Conhismotor electric bike

[flecc]

I dont know how the 25kmh was arrived at in the first place.

It was clearly based on typical utility cycling speeds, in the EU at 25 kph (approximately 15 mph), and in the British EAPC regulations at 12 mph. In the interests of EU transport law harmonisation Britain later changed that to 15 mph, but introduced a safeguard of the 14 years minimum age at the same time, something the rest of Europe doesn't have.

Another angle on things would be to maintain a 25kmh limit but allow more power so that 25kmh was maintained uphill also.

I do like the idea of having a more powerful class of ebikes that perhaps require registration and insurance but allow a higher power / speed.

As Mike intimated above, that already exists. It's the bicycle based "Low Powered Moped" class. That is restricted to 15 mph as well, but permits up to 1000 watts rating, plemty for hill climbing. Subject to registration, this is an EU wide class fully accepted in Britain. Road tax is free and moped insurance requirement applies, as do other moped laws.

I wish a brave e-bike manufacturer would produce a few of these, since there are many e-bike riders who are already driver qualified by virtue of having a car driving licence prior to 1st February 2001, a moped class P licence, or a full motorcycle licence. I'm sure there is some demand.

 

[bazwaldo]

Hello again cwah,
Thanks for the link to the bike you bought.
It looked like very good value for money I thought.
I particularly liked the handlebars and wouldn't mind one of those on my Bearprint.
Apart from the low 8ah rated battery it looks as though the bike ought to perform as well as any other Ebike and provide assistance up to 17 or 18mph rather like my own which is a Chinese manufactured import.
My bike has a connector plug on the Controller which acts to restrict the speed and in effect cuts out the 3rd and highest level of speed assistance.
Could it be possible that the bike you bought might have had some sort of removable restriction in place which you could have taken off?
For the price of £300 it looked like a good bargain!
Best wishes,
Barry.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Baz, I agree it's a lovely bike and it's got some potential, but you can't compare the power with yours.
Yours is 36v, Cwah's is 24v, both will have a controller capable of giving about 15amps max. Therefore Cwah' will have approximately 2/3 the power of yours. The average 36v Chinese hub motor bike draws about 600-700watts max from the battery,. Even if Cwah soldered his shunt to get it up to 20amps, it would still only be about 550 watts with a risk of melting his controller.

 

[bazwaldo]

d8veh,

cwah's link was to the first Ebike he purchased with which he was disappointed due to the slow speed and returned it to the seller.

His link is below:-

Yes, it was this e-bike I purchased:
eBay - The UK's Online Marketplace

This is the bike with the neat handlebars and it has a 36v battery but only of 8ah which is half the ah of my Bearprint battery.
Hence my post about the connector which may have been inhibiting it's performance.
For £300 it looks like excellent value for money.
The original subject of this thread is for a 24v battery bike.

Barry.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Woops! I got it wrong again then.
Ok, so it should be similar to all the other 36v Chinese hub motors then - much better than the 24v one.
I just looked back through the posts and it's not clear to me which way round he bought them. Are you sure that's right. Perhaps Cwah could clarify.

 

[mike killay]

the bicycle based "Low Powered Moped" class. That is restricted to 15 mph as well, but permits up to 1000 watts rating, plemty for hill climbing. Subject to registration, this is an EU wide class fully accepted in Britain. Road tax is free and moped insurance requirement applies, as do other moped laws.

I wish a brave e-bike manufacturer would produce a few of these, since there are many e-bike riders who are already driver qualified by virtue of having a car driving licence prior to 1st February 2001, a moped class P licence, or a full motorcycle licence. I'm sure there is some demand.

The down side that would affect sales is that it would be much the same as an EAPC on the flat, and only shine on hills. However, all the bother of number plates, insurance etc. would make it just as easy to get a petrol moped.

 

[flecc]

The down side that would affect sales is that it would be much the same as an EAPC on the flat, and only shine on hills. However, all the bother of number plates, insurance etc. would make it just as easy to get a petrol moped.

It might seem that way, but when we fitted petrol add-on motors to bikes, they had to have number plates, front one as well at first, paid for tax and insurance, and a full motorcycle licence. That didn't stop over one million arriving on UK roads in the 1950s.

