Guys, check out this safety warning from Bike Friday. Better safe than sorry!

All content is from Bike Friday and Green Gear except for text in red. No copyright infringement intended.

EDIT: 29 Sept 2012; added BF’s latest update
EDIT: 2 October 2012; Bike Friday has issued instructions on what to check for on the Tikits

This photo is from a tikit stem that has developed cracks and could potentially break.

Bike Friday tikit stem SAFETY WARNING, Update #1 [09.28.12]:

Our continued research into the tikit stem issue has shown that we have documented instances where cracks in the stem show potential for the stem to break.

A review of our service warranty records since 2007 show that about 2.5 % of the nearly 4,000 tikits we have sold have experienced stem issues that could be related to this issue. We are in the process of contacting as many of those owners as we can to learn more about this issue.

Our interviews with those Bike Friday owners that we have been able to reach tell us that most of them experienced play or loosening of the stem, which led them to have their stem checked. Most instances have been after long periods of extended use. The two breaks in the stem were after 1.5 to 2 years of heavy usage.

Again, at this point, Bike Friday strongly recommends that you do not ride your tikit.

If you have not already done so, we ask that you register as a tikit owner [fill out the registration form if you haven't already] so we can keep you informed on this serious situation.

To help us conduct further research into this issue, we will ask that all tikit owners inspect their tikit or have their tikit inspected. [Instructions on how to inspect your tikit will come Monday.]

Our research into the issue has shown that failure of the stem should be visible to anyone inspecting the stem, and Bike Friday will create a video and step-by-step instructions to help you inspect your stem. We plan to have that information to you on Monday.

REGARDLESS OF THE OUTCOME OF YOUR INSPECTION, WE STILL RECOMMEND YOU DO NOT RIDE YOUR tikit.

If you feel that you cannot perform this inspection by yourself, Bike Friday will pay to have someone qualified look at your stem and determine if it has cracks.

At this time our engineers and designers have been able to replicate the problem, and we have begun working on  solutions. We have suspended production and delivery of tikits until we can come to conclusions on this issue. We are working to redesign the stem.

This safety warning only affects Bike Friday 16-inch wheel tikits, It does not affect any of our 20-inch Pocket Bike Fridays.

STEP-BY-STEP INSPECTION INSTRUCTIONS WILL COME MONDAY. We will update you with more information as it becomes available to us. We understand the implications of not being able to ride your tikit, and we appreciate your patience as we work through this issue.

Bike Friday tikit owners hot line phone number: 541-683-0175, International +1  541-683-0175

Bike Friday tikit owners email [click on link]

This photo is from the stem break that injured a Bike Friday owner.

Bike Friday tikit stem SAFETY WARNING:
Stop riding your tikit immediately

An important Safety Warning from Bike Friday Co-Founder Alan Scholz

Dear Bike Friday tikit owners:

It is with much concern that I write to you today. We have found that your tikit could be dangerous to ride. I want to tell you in the strongest terms we recommend all Bike Friday tikit owners to stop riding their bicycles immediately, until we have fully determined which tikits are at risk.

We have learned that two tikit stems have broken. A stem break is a very serious issue. Should your stem break while you are riding it there is a high risk of losing control of your bike causing you to crash with serious injury or even death as a result.

In August, 2012, an owner of a Bike Friday tikit sustained injury when his front stem broke while riding. Earlier this month, in September, 2012, a second stem failure was brought to our attention.

We received the first bike for inspection [PHOTO ABOVE, right. The second is still unavailable to us] 10 days ago, and upon reviewing the results of that inspection we acknowledge the potential exists for front stems to crack, and ultimately break.

Because of that, we recommend you do not ride your tikit until we can conduct enough tests to isolate the problem, the extent of its potential for failure, and implement safeguards to make your tikit safe to ride again.

Please follow this link to our website to fill out a registration form so we can keep all tikit owners updated as we work through this issue. We will follow up this email with more information on how to inspect your tikit for potential problems.

We are very serious at Green Gear about this. Many of us are regular and extensive tikit users. I have ridden a tikit since the first weeks of production in spring 2007. I rode it to work daily and on tours — even doing several century rides on it until it was stolen last year. My wife and two of my daughters own and ride tikits regularly.

The tikit is an important transportation solution for my two daughters and neither owns an automobile, relying on their bike for most travel. I understand that this will also be true for many of you.

I say this so you understand how deeply I apologize for the inconvenience this causes for you not to ride your tikit until we have come up with a safe solution for you.

At this time our engineers and designers have been working to replicate the problem so we can develop solutions. We have stems being tested around the clock. I promise we will share our findings as soon as we have enough information to draw conclusions and offer solutions. Until then, please do not ride your tikit and make sure you register your contact information with us.

This safety warning only affects Bike Friday 16-inch wheel tikits. We have suspended production and delivery of tikits. It does not affect any of our 20-inch Pocket Bike Fridays.

I appreciate your patience in this matter. We have nearly 4,000 Bike Friday tikits located around the world, and getting this important message to all tikit owners is our priority at this moment. I hope you can imagine the challenge for a company of 33 cycling enthusiasts here in Eugene.

Sincerely,

Alan Scholz, Co-Founder, Bike Friday

PS, If you know others who have tikits please be kind enough to tell them to ensure that they have this important Serious Warning and that they can sign up for updates if we have not yet been able to reach them. In the interest of doing this as quickly as possible it is going out to everyone at the same time but everyone may not get the e-mail and we may need to hunt for them. We thank you. The Bike Friday Community thanks you.

ALERT CODE: 1933

BIKE FRIDAY. PERFORMANCE THAT PACKS
Bike Friday has set up a special toll free number for you to call with questions or concerns. Please understand that we have no additional information to share at this time, and when we do, we will contact everyone again through email.

tikit owners Hotline NUMBER: 541-683-0175 or Int’l +1-541-683-0175

email: tikitowners@bikefriday.com

Please be patient. We are a small company and we expect a high volume of calls. We have hired additional help, but you might still experience long wait periods before you will speak to someone.