Hi just joined

[Older commuter]

I am looking for advice about my e bike. I have a couple of questions. I commute daily on my bike and have switched from my old bike to an bike as age have slowed me down. Ihave an old Carrera crossfire1 and the battery is not lasting long anymore and probably needs to be replaced. I have struggled to find a reliable source yet. Any advice gratefully received.
Also the gear change down is slipping. When I go up it is fine. Any suggestions for videos or servicing to adjust this. I was happy servicing my old bike but this bike was a gift and the gears and disc brakes are new to me.

many thanks, I am quite handy with most things just seeking advice fromthose who have been riding these bikes for longer than me.

 

[Az.]

Did you try to service your bike at Halfords?

 

[saneagle]

If the battery is failing on you're Crossfire, you have the option to replace all the electrics except the motor, which would cost around £300, which is probably less than the OEM battery, if you can get one. It gives the advantage of autonomy over setting parameters, better reliability and cheaper parts in the future. You'd have to change the motor connector, so some soldering is necessary.

 

[thelarkbox]

re gears slipping, dont try to tweak the tuning screws on the gears unless the chain is coming off your freewheel or you cant reach some gears. .

Just adjust the gear cable tension via the screw barrel where the cable joins the gear changer or at the shifter end, just a turn or so, and try it in both directions if not fixed straight away

However depending on age and use the chain may have stretched, play between links could indicate chain stretch and test tools exist too, but at circa £10 a new chain is probably where i would start.

 

[Nealh]

Gears first check cable for any slack , if adajustment can't take up the slack then one will have to take up the slack via the derailleur cable tightning screw.
Battery one expects one is available but as mentioned replacing the electronics with KT controller and display may be better in the longer term if one can't get arepalcement battery, then you can buy/use any 36v generic battery.
One dosen't necessarily need to change the motor cable connector unless it is causing issues better proabably to just solder the wires together at the controller end and hear shrink each joint, that way one can satgger the joints for a neater job.

 

[Older commuter]

Great replies so far. I will try the gear adjustment mentioned and feedback success. Interesting to hear about re-wiring to new controller and battery. I guess that will bring new tech and battery quality. While I may be able to do this myself in a weekend, I can’t gamble as it is my only way to get to work. Maybe an e bike mechanic might exist.
Servicing has been by a bike shop so far with me doing some repairs to battery mount and wiring more my thing.
great to get replies, please keep advice coming, I will go and have a fiddle with the gears later.
Thanks

 

[cyclebuddy]

Ihave an old Carrera crossfire1 and the battery is not lasting long anymore and probably needs to be replaced. I have struggled to find a reliable source yet. Any advice gratefully received.

If your Crossfire has a battery that looks like the one on the left, you can buy a higher capacity/lower cost one from Yose here for £190.



At least one member here is using one with his Crossfire (several other members have bought other batteries from Yose), and a review on-site confirms "Bought 36V 11.6Ah Original Li-ion Cell Lithium-ion Battery Electric Bicycle for Phylion SF-06L JOYCUBE/JCEB360-11.6 × 1 for a 2017 Halfords Carerra crossfire e bike." Best you double check the listing with the label on the underside of your own existing battery first.

 

[Nealh]

This is where having N+1 comes in handy .

 

[egroover]

If your Crossfire has a battery that looks like the one on the left, you can buy a higher capacity/lower cost one from Yose here for £190.

View attachment 54055

At least one member here is using one with his Crossfire (several other members have bought other batteries from Yose), and a review on-site confirms "Bought 36V 11.6Ah Original Li-ion Cell Lithium-ion Battery Electric Bicycle for Phylion SF-06L JOYCUBE/JCEB360-11.6 × 1 for a 2017 Halfords Carerra crossfire e bike." Best you double check the listing with the label on the underside of your own existing battery first.

