California Bicycle Inc

Category:	Bicycle Store
Address:	7462 La Jolla Blvd, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
Phone:	+1 858-454-0316
Site:	calbike.com
Rating:	3.6
Working:	Closed 9AM–6PM 9AM–6PM 9AM–6PM 9AM–6PM 9AM–6PM Closed

Location

Photos 73

Reviews 6

kevin patrick

Just had a terrible experience with California Bicycle in LaJolla where I purchased a Stromer ST2S e-bike, and the experience with Stromer wasn’t much better. A big part of what is marketed about the ST2S is its “connectivity” via the system they call Omni. This allows an app to do things like remotely lock and unlock the bike (and check to see its lock status), change various performance settings, and locate it via GPS. After purchasing the bike I rode it ~8 miles home and immediately found that the bike had no connectivity to the Omni system. (My cell phone was doing fine.) So the same day I purchased the bike I called California Bicycle and they gave me the tech support # for Stromer, USA. I called them and – after some off/on efforts, removing the battery, etc. they confirmed that, indeed, I didn’t have connectivity in my home in Del Mar. I should wait until the next day and try connecting again. The next day I tried again. No connection. Stomer said in effect: “Well, looks like you don’t have this at your home.” Thus I need to ride someplace else to do anything with the app. The more I though about it, the more I felt that not having this key feature wasn’t acceptable to me for a $10,000 bike. So I emailed California Bicycle three days after buying it (and before their third business day) letting them know that I would like to return it. They responded in effect: no returns/no exchanges/no exceptions. And that: “…connectivity is out of our control”. In essence: it’s Stromer’s fault. They put me in touch with Stromer who said that they acknowledge that connectivity is an issue in some places and they will have a fix for this sometime in early 2018. They offered this fix “for free” and not the ~$650 charge. (Why should I even need to pay for this if what was advertised as a key function of this high-end bike was not provided to begin with?) So… Even though the bike only had the 8 miles from their shop to my house, and one additional 12-mile trip, California Bicycle refused to take responsibility for the problem, refund the purchase price, and perhaps sell it again to someone who has connectivity. When pressed they came back with an offer to sell it on consignment for me – essentially as a used bike - with a 15% profit off the top. Really. This has been the single worst customer experience at a bike shop that I have had in about 30 years of such experiences.

G4m3r_X Gaming

My 14 year old son took his bike to have the tire repaired or replaced. He returned and told me that it would be $150!!! I called the business and told them that I was shocked by this number. The person who answered the phone from the service department asked what "it was for". I started to answer with what I knew of the problem, and, in an unprofessional, arrogant and inpatient tone interrupted with a repeated, "Hang on, hang on". I asked why should I "hang on," so that he can interrupt me? He then curtly said, "go ahead" in a patronizing tone. I finished answering his question. He made no response. After several seconds, in an even more patronizing tone, he said, "can I speak?" I responded that we would pick up our bike. He said, "great." I then called back and politely asked for the name of the owner of the business. The person who answered the phone said, "No, you dont need that." What kind of business is this? I have owned several small businesses and I would be mortified if someone on my team treated a customer like that. I am beyond disappointed in this business. I will go out of my way, including letting every parent I know in La Jolla, plus all of my neighborhood friends, know that this is, by far, the worst treatment I have ever received by a business in San Diego. Honestly, the worst I can remember, EVER, anywhere!

A Private User

I walked in needing a new tire. I explained the situation in detail to Guy1. He handed me off to Guy2. I explained the situation again. He went to the rack of (a dozen? types of) tires and picked one for $40 and handed it to me. I said great. I asked "out of curiosity, what do I get if I pay more?". He pointed to the wall of tires and said "thats what we got, you can have your pick". I hrmphd and said, thats not very helpful. Do you want me to read every label and price? You know your tires, I dont. I just asked a simple question: if I pay more what do I get? I finally got from him that I would get lighter weight but less puncture-resistance--the simple answer I was looking for. But in the process the guy got defensive "Im a pro and I picked this tire in for you based on my professional judgment (implied, how dare you ask a question)" and "sorry if your having a bad morning buddy". Actually I was having a GREAT morning until I walked into the place. I walked out and wont be back.

Ross Suozzi

One of the best bike shops in the United States. I travel the country and ride from coast to coast road and mountain. Our entire family rides and when we need a bike or part we call California bicycle. We dont even live in California. I can make a call and have experienced seasoned professionals provide me with advice and direction for my solution. I am a US Veteran with basic skills and my wife more advanced and a son preparing for the 2016 Olympics. We have a diverse need and can always be satisfied with Kevin or Jason ( the Owners). Its always nice to arrive in town and see the one of a kind bikes and products they offer not available in any bike shop. When you need a confident choice for integrity this is it! This is the only review I will ever provide on Google

Michael Landen

Huge fan of the store. I have been going here for years for minor repairs, tune ups, minor purchases all the way to the purchase of a new bike. The team here is great. They know their products and dont try to oversell. Further, when provided time to complete repairs (responding to some of the comments in other posts), they are completed to exacting standards and usually done earlier than expected. I can, also, say that I have bought items from other locations and brought them to California Bicycle for installation. They are always willing to help. Great group of people. I will continue to go back.

Darrin Grella

I was visiting San Diego when I stumbled upon Cal Bike. I was thousands of miles from my bike back home but had the burn to get on a bike and enjoy the awesomeness La Jolla and surrounding areas gives you. I decided to rent a bike and the staff was excellent. I chatted with Jason who hooked me up with a bike, helmet, safety stuff and other necessities to make my bike rental experience nothing less then EXCELLENT. **Wished I lived in La Jolla so I could dub this my own LBS!** Thanks guys for being the highlight of my time in sunny San Diego.