e-bike under £2,500

Hi there,

 

I'm looking to buy my first e-bike - it has to be under £2,500 as that's my limit on a cycle to work scheme (also has to be purchasable on Halford's Cycle2Work).

 

Generally looking for something to mainly to use in the city - but would like to be comfortable doing stuff off tarmac (my current bike is an old steel frame city/road bike which isn't the most comfortable), going on some longer cycles (subject to range) in nature (enjoy camping) so mainly been looking at hybrids.

 

Bit of context, I'm having issues with fatigue and long covid, used to cycle a lot (not long cycles, but ~2 hours a day), now get knackered for a week if I cycle more than about 90 minutes in a day; hoping an ebike might help me cycle more and build up slowly; probably means I want a bike that can give a reasonable amount of assist - especially on hills (even if not super steep) as these knacker me out at the moment, which I've been told by my consultant to avoid. I'm 5'9" and about 65 kilos.

 

Bikes I'm considering:

• Woosh Gran Camino; clearly got a lot going for it, very cheap it seems for what you get. Lack of mid-drive is a concern, but probably silly given my needs.
  
• Trek Verve+1 with 500wh battery, or Verve+ 2 with 300wh (just due to £2500 constraint). Well reviewed (Verve+1 is a best buy at which). Verve+2 has powerline motor as opposed to active line on Verve+1, and imagine not having the battery on the back would be preferable.
  
• Carrera Crossfuse; people seem to love it, though get the impression it's a pretty cheap bike with a good motor (active line again) and battery (400wh), that is over-priced for its parts. I do quite like the aesthetic of this bike more than the two above I'd say.
  
• My vanity pick - the Ribble Hybrid AL e. Really like the look of it and the fact it's hard to tell it's an ebike. Carbon forks seems good. But the tiny battery, and the fact it's £500(?) for a small extender. Combined with the fact without the extender you cannot remove the battery to charge easily is a downside.
  

Would really welcome any thoughts, been reading a lot on the forum and clear how much expertise is here.

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Patrick

A couple of late Cube additions...

 

• Cube Touring Hybrid One 400 (sadly can't get 500 in budget)
  
• Cube Reaction Hybrid Performance 500
  

The reaction is more mountain-bikey than I need (and would want to buy a rack and mudgards, if I could get them on it), but the 500 battery would be nice...

 

Thanks again.

A couple of late Cube additions...

 

• Cube Touring Hybrid One 400 (sadly can't get 500 in budget)
  
• Cube Reaction Hybrid Performance 500
  

The reaction is more mountain-bikey than I need (and would want to buy a rack and mudgards, if I could get them on it), but the 500 battery would be nice...

 

Thanks again.

Would it make sense to use cycle to work scheme to get the best bike even with a small battery and buy outside the scheme a second battery?

 

The PerformanceLine motor is a fair step up from the ActiveLine, which in the early days might make a big difference for you. Two batteries even if one is 300Wh means you have the same capacity as top of the range bikes with one big one.

If I was given these as my options, I'd 100% go for a Cube. I love the ribble but its a lot of money for a very basic bike. The cubes look awesome, my neighbour has one and he loves it, resale value stays high, only 2 things put me off cubes. 1, looks like something people would love to nick.. bikes with "specific batteries" are always expensive.

 

Have you considered converting a normal bike?

Have you considered converting a normal bike?

you can also buy conversion kits with your cycle to work voucher.

you can also buy conversion kits with your cycle to work voucher.

Handy to know, I shall be informing the guys at work as they are very impressed with my bike and I know you guys do the same kits.. I assume they can be used with you?

Thanks all for the responses.

 

Would it make sense to use cycle to work scheme to get the best bike even with a small battery and buy outside the scheme a second battery?

 

The PerformanceLine motor is a fair step up from the ActiveLine, which in the early days might make a big difference for you. Two batteries even if one is 300Wh means you have the same capacity as top of the range bikes with one big one.

Good point! So you'd recommend going either Trek Verve+2 or either of the Cube's (all of which have the performance line)?

