Bosch Active Line Plus vs Bosch Performance Line CX

[Dizer]

Which motor would you prefer for travelling between home and workplaces in a flat country? (Tuning is possible)

Bosch Performance Line CX
Pros:
- Powerfull, maybe therefore also a long durability
- Up to 120 cadance support

Cons
- Not efficient
- Without support, a lot of resistance
- Noisy

Bosch Active Line Plus
Pros
- Efficient
- Quiet
- No resistance

Cons
- Less powerfull
- Up to 105 cadance support

 

[TobyAnscombe]

Not had a CX but I can't find any fault with my ALP as it does pretty much everything I ask of it..

You've not asked but I'm going to reply anyway....

• 120 Cadence - mechanically you should be aiming for 80-90 cadence to save your knees and muscles
• Power - if you are in a flat country then power won't make any difference; 15mph/30kmh is the same regardless
• Resistance - they tend to be installed in heavy bikes so any resistance is undesirable (IMHO)
• If you are thinking of tuning then it makes almost no difference which one you choose

 

[Nealh]

For flat commuting a hub motor will be better with less maintenance required and a more relaxing ride. Torque for acceleration/ climbing, surely for flat commuting you want a more relaxing commute.
You mention tuning ( a dongle ?) in which case go legal and get an S -pedelec if you want speed or 40km/h riding.

 

[Eagle]

Dizer,
You appear to have answered your own question.

Of the two motors, on the flat, the ALP is the clear winner.
Above 15.5 mph it will be just like riding an ordinary, but heavier bike.
Below 15.5 mph in a headwind you will get assistance when you need it.
You will also appreciate the quietness of the ALP motor.

 

[Nev]

Dizer, I have a CX equipped mtb and an ALP equipped racing bike. For riding on flat routes I would choose the ALP. If you might sometimes ride up mountains then you will likely need the CX.

 

[Andy McNish]

A "racing bike"? Like a road bike?
I didn't know any road bikes came with Bosch motors (due to the 25kph restriction making them pointless). I thought it was low weight/low power motors only on those, like the Orbea Gain?

 

[Eagle]

Cannondale Synapse Neo:
https://www.cannondale.com/en/Great Britain/Products/ProductCategory.aspx?nid=e1887f30-a25a-4f9a-bcd4-792a7a7d965a

 

[Nev]

A "racing bike"? Like a road bike?
I didn't know any road bikes came with Bosch motors

I am not sure Andy but I think Cannondale are the only ones using a Bosch motor for racing bikes. I had tried a Cube racing bike with a Fazua motor but I am not very good on hills and I really struggled with it. I would have liked to have tried an Orbea Gain but the LBS that stocks them would only let me ride one around their flat car park.

Alf Jones cycles near Wrexham let me take out the Cannondale for a proper test ride and I was very impressed with it. At around 18 kg its no light weight, but I was hoping a racing bike would enable me to average around 3 or 4 mph faster then my CX equipped mtb and that seems to be the case.

 

[Andy McNish]

Cannondale Synapse Neo:
https://www.cannondale.com/en/Great Britain/Products/ProductCategory.aspx?nid=e1887f30-a25a-4f9a-bcd4-792a7a7d965a

Nice. The range will be truly insane as you'll be above the cut off most of the time if you put any effort in at all. Obviously the extra weight will mean it's slower than a normal road bike except perhaps on pretty steep climbs, but you can be sure that you won't run out of puff all-day long.

 

[soundwave]

dongle it and use a lower power mode

 

[Nev]

dongle it and use a lower power mode

Very tempting, but for the risk (tiny I know) of being involved in an accident and having the book thrown at me (possible prison sentence, financial ruin etc.) I just would not be able to enjoy my ridding. I have always been a bit of a worrier and if I doctored my bike the fact I would worry about it would possibly cause me to have an accident.

If the law changed to allow say an assisted speed up to 20 mph then that would be a big boost for racer type pedelects but if the law changed and then someone badly injured a child by hitting them on a cycle track at say that 20 mph then there would be a huge back lash against pedelecs.

There are some journalists and some papers that just love to take against certain things. If the law changed the assisted speed up to 20 mph then these papers and journalists would be going out of their way to find negative stories to hammer pedalecs.

So all in all its probably best that the max speed of 15.5 mph, although rather annoying stays as it is, I would rather than it to change to 20 mph and within a couple of years a huge back lash occurring and pedelects be banned from the UK.

