Carrera Crossfire help

[darren66]

A friend of mine has just purchased a used (2018? 1100miles) Carrera Crossfire ebike from an online retailer of used ebikes...
Now this is a bit of a dog, if he'd paid £150-200 privately for it, I'd admit it is what it is and tell him to make the best of it, but he paid over £600! for what looks like £100 worth of Halfords "bicycle shaped object" with a cheap battery and motor attached.
I can certainly sort the buckled wheels, knackered tyres and pedals and realign the disc brake calipers for him, what I'm not sure about is the lateral movement in the rear wheel hub/motor, if this were a normal hub axle, I'd have it sorted in two minutes but this is a different beast, I don't want to go to the trouble of removing the rear wheel unless I know I can adjust that free play out, or does this just mean the motor and/or bearings are shot?
If it were my bike I'd be calling the seller to come and collect it and demanding my money back. Is it worth trying to fix?

 

[Nealh]

Crossfire uses the troublesome Suntour system, £600 is a waste of money for a bike in non running condition. Rear hub lateral doesn't sound good, I have replaced worn sealed bearings in my hub motors and serviced them but never had lateral play as you tell it. If it truly has only done 1100 miles then yes it is a dog and been badly abused.

 

[darren66]

Crossfire uses the troublesome Suntour system, £600 is a waste of money for a bike in non running condition. Rear hub lateral doesn't sound good, I have replaced worn sealed bearings in my hub motors and serviced them but never had lateral play as you tell it. If it truly has only done 1100 miles then yes it is a dog and been badly abused.

It does run (I think) at least it charges ok with no apparent fault warnings, I've ran up the motor in walk mode but that's it! my friend hasn't seen it yet, he purchased it and has been away on holiday whilst it was delivered to work, he will see it when he returns on Thursday, if this free play isn't easily remedied, I'll suggest he gets his money back.

 

[Kwozzymodo]

Sounds like wheel bearings. Fixable, but you will need to crack the motor open, press the old bearings out and acquire new ones to refit.

Don’t these online places offer some sort of warranty/guarantee on their bikes? If so, let them sort it.

 

[darren66]

Sounds like wheel bearings. Fixable, but you will need to crack the motor open, press the old bearings out and acquire new ones to refit.

Don’t these online places offer some sort of warranty/guarantee on their bikes? If so, let them sort it.

It has a 14 day money back guarantee, I'll suggest he sends it back, it's not worth the hassle trying to put it right.

 

[Kwozzymodo]

If your friend is desperate for a Crossfire, I have one available (19” frame) that I can convert, and provide a 12-month guarantee.

 

[Andy-Mat]

It does run (I think) at least it charges ok with no apparent fault warnings, I've ran up the motor in walk mode but that's it! my friend hasn't seen it yet, he purchased it and has been away on holiday whilst it was delivered to work, he will see it when he returns on Thursday, if this free play isn't easily remedied, I'll suggest he gets his money back.

When you say "it charges OK", what are you basing your comments on?
If its the charger green LED being lit, do not forget that LED has several different purposes:-
1) Charge finished - battery now fully charged and usable
2) Not charging - no current is being drawn, battery possibly defective
3) Battery below the voltage level that allows charging. I believe the BMS prevents unsafe charging, but It can possibly be recovered with a "0 Volt Charger", like this one, if you have a 36 volt battery:-

Home :: Accessories :: 0V Recovery Charger

Use this to recover your battery if it has not been used or charged over a long duration of time you only need to use this charger one time and then a normal charger can be used The 0V charger will only recover a battery with voltage from 22V to 27V cut off voltage You should measure the voltage...

starkdrive.bike

Where it is noted:-
Description
Use this to recover your battery if it has not been used or charged over a long duration of time. you only need to use this charger one time and then a normal charger can be used.
NOTE: Free shipping only applies when backed in conjunction with a bike as they will ship in the same box, otherwise shipping costs will be billed depending on country of shipment. once the recovery charger is returned to us, we refund the purchase amount so long as its returned within 30 days. Shipping costs are not refundable.
4) If the battery is even lower in voltage than that, (0 Volt Charger does not recover the battery) then to all intents and purposes, the battery is now junk.
The only way to understand what state the battery is in, is to measure the current voltage with a reasonably accurate volt meter or Multi Meter, and post the result here, plus the nominal voltage as well.
Please do not forget that the 0 Volt Charger I mentioned, is ONLY for bike batteries with a 36 volt nominal voltage, even though they forgot to mention that in the description, as Stark ONLY sells 36 volt Bikes.
Regards
Andy

