Advise on Dawes Swift City Unisex Electric Urban please

[Sarahtplease]

Hi I'm thinking of getting my first ebike for my commute to work as I'm getting fed up of the hills on my push bike. I want to get one through my employer bike to work scheme so I'm limited in choice and to £1000. The Dawes swift city is the one I'm considering but I can't find any reviews of it anywhere. Any ideas why that might be and what do you think? https://www.cyclesolutions.co.uk/43964/products/dawes-swift-city-unisex-electric-urban-bike--19-inch.aspx?currency=GBP&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIj4D78aze3wIVyLHtCh2OfATSEAYYASABEgI3hvD_BwE

Thanks ever so much

Sarah

 

[sjpt]

Looks pretty good value. Most of the bits not the best but pretty reasonable. Not sure on the Dapu motor, obviously not as prestigious as a Bosch but probably much easier/cheaper to service. Battery capacity a little on the low side. We would certainly considered it very seriously when we bought our s/h Raleigh Motus for about the same price; and we wanted a hub gear. Asyou say, odd there is so little about it from a Google search.

 

[Jonah]

The Dawes brand have dabbled with ebikes for a few years but have largely targeted the lower end of the market with hub motors. This is probably a new motor choice for them so there will be few sold as yet. The Dapu motor is used on some other bikes globally but not many in Europe. From what I can find out it is rated at 40nm of torque which makes it quite a bit less powerful than the mainstream mid-drives from Bosch, Yamaha etc.
If you are a strong cyclist and the hills aren’t too steep this shouldn’t be a problem for you.

As always, if you can get a test ride that would be best.

 

[Sarahtplease]

Hi, I took one of be the Halfords carrera crossfire for a 48hr test. It seemed perfect for my needs, getting to work and back. I think I live on the only hill in Norfolk! It sailed up it. I think the Dawes is comparable in power. The crossfire is 36v11ah and the Dawes is 36v10ah. I think I've understood that correctly.

The bike is heavier than the crossfire so that may make some difference but then I would like to think the mid frame motor might be more efficient?

I am a tad confused at this point!

 

[sjpt]

The figures you are quoting are battery capacity. This mainly affects distance per charge though a feeble battery could bring down available power as bit as well. The mid frame will cope better with the extra weight (especially on hills) as it takes advantage of the gears, so when the bike is going slow it runs faster in low gear which is more efficient.

You'll see elsewhere on this forum that lots of people have had issues with the Crossfire. The Crossfuse is apparently much better, but outside your budget.

 

[Sarahtplease]

Ah thank you. That makes sense now. I was struggling to understand the power side of things. Unfortunately my choice is limited if I go through my employer bike to work scheme. I think I will go ahead and get the Dawes. It's got to be better than my push bike!

 

[SJD712]

Do you mind me asking if you bought the Dawes Swift and how you find it? I'm in the same position as you using Cycle Solutions so i'm limited.

 

[Sarahtplease]

Hi , no I don't mind and yes I have.

I've only been on two rides on it so far. Once Saturday morning and 11 mile ride round the city to do some errands. It was pretty good and I didn't feel like I'd been on a long ride either (11 miles is long for me). It doesn't have quite as much power as the Halfords crossfire but it got up the same hills with no problem. I've also ridden to work today on it which was super-easy but its my ride home thats the challenge. One thing I have noticed is that the battery really doesn't seem to last as long as the crossfire which I did expect. I did have it on max assistance all the way which I really didn't need. So after about 14 miles of ups and downs on max assistance I am down to 2 blips of battery. It better get me up that hill tonight! I will remember to charge it up every night now. It also doesn't have the various modes that the crossfire had (tour and climb etc) just normal and power. Bonus wise it does have its own back light as part of the battery and a usb port on the batter if you wanted to charge something else up. So in summary I know there are better electric bikes out there but considering what I end up paying for this bike 670odd? I'm happy.

Sarah

 

[SJD712]

Thank you so much for the update!

 

[Eleanor]

Hi Sarah, just wondered if you might post another update? I’m also looking for an ebike to commute with, and like you restricted to £1000 because of the cycle to work scheme limits with my employer. How are you getting on with the Dawes? I have an 8 mile (16 mile round trip) to my local station and it has 3 big hills - worse on the way back as we live on a ridge! I am doing fine on a hired Alpha Batribike but do you have any views on how the Dawes would do and especially if it might run out of power on the way home? Thanks a lot,
Eleanor

 

[Sarahtplease]

Hi

Thats a longer round trip than me. I have a 6/7 mile round trip and I feel like I should charge the battery after 2 trips. It would probably do a third but the thought of running out of battery with such a heavy bike (26kg) scares me!

I am happy with the bike and its fine for what i need but I would take another look at your cycle to work scheme. Since I have bought this bike cyclesolutions are offering local bike shop orders. This means you might be able to go to your local shop which might give you more choice and flexibility.

If you do get the dawes you could just leave the charger at work and charge the battery there. I've done that a few times!!

 

[Eleanor]

Thanks, Sarah, that’s really helpful. Sounds like the Dawes might be a bit of an optimistic purchase. I really don’t want to have to lug the battery into work! I will carry on seeing if there are some more options, maybe I will find something on sale. Thanks for taking the time to reply!
Eleanor

 

[Eagle]

Eleanor,
Some schemes such as Halfords’ Cycle2Work allow the employee to top up the difference above £1000 or whatever the limit is.

“Depending on your employer the maximum you can spend is usually £1,000 or £2,000 including VAT. Contact your HR department to find out how much you can spend.
However, with Halfords Cycle2Work, if you want a more expensive bike, you can top up your contributions to cover the difference”.

However, some employers strictly enforce the £limit and do not allow top-ups.

https://www.tredz.co.uk/cycle-to-work/halfords-cycle2work

https://www.cyclescheme.co.uk/community/how-to/how-to-know-how-much-to-spend

https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/latest-news/cycle-to-work-scheme-10-things-to-know-5055

 

[Eleanor]

Mmm, unfortunately I have been told by the scheme organisers for my work that I am not allowed to top up. Seems like an odd rule when there are so many other schemes / employers that do allow top-ups, but there we are!

Thanks for the links, which do help to understand where the £1000 limit comes from.

 

[vfr400]

Mmm, unfortunately I have been told by the scheme organisers for my work that I am not allowed to top up. Seems like an odd rule when there are so many other schemes / employers that do allow top-ups, but there we are!

Thanks for the links, which do help to understand where the £1000 limit comes from.

How far do you need to go? You should get at least 30 miles from that Dawes.

 

[Eleanor]

I have 8 miles there, 8 miles back but it is genuinely hilly. Was a bit alarmed by what Sarah said above about the battery running down.

 

[vfr400]

Weight is a big factor when it's hilly. A 90 kg rider over moderately hilly terrain would get about 20 miles out of a 10Ah battery if he/she pedalled lightly or about 30 miles with medium pedalling on a high level of assist. A 60kg rider would go about 30 miles with light pedalling.

You'd definitely be able to do 16 miles.