I bought a Scott E-Aspect MTB that has the Bosch performance motor online just over a year ago , it was an ex demo from a large chain of bike shops who sell many makes and models.
Until December last year it was totally reliable and fun to use but over the last few weeks the motor has got progressively bad at turning on. Removing the battery and pressing the reset button, cleaning the contacts on the plug points and Intuvia headset for 5 or 10 minutes and it would come back to life and be no problem on a ride but go to use it the next day and the same thing would happen.
This week the Intuvia displayed error 500 which as far as I can find out is a motor fault of unspecified cause and the motor did not kick in. When turning the cranks there is no noise or play to suggest bearing failure and the changing speed is displayed on the screen.
As I replaced the drive sprocket a few months previously I was able to remove it and the plastic covers to look inside. Apart from the 3 plugs for the headset,battery pack and speed sensor which I unplugged and checked the connections for being clean ,secure and dry , there is nothing much else to see or do.
At this point I decided to find a local bike shop that sells e-bike and see if they could fix it or send it back to Bosch for a replacement. I live in Devon and sent the same email to 4 local shops asking for help and the replys were not consistent.
They all offered to try and clear the fault , run the Bosch diagnostic software and update the software on the Intuvia headset as there has been one for it and do an e-bike service circa £65 which I thought was okay as I would not mind a print out of its history etc.
As for fixing the motor and a timescale to getting a working bike back, no chance of a date, just leave it with us attitude and the feeling once you do your stuck with them and how much to expect on the final bill is anyone's guess.
One bike shop said unless I go back to the original retailer it would not be classed as a Bosch warranty job and another said they only do Bosch warranty on bikes they sell. The others said to bring proof of purchase and as a Bosch diagnostic center they would handle the repair or replacement provided I had a proof of purchase.
As an online customer and first time e-bike owner I found it unsettling that after I took my bike to the nearest one ,who have great reviews it became clear that the repair side of things is not straight forward.
Having been a production engineer for many years the process of gaining access to the motor , removing 3 plugs and a few bolts to take it out is very simple. And the same goes for plugging in a laptop and running diagnostic software to update the system or display a fault - anyone with a little training could do it.
What I want to know is - after checking the software is the latest and apart from clearing a fault and hoping it does not come back what else can be fixed on the bike by these Bosch diagnostic centers or are they a fancy name for doing nothing relevant to repairing my bike.
Only 4 components in the Bosch system the Intuvia display, battery ,speed sensor and motor, if after trying the headset and battery on another bike or swapping out the components and finding the bike works normally and the HMI on the faulty bike displays the speed changing when manually turning the pedals it only leaves the motor or cable damage.
If local bike shops are not allowed to open them to further diagnose then I can see why there is such a cloud of mystery around them and why I cannot find what triggers Error 500 in any detail is frustrating.
I wonder why do all these local bike shops not stock replacement motors and instead make customers wait indefinitely for one to be sent back to Germany and a replacement sent out. And £600 for an out of warranty replacement is not something they advertise.
Error codes are built into many pieces of equipment from industrial robots to cars and most point you to what or where the fault originates, so why do we have to pay for the LBS to diagnose a fault that is displayed on the screen when it points to a motor which they are not allowed to touch.
If your car engine management light comes on you have no idea what it means until the garage plug in a portable fault reader , get a code number and look it up and say No 50 means your oxygen sensor has failed and that's £40 please for the info and £40 for the sensor and £40 fitting.
If you told them to fit the sensor as the car computer displayed sensor failure you would save the £40 diagnostic charge.
I spoke to a mechanic while waiting for the counter staff. His view was we don't sell Scott bikes ,you need a Scott dealer to sort it out, then it was the Bosch service center only spoke German and it was a nightmare communicating with them and that they shouldn't be allowed to sell the motors as he seen so many less than 2 years stop working. At this point I nearly left to try another shop but the counter staff returned and were all smiles and reassured me they would try and fix the problem by updating the software and running the diagnostic software, if that didn't work provided the motor was less than 2 years old, all I would have to pay would be postage to send the motor back to Bosch and the fitting of the new motor which is £40 per hour for e- bikes.
I left the bike with them and the original sales receipt which did not say ex- demo bike but Internet price match price next to the sales total.
After leaving I then realised that even though I have only had the bike 13 months , it was a 2016 model and I have no idea how old exactly the motor is or whether it is classed as 2nd user.
And lastly I think there must be a lot of people of all ages and incomes who have no idea how potentially expensive an e- bike is when it goes wrong and the 2 years warranty expires.
