# Why such short warranties on Pinarello products?



## johnnysworks

In this day and age, most high end manufacturers have lifetime warranties on their frames and wheel sets (such as Specialized / Roval), why does Pinarello only offer 2 - 3 year warranties on their products? I was interested in a new F8 as my next bike but the 3 years warranty is an instant turn off.


----------



## twinkles

Because they can. If people keep buying them, why would they increase the number of frames they have to warranty?


----------



## johnnysworks

If they sold a solid product, why wouldn't they offer a lifetime warranty like the other big names? The fact that they don't believe in their product enough to warranty it for a lifetime, makes me not want to buy it.


----------



## adjtogo

I can't answer that question, but maybe they feel their frames are better built than other frames, and they don't need to warranty them as long? I don't know.

What I can tell you is that the "lifetime warranty" that come with other bikes is sketchy at best when it actually comes to honoring the warranty. I had a Bianchi Infinito that was less than a year old and I had a cracked rear seatstay. After the LBS inspected it, it was packed up and sent to Bianchi in California. They inspected the crack and determined it was caused by me hitting something in the road, which I never did. The crack was at the top side of the seatstay. They wouldn't honor a full frame replacement, but rather, a crash replacement at a cost of $600 to me. They also offered me the option of getting the cracked frame repaired at Calfee for $500. I bought the new frame, sold the old frame for $550 on ebay, had the bike rebuilt, rode it less than a few months, and sold it.

So, the moral of the story is, "lifetime warranty" doesn't mean full lifetime warranty.


----------



## spas

Excellent Point! In addition, who's "Lifetime" is it? The manufacturers the reselling agent in the US?



adjtogo said:


> I can't answer that question, but maybe they feel their frames are better built than other frames, and they don't need to warranty them as long? I don't know.
> 
> What I can tell you is that the "lifetime warranty" that come with other bikes is sketchy at best when it actually comes to honoring the warranty. I had a Bianchi Infinito that was less than a year old and I had a cracked rear seatstay. After the LBS inspected it, it was packed up and sent to Bianchi in California. They inspected the crack and determined it was caused by me hitting something in the road, which I never did. The crack was at the top side of the seatstay. They wouldn't honor a full frame replacement, but rather, a crash replacement at a cost of $600 to me. They also offered me the option of getting the cracked frame repaired at Calfee for $500. I bought the new frame, sold the old frame for $550 on ebay, had the bike rebuilt, rode it less than a few months, and sold it.
> 
> So, the moral of the story is, "lifetime warranty" doesn't mean full lifetime warranty.


----------



## MMsRepBike

I thought about it quite a bit before I decided to buy a $3650 frame from them.

What helped me out was seeing a Quattro in a bike shop that had been hit by and run over by a car twice. Somehow the frame looked fine but the rest of the bike was trash. The shop has the bike rebuilt now as a shop bike and is still ridden.

Point I'm making is that Pinarello's are generally heavy bikes and generally very solid. Although their warranty isn't very long at all, their product quality is superb. Many nice cars only have a 4 or 5 year warranty to them.

All carbon fiber will break if ridden regularly. It's a matter of when really, not if. When I bought my first carbon bike, I told myself I hope it lasts ten years. I'm being realistic. I have a buddy I ride with that also has a Paris, one year older than mine. He's had three bad crashes that hospitalized him but his bike is still going strong, it's a wonder.

After a few years of riding a bike with zero issues, the manufacturer has done their job.

Edit: And even if your bike is old and out of warranty, your Pinarello dealer and Gita Bike will work with you for sure to help. Gita helps get frames professionally repaired for low cost that are out of warranty and does everything they can to help, so that's something.


