Schwinn Meridian Adult Tricycle Low Step

---UPDATE 6/25/2014----To make a long story short I am returning the bike today (will take it apart pack it and ship it believe it or not). Reason being that all the issues below are still a problem, but today my son was riding the bike and the seat let loose (even though we had just tightened it and done a safety check of the entire bike two minutes before. The whole bike flipped over and on top of him. This has gone from annoying and aggravating to downright dangerous. Cannot believe this is a Schwinn product, but happy to be a Prime member so that Amazon is paying for the return shipping.--------Original Review----------------I bought this based on the reviews, but I have to say I am very disappointed with the quality of the materials, assembly instructions, and functionality of this bike.Most reviewers complained that the item arrived with damage or missing pieces and that the assembly instructions were not too great, but I am handy so I took the risk.My bike arrived very well packaged and will all needed parts. As for the instructions, I agree there needs to be more detail and better images so that you can figure out the more difficult parts, but it was not as bad as many had indicated. That being said, it took me two days and three trips to the hardware store to get this together. The delay was not due to lack of instructions, but because several bolts that I needed to be removed in order to attach the front fender could not be removed from the bike (i.e. they were stuck solid). No amount of WD40 would loosen them and to make it worse the bolts are such soft metal that any attempt to use a ratchet, screwdriver, pliers, adjustable wrench, you name it, resulted in the bolt totally stripping. I overcame the bolt issues by using wire to attach the fender to the bike (not high tech or professional but it worked).Then after I attached the rear fenders, I realized that as you spin the wheels, the fender shifts position and rubs against the wheels. The bolts holding the fenders just keep loosening up, so I eventually had to get plastic ties to attach the fenders to the basket so they would not vibrate loose and rub the tires.Next was all the squeaking! I got the bike together, got the fenders stabilized, got the brakes adjusted (that took about two hours alone!) then I go to ride it and the squeaking and rattling of the bike drove me nuts. Had to spray the whole underside of the seat with WD40 to get it to finally stop squeaking every time I moved the slightest bit. Then I oiled and greased every moving part and it still rattles when I ride it.Needless to say for an almost $300 bike I am not happy at all. But it is not worth sending it back because I will not take it apart and shipping it fully assembled will be ridiculous.Aside from all the construction, assembly, and noise issues, I personally found that when riding the bike it follows the angle of the road. So unlike a regular bike where you balance the bike and can shift your weight to compensate for the grade of the road, on this bike if the road is really tilted you will tilt with it because the two back wheels are following the grade of the road and you cannot compensate for this. So if you are only riding this on very straight flat roads, no problem, but if you want to ride on a park trail (like me) or on roads that have a tilt, it will not be that comfortable or easy. It also does not handle hills well at all. When you hit a hill there is just too much drag in the back and you have to get off and walk it up the hill.Finally, the wheels do not brake if you turn them backwards, so you have to rely on handbrakes alone. This is not a big deal unless you are looking for foot breaking as well, which is what I was expecting.In conclusion, the concept is great but really cheap bolts, bad instructions, and design flaws.I would not recommend this bike at all.