Cheap Electric Bike

[stevec59]

Hi Guys,
Looking to buy a cheap electric bike, I did think about buying something cheap from ebay, the problem with that is that I'll probably end up buying a battery for it and that just bumps up the price, so I'd thought I'd ask oppinion on a few

Groupon are currently doing one at £499

https://www.groupon.co.uk/deals/viking-villager-heritage-e-bike
Front hub motor

Halfords have this one at £600

http://www.halfords.com/cycling/bikes/electric-bikes/pendleton-somerby-electric-bike-black-rose-gold-17-19-frames

I guess the advantage of halfords is, if I have problems it's easy to return it.

And then there is this one at £689.99

https://expedition-bikes.co.uk/product/e-bike/electric-e-bike/

Spare 36v 10ah Lithium Battery£259.99

Zoom Suspension Forks, I do a little riding along Gravel Cycle routes, bit bumpy, will these make a lot of difference?
12 month Return to base warranty, about 2 hrs car drive

I don't work due to health reasons, so I can't get Cycle to work scheme discount.

What are you thoughts please

 

[Nealh]

Halfords is probably a good choice for a cheap ebike any issues they appear to sort out.
Join British Cycling cost about £25 then enables a 10% discount at Halfords.

 

[Nealh]

A used ebike off ebay or wherever can be an issue as you are only taking the sellers word regarding battery condition unless you can buy the bike dirt cheap.
Buy a new bike and battery with warranty.

 

[Danidl]

Hi Guys,
Looking to buy a cheap electric bike, I did think about buying something cheap from ebay, the problem with that is that I'll probably end up buying a battery for it and that just bumps up the price, so I'd thought I'd ask oppinion on a few

Groupon are currently doing one at £499

https://www.groupon.co.uk/deals/viking-villager-heritage-e-bike
Front hub motor

Halfords have this one at £600

http://www.halfords.com/cycling/bikes/electric-bikes/pendleton-somerby-electric-bike-black-rose-gold-17-19-frames

I guess the advantage of halfords is, if I have problems it's easy to return it.

And then there is this one at £689.99

https://expedition-bikes.co.uk/product/e-bike/electric-e-bike/

Spare 36v 10ah Lithium Battery£259.99

Zoom Suspension Forks, I do a little riding along Gravel Cycle routes, bit bumpy, will these make a lot of difference?
12 month Return to base warranty, about 2 hrs car drive

I don't work due to health reasons, so I can't get Cycle to work scheme discount.

What are you thoughts please

I would go with the Halfords.. you can go into the shop and see one and it does look like a well specified town bike.

 

[stevec59]

Thanks Neath for both replies. 10% will make a nice difference.
I did notice that ebikes also sell the viking bike, more expensive

https://www.e-bikesdirect.co.uk/brands/viking/viking-villager-alloy-step-through-26-wheel-7-speed-electric-bike?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIkKCT5PTe2AIVxxXTCh3xAwINEAQYASABEgIMq_D_BwE

I've also noticed that the Halfords one is supposed to do 50 miles on a full range, that's if you believe what they say

 

[Nealh]

50 mile range might be possible if conditions are benign, rider very light, low assist level and a lot of pedal input and totally flat terrain otherwise 25 - 30 might be possible.

 

[Woosh]

I've also noticed that the Halfords one is supposed to do 50 miles on a full range, that's if you believe what they say

take it with caution. Yes, you may be able to do it if you put in 50% of the energy required, the battery will supply the other half. With a larger capacity battery, you can use a higher assist level, pedal less or climb hills with less effort.
You pay for the capacity of the battery. A 10AH battery costs 20% more than an 8.8AH, the same happens with bigger battery, a 13AH costs 30% more than a 10AH and so on. With your budget, you can only get 10AH or an ex-demo bike with 15AH.

 

[KirstinS]

My thoughts as someone who started in a similar budget position is this

Stretch the budget as much as humanly possible and buy from British , local supplier with a good rep

given your Essex location id be visiting Woosh straight away and keeping an eye on their second hand market also

I've sent a few family and mates who are local their way and all have been very happy.

Buy (too cheap) buy twice

For openness I have zero affiliation and have only bought kit or parts. They've always been top notch (and I've had issues with a kit they sorted without quibble or cost to me. I hear differing views on Halfords customer service but no personal experiences)

 

[Nealh]

Didn't notice the post code, take a trip to S/end and visit Woosh bikes or their web site. Their CS is second to none and are always helpful and have an ever presence on the forum.
100% more knowledgeable and helpful then Halfords, Woosh will even convert a fave bike if you had one.

 

[stevec59]

Woosh is a about 1 1/2 hrs by car, so not too bad, just had a look on their website including second hand, seems a bit expensive to me, but I guess your getting better quality

 

[Woosh]

seems a bit expensive to me,

it's because we usually fit a battery with larger capacity and larger motor than most models out there. It helps to climb hills faster.

 

[stevec59]

I had a look at the Karoo, nice looking bike, even the cheaper one (£899) is outside my budget, but as you say, more powerful battery, I couldn't see anything about the motor wattage

 

[Woosh]

I had a look at the Karoo, nice looking bike, even the cheaper one (£899) is outside my budget, but as you say, more powerful battery, I couldn't see anything about the motor wattage

the Karoo has the Bafang SWXK rear motor with Hall sensors. It's rated 250W nominal but don't pay much attention to the nominal ratings, they are all rated 250W nominal. What is important is the controller's rating, the Karoo has 15A controller, most suitable for light to medium weight riders.

