wheel. Can't compare to a brompton I now own in any way. The dahon curl is also the same price as a Brompton M6R in Asia which costs more than UK, this means it costs more than a brompton.
It's like a chinese made car pricing a new car at the BMW, Audi and Merc range, no chance.
With any Dahon, you get zero customer service if your outside US, no aftermarket accessories and its made in China. How can this bike justify it's price? and it's made of all aluminum which is cheaper than high grade steel btw.
Aside from the folding style vs a brompton, it's copied the look of a brompton, the distinctive curve in the frame.
I have googled and found an official dahon curve unveiling with the same exact brompton pedals on.

I don't get the Curl pricing I would of thought they were going to price it signficantly below but still above their normal Dahon pricing for the same components. A sort of mid position model. It may well get abandoned like many Dahon designs if its doesn't sell well and support maybe limited in future. The frame is unlikely to last as long as a Brompton unless ridden by a very light rider or infrequently. However I have no idea of Dahon's costs, designing and manufacturing the frame may have been expensive and maybe if the model sells long term pricing will get much more competitive later on. At the moment though pricing would seem to prevent the model getting established. I also wonder about copying the frame design of a Brompton but using aluminium rather than steel. The whole design of the Brompton frame is based around using steel. I honestly don't know why Dahon didn't also use steel.

I think most people will assume anyone riding a Curl is because its a cheaper option than Brompton. Ultimately I think its down to people's perception of the Dahon brand and the value they attribute to it and this may vary by country. Where the Dahon brand is very respected then such pricing will be accepted.

I'm guessing Dahon is just starting out with a ludicrous price to try and recoup the many years of development; some people just want the latest thing like the iphone X.
Since there are no expensive components not many will sell and then the price will drop. $1000 has a chance of success; $700 would sell like hotcakes.

I'd go for no more than $800 myself,... I had hoped for this to become a reality, but it's turned into more of a pipedream for me.

I think the easiest answer to the price, which is high, I understand that myself, is that one really needs to ride the bike, uphill, mashing gears and do all the stuff you really shouldn't do on a folder ... than compare ..
Its not perfect , nothing ever is in my eyes.... but its worth it, even with the high price tag


Not to forget that it is rated for 130 kg or 280 lbs


I will pass on the comments if alloy is cheaper, a Jetstream doesn't ride well and and and comparing a Jetstream to a Brommy is just wrong on so many levels ...


In any way we have 25 in besides the custom personal ones. That's it for at least the next 6 months. I am not too concerned that they wont sell in that time :-)

Are we getting all the rubbish frames in Europe or something. The EU site clearly states 105kg.

DAHON Curl i3 16" - DAHON

Maybe the wheels are weaker and downgraded compared to elsewhere. That actually wouldn't be that surprising as many Dahon bikes seem to be downgraded in Europe. Cassettes turning into freewheels etc.

Oh wait actually says 105kg on USA site as well.

https://usa.dahon.com/bikes/curl-i3/

The eu bike weight claims to be 0.3kg heavier but I can't see the spec difference to justify it. Wheels look the same but eu models states double wall rims. It also states 18" rims and 16" tyres too though.

Is the higher weight limit only on certain curl models? Better wheels?

yeah the site needs updating my figures are from Dahon direct ...
heavens knows what they do in Europe ... might be wheels as you say or just copy and paste other specs. the fact that they are unsire about 18 versus 16 leads me to believe that they either don't know or don't give too much ... lol
In any way we have many cool bikes and the Curl I 8 is only one of them