Choice of 3

[BrizzleBoy]

Hi there – new boy here

I am trying to make a decision on which electric bike to go for and think have narrowed it down to 3.

Here are our details:
Purely a commuter bike 5 days a week for 8 months March to October

16 mile return journey in to Bristol along this lovely route The Bath - Bristol Cycle Path at www.paulspages.co.uk.

( One 'hill' for 400 yds and a 1:65 incline for 2.5 miles out of Bristol on the way home. Now that doesn’t sound much but on a hot day after a day at work can seem like a hill.. )

Aiming for ½ hour journey time
I am 6ft 3 and 16 ½ stone , Missus 6ft and 11 stone ( will my bulk affect performance other than reduced range ?)
As shared bike sit up and beg preferred


In addition we are budgeting around £700 for this. We are awaiting our employers response to the cyclescheme which would mean we could go for option 1 and still hit that target


Option 1 Giant Twist 2.0 2007 £1150 ( net price £700 )
Pros
Local dealer I have used for years for our family bikes
Like the design (sorry!) and have test ridden it
Two batteries
Nice to ride without assistance
Appears well made
Easily Adjustable handlebars ( bear in mind shared bike )

Cons
Feedback on this bike not inspiring ( front hub ) but don’t need a hill climber
Pedelec only


Option 2 Ezee Liv £695
Pros
3 mode including throttle only
Good reviews
Good average speed

Cons
No local dealer

Option 3 Powacycle Windsor LPX
Pros
Cheap as chips
3 mode including throttle only

Cons
No local dealer
Lower average speed

Also noticed mentions of taking battery out to charge up – I was hoping just to connect up to mains in garage whilst battery still on bike – is that OK?

Not a major consideration but are any of these derestrictable? If you are able to what are the consequences for battery / motor?

Thanks

 

[Ian]

Hello and welcome to the forum BrizzleBoy.

It looks like you've been doing your homework and come up with 3 good choices, any of which should do the relatively undemanding job you're asking. My own preference would be the Liv, but that is purely a personal opinion based on experience of other Ezee models and I'm sure the other bikes would be suitable as well.

Your weight shouldn't have too much of an effect on any performance aspects, only really having any effect while accelerating and ascending hills. On a fairly level path with few obstructions to get in the way of a constant speed the impact should be minimal.

Most batteries can be charged in-situ on the bike, certainly the Liv can, I'm fairly sure the Powacycle can and I'd expect that to be the case with the Giant.

Neither the Liv or Powacycle can be de-restricted, the max speed corresponding to the maximum rpm of the motor at its designed voltage. I'm not certain about the Giant but would be very surprised if it could be de-restricted.

 

[frank9755]

I'd agree with Ian's comments.

The only thing I'd add is that you should consider the NiMH battery for the Powacycle as that is more suited that the LPX to a 16 mile daily run, and is likely to give a longer life (and is even cheaper!).

With the NiMH you should have no problems doing that on a single charge. I do a 12-mile each way journey on exactly that bike and manage it in around 55 minutes, including c.5 minutes stopped at lights, in heavy traffic, etc.

If I were you, I'd try the bikes out as they will probably feel different. For example rear vs front wheel motor.

Do check with Powacycle to see if they have a local dealer. They are buildin a network adn I am fairly sure they have some in the Bristol area. Ezee will be able to offer you a trial via one of their owner/demonstrators.

Frank

 

[BrizzleBoy]

Hi Ian , thanks for the welcome and the advice.

I keep being drawn back to the Liv. I am sure if I could try one out that would swing it but that doesnt look a possibility. I also like the power only option that it has.

All said if our employer doesnt offer the cyclescheme then the Liv it is.

Cheers

 

[BrizzleBoy]

More good advice , thanks Frank.

Will see if I can get a demo

 

[coops]

Hi BrizzleBoy and welcome

I should think any of those bikes would have no trouble at all on the 1:65 incline, though performance on the 400yd hill may vary a little depending on its gradient.

You've clearly given this a lot of thought and I'd add that when deciding on a model I recommend you consider the possibility that you'll get so much enjoyment from the bike that you'll want to ride it on other routes, so I wouldn't necessarily limit choice to one route only (you also may also end up wanting one bike each, so performance-matching is another consideration!).

I agree with Ian re answers to your questions and Frank's advice too.

I'm a bit surprised that you found the Twist 2 easy to ride without assistance, given what I've read about the motor not being disengaged when freewheeling? Or did they fix that? I've ridden the Liv and found slightly more resistance to freewheeling downhill than on some other Ezee bikes, but not a big deal especially with motor on. Adding to Frank's NiMH advice, the Liv with NiMH (if its available as an option) would be £50-100 less I'd have thought, and though there's a slight initial performance hit over Lithium and small weight disadvantage, its seems more likely to last reliably for your full 16mile round trip for a longer time. For a local test of an Ezee bike you could enquire at 50Cycles to see if there's an owner near you who's agreed to demonstrate their bike - the link on 50cycles site seems not to work at the moment though and email can be slow, so you might want to call them instead . Ditto for powacycle as Frank said .