Now many people have the necessary licences as I detailed, and the road tax is free. As with motor vehicles, the dealer arranges initial registration and provides the rear number plate ready made, we always did. Therefore there's no real hassle for those prospective owners, they just change the free tax disc each year and pay to renew their low cost moped insurance. If a larger manufacturer takes up this opportunity, I'd recommend they opt for 700 watts. At almost treble the existing EU e-bike power and almost one horse power, it would be enough and could also be a seller in the whole US market where nationwide federal law specifies 700 watts.

There is a big UK demand for more hill climb power while retaining the cycling aspect, things neither e-bikes or petrol mopeds can provide together, and I'm sure a worthwhile proportion of pre-licenced e-bike buyers would opt for these if a type approved model was available.
.

 

[oigoi]

It was clearly based on typical utility cycling speeds, in the EU at 25 kph (approximately 15 mph), and in the British EAPC regulations at 12 mph. In the interests of EU transport law harmonisation Britain later changed that to 15 mph, but introduced a safeguard of the 14 years minimum age at the same time, something the rest of Europe doesn't have.



As Mike intimated above, that already exists. It's the bicycle based "Low Powered Moped" class. That is restricted to 15 mph as well, but permits up to 1000 watts rating, plemty for hill climbing. Subject to registration, this is an EU wide class fully accepted in Britain. Road tax is free and moped insurance requirement applies, as do other moped laws.

I wish a brave e-bike manufacturer would produce a few of these, since there are many e-bike riders who are already driver qualified by virtue of having a car driving licence prior to 1st February 2001, a moped class P licence, or a full motorcycle licence. I'm sure there is some demand.

Thankyou for enlightening me as to the legal categories that exist, I agree we just need someone in the uk to offer some bikes in that category - xipi springs to mind........

 

[cwah]

Flec, I purchased both bikes.

I purchased initially an electric bike in the UK (from ebay the one with 36V) that was limited to 13 km/h. I was soooo frustated I returned the bike to the seller. (Most members here would know how to repair this bike, but I'm the average Joe that have never repaired a tyre, so changing connectors is too risky for me...)

Now I purchased a second bike in ebay from a chinese seller. With all your warning I hope the seller wasn't lying about the speed because it's much more expensive than purchasing it in the uk (£200 shipping cost + potential taxes).

Just praying now...

 

[flecc]

Yes, 13 mph can be frustrating and I remember how pathetic the early 12 mph restricted models were. It's an odd thing, but even 15 mph can seem very slow if not pedalling, but if pedalling with the bike and putting in a little bit of effort, it seems much faster! I think it's probably just a matter of being occupied ruling out the boredom aspect of slow progress, possibly reinforced by the sense of achievement aspect.

Fingers crossed the new bike will do what you need.

 

[bode]

It's an odd thing, but even 15 mph can seem very slow if not pedalling, but if pedalling with the bike and putting in a little bit of effort, it seems much faster!

That was why I bought a "full-size" bike in addition to my folder; so that when pedalling I could keep up with the motor at top speed. On the folder with smaller wheels / lower gearing I was usually "pedalling air" trying to keep up, so often didn't bother.

 

[mike killay]

May be you are correct. I had a cyclemaster in the 1950's.
But, no MOT required then, no helmet, and in those days you could ride them on a provisional licence ad infinitum
As for a low powered moped, particularly with a number plate, a lot of cyclepaths would be closed to users. I regularly use an ex railway, now tarred over. It has a prominent 'No motor vehicles' sign on it, probably because the city council owns the land and can do as they please.

 

[Scimitar]

H
Personally if I was going to have an ebike with more power I would just use the extra power to help get up hills quicker

Which is all I really use my utterly illegal 750 Watts for. Sure, it's nice to bowl along at 25mph, but it's a pita pedalling to keep up with the motor, so I tend to use the throttle at a half-setting and am quite happy at <20mph.
With my knackered knees, the leccy motor is a blessing and I've done more miles on the bike since I fitted the kit than I did in the two years beforehand.
So, I'm all in favour of more power and more speed than the law allows, but not in taking the ****.
So, to all the nanny whingers - get stuffed

 

[flecc]

