I bought this and don't know how to pronounce it.........Thanks!

Is this a decent bike? I impulse bought before I found this site.......not my norm, but....

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=ADME:B:EOIBSAA:US:11&Item=140094301534

moe tow be can

Thanks. Where's the accent?

I thought it was Moe toe bee con

In sing song:

"you say toe, I say tow
you say con, I say can,
toe, tow, con, can,
lets blow the whole thing off!"

Before this name was revived for branding and marketing purposes, it was actually a recognized name in European road bikes way back when. It would be insulting to pronounce it any other way than the proper;

Moo-tow-be-saw-nay

Anything else would be uncivilized. Actually I'm just kidding, and don't have a clue of how to pronounce it.

Does the bike suck?

yes but then again all 500.00 full suspension bikes suck. You get what you pay for. Doesn't mean you can't ride it and have a bunch of fun.

This is the actual way to pronounce it. . . Motobecane

Mot-Ob-Eeek-Ann-ih

Thanks. Where's the accent?


Last syllable

Pronunciation of Italian bicycle related brands:
http://www.mappel.de/sound/bike_brands.mp3

I wonder if there is an equivalent page for French brands?

Sheldon Brown's info on French bike brands including Motobecane.
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/velos.html

Moh Tow Beh Khan!
(I'm big enough that I don't get in trouble no matter how I pronounce it, so mileage may vary)

I would guess that it's: moto-be-cane. ::shrugs::

That being said, I don't speak French or Italian :)

Moh Tow Beh Khan!
(I'm big enough that I don't get in trouble no matter how I pronounce it, so mileage may vary)


Oui, don't worry about "can" or "kahn" being correct. Unless you're using coconuts to simulate the sound of hoof beats.


And now for a French lesson everyone should understand...

FRENCH GUARD: "I'm French! Why do think I have this outrageous accent, you silly king-a?!

GALAHAD: What are you doing in England?

FRENCH GUARD: Mind your own business!

ARTHUR: If you will not show us the Grail, we shall take your castle by force!

FRENCH GUARD: You don't frighten us, English pig-dogs! Go and boil your bottom, sons of a silly person. I blow my nose at you, so-called Arthur King, you and all your silly English k-nnnnniggets. Thpppppt! Thppt! Thppt!

GALAHAD: What a strange person.

ARTHUR: Now look here, my good man--

FRENCH GUARD: I don't wanna talk to you no more, you empty headed animal food trough wiper! I fart in your general direction! Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries!

GALAHAD: Is there someone else up there we could talk to?

FRENCH GUARD: No. Now, go away, or I shall taunt you a second time-a! [sniff]

ARTHUR: Now, this is your last chance. I've been more than reasonable.

FRENCH GUARD: (Fetchez la vache.)

OTHER FRENCH GUARD: Quoi?

FRENCH GUARD: (Fetchez la vache!) [mooo]

moto-bekah-nay

Moh Tow Beh Khan!
(I'm big enough that I don't get in trouble no matter how I pronounce it, so mileage may vary)
KHAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :eek:

Sheldon Brown's info on French bike brands including Motobecane.
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/velos.html
Motobecane was a great road bike manufacturer (one of the first). The bikes being sold on ebay/cyclespectrum/bikesdirect.com are Motobecane in name only. Decent part specs, but the frames are not of great quality. I owned and broke one a few years back. I'll just say that their 'lifetime' warranty is not all it's cracked up to be.

I pronounce it ...........BIKE!!!!!!!

Motobecane was a great road bike manufacturer (one of the first). The bikes being sold on ebay/cyclespectrum/bikesdirect.com are Motobecane in name only. Decent part specs, but the frames are not of great quality. I owned and broke one a few years back. I'll just say that their 'lifetime' warranty is not all it's cracked up to be.

let me ask what you were doing when you broke the frame.....and what is your definition of "quality?" are the welds not good enough? tubes not straight enough? incorrect geometry? pivots not smooth enough? i assume you owned a full suspension frame, but i could be wrong....i own a kona kula hardtail, and a moto comp ds...and i've ran both of them into the ground, with not a complaint from either, and both are top quality.......if anything i'd say the moto frames are KILLER, and the component groups leave something to be desired....like the rear shock, forks, etc....they're ok, but not of the best "quality"....if you really want my opinion, there are only a few bike company's in the market that i really believe beyond a shadow of a doubt are QUALITY bikes...ellsworth, titus, and turner are about the only three i can think of right off...but you wanna compare a moto to giant, trek, specialized, kona, gt, jamis, raliegh, haro, gary fisher...well they're all in the same boat...they're all MASS PRODUCED, and made in taiwan (except trek).....and they're all inflated in price....the only differance between the companies is the way they engineer the bikes, and the geometry....now we all know there are 100 different ways to engineer something correctly, and have it be just as strong each way...as for the warranty, think about this....i WORK FOR, and have met the guy who OWNS motobecane...mike spratt....lives about 10 miles from where i do....he owns cycle spectrum, bikes direct, bottechia, dawes, windsor, gravity bikes, and mango cruisers...if you think about it, technically the entire company is a "mom and pop" company....all the managers that he has running his shops, are stand up guys, and are going to do what it takes to help you out...see motobecane IS cycle spectrum....and bikes direct IS motobecane....so if you broke your trek, and went to the "dealer" they'd say "well you have to take it up with trek..." well you break your moto, and you take to to where you bought it (only cycle spectrum, or bikes direct), and they're not going to say "take it up with motobecane", b/c they ARE motobecane....it's THEIR BRAND.....for some reason, it makes me feel a lot better to be able to walk in to a shop, and get a new frame on the spot...vs dealing with someone by email or phone, halfway around the world.....the only thing it really comes down to, is that all bikes, no matter the manufacturer, are purpose built...if you use them beyond their intended usage, they will fail....no matter what....so dont use your comp ds for crazy free riding or DH, cause it'll break....although i've seen it done, dont use the fantom comp hard tail to ride off 3+ foot drops, b/c eventually it'll fail.....or the fly 9357 or the fly team....90% of the warrantys out there are against workmanship defects ONLY....no one that i know of has an un-conditional guarantee that if you can break their frame, the'll give you a new one free....a lot of them even with the workmanship warranty will give you a sympathy price on a new frame, but i dont know anyone that gives away frames if you break them while exceeding their indended usage...i'm sick of people knocking a company or bike they know absolutly nothing about...how bout you ride one, and thrash it within it's means, and then NOT break one, and come back and talk to me then...and think of all the money you saved at the same time....

