Alpinestar Toucan's review....short story, Junk

This is my review of Alpinestar Toucans. This is in my opinion an expensive boot, I ride dirtbikes in a boot of similar price but needed something for snowbiking that offered more protection than a snowmobile boot but would keep me warm. The Toucan seemed to fit the bill and did in some ways. It is warm and comfortable and I was very happy with it until it broke. The upper strap ended up shearing off and I don't really know how. I wear my boots pretty tight and in the snow I wear over the boot pants. The first time Alpinestar was pretty good about making a repair and they sent them back in a timely manner....all was good again. Well that repair lasted one ride and then broke again. The strap ripped off in the same exact place and at this point I could tell the repair was essentially just crazy glue and no stitching. I called back alpinestar and they said for each purchase you are only allowed one RMA number for replacement or repair. So my RMA number was wasted on crazy glue instead of a repair and I have a set of $450 dollar paper weights and I'm pissed. I will never wear another set of Alpinestars for the rest of my life and will try as hard as I can to influence my local shops to not carry their garbage and influence the people around me to not wear their crap. Alpinestar doesn't stand behind their product, I was told because I was not using them as designed. O.K. I get that it is an adventure touring boot not a snowbike boot, but what is the difference? standing on a set of adventure touring pegs riding a motorcycle through extreme weather conditions...all seems the same, except for a track vs wheels...yes I run adv pegs.

Maybe they think ADV touring is just the same as riding a gull wing, I ride my 950 about the same as I ride my 650R or my CR500AF and while I didn't find the Toucan to be beefy enough to be dirtbiking in I had hoped it could handle blowing through puffy powder. This broke on the inside of the boot...It didn't get caught on a rock or anything, just a cheap boot at an expensive price...don't buy these if you ride...unless it's sitting down on a gullwing...maybe I should have used them as an extreme condition Harley boot...but I'm not sure they would have held up to that either...Garbage.

Right or wrong, good product or not, cheap or expensive; customer service is my #1 priority when buying moto gear. Companies need to learn this.

I get that you will never buy their product again, and I would be equally pissed!

But...you "know" the boots are not paperweights, right? I mean c'mon, don't shoot yourself in the foot! ;-)

Any local cobbler will make the repair Alpinestars should have. Doesn't excuse their lameness, but I hope you are looking for a solution as well as venting.

I'm working on getting a repair for sure, the way the boot is put together it may be tough to get the stitching in without ruining the gortex. Pulling the liner I'm not sure can happen, so you would have to stitch through the whole thing. I have thought about making about 6 micro holes and stitching it up myself with some heavy test fishing line, tie it all up, then cover the repair in some shoe goo....but that pisses me off when I spent as much on these as I have on some of my high end moto boots and those things are good for a few years and then some. If these things were all beat in and the straps went south...O.K.. but these things look brand new, and are!!!!

Had the boots for years now, love them and they have been great quality.. sorry to see you have this trouble.

I am going to wade in here with my muddy boots.
Perhaps it is true that the boots are not designed for snow use.
Sorry.
Sometimes we need to stop and review what the feedback was. It can be that they are "true"?
Don't buy Alpinestars anymore.
I am sure it is their loss.

Lots of plastics have troubled in lower temperatures.

Motorcycle boots by nature of being designed to be worn on two wheeled vehicles are typically going to have design briefs that do not include cold weather riding.

Just as snowmobile boots normally do not come with perforated sections or other warm weather design elements.


That said. You might have some recourse by way of warranty. And how alpinstars stated you only have one return for each purchase.

I would look into your local consumer protection and see if you have any recourse.

Good luck. It's a bummer the boots didn't work out for you. And that you got less then stellar service

What gets me is the customer service. I've had something similar happen and the item was broken in the first 2 hours and they refused any warranty saying I did it somehow on purpose. Actually ended up filing a PayPal claim (I pay with bank through PayPal for convenience) and they refunded me.

Now a days I vote with my dollar.

Love mine and their customer service was great when I sent mine back for warranty.