For the few bikes which can be derestricted (none of those 3 as far as I know) the only battery/motor consequences I know you can expect are a higher energy consumption at speeds above 15mph (at 20mph its almost double, unless you can reduce wind resistance markedly) so much shorter range unless you pedal more energetically of course! Also increased likelihood of cut-out on lithium batteries too if they're overloaded on hills for instance I should think. You're probably already aware of the Torq's 'unique' features in the derestricted motor dept but since thats unlikely to figure on your shortlist I won't repeat it here .

P.S. just read your last posts - there are quite a few happy Liv owners here who I'm sure would be happy to answer any specific questions, and test ride through a demonstrator also possible as I said. I'm sure your missus would like it (so long as the frame size suits you both - I'm 6ft & 16 stone-ish and had no problem), so beware if you do try it out ! Haven't tried the Twist 2.0, but I know the Liv rivals many bikes costing considerably more.

Hope thats useful

Stuart.

 

[BrizzleBoy]

Thanks coops. Have fired off the emails but will phone if I dont hear soon.

This isnt going to be an easy decision but the good news seems to be that whatever one I choose I cant go wrong....

Cheers

 

[flecc]

Also in agreement with the above and your route is not trying so almost anything will cope.

One thing to check on the Giant Twist II is the battery cost. Sooner or later a bike needs a new battery, and Giant are notoriously expensive with these. The pair of batteries for the Twist I are a frightening £600, and although the NiMh on the Twist II will be cheaper, you should still be sitting when your dealer announces the price.

eZee battery prices are reasonable, and Powacycle have traditionally had low prices, but they crept up of late and are near to eZee's on a voltage/capacity judged basis.

I'd use the Liv, definitely the fastest, well built enough for the job, and the saving over the Twist II paying for a new battery and tyres when they come due eventually. There's also the fact that the motor was previously used in their Rider model, and one is on record as having exceeded 50,000 kilometres in Switzerland and still going at that point.
.

 

[coops]

Have fired off the emails but will phone if I dont hear soon.

This isnt going to be an easy decision but the good news seems to be that whatever one I choose I cant go wrong....

Yes, let's hope so . To be frank, and for the best service, my advice is to just phone... . Best of luck.

 

[BrizzleBoy]

Thanks Flecc, batteries are a concern.

Dealer has quoted £500 for the pair. However I am working on the basis that I will only drain one each return journey so only recharging each one every other day

Just cant wait to get one

 

[flecc]

Dealer has quoted £500 for the pair. However I am working on the basis that I will only drain one each return journey so only recharging each one every other day

Just cant wait to get one

I suspected that would be the cost. Although that's the recharge rate at first, batteries lose capacity with time, so the recharging would gradually become more frequent. The capacity loss will probably be in the region of 10 to 12% a year with NiMh.

And yes, you'll enjoy whatever you buy of those once you get riding.
.

 

[Brangdon]

Also noticed mentions of taking battery out to charge up – I was hoping just to connect up to mains in garage whilst battery still on bike – is that OK?

I'm a happy Liv owner. I take the battery out to charge mainly for security reasons. My garage is not secure, and if I kept the bike, battery and charger in there someone could nick the lot. (The bike is chained to a wall, but that wouldn't stop a determined thief.) I figure that if the charger is indoors, a knowledgeable thief is less likely to bother as they'd need to acquire a charger from elsewhere, which is expense and risk for them. If the battery is indoors overnight, so much the better. Together they cost £300 which is almost half the value of the bike. Of course an ignorant thief might take the bike despite it being worthless, and crime isn't really a problem in my area anyway so this is probably needless paranoia. But that's my reasoning.

Incidentally, I've found that I've spent £100 or more on peripherals on top of the cost of the bike. The Liv comes with lights, bell and rack, but I also needed a lock, rack-pack, pump, tools and wet-weather clothing.

 

[BrizzleBoy]

Well after trying out a number of bikes the Urban Mover 44 Sprite is going to be ordered. The only one that I would have liked to try out was the wisper 905 but wasnt available locally.

Seems to have the necessary oomph (for me to more than notice the pedal assistance which I didnt on others ). Hope I am not going to get inundated with why did you buy that

 

[flecc]

I'm sure that won't happen, I can't remember a case of anyone being criticised for their choice.

It's "horses for courses", and each of us tends to know what's best for ourselves and our circumstances.

Hope you get loads of enjoyment from your new bike.
.