let me ask what you were doing when you broke the frame.....and what is your definition of "quality?" are the welds not good enough? tubes not straight enough? incorrect geometry? pivots not smooth enough? i assume you owned a full suspension frame, but i could be wrong....i own a kona kula hardtail, and a moto comp ds...and i've ran both of them into the ground, with not a complaint from either, and both are top quality.......if anything i'd say the moto frames are KILLER, and the component groups leave something to be desired....like the rear shock, forks, etc....they're ok, but not of the best "quality"....if you really want my opinion, there are only a few bike company's in the market that i really believe beyond a shadow of a doubt are QUALITY bikes...ellsworth, titus, and turner are about the only three i can think of right off...but you wanna compare a moto to giant, trek, specialized, kona, gt, jamis, raliegh, haro, gary fisher...well they're all in the same boat...they're all MASS PRODUCED, and made in taiwan (except trek).....and they're all inflated in price....the only differance between the companies is the way they engineer the bikes, and the geometry....now we all know there are 100 different ways to engineer something correctly, and have it be just as strong each way...as for the warranty, think about this....i WORK FOR, and have met the guy who OWNS motobecane...mike spratt....lives about 10 miles from where i do....he owns cycle spectrum, bikes direct, bottechia, dawes, windsor, gravity bikes, and mango cruisers...if you think about it, technically the entire company is a "mom and pop" company....all the managers that he has running his shops, are stand up guys, and are going to do what it takes to help you out...see motobecane IS cycle spectrum....and bikes direct IS motobecane....so if you broke your trek, and went to the "dealer" they'd say "well you have to take it up with trek..." well you break your moto, and you take to to where you bought it (only cycle spectrum, or bikes direct), and they're not going to say "take it up with motobecane", b/c they ARE motobecane....it's THEIR BRAND.....for some reason, it makes me feel a lot better to be able to walk in to a shop, and get a new frame on the spot...vs dealing with someone by email or phone, halfway around the world.....the only thing it really comes down to, is that all bikes, no matter the manufacturer, are purpose built...if you use them beyond their intended usage, they will fail....no matter what....so dont use your comp ds for crazy free riding or DH, cause it'll break....although i've seen it done, dont use the fantom comp hard tail to ride off 3+ foot drops, b/c eventually it'll fail.....or the fly 9357 or the fly team....90% of the warrantys out there are against workmanship defects ONLY....no one that i know of has an un-conditional guarantee that if you can break their frame, the'll give you a new one free....a lot of them even with the workmanship warranty will give you a sympathy price on a new frame, but i dont know anyone that gives away frames if you break them while exceeding their indended usage...i'm sick of people knocking a company or bike they know absolutly nothing about...how bout you ride one, and thrash it within it's means, and then NOT break one, and come back and talk to me then...and think of all the money you saved at the same time....

Ok, I should have worded my response as: 'the design was not of great quality'. I actually liked the bike very much (fantom team) and I expect things to break when used outside of intended purpose. In my case I was using the bike for its intended purpose and had very few miles on the frame (I only had it 6 months before it broke). The frame broke along the seat tube top tube weld junction which is a high stress area for full suspension frames. The original frames had no gusset to strengthen the area (they do now). Since it was clearly a weld failure and it was practically a new frame, I expected to have no trouble getting it warrantied. They do claim to have a lifetime warranty on their bikes. I sent the frame to them and they told me that it could not be warrantied because it had been abused and that they had found evidence that the bike had been damaged. However before I sent it to them I had a materials science lab analyze the weld and they determined that the seat tube had been improperly prepped before welding resulting in a contaminated weld and hence the failure.
I told Motobecane that I wanted them to send me the bike back so I could have it tested independently (even though I already had) and they told me that they could not return it for safety reasons. Now, regardless of whether or not they will warranty it, the frame is still my property and they have no legal right to keep it. They then told me that they only warranty bike parts and since I only bought the frame they were unable to warranty it (even though they sent me a warranty certificate with the bike).
To make a long story short, I filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission where I found out that other complaints had been registered against them. Finally after about a month and no word from them, my frame showed up at my door with a new front triangle swapped out.
So in the end I got what I wanted, but have never had more of a nightmare trying to have a company honor their product. Several years prior I warrantied a Specialized for a broken dropout and had NO problems...
You get what you pay for....