Anyone had similar experience or advice?
Until December last year it was totally reliable and fun to use but over the last few weeks the motor has got progressively bad at turning on. Removing the battery and pressing the reset button, cleaning the contacts on the plug points and Intuvia headset for 5 or 10 minutes and it would come back to life and be no problem on a ride but go to use it the next day and the same thing would happen.
This week the Intuvia displayed error 500 which as far as I can find out is a motor fault of unspecified cause and the motor did not kick in. When turning the cranks there is no noise or play to suggest bearing failure and the changing speed is displayed on the screen.
As I replaced the drive sprocket a few months previously I was able to remove it and the plastic covers to look inside. Apart from the 3 plugs for the headset,battery pack and speed sensor which I unplugged and checked the connections for being clean ,secure and dry , there is nothing much else to see or do.
At this point I decided to find a local bike shop that sells e-bike and see if they could fix it or send it back to Bosch for a replacement. I live in Devon and sent the same email to 4 local shops asking for help and the replys were not consistent.
They all offered to try and clear the fault , run the Bosch diagnostic software and update the software on the Intuvia headset as there has been one for it and do an e-bike service circa £65 which I thought was okay as I would not mind a print out of its history etc.
As for fixing the motor and a timescale to getting a working bike back, no chance of a date, just leave it with us attitude and the feeling once you do your stuck with them and how much to expect on the final bill is anyone's guess.
One bike shop said unless I go back to the original retailer it would not be classed as a Bosch warranty job and another said they only do Bosch warranty on bikes they sell. The others said to bring proof of purchase and as a Bosch diagnostic center they would handle the repair or replacement provided I had a proof of purchase.
As an online customer and first time e-bike owner I found it unsettling that after I took my bike to the nearest one ,who have great reviews it became clear that the repair side of things is not straight forward.
Having been a production engineer for many years the process of gaining access to the motor , removing 3 plugs and a few bolts to take it out is very simple. And the same goes for plugging in a laptop and running diagnostic software to update the system or display a fault - anyone with a little training could do it.
What I want to know is - after checking the software is the latest and apart from clearing a fault and hoping it does not come back what else can be fixed on the bike by these Bosch diagnostic centers or are they a fancy name for doing nothing relevant to repairing my bike.
Only 4 components in the Bosch system the Intuvia display, battery ,speed sensor and motor, if after trying the headset and battery on another bike or swapping out the components and finding the bike works normally and the HMI on the faulty bike displays the speed changing when manually turning the pedals it only leaves the motor or cable damage.
If local bike shops are not allowed to open them to further diagnose then I can see why there is such a cloud of mystery around them and why I cannot find what triggers Error 500 in any detail is frustrating.
I wonder why do all these local bike shops not stock replacement motors and instead make customers wait indefinitely for one to be sent back to Germany and a replacement sent out. And £600 for an out of warranty replacement is not something they advertise.
Error codes are built into many pieces of equipment from industrial robots to cars and most point you to what or where the fault originates, so why do we have to pay for the LBS to diagnose a fault that is displayed on the screen when it points to a motor which they are not allowed to touch.
If your car engine management light comes on you have no idea what it means until the garage plug in a portable fault reader , get a code number and look it up and say No 50 means your oxygen sensor has failed and that's £40 please for the info and £40 for the sensor and £40 fitting.
If you told them to fit the sensor as the car computer displayed sensor failure you would save the £40 diagnostic charge.
I spoke to a mechanic while waiting for the counter staff. His view was we don't sell Scott bikes ,you need a Scott dealer to sort it out, then it was the Bosch service center only spoke German and it was a nightmare communicating with them and that they shouldn't be allowed to sell the motors as he seen so many less than 2 years stop working. At this point I nearly left to try another shop but the counter staff returned and were all smiles and reassured me they would try and fix the problem by updating the software and running the diagnostic software, if that didn't work provided the motor was less than 2 years old, all I would have to pay would be postage to send the motor back to Bosch and the fitting of the new motor which is £40 per hour for e- bikes.
I left the bike with them and the original sales receipt which did not say ex- demo bike but Internet price match price next to the sales total.
After leaving I then realised that even though I have only had the bike 13 months , it was a 2016 model and I have no idea how old exactly the motor is or whether it is classed as 2nd user.
And lastly I think there must be a lot of people of all ages and incomes who have no idea how potentially expensive an e- bike is when it goes wrong and the 2 years warranty expires.
Anyone had similar experience or advice?