At the recent London Excel Cycle show I found myself answering the same questions,us in the ebike industry have still a lot of work to do in educating the general population as to the merits of ebikes.
Why do I want an ebike,bikes are for exercise and thats cheating?....well you may want to arrive at work sweat free,you may want to ride easier up hills,you wouldn't run alongside a bus shouting at the passengers 'thats cheating!' You may want to keep up with your partner with similar speeds,you may want to go faster than your partner(that one sold a lot of bikes!),your leg power may not be as good as it once was,you probably would ride further on an ebike,you can still get a work out just turn the power down.....etc
How far does it go?....average terrain,average leg power input,30-35 miles on a 10 Ah battery
How long does the battery last....LifePo4,maybe 5 years....LiMno4....2-3 years.
Why don't you fit LifePo4 batteries on all bikes....because they are heavier and on a commuter bike 1.5Kg extra weight is ok,but on a performance bike not acceptable,LiMno4 is much lighter.
How long does it take to recharge the battery?....with a 2amp charger about 4-5 hours.
Can I charge it away from home....the Cyclecharge scheme is promoting a number of recharge locations across the UK,usually a cafe or B&B,buy a drink or snack whilst putting some power back in the battery.
Electric cars are not a success why should an ebike be?....the ebike is still a bike,you can always pedal it home,you cannot do that with the car.
How much does a replacement battery cost....between £165-£255....mixed reaction to that some thought that was cheap some thought very expensive.
Whats hill climbing like....most people can manage 200 watts leg power plus 250 watts motor power gives 450 watts,available for 30mins plus. A hill climbing champion can manage 600 watts for a limited time,
Why do you put the motor in the front or the rear wheel....if using the Shimano Nexus hub the rear wheel is occupied so the motor has to go in the front but if using deraillieur gears the motor can go in the rear,rear motor usually better for off road bike.
I can buy a bike off the internet for £599,why should I pay £800...if you want local support and try a bike locally then the local dealer has to make a profit,that is the main difference in the price point.
Your bikes seem to be priced about £1000,but I have seen bikes for £2500 what is the difference...above £1000 we are all using similar components,the Bosch crank drive system and similar seems to contribute most of the difference,but that system is well proven and subject to Bosch R&D testing,we hope the TCM crank motor used in the new Ibex bike will offer a low cost alternative.Chinese assembly costs are much lower than German labour rates.
Where can I try a bike....look on suppliers websites for exhibitions and roadshows.
What is the most important factor in buying an ebike....do your homework,read sites like Pedelecs but overal NEVER BUY A BIKE THAT YOU HAVEN'T RIDDEN-I have customers who are convinced they know the bike they want and invariably leave with a different bike.
I had a very enjoyable show,it was nice to put faces to names on the Pedelec site,I was surprised how many of the Pedelec members are younger than I would have thought.
Repeated the foregoing answers so many times that ended up with the inevitable exhibition throat by the end.
Thanks to all who came up to say hello.
Dave
Kudoscycles
Why do I want an ebike,bikes are for exercise and thats cheating?....well you may want to arrive at work sweat free,you may want to ride easier up hills,you wouldn't run alongside a bus shouting at the passengers 'thats cheating!' You may want to keep up with your partner with similar speeds,you may want to go faster than your partner(that one sold a lot of bikes!),your leg power may not be as good as it once was,you probably would ride further on an ebike,you can still get a work out just turn the power down.....etc
How far does it go?....average terrain,average leg power input,30-35 miles on a 10 Ah battery
How long does the battery last....LifePo4,maybe 5 years....LiMno4....2-3 years.
Why don't you fit LifePo4 batteries on all bikes....because they are heavier and on a commuter bike 1.5Kg extra weight is ok,but on a performance bike not acceptable,LiMno4 is much lighter.
How long does it take to recharge the battery?....with a 2amp charger about 4-5 hours.
Can I charge it away from home....the Cyclecharge scheme is promoting a number of recharge locations across the UK,usually a cafe or B&B,buy a drink or snack whilst putting some power back in the battery.
Electric cars are not a success why should an ebike be?....the ebike is still a bike,you can always pedal it home,you cannot do that with the car.
How much does a replacement battery cost....between £165-£255....mixed reaction to that some thought that was cheap some thought very expensive.
Whats hill climbing like....most people can manage 200 watts leg power plus 250 watts motor power gives 450 watts,available for 30mins plus. A hill climbing champion can manage 600 watts for a limited time,
Why do you put the motor in the front or the rear wheel....if using the Shimano Nexus hub the rear wheel is occupied so the motor has to go in the front but if using deraillieur gears the motor can go in the rear,rear motor usually better for off road bike.
I can buy a bike off the internet for £599,why should I pay £800...if you want local support and try a bike locally then the local dealer has to make a profit,that is the main difference in the price point.
Your bikes seem to be priced about £1000,but I have seen bikes for £2500 what is the difference...above £1000 we are all using similar components,the Bosch crank drive system and similar seems to contribute most of the difference,but that system is well proven and subject to Bosch R&D testing,we hope the TCM crank motor used in the new Ibex bike will offer a low cost alternative.Chinese assembly costs are much lower than German labour rates.
Where can I try a bike....look on suppliers websites for exhibitions and roadshows.
What is the most important factor in buying an ebike....do your homework,read sites like Pedelecs but overal NEVER BUY A BIKE THAT YOU HAVEN'T RIDDEN-I have customers who are convinced they know the bike they want and invariably leave with a different bike.
I had a very enjoyable show,it was nice to put faces to names on the Pedelec site,I was surprised how many of the Pedelec members are younger than I would have thought.
Repeated the foregoing answers so many times that ended up with the inevitable exhibition throat by the end.
Thanks to all who came up to say hello.
Dave
Kudoscycles
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