Zizzo: First Class Customer Support

I receive no compensation for this post. I’ve already received the best customer support I could have hoped for regardless of what I might say about Zizzo Bikes.

My wife remarked that, for at least two-thirds of the bicycles I’ve bought in the past 20 years, I’ve had some kind of trouble with the rear wheel. Not a single dealer or manufacturer was interested in hearing about it. It’s usually in the form of spokes popping within less than a year of riding, and that’s without any kind of heavy loads, except my body. At roughly 250 pounds (113 kgs), all the bikes have been rated for at least that much. Yet, I’ve generally had trouble with the rear wheel carrying the load. Maybe there’s something about the way I ride.

But I didn’t jump curbs or zip through the woods seeking big air time. I hate dropping so much as a couple of inches. The only time I rode off pavement was with bikes specifically made for that purpose. On at least half of my bikes, it was bad enough that I had to replace the entire rear wheel. Eventually I got used to it. For the past three bikes I’ve owned, it was a question of when, not if, I would have to replace the rear wheel. I learned a great deal about what qualifies as a sturdy replacement, and it’s mostly a matter of more spokes. In my mind, I would price in the rear wheel replacement cost when thinking about what a bike costs.

Most bikes come with 32 or fewer spokes. I would typically get a 36-spoke replacement, and never looked back. It would be some other problem that caused me to replace the bike itself. My last mountain bike was just fine, but I gave it away because it was too big for my apartment. That’s when I did the research and ended up buying the Zizzo Forte folding bicycle.

As you might expect, I wasn’t surprised when the rear wheel on this one started giving me trouble. But the spokes didn’t pop. They stretched out until the metal finally gave way on the hook end at the hub. It made some odd noises for awhile as the spokes began to stretch. I tightened them up, unaware of how the metal itself was failing. Eventually one broke completely and I noticed it, because I was looking for it. I took it to a shop and it turned out four more were just hanging on by a thread. But they fixed it all up and then I began hunting for an upgrade. The stock wheel was only 28 spokes, supposedly enough for the 300 pound weight limit. But it wasn’t enough for me.

I found one shop in OKC that knew how to get a 36-spoke wheel that size, because that shop sold recumbent trikes, and they often run 20″ wheels. Got a new wheel, got it installed and never gave it much thought. I had mentioned to Zizzo Customer Support the odd “tink-tink” noise I was hearing before I found the broken spoke. For the noise itself, I got some good advice about putting a little lube where the spokes crossed. It reduced the noise, but didn’t eliminate it. So, when I had those five replaced at once, I let them know. I also mentioned that I wasn’t too bothered by this whole situation, since it has happened so many times. I let them know the spokes gave out slowly, stretching instead of popping. Otherwise, I was still quite happy with the bike.

Over the course of several emails back and forth, they didn’t hesitate to take responsibility for it. While their options were limited, they offered a replacement from the same stock they used to build the bikes. And over the months since first buying this thing, they’ve stepped up to the plate like that every time. They said if I managed to break any of the hinge pins where the frame folds, they would replace them free, so long as I wasn’t abusing the bike.

I haven’t gotten customer support like that anywhere else. It’s so rare it’s remarkable — taking the meaning of that word “remarkable” literally, in that it’s worthy of making a remark. If you need a new bike, especially if you think a folding bike might be the right answer, I can recommend Zizzo bikes without reservation. You can find far more expensive bikes, but I doubt anyone else out there is offering this level of support.

By the way, if you visit their YouTube channel, you’ll find a whole series of videos on how to conduct basic maintenance and repairs specific to Zizzo bikes, along with how install upgrades they offer.