Commuter bike for 6’1 14 stone man

[Northmale]

Budget £1500 new via cycle to work. £800 cash second hand

My wife bought me a secondhand Eplus Commute for Christmas with a mind to commuting to work via train and bike.

I can’t see the point in that as the train is so expensive and love riding bikes but hate arriving at work sweaty as there are no showers.

Having just done a test drive on the route to work the motor barely kicked in as I was constantly over 15mph as 95% of the route is flat and follows a river. The final 5% is stop start hills in a city.

I want a bike I can derestrict when
I’m in the countryside as the lone rider on ex colliery wagonways, then switch to legal as I hit the suburbs.

Decent on hills would help but I’m fit and can do a lot of the work.
Throttle not essential.
I have zero sense of style so looks not important at all.

 

[Northmale]

Mindboggling! So a London based 4x4 can belch out fumes and then drive to the countryside to a hunt or grouse shoot, press a button on private land and go into off-road mode, but it’s illegal to do the same on an e-bike?

it’s almost like the rules are made by people detached from reality.

 

[sjpt]

..., then switch to legal as I hit the suburbs.

Technically, if you can switch then it is not legal even when in lower power/speed mode. There's some discussion about exactly what 'switch' means; probably OK if it means reprogramming the controller, certainly not OK if it's something you can easily do while riding.

 

[matthewslack]

I want a bike I can derestrict when
I’m in the countryside as the lone rider on ex colliery wagonways, then switch to legal as I hit the suburbs.

You have very early on in your ebiking life come up against the boundaries of the eapc definition!

A switch like that is simply not allowed.

 

[Northmale]

Can I go for same question but instead of a switch a quick LCD mod done while briefly stationary?

 

[matthewslack]

Mindboggling! So a London based 4x4 can belch out fumes and then drive to the countryside to a hunt or grouse shoot, press a button on private land and go into off-road mode, but it’s illegal to do the same on an e-bike?

it’s almost like the rules are made by people detached from reality.

Have a look back at some long previous discussions! It's all there!

Extremely briefly, EAPCs are a very, very special case, allowing a motor on what is in law a bicycle. Everything anyone wants in an electric two wheeler can be had, but not as an EAPC.

If helmet and insurance would not ruin what you want, then a suitable ebike registered as a moped is the legal route.

 

[Peter.Bridge]

I believe there is a 10 % leeway on the max assist speed , so if you found an e-bike which allowed you to set the max assist speed, you could take advantage of that , and set the max assist speed to 17 mph (15.5 mph + 10%). If you set it higher than that and ride in public (on or off road) it is illegal and you are taking a risk (although you could debate how much)
For a lightish cyclist, on primarily flattish terrain, I would possibly recommend

The Faro | Very Lightweight Electric Bikes from Woosh

The Faro: very lightweight road electric bike from Woosh with hydraulic brakes and in-frame 36V 8AH battery or 20AH external battery.

wooshbikes.co.uk

See this thread

Woosh Faro Review

[/QUOTE[/QUOTE] Bike looks great, did the 32c tyres fit okay I’m guessing that’s the limit of size if also fitting mudguards. Thanks. 32s fit ok - not much clearance but enough for everything to spin as it should! And yes - its the frame clearances that are the critical factor I think...

www.pedelecs.co.uk

 

[Wayners]

I'd just buy a conversation kit and fiddle with the settings. Or buy one from woosh or wisper.
I get 18mph with my stamped 250w kit and through the woods I go steady with dog walkers and it's a bit slippy in the mud. Guess I go about 7- 10mph..
I would not want a big powerful scrambling e-bike through the woods tbh. Dangerous. You'll hit a person or a dog!
I ride 3½ miles each way every day to work and I do wish at times I had more speed especially on the Bristol road in city along cycle route in a headwind in the lashing rain, but it's just asking for trouble and a accident.
Only way I know to do what you want is fit two kits or stop and derestrict in settings. Not legal though.
I think anyone wanting to go fast just buy a moped. Tax and insure it. Jobs a goodun...

 

[GLJoe]

I have zero sense of style so looks not important at all.

Welcome. You've come to the right place ...

 

[cyclebuddy]

I understand your frustration, but you can't have your cake and eat it.

