KHS Bicycles

KHS Bicycles is a bicycle manufacturer founded in 1974 with main operations in the United States and Taiwan. Its bicycles are distributed in over 30 countries.^[1] Although KHS' main focus has been in mountain bikes, it has offerings in road bikes, folding bikes, tandem bikes, cruiser bikes (under the Manhattan brand name), single speed bikes and BMX bikes (under the FreeAgent brand name). Some of its products have been favorably reviewed.^[2][3][4] On May 28, 2026, KHS announced its closure along with its subsidiary brands in the USA. ^[5]

KHS Bicycles, Inc. of Los Angeles, California, is the designer and U.S. distributor of KHS Bicycles, Manhattan Cruisers and Free Agent BMX Bicycles. KHS stands for Knowledge, Health, and Strength. Founded in 1974 by Wen Hsieh, the KHS bicycle brand is a part of the KHS Co. Ltd., and UEC (United Engineering Corporation) which manufactures bicycles, motorcycles and Yamaha musical instruments in wholly owned factories located in Taiwan. KHS, Inc. was founded and is located in Southern California. As of 2020 KHS makes more than 90 models of KHS bicycles, 24 models of Free Agent BMX Bicycles, and 25 models of Manhattan Cruisers. KHS employs 120 associates in Taiwan, as well as 55 associates in the USA. KHS Inc. is also a major distributor for various parts and accessories manufacturers in the USA. ^[6]

KHS Co. Ltd. Was founded in 1953 as part of the KHS Group, privately held by the Hsieh Family. The initial product produced by KHS was motorcycles under Yamaha license. In 1974, the KHS bicycle division was established with technical cooperation from Sukosha of Japan. In 1987, the KHS Co. and Yamaha of Japan established a joint venture operation in order to increase production capacity and explore new markets around the world. Consequently, motorcycles are now exported to Greece, Portugal, Italy, India and Japan. United Engineering Corp. was established in 1988. Formerly known as the KHS Bicycle Factory, United Engineering Corp. now manufactures KHS bicycles, as well as bicycles for other companies throughout the world.^[6]

• KHS was the first Taiwan-made road bike to enter U.S. market with Reynolds 531 tubing. BicyclingMagazine tested this model in 1979 and rated it as good as a similar, French-made Motobecane model.
• KHS awarded the “Sears Partner in Progress” award in 1986
• KHS remains the only brand to have a finalist in Mountain Biking Magazine's “Bike of the Year” award every year since the inception of the award in 1992
• KHS Comp was awarded the “Bike of the Year” award by Mountain Biking Magazine in 1994 and 2001
• BicyclingMagazine awards the 1997 KHS Fleetwood its “Editor’s Choice Award” for best bike at the 1996 Interbike International Bicycle show
• In March 1998, the KHS FXT Sport is rated “Best Value” full suspension bike under $1000 by Mountain Bike Action Magazine
• KHS introduces suspension seatposts and semi-slick tires on its 1998 mountain bike line, a full year ahead of most other brands
• KHS is the first to introduce popularly priced Soft Tails to the market during 1999 giving Hard Tail and Full Suspension buyers a new alternative that incorporates the best of both designs
• Preferred Bicycle & Parts Distributor in the U.S. voted by U.S. bicycle dealers in 2002
• Consumers Digest Best Buy for the Urban Xpress bicycle in the July 2006 issue
• Bicycling Magazine’s “Editor’s Choice” for the 2006 XC604
• KHS introduces one of the first major production 650b wheel size mountain bike models in 2010
• Delta Linear, patente estadounidense 5,842,712, emitida el 1 de diciembre de 1998. KHS desarrolló su tubo inferior Delta Linear para reducir el peso y aumentar la resistencia, la rigidez y la durabilidad a largo plazo de sus cuadros. El tubo Delta Linear, con forma de lágrima, se redondea en la caja del pedalier para reducir la flexión durante el pedaleo intenso y se ovala en el eje vertical del tubo de dirección para aumentar la rigidez del cuadro en más de un 30 % en comparación con los tubos redondos convencionales.
• Torre de sillín ajustable, patente en trámite. Presente en el cuadro KHS LT3, esta torre de sillín se puede girar mediante una leva para modificar el ángulo efectivo del tubo del sillín en cuatro grados. Ideal para ciclistas de descenso que compiten o que circulan por terrenos accidentados.
• Convertidor de palanca de servofreno, patente estadounidense 5,660,082, emitida el 26 de agosto de 1997. Este convertidor único permite el uso de palancas de freno de bicicleta de carretera con frenos V-brake de tiro lineal. Presente en todas las bicicletas tándem de carretera KHS. ^{[ 6 ]}

KHS Bicycles y su marca de BMX, Free Agent, cuentan con una larga trayectoria de victorias en competición, incluyendo numerosos campeonatos nacionales y mundiales. A continuación, presentamos una breve lista de algunos de los mayores triunfos, ciclistas y equipos patrocinados por la marca.

Pilotos patrocinados :

• John Howard: Poseedor del récord mundial de velocidad a 245 km/h, poseedor del récord de distancia en 24 horas a 865 km, ganador del triatlón Ironman , tres veces olímpico, trece veces campeón nacional de ciclismo de EE. UU., campeón máster de ciclismo de carretera y MTB XC en EE. UU.
• Logan Binggeli: Campeón Nacional de EE.UU. DH Pro
• Quinton Spaulding: Campeón Nacional de DH de EE. UU. Pro
• Kevin Aiello: Campeón Nacional de DH de EE. UU. Pro
• Steven Walton: Profesional nacional de descenso de EE. UU.
• Nikolas Nestoroff: Profesional del descenso en barra libre de EE. UU.
• Dave Cullinan : Campeón del mundo de descenso y medallista de dual slalom.
• Cindy Whitehead: Campeona nacional de ciclocross de EE. UU.
• “Insane Wayne” Croasdale: Campeón kamikaze de descenso en Mammoth Mountain
• Cheri Elliot: Campeona Nacional de Ciclocross y Dual Slalom de EE. UU.
• Andrew Shandro: Campeón canadiense de descenso
• Katrina Miller: Campeona de Dual Slalom de la UCI, campeona australiana de Descenso.
• Melissa Buhl: Campeona mundial de descenso de la UCI, campeona nacional de 4X de EE. UU.
• Maris Strombergs: Medalla de oro olímpica 2008, Campeona mundial UCI 2008, Medalla de oro olímpica 2012 ^{[ 7 ]}
• Kyle Bennett: Tres veces campeón mundial de la UCI, varias veces campeón nacional de la ABA y la NBL.
• Dale Holmes: Dos veces campeón mundial de la UCI, varias veces campeón nacional británico.
• Connor Fields: Campeón Nacional de la NBL 2009, Campeón Nacional de Grupos de Edad de la ABA
• Cristian Becerine: 9 veces campeón nacional argentino
• Romero Marino: 4 veces campeón mundial juvenil
• Mariana Pajón  : Campeona Mundial UCI 2009, varias veces campeona nacional colombiana.
• Nicole Callisto: Campeona Mundial Junior 2005
• Tom Haugen: Profesional de los X Games
• Heath Pinter: X-Games Pro

Sponsored teams:

• KHS Factory Racing is now KHS Pro MTB^[8]
• Cash Call Cycling
• BCR/Pizza Hut/KHS – Costa Rica
• University of California, Berkeley
• University of Southern California
• University of Arizona
• University of California, San Diego
• South Bay Wheelman Club
• Guacamole Intern Seller Bicycle racing team
• San Francisco Cycle Couriers
• Highway.net cycling team^[6]

• Official website—(in English)