 

[Nealh]

Cheap ebikes are cheap for reason;
Lighter less power full hub motor.
General component parts very basic.
Small ah batteries with poor cells.

 

[Wicky]

Not many hills around Frinton / Walton way though there is a bit of dip between Thorpe and Tendring.

What's your planned use of the bike and where do you intend ranging?

I use to work in Frinton and travelled up on the train from Colchester with my pedelec. On sunny days it was good to ride back down the coastal path to Clacton to catch the train home or even as far as Weeley. Route is relatively flat and only really headwinds to contend with.

Saw quite a few other pedelecs in Frinton - not sure if the local bike shop in The Avenue can line you up with a test ride for a suitable bike.

https://www.facebook.com/johnsons.cycles/

 

[Danidl]

Thanks Neath for both replies. 10% will make a nice difference.
I did notice that ebikes also sell the viking bike, more expensive

https://www.e-bikesdirect.co.uk/brands/viking/viking-villager-alloy-step-through-26-wheel-7-speed-electric-bike?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIkKCT5PTe2AIVxxXTCh3xAwINEAQYASABEgIMq_D_BwE

I've also noticed that the Halfords one is supposed to do 50 miles on a full range, that's if you believe what they say

There has been a lot of comment over the years on this forum about range and battery size and truthfulness. Put simply the range is infinite if you don't turn on the power. The Bosch website has a calculator giving range depending on terrain, weight, battery, road surface etc. While it is particular to their technology, the results would be reasonable accurate for hub motors also.. assume 90% of the central drive range.
Just remember one thing. Pedelecs are motor assisted bikes not motorbikes, what you put in matters and determines range.

 

[stevec59]

Not many hills around Frinton / Walton way though there is a bit of dip between Thorpe and Tendring.

What's your planned use of the bike and where do you intend ranging?

I use to work in Frinton and travelled up on the train from Colchester with my pedelec. On sunny days it was good to ride back down the coastal path to Clacton to catch the train home or even as far as Weeley. Route is relatively flat and only really headwinds to contend with.

Saw quite a few other pedelecs in Frinton - not sure if the local bike shop in The Avenue can line you up with a test ride for a suitable bike.

https://www.facebook.com/johnsons.cycles/

Thanks Wicky, I've been to the one up Connaught, they don't do second hand and new they want over £1000, so well out of my budget. I quite fancy a ride to Dovercourt, that's about 14 miles each way, I couldn't do that on my normal bike, maybe with a lot of training and exercise, but an electric would make it so much easier. Just as a FYI, this looks like a good cycling route planner:-

https://www.cyclinguk.org/journey-planner

Your right not too many hills around here, I cycled to the Naze tower last year, I managed the hill on my conventional bike but struggled.
I'll use the bike for local sight seeing.

 

[stevec59]

A friend of mine bought 2 electric bikes from Halfords, 1 for himself and 1 for his wife, very similar to the one I'm looking at. He had a lot of problems with his one, so it has handy that he could return it to Clacton (6 Miles away) to get it fixed. He's said that I can have a try on it, so I'll see if I can borrow it for an hour and go up the Naze

 

[Powerbikes]

Hi Guys,
Looking to buy a cheap electric bike, I did think about buying something cheap from ebay, the problem with that is that I'll probably end up buying a battery for it and that just bumps up the price, so I'd thought I'd ask oppinion on a few

Groupon are currently doing one at £499

https://www.groupon.co.uk/deals/viking-villager-heritage-e-bike
Front hub motor

Halfords have this one at £600

http://www.halfords.com/cycling/bikes/electric-bikes/pendleton-somerby-electric-bike-black-rose-gold-17-19-frames

I guess the advantage of halfords is, if I have problems it's easy to return it.

And then there is this one at £689.99

https://expedition-bikes.co.uk/product/e-bike/electric-e-bike/

Spare 36v 10ah Lithium Battery£259.99

Zoom Suspension Forks, I do a little riding along Gravel Cycle routes, bit bumpy, will these make a lot of difference?
12 month Return to base warranty, about 2 hrs car drive

I don't work due to health reasons, so I can't get Cycle to work scheme discount.

What are you thoughts please

The Viking Villager is cheap! Cheaper than I can buy them for.
Halfords Pendleton definitely won't do 50 miles. 25-30 is more realistic.
That eco expedition looks to be pretty good value. I'd be tempted to go for that one. Although I've never actually heard of them.

 

[stevec59]

The eco expedition looks like a 'Traditional bike /racing bike' not that I'm too concerned with looks, 21 gears means that I might use less battery and therefore go further, mind you I don't use half the gears I have on my normal bike and I have 18 on that, I guess Halfords Pendleton 8 gears should do for most riding. Quite surprised that it's 20.5kg, stick some mudguards on it and a cycle rack and it will be the same weight as the Halfords Pendleton. The LSD Display is nice and it shows you how much battery life left etc, although I guess I could fit one of those to any bike, but then it bumps up the price if I did that to the Halfords Pendleton. And out of the 3 it's got the most powerful battery, but at the same time costs the most, and if it goes wrong, its car ride to Kent