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Shimano Altus, Acera, or Alivio: Does it matter?

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seattletwodogs

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
This is my first post.

I see that most reviews on this site have been fairly negative about the Shimano rear derailleurs noted above. I plan to spend no more than around $450 for a hybrid/comfort bike to use on local level and hilly pavement which is mostly bumpy, no more than 10 miles per average ride. I'm 165lb., 6'1'' and will continue to use my old Motobecane road bike for those well-paved trails at a distance from home.

Given these circumstances, I'd appreciate any opinions about the relative negatives or positives of the Shimano Altus, Acera, and Alivo rear derailleurs which seem to be on most Trek and Giant bikes in my price range. Does it make any difference if it's a SRAM X.7(on the Trek 7300)?

Thank you in advance to all those who take the time to read this and respond.
 
#3 ·
I would think the sram X.7 if you have the opportunity to get a bike with that will offer much crisper shifting performance over the altus acera and alivio, but if you have to get an altus acera or alivio go with alivio it is the best of those three. Keep in mind 90% of your derraileurs perfomance is based on how well adjusted it is. A $300 derraileur will still run like crap if its not adjusted correctly, where a $20 derraileur adjusted correctly will work just fine.
 
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#4 ·
Those 3 Shimano derailleurs aren't really any good, but will get the job done. The Alivio developed a lot of play on my girlfriend's bike without taking a beating first. The SRAM X.7 will outperform those other derailleurs with ease. You should try them to see which derailleur you prefer.

For quality shifting I'd at least get an X.7 or an LX.
 
#9 ·
seattletwodogs said:
This is my first post.

I see that most reviews on this site have been fairly negative about the Shimano rear derailleurs noted above. I plan to spend no more than around $450 for a hybrid/comfort bike to use on local level and hilly pavement which is mostly bumpy, no more than 10 miles per average ride. I'm 165lb., 6'1'' and will continue to use my old Motobecane road bike for those well-paved trails at a distance from home.

Given these circumstances, I'd appreciate any opinions about the relative negatives or positives of the Shimano Altus, Acera, and Alivo rear derailleurs which seem to be on most Trek and Giant bikes in my price range. Does it make any difference if it's a SRAM X.7(on the Trek 7300)?

Thank you in advance to all those who take the time to read this and respond.
Click to expand...
Welcome!

Well, I have a bike that came with an Altus and then changed it to Alivio... They work fine, nothing fancy but ok for what you want, I think. The x.7 will probably be a lot better than any of the ones you posted, and probably a good option.

Now, I don't know which bikes you're comparing. But I think you should look into other things before the deraileur (like frame, fit, fork).
 
#10 ·
My bike came with alivo...not the best quality you can get, but hey, it workes for me. Back in the day when I started biking ~1990 I was using Shimano 200GS(old school guys will remember this) components. Almost bottom of the barrel, but hey I didn't care, I was only 14 at the time. That being said, I would ride with a few clubs and other people who had much better equipment than I did, but I never had a problem with it and I would beat the crap out of my bike too.

Now I am damn near 30, I am beating my bike up again (trying to get back into the same shape I was when I was 14) and haven't had any problems with it yet. I do have the know how to adjust it, so that helps. Bottom line, just make sure you take care of your stuff. Keep it adjusted correctly and anyone of those should suit you just fine for the type of riding you are doing.
 
#11 ·
Picked up a left over Trek 4500 last year for $460. Has an Alivio front and Deore in the rear. Why the 7300? I would suggest that for the price, consider the 4500. It has better geometry than a comfort bike and can be make "comfort bike" like with a new riser and cushy seat - yet is good enough to have some fun on more advanced trails... It has held up well to over a year of hard riding.
 
#12 ·
I wouldn't worry about it. Since you're basically using it for LIGHT off-roading, it'll be fine. Modern derailer designs are fine for light usage. Most people on this board tend to ride more technical trails/beat up their equipment more and NEED the better build quality.
 
#13 ·
I had deore / alivio on my first decent bike (Specialized Hardrock Comp). Now I have Sram X7 and in comparison it's much better. Sram seems to need far less adjusting and also performs flawlessly even when it's coated in mud. The mud seems to be the biggest thing where my shimano (deore rear derailleur, alivio front & alivio shifters) would make the chain jump all over the place, was hardly rideable and when Sram X7 was ridden in the same conditions it just worked.

When you buy your bike the LBS most likely offers 12 months of free servicing so they will adjust all that for you, particularly important to at least take it in for the first free service as cables will stretch etc.
Yes Sram X7 is much better than the rest (it's equivalent to Shimano LX or XT) but when buying a new bike I would more so concentrate on getting the best frame / fork / wheels before anything else, if all those get a tick then by all means next pick is the one with best componentry. You see the first three things are the most expensive to upgrade down the track, running gear can wear out and isn't so bad to replace later on when your riding has advanced & demands it.

So carefully look at the whole package & consider what's more important to you. I'd rather a bike with the best fork / frame for the price & ok components rather than a bike with the best components but really low end fork. There is always a given somewhere.
 
#14 ·
Depending on how much and how hard you ride, a lot of components are "disposable", derailleurs included. If you beat it up a lot and crash often, you'll go through hangers/derailleurs/tires/break pads/etc. quickly. It doesn't sound like you're going to be beating it up, and I'm guessing you won't have a problem... it doesn't matter for you; you'll find out you shift much less than you think you would.

Then again, if you do start beating it up and mess up your derailleur, an X-7 (2006) is only 40$...
 
#15 ·
Way too many people put down cheaper shimano derrailleurs. I had a 1999 alivio that was awesome, through trails, winter, salt, it worked great for years. As mentioned before proper adjustment and maintenance is key to good working. Also, making sure your cables and housing are clean can be a night and day difference. And also, when people claim they don't like the feel of the shifting, keep in mind, the shifters play a huge role in the "feel" and crispness, because its the shifters that index to hold the derrailleur in place. Way too many people blame poor shifting and feel to just only the derrailleur.
 
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