 

Have you considered converting a normal bike?

you can also buy conversion kits with your cycle to work voucher.

I hadn't realised you could use the voucher, that's great to know, thanks!

 

My current bike is an old... imagine one of these in much worse condition. Think the frame is a close to 50 years old now. Bought it for £50 in 2011. I like it but not sure it's worth putting the money into. Would buying a new (well 2nd hand bike) then converting be a better shout do you think?

 

 

I hadn't realised you could use the voucher, that's great to know, thanks!

 

My current bike is an old... imagine one of these in much worse condition. Think the frame is a close to 50 years old now. Bought it for £50 in 2011. I like it but not sure it's worth putting the money into. Would buying a new (well 2nd hand bike) then converting be a better shout do you think?

 

[ATTACH type=full" width="375px" alt="48022]48022[/ATTACH]

your bike is in quite good condition and straightforward you convert.

Email kits@wooshbikes.co.uk if you are interested.

Thanks all for the responses.

 

 

Good point! So you'd recommend going either Trek Verve+2 or either of the Cube's (all of which have the performance line)?

 

 

 

I hadn't realised you could use the voucher, that's great to know, thanks!

 

My current bike is an old... imagine one of these in much worse condition. Think the frame is a close to 50 years old now. Bought it for £50 in 2011. I like it but not sure it's worth putting the money into. Would buying a new (well 2nd hand bike) then converting be a better shout do you think?

 

[ATTACH type=full" width="375px" alt="48022]48022[/ATTACH]

I converted this yesterday, Paid £150 for the bike. The total cost was a a fraction of a prebuilt e bike, the difference is night and day, no drag on motor means I can comfortably cycle at 20mph+ did a 30 mile run today and the battery still shows full bars.

From admittedly limited experience, people I know who have been able to try a range of motors have usually come out strongly in favour of the higher torque ones. You are committed long term by the choice, so needs to be right for you.

 

Test rides if available of bikes with the various motors would be helpful.

 

I can't help with make and model of the bike as none mentioned have I seen!

If you want the maximum hill climbing assistance then be aware some of the lighter road and hybrid bikes with mid-drive have lower torque motors that are in the same ballpark as hub motors in performance plus you have all the disadvantages of a complicated motor, massively increased drivetrain wear and a lot of proprietary components with high replacement costs to pay for over the longer term of ownership. 60Nm mid-drive is probably no better than 45Nm motor hub when you take in account loss of efficiency through the drivetrain and gear ratios. It's the mid-drive mountain bikes that have the more powerful mid-drive motors plus they have superior low gearing which in combination makes them brilliant hill climbing ebikes. Bosch do a mid-drive motor with 40Nm torque and its often fitted to comfort/leisure ebikes with not particularly low gearing and those are often worse than the better hub motor ebikes for hill climbing. It's important to look at the full picture of the torque output of the motor fitted and its gearing.

 

I don't know what your long covid is because it varies by person but my long covid is/was my own body's immune system damaging my lungs as it fought off the virus so I've been gradually getting back lung capacity over time. Other people's long covid has been completely different to mine, I read of a woman who had constant migraines and other issues as if she hadn't fought off the virus and it was still within her body causing damage and issues. I was never tested positive for covid simply because my immune system successfully removes the virus but at the expense of damage to my own body which in my case was pretty much the lungs. Last September I was assessed as having 64% of my expected lung capacity for my age but I'm sure I've increased this but unsure how much as its difficult to get a lung function test at the hospital because there are many higher priority patients. Anyway if you have fatigue through reduced lung capacity I feel you will need to keep pushing to increase that capacity however that may be the completely wrong advice based on your long covid. I'm sure I've got back most of my lung capacity now through use of a bike both a freestanding exercise bike and actual bike outside.

My current bike is an old... imagine one of these in much worse condition.

Probably a nicer bike than anything newer you would replace it with second hand.

 

Older bikes were often set up for fewer speeds and I think would have a narrower rear dropout width. It's probably steel and could be stretched if you did want a rear hub motor. My son has got my Claud Butler from that era (almost nothing but frame and forks original), and it did need stretching to get the new 7 speed non-electric back wheel in. I'm sure Woosh will advise.