----------



## SirVelo'

MMsRepBike said:


> I thought about it quite a bit before I decided to buy a $3650 frame from them.
> 
> What helped me out was seeing a Quattro in a bike shop that had been hit by and run over by a car twice. Somehow the frame looked fine but the rest of the bike was trash. The shop has the bike rebuilt now as a shop bike and is still ridden.
> 
> Point I'm making is that Pinarello's are generally heavy bikes and generally very solid. Although their warranty isn't very long at all, their product quality is superb. Many nice cars only have a 4 or 5 year warranty to them.
> 
> All carbon fiber will break if ridden regularly. It's a matter of when really, not if. When I bought my first carbon bike, I told myself I hope it lasts ten years. I'm being realistic. I have a buddy I ride with that also has a Paris, one year older than mine. He's had three bad crashes that hospitalized him but his bike is still going strong, it's a wonder.
> 
> After a few years of riding a bike with zero issues, the manufacturer has done their job.
> 
> Edit: And even if your bike is old and out of warranty, your Pinarello dealer and Gita Bike will work with you for sure to help. Gita helps get frames professionally repaired for low cost that are out of warranty and does everything they can to help, so that's something.


I don't but that a carbon frame WILL break...that it's only a matter of time. 
You could say that about any product. The point is that it shouldn't under normal use. If you break a frame because of something catastrophic like a crash...it wouldn't be covered anyway. Warranty replacement should be a lot longer than 3 years considering how much the Pinarello frames cost.I bought my first carbon bike 4 years ago, and I chose Cervelo (S2) because of the lifetime warranty. I was looking at several other brands..and I made my final decision based on warranty...Now saying that, I would not have bought it if I didn't like how it rode.


----------



## johnnysworks

Great posts everyone, lots of good info to consider. I'm not bashing Pinarello's products at all, I love the F8 and really REALLY want one as my next bike. I have stuck with Specialized (have purchased 8 different bikes from them) due to the lifetime warranty, and it did save me the cost of replacing an S-Works Tarmac when it developed a crack in the frame after 2 years of normal riding. 

It's a tough choice and something that really makes me wonder. If they had a 5 or 10 year warranty it would make it a little easier, but 2 to 3 years seems awfully low to me.


----------



## Notvintage

Because they are made in China. Get a Time. . they make quality bikes and stand by them for life. IMO, one would have to be a clown to spend $4k on a China made frame with a three year warranty.


----------



## Cinelli 82220

^ Because French people are genetically born to be master craftsmen and Chinese people are all stupid and clumsy?


----------



## Trek_5200

johnnysworks said:


> In this day and age, most high end manufacturers have lifetime warranties on their frames and wheel sets (such as Specialized / Roval), why does Pinarello only offer 2 - 3 year warranties on their products? I was interested in a new F8 as my next bike but the 3 years warranty is an instant turn off.


Few quick thoughts. First Cervelo's warranty is a market reaction to customers balking after Cervelo built frames that were too cutting edge in a number of ways, resulting in high failure rates, second Pinarello sells less bikes than Trek or Giant and. Pinarello may not even be in the top ten for road bike sales. Lastly Pinarello frames are not as weight weenie as say Cervelo , Canondale and even now Trek so perhaps less of an issue as well.


----------



## MMsRepBike

Trek_5200 said:


> Few quick thoughts. First Cervelo's warranty is a market reaction to customers balking after Cervelo built frames that were too cutting edge in a number of ways, resulting in high failure rates, second Pinarello sells less bikes than Trek or Giant and. Pinarello may not even be in the top ten for road bike sales. Lastly Pinarello frames are not as weight weenie as say Cervelo , Canondale and even now Trek so perhaps less of an issue as well.


Cervelo makes it's frames in China.

Pinarello makes it's frames in Taiwan.

There's a difference (I own both).


Here's a little game for you to play:

Call your local Cervelo dealer, ask them how many frames they've had to warranty over the last five years.

Now call your local Pinarello dealer and ask them the same.

Share your results here.

(I'll give you a hint. The local Pinarello dealer here, which is rather large, has only had to warranty one frame in the last 13 years. That was for a paint defect. They have a Quattro that was run over by a car twice in their shop they use as a taco getter bike, still works great.)


