September 10, 20205 yr Looking for advice on getting a second ebike. Using a Medium Merida Espresso 200 for the last year, bought on advice of a friend, but now want a more powerful one. We live in a very hilly area . We ride for the joy of it and want to stay fit in our 70's The range of battery on the Merida is sufficient and the 3 modes of assistance and 9 gears are very useful, if slightly underpowered. It is also not that great on less than smoothish surface. The Merida is quiet and very smooth in operation though. The lack of a screen is a pain and expensive to retrofit. As we are older riders we find the step through upright position essential. We cycle on paths, tracks and on quiet roads. The weight of any ebike is an issue for us getting it onto our Thule tow bar bike rack. We can just manage the Merida's weight. Trecking perhaps rather than commuting or mountain bike trails, and 12-20 miles is around the distance. The local shop recommended a Kalkhoff Agattu 3.S Excite. It has a belt rather than chain, has a Shimano rather than Bosch motor with 8 gears. Our understanding is that the frame needs to be built around the belt to allow fitting. The benefits of belt over chain is that it is supposed to be smooth clean and quiet. Strangely, part from the listing on local dealers page we have been searching everywhere online for more information about this ebike. Not even on the Kalkhoff website. So we have no way of checking that this specification of e-bike suits our needs. Can anyone point us in the right direction to find more information about this e-bike, how it is best used, its specification and any reviews? Might anyone suggest another e-bike that would suit our needs? Our budget is around £3000 for the right bike. We would appreciate your advice.
September 10, 20205 yr Can anyone point us in the right direction to find more information about this e-bike https://www.greenfinder.de/e-bikes/model/?tx_gfproducts_gfproductsef%5Bproduct%5D=12906 Engine Shimano Shimano Steps 6000 Engine Position mid engine Engine Power 250 Watt Assists until 20 mph Battery Type Lithium-Ionen Akku Battery Characteristics 504.00 Wh / 14.00 Ah / 36.00 V Battery Position seat tube Range 56 miles Gearshift Type hub Gears 8 Gearshift Brand 8-G Shimano Nexus Brakes Type Hydraulische Felgenbremsen Brakes Model Magura HS11 Suspension front/rear Yes / No Permissible max. weight - Lighting Yes Rack Yes Fenders Yes for the money, you can get two Woosh Rambla! (just joking).
September 10, 20205 yr Woosh Rambla might well be a good choice. Also worth a look at the Wisper Wayfarer. Nothing wrong with the Kalkhoff with that motor but the Shimano motor is not as widely used as Bosch. What motor did your Merida have?
September 10, 20205 yr There is a range of similar Kalkhoff bikes you can see here. https://www.edinburghbicycle.com/kalkhoff-agattu-3-s-excite-2020-621wh-step-through-electric-bike Likely to be a bit heavier than your Merida. Personally I don’t like the battery position behind the seat post. It makes the bike a bit longer than normal so might stick out a bit on a bike rack. Bosch motor versions have different battery positions. I don’t mind the Magura rim brakes but disks are preferred by most. Nice colour!
September 10, 20205 yr Author Woosh Rambla might well be a good choice. Also worth a look at the Wisper Wayfarer. Nothing wrong with the Kalkhoff with that motor but the Shimano motor is not as widely used as Bosch. What motor did your Merida have? Merida has shimano e5000 40nm - never sure what these figures mean but kalkhoff 3S is 50nm or the Kalkhoff Endeavour 3.B Move has 65nm. Am definitely looking at other makes. Rather buy local (Edinburgh) in case there is a problem
September 10, 20205 yr A Kalkhoff is ok as along as it doesn't have the impulse drive motor. A used bike can be a gamble as the battery is the most critical part of the bike, one needs to take the battery age into account.
September 11, 20205 yr The dealer is doing you no favours here. The likes of Shimano, Bosch, and Yamaha are all pretty much the same when it comes to power and weight. You can get slightly more powerful versions of the Bosch and Shimano motors, but you may not notice any difference. Three grand is a lot to take off pensioners for something that will be very similar to what they already have. At the very least you need to test ride the exact bike you are going to buy to make sure the 'extra power' is sufficient for your needs.
September 11, 20205 yr The local shop recommended a Kalkhoff Agattu 3.S Excite. It has a belt rather than chain, has a Shimano rather than Bosch motor with 8 gears. Our understanding is that the frame needs to be built around the belt to allow fitting. The benefits of belt over chain is that it is supposed to be smooth clean and quiet. We would appreciate your advice. It is true that the frame needs to be designed to suit a Gates belt drive because these belts can't be broken, as chain can and as some other belts can. Whilst an irritant in increasing complexity, it is also an advantage as the belt has no "weak" link. The benefits of the Gates belt drive are as you stated, none of these being insignificant, but in addition they seem to have a far longer life, IME wear is way less so not required any adjustment and feature a tiny bit of compliance that is more sympathetic with internal hub gear changes. I sort only bikes with Gates drive and now 4 years on would have that as a fundamental requirement in any bike replacement. Ours is a Kalkhoff, as bike builder the quality impressed, but are pricy as quality often is.
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