GT Mountain Bikes

Quoted post said:

Originally posted by JonWebah
What does everyone think of GT mountain bikes, namely the Avalanche and (adventure) I-Drive variety?

They used to be a very well respected MTB manufacturer. Recently however they were purchased by Pacific, a department store bicycle company. They have kept the GT name alive but I've had a couple of guys that work in a shop that used to carry GT tell me that the quality has dropped significantly since the buy-out. A buddie of mine has a "pre-buy-out" Avalanche and it's a nice bike!

I just bought a leftover 2003 I-Drive 3.0 to replace a Giant ATX I've had for a few years. I'm very pleased....bought it purely for recreation, nothing too strenuous.

From digging around the web I read that the frame quality appears to have improved since the buyout, especially around the seat post support.

The I-Drive seems solid and deals much better with my heavy foot, versus the Giant's crank.

I ride a GT timberline, I think the quality of the frames themselves wouldn't have changed much because they are probably still made in the same taiwanese factory. The component choice would have been the greatest difference.

I love my GT and wouldn't swap it for anything else. There is something about the triple triangle, the frame feels so stiff and corners hard. I love the look as well.

Regards,
Sean

I have the 03 i-drive 1.0 and it kicks [censored]. Climb better than people half my age. I agree with the guy above that said that both frames are made in Taiwan! The frame is beefier, my 2001 cracked and I got the 03 as a replacement. I was going to give the frame one more chance and I have been very pleased, you should be as well.