Specialized crosstrail jammed locked up, to follow full report:

[Mike.S]

I contacted specialized regarding a safety issue with a crosstrail bike. My wife and I set out for a bike ride; she was on the as new crosstrail. It was a clear day and we were on a flat road with no other traffic in the neighborhood. Without any shifting or braking the crosstrail jammed, locked up and violently launched my wife over the handle bars to the road surface. An engineer witness at the scene noticed the jammed components on the crosstrail bike. A year later my wife is healing but not fully, from her multiple injuries.

After the emergency room, x-rays and doctor's office I returned the crosstrail bike to the specialized dealer and requested an observation of the condition of the bike and “not to touch it". The specialized dealer proceeded to move the chain back on to the front sprocket, unjam the chain in the frame at the rear and move the shifter handle from 5 to 7. I had asked multiple times "not to touch the bike".

So back to my email contact to specialized with many photos of the jammed and locked up components from the crosstrail bike and a clear explanation of the injuries and our concerns as well as our full name and contact information.

Reply email from specialized> “sir, saw your note”:

I continued to contact specialized regarding the safety issue and the emails came back as blocked. Of course we would not want this to happen to anyone else. We have not been on a bike since and have been getting the big run around for a year and a half by specialized, which has cost us hundreds of dollars to deal with. Safety is a major concern and of note, not one person that I contacted at specialized ever expressed any form of sympathy for my injured wife.

A full report of the cost of ownership for the specialized crosstrail that jammed and locked up causing injuries to follow:

Please see 3 attached photos of the specialized crosstrail Jammed and Locked Up:

 

[dabac]

Well...
Several things comes to mind:
- That type of rear wheel can coast - meaning the wheel can rotate independently of the sprocket(s) in one direction. Jamming the chain between the frame and sprocket should still let the wheel coast - keep turning. If the wheel is still turning, the bike isn't slowing and there's nothing pitching the rider forward.
- something that can dump a rider quite unexpectedly onto the bars is if the pedals would suddenly lose all resistance while the rider is pedalling with force. The chain coming off would do that.
- bikes are inanimate objects, they don't do things by themselves. Strong riders, or regular riders on flexy frames can sometimes experience "ghost shifting" at the rear. But I've never heard of an "automatic" front shift.
- chainrings and front derailers aren't the most rugged items. A bump in transit can be enough to push a derailer out of alignment, or warp a chainring.
While unfortunate, your case alone is not reason enough to suspect an overall safety issue with either Spec as a supplier or thst particular model.
But the dealer did badly by not respecting your wishes.

 

[alfeng]

I contacted specialized regarding a safety issue with a crosstrail bike. My wife and I set out for a bike ride; she was on the as new crosstrail. It was a clear day and we were on a flat road with no other traffic in the neighborhood. Without any shifting or braking the crosstrail jammed, locked up and violently launched my wife over the handle bars to the road surface. An engineer witness at the scene noticed the jammed components on the crosstrail bike. A year later my wife is healing but not fully, from her multiple injuries.

After the emergency room, x-rays and doctor's office I returned the crosstrail bike to the specialized dealer and requested an observation of the condition of the bike and “not to touch it". The specialized dealer proceeded to move the chain back on to the front sprocket, unjam the chain in the frame at the rear and move the shifter handle from 5 to 7. I had asked multiple times "not to touch the bike".View attachment 1889 View attachment 1890 View attachment 1891

So back to my email contact to specialized with many photos of the jammed and locked up components from the crosstrail bike and a clear explanation of the injuries and our concerns as well as our full name and contact information.

Reply email from specialized> “sir, saw your note”:

I continued to contact specialized regarding the safety issue and the emails came back as blocked. Of course we would not want this to happen to anyone else. We have not been on a bike since and have been getting the big run around for a year and a half by specialized, which has cost us hundreds of dollars to deal with. Safety is a major concern and of note, not one person that I contacted at specialized ever expressed any form of sympathy for my injured wife.

A full report of the cost of ownership for the specialized crosstrail that jammed and locked up causing injuries to follow:

Please see 3 attached photos of the specialized crosstrail Jammed and Locked Up:

MIKE!!!

Sorry to hear that your wife is still on the mend ...

I don't know what injuries your wife experienced, but I suspect that in the next installment of this saga you will tell us.
​

As I stated in my earlier reply to your earlier post on the SAME subject:

So, exactly WHAT is your "safety concern?"

What I see is an over-shift because the front derailleur apparently wasn't adjusted properly by the dealer from whom you bought the bike.​

​

You EITHER need to take the bike back to the dealer and have him adjust the front derailleur's stops OR learn how to DIY (check www.parktool.com and/or YouTube).​

Different riders have different skills ...

I suspect that your wife -- and perhaps you, too -- have limited bike handling skills ...

AND, I suspect that while you say that your wife did not shift-or-brake prior to the incident, that she probably did even if she doesn't remember doing so OR she doesn't realize that she did.
​

As dabac was kind enough to point out to you, the mechanical problems with the chain do not happen spontaneously ...

AND, I will add that if a chain were to "ghost shift" on the front derailleur, it would be from a larger chainwheel to a smaller one because THAT is the direction that the front derailleur's spring moves the derailleur's cage.
​

In other words, SOMEBODY was applying some level of pressure to the left hand shifter to force the cage to press outwardly on the chain.

As far as the chain being jammed between the frame and the smallest Cog ...

I will (perhaps, unfairly ... but, probably not) suggest that YOU removed the rear wheel & put it back on the bike improperly at some point between when it left the bike shop & the ill-fated ride BECAUSE the rear derailleur's upper jockey wheel appears to be aligned with the smallest cog AND SO it would be very difficult for the chain to "return" beyond the position established by the upper jockey wheel without some external input.

Is that possible?

Is THAT right?!?​