 

[Dizer]

Thanks for all the advice!

Suppose, hypothetical speaking, you want to cycle between 30-35km/h.
Which motor will be the most efficient motor, the Active Line Plus, or the Performance CX? And why

 

[Andy McNish]

Thanks for all the advice!

Suppose, hypothetical speaking, you want to cycle between 30-30km/h.
Which motor will be the most efficient motor, the Active Line Plus, or the Performance CX? And why

30-30?

If you mean remaining legal, then the ALP is easier to get up to 30kph as it's lighter and zero resist.

If you mean derestricted, then the CX has more power so can reach higher speeds.

However assuming you are talking flattish or low gradients, the ALP will probably be more efficient at 30kph than the CX (apart from anything else it's Turbo is a slightly lower boosts (280% v 300%) and you can contribute to your speed more easily with your own efforts).

 

[anotherkiwi]

Thanks for all the advice!

Suppose, hypothetical speaking, you want to cycle between 30-30km/h.
Which motor will be the most efficient motor, the Active Line Plus, or the Performance CX? And why

That will depend on your gearing, I pedal very easily past the cut off to 32 km/h, which seems to be my flatland speed, on the GSM powered bike with either chainwheel. Over and beyond air resistance means you have to adopt a different posture than sit up and beg. Last year I was even averaging 32 kph on the un-powered trike which probably has the aerodynamic drag of a triathlon style bike (except I'm lying on my back and not my front ).

If you are reasonably strong and have a bit of cadence but you don't want to break any records a 38 to 42 tooth chainwheel seems to be ideal for maintaining 30 km/h

 

[Dizer]

Sorry, i mean 30-35 km/h and derestricted. It almost looks if the ALP is a far better motor than the CX. The CX is powerfull and that's it. No other benefits.

That will depend on your gearing, I pedal very easily past the cut off to 32 km/h, which seems to be my flatland speed, on the GSM powered bike with either chainwheel. Over and beyond air resistance means you have to adopt a different posture than sit up and beg. Last year I was even averaging 32 kph on the un-powered trike which probably has the aerodynamic drag of a triathlon style bike (except I'm lying on my back and not my front ).

If you are reasonably strong and have a bit of cadence but you don't want to break any records a 38 to 42 tooth chainwheel seems to be ideal for maintaining 30 km/h

I'm not sure if you ever tried the CX motor, but peddling harder than the engines support is not really doable.

 

[anotherkiwi]

Because of the gearing, nothing to do with the motor. Never tried but it is pretty easy to imagine and I just have to watch others around me ride one to see that it isn't.

Almost anything will do 32 km/h unrestricted including my Mxus XF08 rear hub motor. A de-restricted Bosch, Yamaha or other will generally be able to cruise in the low 40's independent of type. Those using a "normal" sized chainring are easier to pedal over 25 km/h cutoff.

 

[Nothgiel]

Whats the Start up behaviour like for ALP and PCX ie can they pull away at zero cadence or is it hard to pedal from stop?

 

[Nev]

Whats the Start up behaviour like for ALP and PCX ie can they pull away at zero cadence or is it hard to pedal from stop?

Both motors the APL and the CX pull away really strongly from dead stop position. In fact if your on a hill then its quite easy to do a wheely by mistake with either motor if you start off in Turbo mode.

I got around 3000 miles before replacing the chain on my CX equipped mtb, part of the reason for this I think is that I don't tend to start off in Turbo mode from a dead start. I think doing this probably results in stretching the chain and hence having to replace it fairly frequently.

 

[sjpt]

If you are fit enough and expect to travel most of your time above 15mph you will probably be best off with a lighter bike and without electric assist. If you are older or have other issues or just want to go slower but easier after a long day at work differences like 105 or 120 cadence are unlikely to make much difference. ALP (or hub drive) are probably your best if you really do want assist.

 

[MikeS]

Both motors the APL and the CX pull away really strongly from dead stop position. In fact if your on a hill then its quite easy to do a wheely by mistake with either motor if you start off in Turbo mode.

Hmmmm .... having had the Crossfire with a rear hub motor and now the Crossfuse with a Bosch active line plus, I would have to say to the poster above that the rear hub motor gives a much bigger boost from a standing start. I think it's designed in to rear hub motors because they can put a lot of power through at start up without stressing the chain (but might be wrong). The Bosch ALP is ok but it doesn't deliver its proper power levels until you are doing 50- 60 cadence (again that's from memory and I might be wrong).
Mike