Bewildered!

[Timmy T]

Hi,

My wife and I are both mid 50s, pretty fit, want to cycle 6 miles to work (country lanes and cycle tracks), but don’t want to arrive all hot and sweaty after negotiating several steep hills. We’d also like to get out for some leisure riding in the N Devon countryside which is also pretty steep locally!

However, the choice seems bewildering, looking in the hybrid/trekking area. I’m of the opinion that you normally get what you pay for and “Buy cheap, Buy twice!”, so we’d be interested in some opinions or recommendations. Our top picks at the mo are Specialized Vado or Bergamont e Horizon 6 (looking around the £2500 mark).

Does anyone have any opinions on these, or other options to consider. Is £2500 a reasonable budget for what we want? I’d also be interested in thoughts on buying mail order. Do most of these bikes have similar riding styles/efficiency/reliability etc? My personal opinion is that it’s a lot of money to buy before trying, or if they are all fairly similar does it make that much difference?

Thanks for your time, Tim

 

[Wicky]

"Is £2500 a reasonable budget for what we want?"

More than enough - before you buy test ride a few inc. hub and mid-drive models. Though there has been a surge in demand of late and it might mean travelling around Devon further afield to get a representative sample to try out.

 

[vfr400]

You can buy 5 Halfords Pendleton Somerbys for £2500, so even if you had to buy twice, you'd still be £1500 better off or £3000 better of if both you and your wife buy them.

All electric bikes give problems at some point in the future. Its not possible to make a rule as to which ones are the most reliable. It's definitely not a case of the more you pay, the more reliable they are, but I have a high level of confidence saying that the more you pay for your bike, the higher will be the running costs. In other words, there is no economic case for spending more on a bike.

I generally advise people to buy whatever bike their local shop has because you will need that convenience when eventually something needs fixing. Cheaper bikes can generally be fixed by yourself, but expensive ones generally need special equipment to diagnose and fix faults.

Over the years all sorts of motors and batteries have come and gone. Some people found that their expensive bikes became garden trellises when their fancy electrical systems became obsolete, therefore I'd advise you to stick with long-running systems, like Bosch, Shimano or any of the cheap Chinese systems. The rest is just to find a bike that is comfortable to ride and has the feature you need. The Cheap Chinese systems are modular, so you can mix and match components when anything goes wrong, though you need some basic knowledge of wiring and soldering to do that.

The main things to look out for that actually make a difference to your ride are hydraulic brakes and light weight. Don't waste your time with fancy gear systems. They're great to show off to your mates down the pub, but they will inevitably give you some sort of grief in the future.

Buy anything you want if you have cash to waste. Don't buy an expensive ebike with a loan.

 

[Chainring]

Yes, £2500 for a six mile journey does seem extreme. I thought vfr400 put it well. Keep looking and learning, and try and list what you would like. eg: Type of gears, type of motor, position of battery. Many dealers seem to have sold out at the moment, so your choice is limited. Try and wait until we get back to normal. (NOT the 'new normal').

 

[Jonah]

Whereabouts in N Devon are you? I would thoroughly recommend Cycle Scuderia in Bideford as a great local bike shop. They primarily focus on road bikes but also stock Orbea ebikes that offer a decent range of bikes with different setups / motors. Definitely recommend trying a few different bikes out before buying. For major brands I would always suggest buying local from a good dealer that knows what they’re doing. At the budget / specialist end, on-line may be the only option. If you want a budget option, I think it’s difficult to beat the Woosh Faro when it’s back in stock.

 

[Old Fart At Play]

Why are the 2 bikes you mention your current top picks? If you can write down the reasons you've zoomed in on those two, you've probably got there a list of the criteria that are important to you.

For the cycling that you want to do, pretty much any ebike is going to do - you don't need a long range battery, or particular suspension, etc etc. I do think you are right to an extent about getting what you pay for - cheap bikes tend to have cheap components which cause more problems. But for the cycling you want to do your budget is plenty!

I would +1 to earlier comments about getting something that your LBS can supply. EG if your local shop can supply 1 of those 2 bikes but not the other, I would lean towards the one they can supply. That way you can get a test ride and you will have local support.

Whatever you get, just wait till you tackle some of those Devonian hills with an ebike - what joy!

Cheers, John

 

[Timmy T]

Why are the 2 bikes you mention your current top picks? If you can write down the reasons you've zoomed in on those two, you've probably got there a list of the criteria that are important to you.

For the cycling that you want to do, pretty much any ebike is going to do - you don't need a long range battery, or particular suspension, etc etc. I do think you are right to an extent about getting what you pay for - cheap bikes tend to have cheap components which cause more problems. But for the cycling you want to do your budget is plenty!

I would +1 to earlier comments about getting something that your LBS can supply. EG if your local shop can supply 1 of those 2 bikes but not the other, I would lean towards the one they can supply. That way you can get a test ride and you will have local support.

Whatever you get, just wait till you tackle some of those Devonian hills with an ebike - what joy!

Cheers, John

Both these bikes are available locally, and comparing them to others available the build quality etc seemed better. They just seemed better than the others. Some of it was esthetics, some of it was feeling comfortable with recognised components (Bosch, Shimano), some of it was recognised brands. Again, do you get what you pay for? I’m not that familiar with the whole scene when it comes to some of the less familiar stuff.

 

[Old Fart At Play]

Both these bikes are available locally, and comparing them to others available the build quality etc seemed better. They just seemed better than the others. Some of it was esthetics, some of it was feeling comfortable with recognised components (Bosch, Shimano), some of it was recognised brands. Again, do you get what you pay for? I’m not that familiar with the whole scene when it comes to some of the less familiar stuff.

Then I wouldn't sweat it - try them both out and pick which one you prefer! Unless you have specific requirements that can only be met by certain bikes and not by others, it is really down to how you feel about a bike. I'd only consider a different bike if it turns out you dont feel right on eitehr of those two!

Cheers, John

 

[vfr400]

I would avoid the Specialized for the reasons I stated above, plus my spider senses say that there have been more reports of problems from them than other bikes. Stick with Bosch, Shimano or Chinese if you can. If you don't care about money, so you can buy a new bike when it goes wrong, get whatever floats your boat.

 

[Scorpio]

I spent most of last year exploring north Devon coast on a mountain bike I've had for near 20 years. Lovely area but some of the hills are savage - I ended up using gears I'd never needed before on the bike ! Suggest you look for something designed for hills not for speed. How heavy are you both (lighter riders don't need heavy duty motors)

Hydraulic brakes and decent gears are a big improvement over bikes I've had in the past, check what is on the bikes you are considering.

 

[cyclebuddy]

You can buy 5 Halfords Pendleton Somerbys for £2500

These are no longer the £500-£600 value e-bikes they were last year: The same Pendleton Somerby is currently priced at £999!

 

[vfr400]

These are no longer the £500-£600 value e-bikes they were last year: The same Pendleton Somerby is currently priced at £999!

I know someone that just got one for £500. You have to use all the discounts: bank holiday weekend. cycle club, cashback, and in this case she got an employees discount as well.

 

[Timmy T]

Thanks for all your thoughts. We’ve finally decided on the Specialized Turbo Vado 3, wish us luck!

 

[Decho]

Thanks for all your thoughts. We’ve finally decided on the Specialized Turbo Vado 3, wish us luck!

I’ve just bought the Vado 4 and love it...great bike!