Troul 

the mileage null & voids OEM/retailer support imo.

70sSanO

Great. Good luck serving Giant with papers for your case.

You can’t even talk to Giant directly about your wheels.

How do you suppose you are going to notify a foreign company to show up in your local court?

And I’d bet if you served your LBS, they will be there and tell the court the wheels were outside of the warranty period, they contacted Giant about the issue, and there are no outstanding recalls on the product.

John

Erzulis Boat 

To varying degrees, every component on a bicycle is a wear item.

At the top, we have the tires, chain.........and down the line we go. The rims and the spokes are absolutely wear items, and are near the top, in fact, I would rate rims "higher" on the wear scale than derailleur pulleys for example.

11,000+ miles is actually impressive relevant to longevity when it comes to rims.

Mulberry20

Giant has a US subsidiary in California.

It will never get to a judge. All SCC have court appointed mediators that will pressure both sides to settle in the waiting room.

Worst case, OP gets $500 out of this whether its in the waiting room or once he files the complaint. If it gets to court and Giant doesn’t show, the whole retail price.

Mulberry20

11,000 is good for rims? Really? I have two sets of Campy wheels that didn’t need bearings until the 5th year I had them. I am still happily riding a set of 13 year old Protons.

70sSanO

In thinking about this thread...

OP rides over 11,000 miles without a single post or even joining BF.

Has an issue with his carbon wheelset that is not resolved and decides it's time to get involved on the forum, and maybe other bike forums, to state his case.

And it is always the same story.

John

tomato coupe

Even if the OP wins in small claims court (which is doubtful), he still has to collect the money.

Koyote

Mulberry20 : Are you an attorney? And if so, are you licensed to practice in the OP's state?

It's not a rhetorical question; I am genuinely curious, and I think the OP would be well-served to know the answer.

downhillmaster

This.
Based upon his responses, anyone that has anything that fails is guaranteed to win a lawsuit for no other reason than the item was made by a large company.
Never mind the heavy usage and fact that the item is out of warranty

Charliekeet

I have a question for the OP, which is where did he/she purchase the wheels? You said you brought them to a shop that is a Giant dealer to have a look, but not that it was the place where you purchased them...

I ask because although you’re out of warranty, it’s possible that the intercession of the selling dealer with Giant may result in consideration of some sort- I mean, that’s why we still pay for things at retailers, right? For their service, expertise, and administrative assistance when a product doesn’t meet our expectations?

The company can always say no, but they might decide there’s reputational value to consider, or want to retain a customer. Yet it sounds like the place you took them to is not taking it further.
I’m no lawyer, but IMHO, if the selling dealer isn’t assisting thoroughly, there’s not much you can do other than decide you’ve gotten enough from the rims or taking legal action like some suggested.

Danhedonia

I grew up in Lincoln and Concord, and my father's house was on the Concord/Carlisle line. I know Lowell Rd. all too well, and these days it's impossibly sad what's become of the neighborhood: endless traffic, entitled Karens and Kevins in $100K SUVs who cannot decide whether to kill each other or die trying to impress each other with newer $100K SUVs and 'additions' to massive McMansions. My sister (bless her withered heart) moved back to the nabe, and ... boy, it's like Bourgeois World. My step-dad was a Harvard Law grad and definitely practiced in MA. I can tell you that any Middlesex County Court is not going to be pleased with spending time on a case involving speculation on implied warranty for four-figure bike wheels.

I also knew Geoff Farina from his band Karate - he working at the shop?

Having ridden those roads for a long time, I can say that I'm not surprised they'd have a bad effect on carbon rims. Lots of organic soil, incredible amounts of traffic, older road surfaces add up to a pantload of smaller particle-sized grit. Grit that I'd hate to have between my brake shoes and rims if I were running carbon.

OP can probably afford lots of nice, new wheels. Apparently he got a bad pair, and now the world must pay for him not always getting everything he wants.

Ogsarg

It doesn't sound to me like they owe you anything from a strictly legal standpoint. Wheels are out of warranty. And I definitely disagree with suing your LBS.

Having said that, having both wheels fail in that time doesn't sound right given the mileage and usage you describe. I would start a dialogue directly with Giant customer service and explain how the wheels have been used and ask them if they consider that an acceptable life from an expensive set of carbon wheels. Likely you will start with people who have no authority to do anything and you'll need to ask for their supervisor and work your way up the chain till you get to someone that has authority to do something for you. Through all of this, you need to be very calm. Stick with the facts, don't get angry. The goal is to get them to see that while they may not be obligated to do anything, that they need to make it right. It is possible that they won't, but I think you're more likely to get something this way than going to court.

BTW. A judgement in small claims court doesn't mean you'll automatically get paid. If they don't pay you have to take them to court.

rydabent

Metal bikes dont delaminate. One hundred twenty year old Wright brothers steel bikes in the Museum of Science and Industry could be ridden with new tires. What condition will all of todays CF bikes be in, in 120 years?

rydabent

Metal bikes dont delaminate. One hundred twenty year old Wright brothers steel bikes in the Museum of Science and Industry could be ridden with new tires. What condition will all of todays CF bikes be in, in 120 years?

tomato coupe

Same old drivel ...

gsa103

Probably more than a pile of brown dust that is the average 120yr old steel frame.

indyfabz

Can one not ride delaminated wheels? I know nothing about carbon wheels.

HerrKaLeun

I felt sympathy for the OP, until I read he bought the same set of wheels again. How bad of a product and CS does a company need to provide to make you chose a different product?

Erzulis Boat 

Just talking about carbon fiber wheels in a rim brake application-

There are some very distinct trade-offs when carbon fiber (carbon/epoxy) is utilized as a friction surface (brake track) vs. aluminum. There are also substantial differences to the performance/longevity in regards to using a tubular tire vs. a tubed. There are some very informative Youtube videos that clearly outline these factors.

Compared to aluminum for example, carbon/epoxy is substantially less capable of heat transfer. This alone presents challenges in both the engineering and the manufacture.

Anyway, long story short, 11,000+ miles from a "full" carbon rim brake rim is quite good, and if it's not a tubular, even more so.

Koyote

Check Mulberry20 's profile: he/she has been back to bf today, but clearly doesn't want to answer this question. There's an old saying about free legal advice: it's worth exactly what you paid for it.

I'm gonna do the math here. I bought my first cf bike when I was 45 years old...So, you're asking me to worry about it's condition when I am...umm...carry the two...wait for it...WHEN I'M 165 YEARS OLD. I mean, come on! When I'm that old, I'll be riding a recumbent.

MattTheHat 

Really? I’ve got 11,000 miles on my current carbon rims and they haven’t even needed to be trued.

Pop N Wood

Just wondering, are they rim brake and if so, do they have an aluminum braking surface?

Never owned carbon wheels, no idea what to expect.

Had a rear wheel that lasted 30 years with only a minor true now and then. Was forced to replace the rim/spokes when the wheel ate a broken chain.

If you want the lightest and fastest you need to set proper expectations. Depressing to hear all the "sewers" singing about going to court. The things are out of warranty, move on.

MattTheHat 

No, they’re definitely disk wheels. Worries about the longevity of carbon rim brake wheels was one of my reasons for going disk. But I would never have thought they’d reach end of life within 11,000 miles.

But yes, it seems like any warranty you get on go fast parts is better than no warranty. When it’s over...it’s over.

Erzulis Boat 

We are talking about rim brake carbons/carbon track in this thread. I should have been more specific, my bad.

rydabent

Call it what you want, but it is a true fact.