My Haibike sDuro Hardseven is used entirely to commute to work using a mixture of road and off road but more off road.
It has a rack fitted and I carry probably too much stuff and it gets used year round and encounters mud and sand water etc.
Most of the tracks are pretty straight forward single track but there are some steeper sections and a couple of rock steps where the whole bike is airborne before landing usually on both wheels together with a slight bias towards the rear wheel if I have got it right, with quite a bang from the rear rack and panniers.
I bought it on the 20th of March 2015 for £1750. I wore out my Yamaha motor right on the two year warranty at 6068 miles and now have a new motor that was fitted by the shop I bought it from free of charge. (Ebike shop Farnham).
There was nothing wrong with the way the first motor worked up until when it was replaced but play had developed in what on a normal bike would be the bottom bracket and I could tell that there was a good couple of millimetres of play. By laterally pushing and pulling the crank arm opposite the chainring I could see that the chainring moved more than it should do.
Depending on your weight, strength and probably a number of other factors the main bearing within all crank drive bikes must be vulnerable to wear over time and although it should be possible to replace this bearing it would appear anecdotally that shops just put a new motor in.
My bike has now covered 6512 miles. So if the new motor has a similar bearing wear issue at the same mileage then I will need to have a new bearing put in or a new motor at around 12000 miles after about 4 years from new.
The battery is still in great shape. A crank drive bike shoves all the power through the drive train and your chain, chain ring and rear cassette will need replacing more often than a hub powered bike. I have mitigated this by changing the gearing and my current cassette, chain ring and chain have covered 1292 miles. You also need brake pads cables and general maintenance like any bike. I am on my second rack and third rear mech.
My other bike is a 2011 Oxygen Emate City with a befang rear hub motor. This also had a new rear motor replaced free of charge by Andrew at Oxygen towards the end of the two year warranty period.
That motor is still working 4 years later but does have an electrical fault which I cured by cable tying the wire either side of the battery disconnect plug to the frame. I have had spokes break in that second rear motor wheel but replaced them myself taken from the old rear motor wheel that the new one replaced.
I bought two spar rear wheels together with laced in motors from Oxygen that I can use when I need to for £120. I bought a new battery for it in April 14 that will still (just) get me the 10 miles I need it to work. I had a new throttle fitted last year when the old one failed.
I have not kept an accurate record of this bikes mileage but it still gets used at times for a 20 mile return journey to work and almost daily for shopping trips etc and must be in excess of 12000 miles.
I still love the ease and practicality of this bike and how little maintenance the simple 7 speed basic derailleur system requires in a hub system that takes strain off the chain, chain ring and cassette rather than adding to it. A rear hub powered bike is a very relaxed way to travel.
So although both my bikes have had their issues they are sitting in my garage with a combined mileage in excess of 18,000 miles between them since buying the Oxygen in 2011, both ready to go and I hope they will continue to be able to do so with a little care for the foreseeable future.
