Kalkhoff or NO!

[TaliSoma]

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.

 

[Woosh]

Can anyone point us in the right direction to find more information about this e-bike

All information on the AGATTU 3.S EXCITE 2020 Kalkhoff - greenfinder.de

Compare the Kalkhoff AGATTU 3.S EXCITE 2020 Bike with thousands other models in large E-Bike Finder greenfinder.de

www.greenfinder.de

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).

 

[Jonah]

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?

 

[Jonah]

There is a range of similar Kalkhoff bikes you can see here.

Kalkhoff Agattu 3.S Excite 2020 (621Wh) Step Through Electric Bike

Shimano STEPS E6100 series motor 36v/250w/50NmGates belt drive and Shimano Nexus 8-speed hub gear & shifterMagura HS11 hydraulic rim brakes

www.edinburghbicycle.com

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!

 

[Fat Rat]

Hi and welcome

 

[TaliSoma]

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

 

[Nealh]

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.

 

[RobF]

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.

 

[Ocsid]

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.