----------



## Jonas111

My F8 arrived on Friday. My main reason for picking it over the 2015 S Works Tarmac was the local dealers in my area. The pinarello dealer has treated me amazing. The specialized dealer never called me back and I had to constantly go to the dealership to talk to anyone. On numerous occasions. 

I also know after dealing with the pinarello dealer if there is any issues he will always take care of me. 

So in short I think the warranty is questionable unless your local dealer is there to back you up anyway.


----------



## brianmcg

View attachment 300215


----------



## goodboyr

MMsRepBike said:


> Cervelo makes it's frames in China.
> 
> Pinarello makes it's frames in Taiwan.
> 
> There's a difference (I own both).
> 
> 
> Here's a little game for you to play:
> 
> Call your local Cervelo dealer, ask them how many frames they've had to warranty over the last five years.
> 
> Now call your local Pinarello dealer and ask them the same.
> 
> Share your results here.
> 
> (I'll give you a hint. The local Pinarello dealer here, which is rather large, has only had to warranty one frame in the last 13 years. That was for a paint defect. They have a Quattro that was run over by a car twice in their shop they use as a taco getter bike, still works great.)


Lol. You know of course that there will be more warranty returns on a brand with a lifetime warranty than one with a short one........because there are more bikes covered by a LIFETIME warranty than one that is only 3 years. Its just simple arithmetic.


----------



## Cinelli 82220

goodboyr said:


> Lol. You know of course that there will be more warranty returns on a brand with a lifetime warranty than one with a short one........because there are more bikes covered by a LIFETIME warranty than one that is only 3 years. Its just simple arithmetic.


Product failure, in any kind of manufactured item, occurs in what is usually called a "bathtub curve".
A lot of failures at the front, mostly due to manufacturing defects that show up very quickly when the product is used. These would almost always fall withing the two or three year period Pinarello warranies their bikes for.
Most other failures occur far down the road when the product starts failing due to wear. Things do wear out if you use them long enough. Most "lifetime" warranties have specific language excluding normal wear and tear.


----------



## goodboyr

Hmmmmm.......so wouldnt that mean that it would be no issue for pinarello to offer a lifetime warranty? So back to the OP......why not? Your logic, if true ( and I know of many instances where cervelo has been pretty generous with the wear and tear exclusion) holds for both companies and still doesn't explain why they are different. And of course you've also concluded that for a bike the "bathtub curve" is calibrated at exactly where the pinarello warranty coincides. Not sure I agree. 
In any case, it sure would be nice to have actual facts on this. 
I guess its the choice between cutting edge technology and cutting edge paint jobs...........


----------



## Notvintage

MMsRepBike said:


> Cervelo makes it's frames in China.
> 
> Pinarello makes it's frames in Taiwan.
> 
> There's a difference (I own both).


China owns Taiwan. No difference in quality. Both are cheap to make and suckers pay a lot for them. No idea why considering Chinese bikes like Cervelo and Pinarello cost pennies on the dollar to make.


----------



## Cinelli 82220

I am an idiot for thinking this topic could be discussed in an adult manner.


----------



## goodboyr

Oh well........


----------



## antihero77

This topic IMHO is a waste of time. I might get blasted for this but if u can afford a dogma I'm sure u can afford a second bike so who cares about the warranty. Most people don't even keep their bikes that long anymore.


----------



## aureliajulia

Notvintage said:


> Because they are made in China. Get a Time. . they make quality bikes and stand by them for life. IMO, one would have to be a clown to spend $4k on a China made frame with a three year warranty.


Actually, the carbon cloth is engineered in Japan, and the frame sets are made in Taiwan. 

Love my Quattro. The thing is a tank. It could be a cross bike.