I love them for their warmth, I love them for their comfort. I hate them for only allowing one repair or replace....If I would have known this was the case I would have demanded a replace. If you look at the pics you can see the repair was tuck the broken piece under the stitching and glue it...I can do that, that is not a repair, that's a rig to get you home or through the weekend. To be clear I ride in Tahoe, not the Arctic, coldest temp I think I have ridden in is like 22 degrees, Its usually 30 and up so I understand the plastic being brittle but if you look at the pic it is a thin piece of plastic that ripped at the stitching, This is a size 13 boot, Yes I am a big man. When I go into Red Wing and give them $250 for a set of work boots I can rest assured I just bought a quality American made product that I can get re soled twice before they turn to garbage and will last me about 4 years of living in them every work day. These things I lay down $400 and they make it 6 rides...send them back and ride in a set of Fox regular moto boots and my feet freeze for the rest of the year. No snow till March this year....2 rides in, same thing and realize the fabulous warranty repair was nothing but crazy glue....so yeah I'm pissed. A size 13 made for who???? most people with a 13 are going to weigh over 100lbs...mind you these hunks of garbage have had an over the boot 2 layer pant with a gator over the part that ripped every minute of their life. Boots are for protection and in this case warmth...not sure what a piece of thin plastic that has been distressed with a bunch of stitching through it is supposed to protect. These are a poor design for anyone who rides. My Fox boots last 2 years of abuse....like hard every weekend desert...and I love to pound rock gardens, kick started only CR500AF or XR650R mostly...No issues, never sent back a set of boots ever and I have never spent this much on a set.

The biggest basis of my burn is the repair was bootie, and I was not told it's a one time shot. The second butt burner is this is a set of 13's, who do you think was going to be wearing these? marketed as an adventure touring boots for all conditions. When I ride my 950 I run single track, fire roads, 2 track, mud, sometimes snow, rain, sand...my adventures are far from putting down the highway, but I do that too ...my wifes heels are built tougher. I could break these wimpy boots if I caught the strap getting off my Harley at the gas station.

At this point I pretty much just hate them for what they represent to me...A waste of my hard earned money and another company that builds crap and doesn't stand behind their product. I used to mix up my moto boots and often wore tech 10's but I'm All Gearne tech 12's or Fox's from here forward. Same price as these toucan's...not even close on build quality.

I should have known better than to buy a boot named after a bird with a rainbow colored beak...

@baldman1 customer service was great the first time for me as well...but the repair ended up being crap. Also you love the boot but had to send it in, just wondering for what? I loved the boot as well but here is another owner of the boot that had to send it back. I'm almost 50, Ive been riding since I was about 8, been trying to ride every week my whole life. I have ridden in Fox, Oneill, Sidi, Gaerne probably a few I have forgot. When I was young I rode in garbage and they lasted longer. These are premium boots...2 owners that have commented have sent them back...not looking good so far for a premium boot.

Very biased and very angry....


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Yes, he is. And I believe he has every right to be. The shoddy repair is unacceptable. The "one claim" warranty is unacceptable. A premium priced product should also include premium customer service.

If I'd read this a few months ago, when I was communicating with Gore-Tex about replacing my leaking Toucan's, I would have asked for a different replacement product. Despite having no other issues (over 3years of commuting and camping trips) with my early design Toucan's. I'm thankful that my boots leaked and were covered by Gore's exceptional lifetime warranty. I now have a pair of the latest design Toucan's and hope that I won't be needing warranty support from Alpinestars.

Alpinestars will need to publicly reconsider their customer service policies before they are going to get anymore of my hard earned money. Thanks @rhino89523 for sharing your experience with us.

The last sentence had me dying.

I agree completely and feel for the OP. I'm sure some of us have been burned in a similar fashion. Other than trying to go through the retailer or credit card company there's not much you can do. I'd donate to his anti alpinestars gofundme.