May be you are correct. I had a cyclemaster in the 1950's.
But, no MOT required then, no helmet, and in those days you could ride them on a provisional licence ad infinitum

The MOT from the third year on autocycles etc is virtually a nod-through at a local m/c dealer, as I know from experience. And as you know from my post, I'm speaking of the vast numbers who are pre-licenced so the provisional licence objection isn't relevant. As this forum profile shows, half all e-bikers are over 50 and 70% are over 40 years old. A huge proportion of them all will have a car driving licence gained before 1st February 2001, and many others will have a moped or m/c licence. That large reservoir will hold enough buyers for some years to come, making a 700 watt type approved e-bike a potentially profitable proposition for a manufacturer who takes that step. After all, we see enough posts in here yelling for more power, and I'm not arguing for everyone to have one, just for the opportunity for those who want one to be satisfied.

As for a helmet, the wrap around Casco type cycle helmet will satisfy any police observation since they appear just like open face m/c helmets.

 

[cwah]

Completely agree with fleec.

Actually I don't mind having a moped at all (and the license/insurance). It's just not practical for me : I don't want to get it stolen and I can't carry it in the train.

Just want to still be able to ride on cycle and bus lane because it's convenient and less dangerous.

 

[tillson]

So, to all the nanny whingers - get stuffed

I don't think that it's about nannying or whinging Scimitar, it's more to do with the preservation of freedoms in road traffic law that we currently enjoy. I few selfish people can be a great detriment to the majority. I've seen it happen in other areas far too often. There's nowt wrong with wanting to protect something which you enjoy doing.

 

[indalo]

Which is all I really use my utterly illegal 750 Watts for. Sure, it's nice to bowl along at 25mph, but it's a pita pedalling to keep up with the motor, so I tend to use the throttle at a half-setting and am quite happy at <20mph.
With my knackered knees, the leccy motor is a blessing and I've done more miles on the bike since I fitted the kit than I did in the two years beforehand.
So, I'm all in favour of more power and more speed than the law allows, but not in taking the ****.
So, to all the nanny whingers - get stuffed

It must be nice to be exempt from the laws of the land and to be able to boast about your disregard for your fellow human beings as you do Scimitar, with impunity.

Frankly, I think your attitude is disgraceful and you demonstrate a complete lack of respect for others. I wonder how you would like it if everybody else in your life decided to pick and choose which laws to observe. Perhaps you should consider that a little before giving forth with something else equally as puerile as bragging about the power of your illegal ebike. Adulthood requires the observance of laws, rules and various statutory instruments plus accepting responsibility for one's actions so get real and grow up!

Indalo

 

[Scimitar]

It must be nice to be exempt from the laws of the land and to be able to boast about your disregard for your fellow human beings as you do Scimitar, with impunity.

Frankly, I think your attitude is disgraceful and you demonstrate a complete lack of respect for others. I wonder how you would like it if everybody else in your life decided to pick and choose which laws to observe. Perhaps you should consider that a little before giving forth with something else equally as puerile as bragging about the power of your illegal ebike. Adulthood requires the observance of laws, rules and various statutory instruments plus accepting responsibility for one's actions so get real and grow up!

Indalo

Oh, please extract that brush pole, it's making you walk funny.

 

[tillson]

Oh, please extract that brush pole, it's making you walk funny.

It is interesting to see that you have avoided confronting the points raised by Inaldo and myself regarding being selective when it comes to law and the associated intrinsic selfishness that comes with it.

In just two posts, you have revealed your approach to ebikes very clearly. (1) You will do what you like regardless of the law. (2) You are prepared to covertly use a motor vehicle under the cover of your fellow legal ebikers, whilst avoiding tax, MoT,insurance, type approval, helmet law, and any licensing requirements. (3) You don't care if any of your activity impacts negatively on others who enjoy the freedoms of ebikes.

That's pretty disgusting and shameful behaviour by anyone's standards Scimitar.

 

[Steady]

I think as long as people ride responsibly with regard to themselves and others, theres no problem. We all drive cars that are capable of exceeding the legal speed limit and have a lot more power than required but it doesn't stop us buying and using them. We ebikers are helping to save the planet, so to encourage more people onto ebikes we shouldn't be over critical of our fellow ebikers.