 

[darren66]

When you say "it charges OK", what are you basing your comments on?
If its the charger green LED being lit, do not forget that LED has several different purposes:-
1) Charge finished - battery now fully charged and usable
2) Not charging - no current is being drawn, battery possibly defective
3) Battery below the voltage level that allows charging. I believe the BMS prevents unsafe charging, but It can possibly be recovered with a "0 Volt Charger", like this one, if you have a 36 volt battery:-

Home :: Accessories :: 0V Recovery Charger

Use this to recover your battery if it has not been used or charged over a long duration of time you only need to use this charger one time and then a normal charger can be used The 0V charger will only recover a battery with voltage from 22V to 27V cut off voltage You should measure the voltage...

starkdrive.bike

Where it is noted:-
Description
Use this to recover your battery if it has not been used or charged over a long duration of time. you only need to use this charger one time and then a normal charger can be used.
NOTE: Free shipping only applies when backed in conjunction with a bike as they will ship in the same box, otherwise shipping costs will be billed depending on country of shipment. once the recovery charger is returned to us, we refund the purchase amount so long as its returned within 30 days. Shipping costs are not refundable.
4) If the battery is even lower in voltage than that, (0 Volt Charger does not recover the battery) then to all intents and purposes, the battery is now junk.
The only way to understand what state the battery is in, is to measure the current voltage with a reasonably accurate volt meter or Multi Meter, and post the result here, plus the nominal voltage as well.
Please do not forget that the 0 Volt Charger I mentioned, is ONLY for bike batteries with a 36 volt nominal voltage, even though they forgot to mention that in the description, as Stark ONLY sells 36 volt Bikes.
Regards
Andy

The charger was lit red when plugged in and switched on, lit green after a couple of hours, I left it a couple more to be on the safe side although the screen only achieved 99% charge.

 

[darren66]

 

[wheeliepete]

As already said, the Crossfire was plauged with problems when new, deff. not worth £600, tell your mate to return it and get his money back.

 

[darren66]

As already said, the Crossfire was plauged with problems when new, deff. not worth £600, tell your mate to return it and get his money back.

Will do...
It's no surprise that 50% of the bikes for sale at the retailer he purchased from, are Carrera Crossfire/Crossfire II

 

[Nealh]

It is only the Carrera bikes with the Suntour system that's not worth a light , others systems are ok and don't have the issues.

 

[wheeliepete]

Will do...
It's no surprise that 50% of the bikes for sale at the retailer he purchased from, are Carrera Crossfire/Crossfire II

He prob. pulled them out of the skip behind his local Halfrauds.

 

[darren66]

 

[Andy-Mat]

The charger was lit red when plugged in and switched on, lit green after a couple of hours, I left it a couple more to be on the safe side although the screen only achieved 99% charge.

That sounds really good.
Did you manage to measure the battery voltage at the end of charging? If yes, please post here, thanks-
Andy

 

[Deleted member 25121]

That sounds really good.
Did you manage to measure the battery voltage at the end of charging? If yes, please post here, thanks-
Andy

I think the problem is excessive play in the rear hub not a battery issue. Have a look at the video.

 

[Nealh]

Now I have seen the lateral play on the video the fix should be simple, on that side is located the press fit sealed bearing, a water seal and axle nut. It looks like the axle nut is certainly loose though whether there is any rough bearing rotation can only be felt by manual rotation. If the bearing is faulty/rough then the hub has to be opened to tap it out with a drift, I use a socket and rubber mallet.
Still I would be inclined to find a better system then the Suntour one as spares will be nigh impossible to get and they aren't generic.

 

[Andy-Mat]

I think the problem is excessive play in the rear hub not a battery issue. Have a look at the video.

That is certainly a serious problem that needs to be sorted ASAP!
regards
Andy

 

[Nealh]

The axle nut I mention is a cone type nut on the inside of the drop out on the LHS.

 

[Andy-Mat]

The axle nut I mention is a cone type nut on the inside of the drop out on the LHS.

That gives me the impression at least, that the bearings are adjustable for wear, just like on normal bikes. Is that correct?
Andy