Hello Pedelec community a future E-bike rental place would like your input.

[Zac Sellers]

Found the Pedelec community through web browsing and thought i may be able to get help with a intended future business venture

I live on the North East Coast and wish to set up an Electric Bike Tour/Rental company for Spring 2017.
Would love to get involved in the Pedelec community , talk to people that know their stuff, learn tips and maintenance skills and maybe avoid some pitfalls for this new startup.

I am interested in the learning the following information so i can further this project along.

Which bikes are suitable for everyday hire, I am think of purchasing 10-12 bikes to start with and would like to hear from retailers of good reliable sturdy bikes and what they could offer me. Prices Availability of spares etc.
Things i need to learn about and consider
What sort of bike guarantee will i be able to get for commercial use.
Which motors type and brand i should be considering.
Which are the best batteries brands and how many charges can i expect to get before i need to purchase another battery.
Is it best to purchase these in the Uk or in bulk from China.
Can the batteries be repaired (eg damaged cells replaced easily. )
What insurance will i need for a commercial E-bike venture , public liability or can this be covered with a disclaimer ?
I also probably at some point need some advice with Rental agreement forms, etc.

Thanks in Advance

Zac

 

[D8ve]

Cycle components are common.
Keep the bikes simple. I suspect a rear hub drive with no gears and disk brakes is simplest. And lowest cost.
Front hub drive and rear gear hub is next combo I would look at.
Or a premium setup with full suspension and crank drive for mountain bikers. It would cost but have curb side sex appeal.
You have to pay duty on imports but the price would still be low...brexit excluded.
Let someone who already buys from China do it for you.
Either a fleet from one of the dealers or get them to add some more bikes into the shipping container.
Batteries should last well if you limit max charge and recharge regularly.
Think 500 cycles, or two years minimum life.
But this is free internet advice and worth???

 

[Alan Quay]

If I were you I'd have a word with either Woosh or Kudos, both of which offer good value, sturdy bikes. With your purchasing power of 10-12 units you should be able to negotiate a good discount/support

I would expect 3 years or 800 cycles from batteries. There's no point in limiting the charge, just plug em in.



Sent from my HTC 10 using Tapatalk

 

[Kuorider]

Take a look at http://www.realcycletours.co.uk/ They use a shaft drive hub geared bike with some success. Do your research as breakdowns and service issues will make or break your enterprise.

 

[chris_n]

I live in the North East too (sometimes) I don't know where you are based or what your target market will be. I don't have any personal experience but I do know a couple of people that run bike hire / guiding businesses in the Alps. One of them attempted something with ebikes a few years ago with bikes aimed at more mature people. This didn't work too well as the terrain was still too much for them to handle. Recently they got a couple of e mountain bikes and over the summer they were more or less constantly on hire. He is getting more of the same for next summer. There were some issues with these caused mainly by customer damage meaning repairs were occasionally required before they could go out for hire the next day.
I guess what I am trying to say is you need to know and understand your market and buy appropriate equipment and make sure you have all of the spares required to keep them running.

 

[Zac Sellers]

Cycle components are common.
Keep the bikes simple. I suspect a rear hub drive with no gears and disk brakes is simplest. And lowest cost.
Front hub drive and rear gear hub is next combo I would look at.
Or a premium setup with full suspension and crank drive for mountain bikers. It would cost but have curb side sex appeal.
You have to pay duty on imports but the price would still be low...brexit excluded.
Let someone who already buys from China do it for you.
Either a fleet from one of the dealers or get them to add some more bikes into the shipping container.
Batteries should last well if you limit max charge and recharge regularly.
Think 500 cycles, or two years minimum life.
But this is free internet advice and worth???