A couple of late Cube additions...

 

• Cube Touring Hybrid One 400 (sadly can't get 500 in budget)
  
• Cube Reaction Hybrid Performance 500
  

The reaction is more mountain-bikey than I need (and would want to buy a rack and mudgards, if I could get them on it), but the 500 battery would be nice...

 

Thanks again.

 

YMMV, but I'd get the Cube reaction hybrid for certain. Solid bike, motor with plenty of power to tackle ANY hill and the 500wh battery is really the deal clincher. You've ticked all the main boxes there. Most of the other options you quoted had to make some compromise somewhere. That cube doesn't.

 

One could say I have a bias, as my main commuting bike is actually an older model reaction hybrid to which I've added a rear rack and bag with fold out panniers, and a front mudguard. The latter being VERY cheap and easy to fit (attaches up into the crown (?) of the suspension fork where there is a large opening), and the former meaning you don't actually need a rear mudguard!

I put fat, but non mountain bike tyres on it, and the comfort is far superior for gravel and trails etc than a normal hybrid, and the slight extra weight that you pay for it being a proper mountain bike becomes irrelevant when you have a motor.

But bias is probably the wrong term, because if something happened to my Cube and I had to go looking for another bike of the same type to replace it ... I'd probably just end up coming to the same conclusion than another reaction hybrid would be one of the best options to go for, even if I was using it for general purpose use and not as a pure MTB.

I think the main reason NOT to go for the cube would just be if one was going to use it exclusively on good condition roads, and you really disliked the more chunky look of an MTB.

I'd spend the extra 100quid (cash?/Deposit? - I'm sure a work with the retailer would suffice) and get the Hybrid 500. I have a 2017 Cube Reaction and its been a great bike but I've had to add rack, mudguards and lights afterwards at considerable expense, and in the case of the lights - faff. Also had to swap the tyres out but you might have to do that on both bikes. Also the reaction MTB seems to have a higher profile and will be a bit less efficient due to drag, may not concern those going offroad etc. but I notice it on longer road trips.

the reaction MTB seems to have a higher profile and will be a bit less efficient due to drag, may not concern those going offroad etc. but I notice it on longer road trips.

 

Really?? you notice lesser efficiency due to drag on an ebike going at 15mph ???

 

Or are you talking about absolute range? - remembering that one of the options the OP was talking about had only a 300wh battery, and most of the others were 400Wh - do you REALLY think the reaction hybrid's 'higher profile' is going to make THAT much difference in efficiency??

Oh .. and bear in mind also that about 90% of the people posting here will put on some kind of handlebar riser to make the bike more comfortable to ride if the bike doesn't already have this kind of 'higher profile' to start with ;-)

I converted this yesterday, Paid £150 for the bike. The total cost was a a fraction of a prebuilt e bike, the difference is night and day, no drag on motor means I can comfortably cycle at 20mph+ did a 30 mile run today and the battery still shows full bars.

 

Looks good. What motor is that?

A couple of late Cube additions...

 

• Cube Touring Hybrid One 400 (sadly can't get 500 in budget)
  
• Cube Reaction Hybrid Performance 500
  

The reaction is more mountain-bikey than I need (and would want to buy a rack and mudgards, if I could get them on it), but the 500 battery would be nice...

 

Thanks again.

I would double check whats available with the rack. As for as i can tell its the type of rack from a specific German company -Racktime, It's incorporated into the mudguard. I think availability might also be limited. It was when i looked for the rack/guard set up for my own bike.

 

So what've you pick, if you need a rack, triple check its got provision.

Looks good. What motor is that?

Its a Tongsheng TSDZ2, Still requires some effort to pedal, but I can climb hills at 15.5 MPH with ease. Very little resistance while riding so I can still get some speed up without the motor helping. The only thing I regret is going for a 20AH battery, it adds so much weight.

Its a Tongsheng TSDZ2, Still requires some effort to pedal, but I can climb hills at 15.5 MPH with ease. Very little resistance while riding so I can still get some speed up without the motor helping. The only thing I regret is going for a 20AH battery, it adds so much weight.