I can confirm the old type (on the left) bike works fine with the Yosepower battery that Cyclebuddy has linked too, the only operational difference is that the new battery doesn't show a percentage value remaining on the display but does show the battery bars. It does also come with a charger. I've had this Yosepower battery running on my Crossfire-e for a couple of years and it works well, the range is as good as the original

 

[Older commuter]

Looks like a good match with the battery in terms of Technical spec. does it fit in the existing battery mount on the bike?

the gear fix has work with a little more adjustment needed as it seems to have slipped a little on the ride in the heavy rain today.

 

[egroover]

yep it fits perfectly in the existing mount...they do supply a mount with the battery, you'll leave that in the box

 

[Older commuter]

Did you try to service your bike at Halfords?

I have not always found Halfords great for servicing and advice. Although they can also surprise me with some staff being excellent.
This time the call centre, in South Africa, said yes they stock the battery at £279. I was delighted and made the journey to a store where the order had t be placed.

the store people couldn’t find the battery on their computer and eventually said no they don’t have it and the nearest they had was between £500 and £600 pounds but they doubted it was the correct battery.
So this time Halford was a bust.

 

[Older commuter]

yep it fits perfectly in the existing mount...they do supply a mount with the battery, you'll leave that in the box

Fantastic, I will be checking it out after my ride this morning and a little work.

 

[Older commuter]

Gears first check cable for any slack , if adajustment can't take up the slack then one will have to take up the slack via the derailleur cable tightning screw.
Battery one expects one is available but as mentioned replacing the electronics with KT controller and display may be better in the longer term if one can't get arepalcement battery, then you can buy/use any 36v generic battery.
One dosen't necessarily need to change the motor cable connector unless it is causing issues better proabably to just solder the wires together at the controller end and hear shrink each joint, that way one can satgger the joints for a neater job.

This was very useful thanks. The cable is still very loose and I have to tighten it quite often now. I find a good spot where the gears change well, but it isn’t tight and slowly loosens. This doesn’t feel as if I have set it correctly. Should I be tightening much more and there will be a point where I find the gears stop slipping? If that makes sense. maybe there is an other point where I can lock this off?

 

[Saracen]

I have not always found Halfords great for servicing and advice. Although they can also surprise me with some staff being excellent.
This time the call centre, in South Africa, said yes they stock the battery at £279. I was delighted and made the journey to a store where the order had t be placed.

the store people couldn’t find the battery on their computer and eventually said no they don’t have it and the nearest they had was between £500 and £600 pounds but they doubted it was the correct battery.
So this time Halford was a bust.

Point in hand

1. Get the person's name or ask for a reference
2. Get a product code when asking
3. As them at which store they "stock it"
4. Call the store state you have been talking to "X" who said they have it and can it be collected from another branch.

£500-600 LOL my 750w 20ah battery for my Bafang MID drive, £299, which is why I didn't go Halfords route, cheap bike WAY OTT when it goes wrong.

 

[saneagle]

This was very useful thanks. The cable is still very loose and I have to tighten it quite often now. I find a good spot where the gears change well, but it isn’t tight and slowly loosens. This doesn’t feel as if I have set it correctly. Should I be tightening much more and there will be a point where I find the gears stop slipping? If that makes sense. maybe there is an other point where I can lock this off?

When you adjust gears properly, they should stay working for thousands of miles unless you knock the derailleur on something and bend it. That's the same for cheap or expensive ones. I've never seen nor heard of cables that need frequent tightening.

There are loads of YouTube videos on how to adjust gears. It's not difficult. Maybe watch three different videos because sometimes the guys miss important steps or don't explain very well.

 

[cyclebuddy]

...the [Halfords] store people couldn’t find the battery on their computer and eventually said no they don’t have it and the nearest they had was between £500 and £600 pounds but they doubted it was the correct battery.

Having two of these Phylion SF-06 batteries myself, I keep an eye on those Halfords sell. Even though the new Halfords bikes don't use this brand/style of e-bike battery anymore, Halfords have consistently bought in batches from time to time; when they're available they do appear on their website.