Your e-bike is either limited to 15.5mph and legal, or it isn't.

One of my e-bikes was sold fully legal, restricted to 15.5mph, and has all the manufacturers stickers on the frame to prove it. Purchasing a cable adaptor and a free piece of software, I programmed it to do an assisted 28mph. Many motors are capable of more than the 15.5mph, but not always as much as 28mph. I tried it for fun, but I don't want to be caught and lose (get penalty points on) my driving licence, so it's now set back to legal limits.

I don't mean to offend but you need to adjust your mentality rather than the speed of your bike... you may be fit enough to peddle faster than 15.5mph, but relax a little and enjoy the effortless, non-sweaty ride at legal speeds.

An EAPC is allowed as a concession in law. Anything faster needs a moped/motorbike with all the restrictions the law then requires, like helmets and insurance.

 

[saneagle]

If someone were to buy themselves a defunct proprietary ebike for about £300 or less that has a rear hub-motor, preferably a known brand; chuck the battery, controller and LCD; replace with a 48v version of the battery and KT controller & LCD; they would then have a bike capable of cruising over 20 mph with a legal 250w motor and a plate with the legal info on it. That person could set parameters C4 and C14 so that the motor only goes when they pedal, then the bike would meet every legal requirement except the max speed, which could be adjusted in about three seconds with practice.

Though it's a faff, if someone set the max speed to 15.5 mph with a KT controller and saved the setting, then set it to any other max speed and rode the bike without saving the setting, it will use the new setting until switched off, then revert to the old one. With the settings protected with a password, nobody else would be able to see or change the settings except the guy, who put the password in. Some bikes have LCD settings protected by passwords or other secret codes that the owner isn't given, so it's normal for the owner not to know the password.

 

[Az.]

I'd just buy a conversation kit and fiddle with the settings.

You mean a phone?

 

[Wayners]

You mean a phone?

Ha.

 

[Northmale]

I don't mean to offend but you need to adjust your mentality rather than the speed of your bike... you may be fit enough to peddle faster than 15.5mph, but relax a little and enjoy the effortless, non-sweaty ride at legal speeds.

No offence taken. I will learn the art of gentle pedalling

 

[Peter.Bridge]

I can't help thinking that having a class of pedelecs with a max speed of , say , 25 mph would allow more people to use them for commuting, even if they needed registration and insurance

 

[Northmale]

I can't help thinking that having a class of pedelecs with a max speed of , say , 25 mph would allow more people to use them for commuting, even if they needed registration and insurance

This would be the a sensible move that would decrease car use, help towards emissions targets and get people more active and take the strain off the NHS, so absolutely no chance of it happening under the current government.

 

[Az.]

I can't help thinking that having a class of pedelecs with a max speed of , say , 25 mph would allow more people to use them for commuting, even if they needed registration and insurance

Like speed pedelecs?

 

[Northmale]

Yes but for cycle paths rather than roads.

 

[Az.]

This would be the a sensible move that would decrease car use, help towards emissions targets and get people more active and take the strain off the NHS, so absolutely no chance of it happening under the current government.

Not sure what is not happening... You already have two standards you might be interested in:
L1e-A with motors up to 1000W and speeds up to 25km/h and
L1e-B with motors up to 4k with speeds up to 45km/h

You can have all what you need, but it won't be considered as a bike, can't have everything I am afraid.

 

[Peter.Bridge]

Like speed pedelecs?

That in the UK have the same legal categorisation as mopeds ? I am under the impression that that's currently a very small market ? I wonder if a brand actively marketed them, maybe with a tie in with an insurance company. I think the regulations should probably be slightly different to mopeds.

 

[Az.]

That in the UK have the same legal categorisation as mopeds ? I am under the impression that that's currently a very small market ? I wonder if a brand actively marketed them, maybe with a tie in with an insurance company. I think the regulations should probably be slightly different to mopeds.

Yes, they are classed as mopeds with all strings attached and all hoops to jump through to have them approved. I understand why people want cheap vehicles with no responsibilities and no accountability attached to it, but there is no way law will be modified in a way that this will be happening under this government or another.
Imagine lunatics ploughing through children and dog walkers at 45km/h.