Josh Polston
GBI would not purchase this bike again.... The bike I received was more or less in-line with the quality one would expect for the price. All told, my 500w version with suspension was around $1,050 US delivered to California. I have two issues with the bike that have resulted in a low rating: 1) When the bike arrived, the brakes were not properly adjusted and the disks are warped. After only two rides, one of the two bolts holding the front brake caliper fell out, it apparently was not properly torqued at the factory. As well, both the front and rear brakes flutter and do not provide linear stopping due to warped brake disks. 2) Pedal assist: after roughly 5 rides on the bike, the pedal assist stopped working at all. The electric motor can only be engaged by using the throttle which I find to be quite annoying. I have physically inspected the crank sensor and it appears to be lined up properly and all the wire connections appear to be solid. I contacted STARK and they told me to take the bike to a local repair shop - at my expense, they only offered to replace any defective parts that the shop may identify. Going forward, I would only buy a bike from an established company that will honor basic warranty requests as this bike is not really usable in its current state. I am heistant to go spend more money to chase down the crank sensor issue since there is no documentation on the cycle computer and I am not sure if it is a setting issue or failure of a component. I am order #684, placed in June 2017 for Batch #2 UPDATE 7/5/18 My review is back on the site after STARK filed a number of false claims with Trustpilot that my review was not legitimate. I included my name and order number with the original review but STARK still went ahead and claimed that I was not indeed a legitimate customer even through they have all the data to verify such. I am by no means a STARK hater and am in fact rooting for STARK's success. But how can a company succeed when they are spending more time and resources trying to muzzle legitimate complaints than focusing on true customer service to ensure the product shipped actually works. I suggest STARK work with customers to repair/address real product failures and the negative reviews will melt away based on the goodwill they engender. Just my suggestion.
Norbert Kämpf (engl. Kaempf)
DEJudical dispute is becoming more likely. Update may 8, 2018 – Third version of my report after Stark claims the content of 2nd. So far I have not received the missing parts. Also there is no approval for the EU available. Stark told me not the truth and it seems, that a judicial dispute is becoming more likely. March 28, 2018 - Second version of my report after Stark claims the content of 1st. Below a short version of it. April 28, 2017 - I requested by email from Stark whether the model Advance has an approval for the EU. Stark answered me by email the same day with "yes we do" April 29, 2017 - I ordered two Ebikes, model Advance, with 500 W engine. May 26, 2017 - I wrote in a chat with Stark that the German Federal Motor Transport Authority can not find the registration in the database. I asked him for the EU registration number of the Advance model. Stark responded to me in the same chat session "registration wants to be completed in time for our deliveries". From this chat I have a screenshot as proof. January 22, 2018 - I received the two Ebikes via TNT. The ebikes were scratched and partly incomplete. There were no EU type registration/approval papers. On my complaint list Stark has only once answered. After that no longer, although I reminded him 5 times in writing.
Joe Hayes
SEGreat value electric bike Good quality, well built and easy to assemble bike. Delays are expected with many Kickstarter and crowd funded projects but I appreciated Oscar keeping us updated and being honest. Great value!
Adham Davlatov
GBhad it for over a year had it for over a year. use it to commute to work (20miles roundtrip) Goods: 1) looks good 2) battery lasts for up to 40miles 3) decent price. although not a fan of hiding $200 shipment fee! Needs improvement: 1) Super heavy. doesnt feel like a bicycle. make it lighter roadbike like pls. 2) parts were finicky: i had to get replacement brakes, readjust paddle (came apart during ride!), and tighten the latch that folds the bike (came apart during ride!). Get the powerful motor because mine (350W 9amph) feels slow and heavy.
Caden Sickler
GBVery unprofessional Everything was going good until Stark drive and UPS delivered to my old address, where the bike was taken by someone. Stark drives "customer support" is a complete joke. I was in contact with them through several emails, in which I was respectful with each one. Long story short, after they basically told me I'm screwed, they stopped replying to me completely. Very, very unprofessional in my honest opinion. Update: It now seems they are trying to start a lawsuit against me for giving this review. 10/30/18 Update: It seems they have gotten new customer service, although it seems they are motivated by my bad review more than anything. I have finally recieved my bike. I haven't been on it yet but it looks nice. It did not come with instructions so I was left to figure it out myself. I'm writing this review before riding it because Stark drive is pushing me to change my review "since I have received my bike". I'm glad I now have my bike, but getting a bike with Stark drive seems like a gamble. You might be very happy with your experience, or you might have one like mine.