Electric bike help! Newbie!

[Melsrob]

I'm new to electric bikes or any bikes at all actually! Got myself one because the school run is too short to warrant a bus fare but too far for a little one to walk or be carried and up a long steep hill. The trailer works great at the back but a bit of a pain if I want to go somewhere after the drop off as no weight in the back means it's jumping around and I can't manoeuvre through traffic as fast as I would like.

I have a cyclamatic get step through so had to get a pannier rack child seat for the back as I can't get one mounted to the seat post.

Bike was working great! Good battery life, good range and we were really enjoying it.... Until!..... We rode home and I swapped the pannier racks! Then.... No power. And I mean no power. No lights, no throttle, no motor. Dead as a door post. Battery is fine and fully charged. Checked fuses. No burning smell anywhere. No earth wires were connected to factory pannier rack. All I did was remove the four screws attaching it and screw them back in with new rack.

Little one was playing with a spanner but I'm at a loss as to understand how anything could have shorted the whole system, am I missing something here? Half an hour before it was working perfectly!

Heeeeelp meeee! We miss our bike! (Bought second hand although brand new and sportshq who supply them are unwilling to help!)

 

[Deleted member 4366]

The wire comes out the end of the axle, so check that you didn't damage it at all when fitting the rack, but the most likely cause of your problem is that you pulled the hidden connector. Find it behind the frame and push both ends together. It's covered in heat-shrink sleeving, but if you push both ends, it should go back in. The yellow arrow points to its location:

 

[Melsrob]

Checked that. Saw you had that on another thread. Before you ask.... Don't have a voltmeter. Have to get one. I find it odd that the headlamps aren't working either. That's a separate wire from the chunky one in the shrink wrap rubber stuff. Just saw your modification thread and was wondering if maybe the problem is in the ignition? The battery has power but it's almost as though it's not getting into any part of the bike.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

If the LEDs on the throttle don't light up, it's a connection problem between the battery and controller. You need a voltmeter to check that you have 24v to 29v at the bottom of the battery (outer two slots). If you don't, it cold be a fuse or the key-switch. Is there someone you can borrow a voltmeter from (guy next door)?

If the LEDs do light up, the problem is between the controller and the motor.

 

[Melsrob]

LEDs on battery throttle don't light up. No lights anywhere at all so I was thinking problem between battery and whole bike! Guy next door will want to lend me more than a voltmeter if I knock on his door now so will have to wait till morning. No way the whole bike could be blown right? There's two fuses on battery. I made sure large one was screwed in properly from inside of battery as was a little loose and fuse seems fine but put a little foil around whole thing just in case to check.

Which fuse is for battery charging and which is for short of bike?

If problem is between battery and controller, what could that possibly be and how do I fix?

Thanks for your patience, I really appreciate it!

 

[Deleted member 4366]

I can't remember which is which other than the main one will be about 20 amps and the charger one 5 amps. The power goes from the cells, through the BMS, through the key-switch to the connections on the bottom of the battery. If you have power at the bottom, the problem will be in the compartment underneath the battery. Ifyou don't, it'll be inside the battery. Best wait 'til you've got a voltmeter. You cannot blow the whole bike. It doesn't work like that. Whatever is the cause, it'll be fairly easy and cheap to fix.

 

[Melsrob]

No power out of bottom of battery, fuses fine and then bulb in connection tester thingy blew before we could check ignition so my dads carted it off to have it checked out!

 

[Deleted member 4366]

You need one of these. Get them from any DIY shop or Maplin:
Digital LCD Multimeter Voltmeter Ammeter OHM AC DC Circuit Checker Tester Buzzer | eBay

 

[Melsrob]

Ok.... Dad has given it a once over..... Final verdict..... Power going in and out of battery..... Into controller but not coming out. Are the controllers expensive to replace?

 

[Alan Quay]

D8veh is the expert, but to reassure you until he gets here, controllers are not expensive. Normally less than £30.

 

[Melsrob]

I'm seeing controllers on eBay but some are 250watts and some 350 or 500..... And looks like I would need to change the connections...... I know mine is 24v but no idea of wattage!

 

[Alan Quay]

Probably 250watt. Normally its written on the controller, but sometimes is quoted as current. Probably around 10 amps.

 

[Melsrob]

Found this..... Looks most like mine which will mean wont have to change all the connectors and mine has integrated electrics for lights which is included in this. Long lead time or delivery. I welcome advice or uk supplier of like box!

 

[Melsrob]

Electric Bike Sine Wave Controller with Hall Sensor/LCD Display/Throttle/Light-in Other Sports & Entertainment Products from Sports & Entertainment on Aliexpress.com

Oops!

 

[Deleted member 4366]

You're getting too far ahead of yourself. Forget about a new controller. You need to find the cause of your problem. How did your Dad check the voltage at the bottom of the battery? What was the voltage? If power was going into the controller, the throttle LEDs would be lit. Even though the wire comes out of the controller, it's connected directly to the battery inside it.

The Cyclamatic needs a special small controller anyway. Most don't fit in the compartment, or you can get the controller in, but not the connectors.

 

[Melsrob]

Thanks..... Will get voltmeter and get down to some serious testing with guidance!

 

[Melsrob]

Ok...... I'm back! I followed the links from other posts you have commented on and did testing of all the in outs and determined power was most certainly going in but not coming out. Control box was most certainly dead..... In the interest of being an unreasonable woman I opened the box and there was most definitely a low out in the box! There were two areas that were blackened beyond belief and short of a microscope and tiny soldering facilities, deemed infix able unless I paid a local expert so I went ahead and bought the micro control box off of eBay.....

Now none of the connectors were the same and wires all different colors but it did come with diagrammatic details telling me what to connect to what on new box. So I followed all the leads from bike back to compartment under battery, closed my eyes and prayed each time I cut off connectors, attached new bullet connectors, crimped and connected to box!

Voila! I have power running through every part of bike.... Lights on battery indicator on handlebars are on, head lights and rear lights are on!

One problem......

The power to motor is a no go...... So bike still useless!

I have volt tested the power going in (which obviously is as light on) but did it for argument sake.

I have tested the phase wires coming out of new control box and no power coming out!!!

This I cannot work out!

Again.... For argument sake I have opened the control box to look at board to see if I inadvertently blew something..... No black puffs..... And exit phase wires look securely soldered to board.....

Now..... I have noooooo electrical experience whatsoever..... I used to be in networking so I am using my powers of logic......

All the wires, being Chinese (and I am half Chinese so prob as irrational as the wiring) are different colours. Sometimes pink is a live, sometimes yellow is a live but I have ensured I tested everything before I connected and crimped..... Thus far I am actually quite proud of myself despite bike still being rendered useless!

I am just wondering..... Could it be that I connected the brake cut outs the wrong way round? The ones coming out of bike are red and blue and out of box they are black and white. This is the only place I may have screwed it up..... Would those being wired wrongly sop the power coming out of the phase wires from the box?

The two sets of blue and red wires I have joined red and red and blue and blue and crimped to a black and a white...... Was it vitally important that they were wired individually? Is it possible if they are wired wrong way round this would have cut off power?

Am rambling.... Sorry..... His has been a headache for a month now!

The box was ever so slightly bigger than original so I'm trying to save space and have used "space saving" connection methods!

Please help!

 

[Melsrob]

And in self interest of being rather proud of my non successful effort..... This is what I have done!

 

[Melsrob]

This is what I mean about the brake cut off things....

 

[Melsrob]

And these wires..... No power out of any!