BH Emotion Off Road 650 mountain bike 2011 vintage

Cyclic

Finding my (electric) wheels
May 3, 2012
10
0
Huddersfield
Reviewer: Cyclic

Purchased From: Onbike at Kiderminster

Purchase Price: £1700

Time Owned: Since late 2011

Local Terrain:Moderate Hills to Very Hilly


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Strengths:
This bike is really well made, good components and fitted with the Panasonic pedelec drive system 26 Volt system.
It is quite hilly around where I live and this bike seems as though it can tackle any hill placed in its path. On very steep hills I simply change down to the first gear and let the bike take the strain.
On the road it is very stable seemingly unaffected by cross winds.
I think the price I paid is excellent, as looking at bikes released in 2012, I would probably have to pay £2000 to get an equivalent bike. I have recently tried out some hub motor bikes, the Trek with the Bionx motor and the Storck Raddar, they are a little quieter and great bikes but on steep hills you still have to be a reasonable cyclist to get up them. Incidentally both of these bikes are more money than I paid for the Off Road 650.
The bike came with the 12 Amp battery and when set to low assist I estimate that I can get some 40 mile plus from it. I have done a run of 37 miles using a mixture of low and medium assist and and still had a little battery power left at the end of the run.
I would just like to say that the people at Onbike were some of the most helpful I have ever come across.

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Weaknesses:
It makes a slight noise when under assist especially when climbing a moderate hill.
The chain can come of the drive sprocket on clumsy gear changes it is then difficult to get it back in place without removing the chain guard. This has only happened once.
It becomes very heavy on hills without any assist, but I guess most are like this.
It has front suspension forks but nothing at the back making for a hard ride. I may invest in a suspension seat post at a latter date.

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Summary:
I was after a BH Emotion road bike but as I had left it late in the season I missed out on that as their was no stock left and one of the last of the 2011 Off Road 650s. Its a great bike, looks good, has good range, great hill climb capability and when I look at others and make comparisons I am still quite happy with my purchase. The problem now is that the tables are turned on my wif,e who is a better cyclist than me, now is the one who is left behind. Looks like we need another electric bike.

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Overall Rating (out of 10) : 9 out of 10
 

Cyclic

Finding my (electric) wheels
May 3, 2012
10
0
Huddersfield
I have had this bike for a little while now and I am just reporting on how I find it.

The bike makes for very solid transport. Electric bikes are built to be a lot sturdier and heavier than normal bikes and I find that this bike could double as good secondary transport after my car for local trips out. I recently used it to travel out to collect my car following a service/MOT, travelling some miles away to collect the car. The bike can just be pulled out of the shed and ridden a distance my stamina of the day being of little importance.

The ride of the bike is quite solid, more like a motor bike. The frame is quite stiff making for a slightly harsh ride and, having just been on a track ride with our Dahon Jack bikes, I do miss the responsive performance of a pure bike which does make me think that a bike converted with a good electric system may be the way forward for me in the future. I just need a bike that helps me on hills as I still like the cycling experience. I would like to compare this bike with a Cytronex.
When you hit a hill the bike slows down rapidly, down to the assist speed, this is caused by the weight. A conventional bike can be speeded down a hill and powered over a small hill.

The range on this bike is quite good with the 12 Amp battery and with the possibility of fitting a 25 Amp battery the range of the bike then would exceed all of my future range requirements.

Overall though I am more than pleased with this bike and its general quality for the money I paid for it. I do find that I am no longer put off from a cycle run should I not feel tip top. This has lead to a lot more cycling with a corresponding improvement in my fitness.

Their is little information on BH Emotion bikes on this site, I hope my posts may be of help to some one contemplating one of these bikes. By the way the chaps at On Bike were great to deal with.

Happy cycling John
 

eddieo

Banned
Jul 7, 2008
5,070
6
Try some Big Apple tyres!