They're relatively expensive because A) Original Phylion batteries only use pukka high-quality branded cells like Panasonic, LG, Samsung as Bosch or Yamaha use and B) they have a "Smart BMS". I'd suspect Halfords are adding a healthy margin too to cover the cost of stocking what is for them now a discontinued bike/battery model.

The relatively cheap Phylion version Yose sells uses DMEGC cells and (the version they're currently offering) doesn't have the Smart BMS. DMEGC cells in tests have proven quite good even if they're not "premium" (one of my other e-bikes uses DMEGC cells and they're fine). Member @egroover's experience in using this Yose battery on his Crossfire is invaluable in confirming that the Smart BMS features aren't needed with your bike (other than to provide additional battery % information on the display)... On some bikes, those "Smart" features are essential for the bike to work at all.

The SF-06L designation means it has a lengthened dock/rail/case to accommodate the controller. The standard carrier doesn't and thus the overall length is shorter. But for you it doesn't matter; as @egroover says, you don't need the carrier. The actual battery without the mounting rail is the same in dimensions and pin layout.

There's no such thing as a free lunch... If you want the best premium cells with the more expensive Smart BMS features, I'd say (from those I've seen for sale in Europe) it's almost certainly going to cost nearer £500 rather than Yose's budget-friendly £190.

 

[Older commuter]

Having two of these Phylion SF-06 batteries myself, I keep an eye on those Halfords sell. Even though the new Halfords bikes don't use this brand/style of e-bike battery anymore, Halfords have consistently bought in batches from time to time; when they're available they do appear on their website.

They're relatively expensive because A) Original Phylion batteries only use pukka high-quality branded cells like Panasonic, LG, Samsung as Bosch or Yamaha use and B) they have a "Smart BMS". I'd suspect Halfords are adding a healthy margin too to cover the cost of stocking what is for them now a discontinued bike/battery model.

The relatively cheap Phylion version Yose sells uses DMEGC cells and (the version they're currently offering) doesn't have the Smart BMS. DMEGC cells in tests have proven quite good even if they're not "premium" (one of my other e-bikes uses DMEGC cells and they're fine). Member @egroover's experience in using this Yose battery on his Crossfire is invaluable in confirming that the Smart BMS features aren't needed with your bike (other than to provide additional battery % information on the display)... On some bikes, those "Smart" features are essential for the bike to work at all.

The SF-06L designation means it has a lengthened dock/rail/case to accommodate the controller. The standard carrier doesn't and thus the overall length is shorter. But for you it doesn't matter; as @egroover says, you don't need the carrier. The actual battery without the mounting rail is the same in dimensions and pin layout.

There's no such thing as a free lunch... If you want the best premium cells with the more expensive Smart BMS features, I'd say (from those I've seen for sale in Europe) it's almost certainly going to cost nearer £500 rather than Yose's budget-friendly £190.

Very useful to read about the fine detail of the batteries, thank you. Also that the batteries are occasionally stocked by
Halfords. I think price will win for me though.

 

[Older commuter]

When you adjust gears properly, they should stay working for thousands of miles unless you knock the derailleur on something and bend it. That's the same for cheap or expensive ones. I've never seen nor heard of cables that need frequent tightening.

There are loads of YouTube videos on how to adjust gears. It's not difficult. Maybe watch three different videos because sometimes the guys miss important steps or don't explain very well.

I think the word properly in your reply is key. I fiddled tested and it worked. I am sure I missed a step or more. I will follow your advice and try to do it properly this weekend when I have some time off. Thanks

 

[Older commuter]

Point in hand

1. Get the person's name or ask for a reference
2. Get a product code when asking
3. As them at which store they "stock it"
4. Call the store state you have been talking to "X" who said they have it and can it be collected from another branch.

£500-600 LOL my 750w 20ah battery for my Bafang MID drive, £299, which is why I didn't go Halfords route, cheap bike WAY OTT when it goes wrong.

For me the bike was a gift when I was told I could no longer drive from my brother who wasn’t using it. So I did very well.