Haha I don't have a go fund me....and I am angry. I don't really think I am biased though. I run all kinds of boots. I've raced Baja, I race local desert, I ride dirtbikes almost every week, I ride all conditions, I ride adventure touring bikes, I ride dual sports, I ride "cough" Harley's (mine has 98,000 miles) and I ride a snowbike. I have probably 6 pairs of boots right now from all different brands. I put them all through a little slice of hell and have never really had an issue that I thought the manufacturer did me wrong until now. If the boot had the poo beat out of it and broke I happily go buy another pair. When a boot looks new because it basically is and breaks I think it should be fixed...unless I bought some $80 cheepo at Walmart. These are used in snow...It's like riding on a cloud, it's smooth, of all the riding I do other than maybe taking the Harley to the grocery store...snowbikes are the least taxing on gear.

Thanks. We will not use them in snow.
Good information.

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This is probably just throwing more gas on the flame, but I always find that kind, well executed requests for service are much more successful than angry demands.

I find your argument unconvincing.

My request for warranty was kind, not really sure where I said I picked up the phone and started demanding stuff. I paid $400 plus dollars for a pair of boots that simply did not hold up, look at the pictures....they are brand new. I can put up pictures of 1 year old boots that look like I have drug them behind my truck to the riding area, rode in them, and then drug them back home. I would never look for a claim on a boot like this because it lasted well, protected my feet and did everything I have asked for maybe 100 rides. These POS's made it about a dozen rides lollygagging on a bike riding in pillows of snow. They are probably fine for a ride down the road on an ADV Bike that has never seen dirt and never will and as an added bonus they don't squeak when you walk into Starbucks to let everyone know you are a real deal adventurer one click shy of Christopher Columbus and as soon as you get your skinny latte' you are headed out to discover new lands not yet seen by the mortal eyes of the common man. If you are just a regular dude who likes to ride motorcycles in the dirt, you have an ADV bike that you often ride in adverse conditions and want to keep your feet warm I personally would look elsewhere.

I have been very clear since my first post....I am angry. This didn't start until I was informed I was allowed one warranty claim and mine had already been used on a crazy glue repair, again look at the pictures. At that point and at that point only I have turned into an angry A-hole towards Alpinestar. I have also been very clear that my intentions at that point were to attempt to cost Alpinestar's some sales beyond just my own. Will I have any success in this...probably not. Spend your money how you want but you have been warned. It is not just me another member on here had to send these boots in for warranty repairs and he was defending Alpinestar which I understand...I would have defended them as well after my first repair...Alpinestar has always treated me well with quality boots and the one time I had a problem they fixed it in a prompt manner. It wasn't till it broke again I realized the repair wasn't a repair at all. I hope people are diligent shoppers as I am, I try to research things before I buy them and see what others have thought. this is my thoughts and my goal is to cost them sales...pretty clear.

If you are not convinced post up some pictures of the $450 you spent on a pair to spite me I will never ride in Alpinestars again even though this is the only boot in their lineup I have ever had a problem with. I love my tech 8's and I love my tech 10's. want my review of Alpinestar tech 8 &10 series boots? O.K.

Premium boots at a premium price, with most things you get what you pay for. These are not cheap for a reason they are a quality built boot and for that you must pay a price. These are comfortable and fit well with my wider foot. The toe box offers excellent protection while still allowing good feel for the shifter. I prefer the tech 8's probably because I am old and seem to prefer a stitched sole to a molded sole although both soles hold up well to kickstart only CR500's and Xr650R both with very aggresive pegs for rider control. The upper section of the boot offers excellent protection and I am able to fit pants inside the boot with extremely large calves, they offer excellent adjust-ability and the buckle was updated a few years ago and stays firmly latched without needing to beat on it like the previous model buckle.

Don't buy Toucans..do buy tech 8's or 10's...I just cant because I feel burned by Alpinestars.

I had the same thing happen to mine when they were already out of warranty, Alpinestars offered to replace them for $100 with a newer model, had that for 2 years now without any issues.

Combined I've put about 30k miles on my Toucans (from 20F to 120F) and they are still the most comfortable boot I've tried. YMMV (obviously does)