Thanks Dave reliability and longevity is really important i dont want to spending more on repairs than i will be making, would you say a crank drive is more robust than the hub drives

 

[Zac Sellers]

I live in the North East too (sometimes) I don't know where you are based or what your target market will be. I don't have any personal experience but I do know a couple of people that run bike hire / guiding businesses in the Alps. One of them attempted something with ebikes a few years ago with bikes aimed at more mature people. This didn't work too well as the terrain was still too much for them to handle. Recently they got a couple of e mountain bikes and over the summer they were more or less constantly on hire. He is getting more of the same for next summer. There were some issues with these caused mainly by customer damage meaning repairs were occasionally required before they could go out for hire the next day.
I guess what I am trying to say is you need to know and understand your market and buy appropriate equipment and make sure you have all of the spares required to keep them running.

Thanks Chris, I live on the coast and terrain is Hilly and near the North Yorkshire moors ,Target market will be young families & Mature holidayers, I guess. The customers damaging the bikes is obviously a concern which is why i need to do some research on how others are dealing with this , is it covered by taking details (E.g Credit cards ) so if they carelessly smash it to bits i can take payment , obviously running maintenance , flat tyres and wear and tear etc would be something i would have to cover.

Theft is another concern. But if i have taken all precautions (issuing them with Gold rated locks etc) I guess this would be the customers responsibility to replace the bike if it was in there care.

 

[Zac Sellers]

Take a look at http://www.realcycletours.co.uk/ They use a shaft drive hub geared bike with some success. Do your research as breakdowns and service issues will make or break your enterprise.

Thanks Kuorider will check them out.

 

[Zac Sellers]

If I were you I'd have a word with either Woosh or Kudos, both of which offer good value, sturdy bikes. With your purchasing power of 10-12 units you should be able to negotiate a good discount/support

I would expect 3 years or 800 cycles from batteries. There's no point in limiting the charge, just plug em in.



Sent from my HTC 10 using Tapatalk

Thanks Alan, Woosh is already in my shortlist for bikes in my budget, I like the look of them too.
Excuse me for being a Noob but why do some people suggest limiting the charge and how is this done.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Excuse me for being a Noob but why do some people suggest limiting the charge and how is this done.

Because they're misinformed or misunderstood what they were told. Don't even think about it.

 

[Angelnorth]

You can hire e-bikes at the bike hire centre at Kielder - might be worth a day's trip to see what's what there. You might even find a friendly face to chat to about the ins and outs of ebike rental as a business proposition - I'm guessing it's close enough to make a trip a realistic option but not so close that you'd be representing direct competition for them if you set up.

It looks like theirs are mostly crank drive with the exception of the Raleigh Forge that's listed as a front wheel motor. They do eMTBs for the serious off-road runs there and some that are more touring style presumably aimed at the folk who are aiming to stick to the path that goes round the reservoir. The range is here (scroll down for the ebikes).

There's somebody who joined the site a while ago who rents out a couple of ebikes on a camp site in Devon (a Carerra Crossfire and a crank drive stepthrough according to this post) - he might have useful things to say so you could try dropping him a pm if he doesn't see this and chime in: AndyEBike

 

[D8ve]

Thanks Dave reliability and longevity is really important i dont want to spending more on repairs than i will be making, would you say a crank drive is more robust than the hub drives

Hub is cheaper and simpler in operation.
The design means it is harder to blow the motor, a crank in top gear trying to climb a steep hill is a recipie for smoke.
But a hub motor needs connecting and can have issues with spokes.
D8veh is a minor God on ebikes. I would hardly dare contradict him.

 

[STEVEMANFA]

Down my way in the Forest of Dean we have 2 bike rental places
One is pedal a bike away and they hire out the cube brand.
The other one is Dean forest cycles and they hire out the ghost brand at £40 for a full day.
Not sure if this is any help to you.

 

[Wicky]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-25813459

Not quite hire - but It'll be interesting to find out how the students are getting on with em ...

and

Snowdonia Electric Bike Hire and T&C

http://www.snowdoniaadventurehub.co.uk/attractions/electric-bike-hire/

 

[Zac Sellers]

Hub is cheaper and simpler in operation.
The design means it is harder to blow the motor, a crank in top gear trying to climb a steep hill is a recipie for smoke.
But a hub motor needs connecting and can have issues with spokes.
D8veh is a minor God on ebikes. I would hardly dare contradict him.