----------



## Donn12

I think Gita the importer offers the warranty. it is normally 2 years but three if you send them the card so they can track when it was sold etc. There really is no Pinarello in the US, just the importer. I have also never heard about a dogma frame ending warranty replacement. Many companies offer a long warranty because they have to. the last thing I am worried about is my dogma frame cracking.


----------



## Notvintage

antihero77 said:


> Most people don't even keep their bikes that long.


Where is the scientific data backing that up? I would expect someone paying for $3,500 for a frameset is going to keep it at least 5 years.


----------



## Trek_5200

Notvintage said:


> Where is the scientific data backing that up? I would expect someone paying for $3,500 for a frameset is going to keep it at least 5 years.


 Pretty big generalization. I suspect there are all types out there, and its no different than cars. Some people will use a bike till it falls apart, others get bored relatively quickly etc What always gives me a smile, is the person getting back into biking who convinces themselves that a newer bike will help them rider faster


----------



## tottenham21

Trek_5200 said:


> Pretty big generalization. I suspect there are all types out there, and its no different than cars. Some people will use a bike till it falls apart, others get bored relatively quickly etc What always gives me a smile, is the person getting back into biking who convinces themselves that a newer bike will help them rider faster


:thumbsup: ya nailed that last comment hahahaha, spot on


----------



## Rokh Hard

why? because you are buying a Pinarello cycle, not a warranty. 

Italian Logic 101 - "we design best. we create best. we are most beautiful design. you dont like? vaffanculo" #endofdiscussion #agree #cannondale4u


----------



## mimason

don't you want a new bike every three years?


----------



## Rokh Hard

mimason said:


> don't you want a new bike every three years?


no. every year. 


if you are wrecking proper expensive bikes, you will not be allowed to own them. you are not mature enough. you get a schwinn. come back in 10years.

proper way to collect/have new bike is buy it, not bin them. 

do not wreck n replace.

respect n collect. 

Obey the Rules -

Velominati ? The Rules


----------



## oldcannondale

*new old Pinarello*



Jonas111 said:


> My F8 arrived on Friday. My main reason for picking it over the 2015 S Works Tarmac was the local dealers in my area. The pinarello dealer has treated me amazing. The specialized dealer never called me back and I had to constantly go to the dealership to talk to anyone. On numerous occasions.
> 
> I also know after dealing with the pinarello dealer if there is any issues he will always take care of me.
> 
> So in short I think the warranty is questionable unless your local dealer is there to back you up anyway.


My salesman at the LBS just texted me that a 2005 Pinarello Prince frame that had been hanging on the wall for eye candy is in my price range. I have followed this rather interesting discussion, and as the Prince is New, it should be covered by the factory warranty? I just texted him to ask, but I have not heard back yet???


----------



## mimason

It should be a full warranty item but I would not buy 05' carbon tech unless it was an outright steal. Carbon has come a long way since '05. Unless you must have a pinarello I'd steer you to a giant or similar.


----------



## oldcannondale

mimason said:


> It should be a full warranty item but I would not buy 05' carbon tech unless it was an outright steal. Carbon has come a long way since '05. Unless you must have a pinarello I'd steer you to a giant or similar.


Well, this particular Prince has been on my scope for at least 5 years, they had a red one that I had ridden several times, it had a beautiful component group, and wheels, just a very pretty gorgeous bike, and a joy to ride... I hesitate to even mention what I want to build, but suffice it to say, I'm 58, I haven't enjoyed my road bike, my riding partner moved 25 miles away, so if I am able to swing it, I'm going to build a bike that I enjoy, that will be comfortable and fun to ride, and still be a Pinarello? I ride around town, on a mix of roads, from gorgeous pavement to crap covered in loose gravel?? and yes it does have a warranty, and compared to retail, it is something of a steal or at least a deal, and it is a timeless bit of history, something like a Ferrari, or a Ducati, (I've owned two and never ridden either of them), they are gone and I have an 01 Gixxer 1000, with Heli Bars, and lowered just a scoochy bit?


----------