 

You'll get less voltage sag on long steep hills, with a big battery pack. Mine's a 19.2ah and worth lugging around for that reason alone - also good for longevity, because as I understand it, the individual cells are less stressed in larger cell packs (if they're not being made to discharge at too high amps). I hope.

You get about 50% more miles out of the tsdz2 compared to the bbs01 because it makes you pedal.

You get about 50% more miles out of the tsdz2 compared to the bbs01 because it makes you pedal.

 

Do you mean I'd actually have to make an effort? And... that's yet another reason I will never buy a TSDZ2! (although it's great that others have them, and are happy with that product {I hasten to add }).

You'll get less voltage sag on long steep hills, with a big battery pack. Mine's a 19.2ah and worth lugging around for that reason alone - also good for longevity, because as I understand it, the individual cells are less stressed in larger cell packs (if they're not being made to discharge at too high amps). I hope.

 

That was my thought when I bought it, however most my rides don't come close to using much out of it. I'm just hard to please, if I'd gone smaller I'd probably be wishing I went bigger! I only managed around 40 miles of a charge, I guess letting lots of my work colleagues try it out on turbo was a mistake. It took 30 miles for one light to go off the display then the rest all went in 10 miles.

That was my thought when I bought it, however most my rides don't come close to using much out of it. I'm just hard to please, if I'd gone smaller I'd probably be wishing I went bigger! I only managed around 40 miles of a charge, I guess letting lots of my work colleagues try it out on turbo was a mistake. It took 30 miles for one light to go off the display then the rest all went in 10 miles.

 

My battery yields about 43 miles at very high assistance, or a couple of miles more using slightly less amps. My legs have grown to the size of tree trunks since I got the battery a couple of thousand miles ago (not really, they're now less thin twigs), therefore I might manage with a lower PAS level for longer range. In a year or several, you'll be glad when 80% of your 20ah battery capacity still equates to a useful number of miles, as capacity diminishes with recharges.

Really?? you notice lesser efficiency due to drag on an ebike going at 15mph ???

 

Or are you talking about absolute range? - remembering that one of the options the OP was talking about had only a 300wh battery, and most of the others were 400Wh - do you REALLY think the reaction hybrid's 'higher profile' is going to make THAT much difference in efficiency??

Oh .. and bear in mind also that about 90% of the people posting here will put on some kind of handlebar riser to make the bike more comfortable to ride if the bike doesn't already have this kind of 'higher profile' to start with ;-)

 

Both range and efficiency. The OP is talking about taking the bikes on longer rides and I have made an assumption that the OP will go above the 15mph limit at times. The lower profile city bike will be more efficient at that speed, if only marginally.

 

Do 90% of riders use riser bars? I want to get mine lower.

YMMV, but I'd get the Cube reaction hybrid for certain. Solid bike, motor with plenty of power to tackle ANY hill and the 500wh battery is really the deal clincher. You've ticked all the main boxes there. Most of the other options you quoted had to make some compromise somewhere. That cube doesn't.

 

One could say I have a bias, as my main commuting bike is actually an older model reaction hybrid to which I've added a rear rack and bag with fold out panniers, and a front mudguard. The latter being VERY cheap and easy to fit (attaches up into the crown (?) of the suspension fork where there is a large opening), and the former meaning you don't actually need a rear mudguard!

I put fat, but non mountain bike wheels on it, and the comfort is far superior for gravel and trails etc than a normal hybrid, and the slight extra weight that you pay for it being a proper mountain bike becomes irrelevant when you have a motor.

But bias is probably the wrong term, because if something happened to my Cube and I had to go looking for another bike of the same type to replace it ... I'd probably just end up coming to the same conclusion than another reaction hybrid would be one of the best options to go for, even if I was using it for general purpose use and not as a pure MTB.

I think the main reason NOT to go for the cube would just be if one was going to use it exclusively on good condition roads, and you really disliked the more chunky look of an MTB.

 

What is the old model you used to make a hybrid bike? Just interested