Thanks for that, worth bearing in mind. I imagine people that hire them wont be that careful and burnt out motors sounds expensive

 

[Zac Sellers]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-25813459

Not quite hire - but It'll be interesting to find out how the students are getting on with em ...

and

Snowdonia Electric Bike Hire and T&C

http://www.snowdoniaadventurehub.co.uk/attractions/electric-bike-hire/

Thanks Wicky any information is good at the moment , Thanks again will check them out.

 

[Zac Sellers]

Down my way in the Forest of Dean we have 2 bike rental places
One is pedal a bike away and they hire out the cube brand.
The other one is Dean forest cycles and they hire out the ghost brand at £40 for a full day.
Not sure if this is any help to you.

Great info thanks i am definitely gonna book some days out with my partner on a fact finding mission will check these places out . Cheers

 

[falmouthtony]

Seems our local people only charge £35 a day for a quite sophisticated Bosch crank drive e-mtb.
https://bikechainricci.co.uk/bissoe/the-hire/bissoe-hire-rates/
The trail is only about 11 miles each way, relatively good surface and undulating, rather than challenging.
Still can't see a huge profit in ebikes on their own though. Must be more of a headache with possible mis-treatment, intentional or not, than ordinary bikes.
Possibly combine the two??
Just my thoughts.

 

[EddiePJ]

Seems our local people only charge £35 a day for a quite sophisticated Bosch crank drive e-mtb.
https://bikechainricci.co.uk/bissoe/the-hire/bissoe-hire-rates/
The trail is only about 11 miles each way, relatively good surface and undulating, rather than challenging.
Still can't see a huge profit in ebikes on their own though. Must be more of a headache with possible mis-treatment, intentional or not, than ordinary bikes.
Possibly combine the two??
Just my thoughts.

It is also very seasonal, so potentially you could have four to six minths of the year when no one wants to ride.

I looked into buying eMTB's some time back, as an opportunity arose to take wealthy Americans on guided tours of the South Downs.

I came very close to taking the idea on board, until it occured to me that the South Downs can be impossible to ride in adverse conditions. Add to that any potential breakdowns whilst out and about, and what was a dream proposal, quickly turned in my head to a potential nightmare.

 

[Sol P]

I live in the North East too (sometimes) I don't know where you are based or what your target market will be. I don't have any personal experience but I do know a couple of people that run bike hire / guiding businesses in the Alps. One of them attempted something with ebikes a few years ago with bikes aimed at more mature people. This didn't work too well as the terrain was still too much for them to handle. Recently they got a couple of e mountain bikes and over the summer they were more or less constantly on hire. He is getting more of the same for next summer. There were some issues with these caused mainly by customer damage meaning repairs were occasionally required before they could go out for hire the next day.
I guess what I am trying to say is you need to know and understand your market and buy appropriate equipment and make sure you have all of the spares required to keep them running.

Hi Zac,
I agree with Chris_n comment. I went on adventure holiday in Italy mountains, and we had cycle sessions on steep pin-up Italy roads (looking like Tour de France mountain stages). Couple of days I cycled on normal MTB, but the last trip organised was longer, and I would not have stamina, so I opted for e-bike. I thoroughly enjoyed the ride and quickly came to realise all benefits of e-bike (giving you little extra up the mountain).

I came back to UK, and started to search for e-bikes,as I wan to go out for longer day trips, but do not have enough stamina to last full day. I think there certainly is a market for e-bike rental. Once people realise it's on the menu, more and more will opt for the "easier" option.

I think for your business is to have normal bikes to rent + e-bikes. And very soon, people will opt for e-bikes, and your business should flourish. The key is to provide both options. And then also to consider simply road bikes, and off-road MTBs,but that will depend on cycle routes in your area. Think of some ladies bikes, when husbands and sons are strong and want to cycle, woman having option of renting e-bike, will give her option to join the family on the ride, when otherwise it wouldn't be possible.
Good luck!
Sol.