Hey people,
I've got a Butchers and Bicycles cargo bike. A really heavy thing. It's got MPF Drive mid drive motor - I hear the Butchers and Bicycles guys nowadays use Bosch.
I've tried googling around on how to pimp the thing, but since it's not an DIY unit, the information for regular people (and in English) is rather sparse. I'd like to upgrade it, but how?
I've got two troubles with the MPF drive:
1) Battery capacity is pretty low, and the replacement battery is hideously expensive. The thing comes with a 36 v 12 ah proprietary battery and a new one goes for something like 600 euros. I get 15-30 km with that. I'd rather have 20 ah battery - the bike is a cargo bike, and the "glove compartment" could easily fit two 20 ah batteries. The trouble is that along with the actual power cables, the battery also has another cable with several leads, and I don't know what it does. Could it be that the controller unit is inside the battery itself?
2) The power is very low, obviously, as it's street legal. However, me, the bike and cargo may be way over 200 kgs, and we got some steep hills here. In effect, even with full power, climbing the hills is more hard work than with my usual (road) bikes. They make 500 W off road e-bikes with the same motor. Internet says "it's easy to upgrade, as the motor is the same, and the limit is in the controller" but doesn't go to specifics. I'd very much like to know how to get the 500 W out of it, I promise to only drive it off road if I do.
Anybody know any specifics of this kind of drive? I hear there is German discussion on this very topic but that's unreadable for me. The controller is well hidden - I've got the battery, I've got the very small LCD control unit with USB power and I've got the motor, that's all. There are a lot of leads on the battery, so maybe every pack has the controller inside? Would kind of explain the price... Would it be possible to run the motor with some other controller?
Breaking warranties is not an issue with me. I'd rather just have the bike do what it's supposed to, ie. haul very heavy cargo efficiently. It does that, but it's a hassle to have to do charging pit stops, and I would appreciate help with the hills.
I've got a Butchers and Bicycles cargo bike. A really heavy thing. It's got MPF Drive mid drive motor - I hear the Butchers and Bicycles guys nowadays use Bosch.
I've tried googling around on how to pimp the thing, but since it's not an DIY unit, the information for regular people (and in English) is rather sparse. I'd like to upgrade it, but how?
I've got two troubles with the MPF drive:
1) Battery capacity is pretty low, and the replacement battery is hideously expensive. The thing comes with a 36 v 12 ah proprietary battery and a new one goes for something like 600 euros. I get 15-30 km with that. I'd rather have 20 ah battery - the bike is a cargo bike, and the "glove compartment" could easily fit two 20 ah batteries. The trouble is that along with the actual power cables, the battery also has another cable with several leads, and I don't know what it does. Could it be that the controller unit is inside the battery itself?
2) The power is very low, obviously, as it's street legal. However, me, the bike and cargo may be way over 200 kgs, and we got some steep hills here. In effect, even with full power, climbing the hills is more hard work than with my usual (road) bikes. They make 500 W off road e-bikes with the same motor. Internet says "it's easy to upgrade, as the motor is the same, and the limit is in the controller" but doesn't go to specifics. I'd very much like to know how to get the 500 W out of it, I promise to only drive it off road if I do.
Anybody know any specifics of this kind of drive? I hear there is German discussion on this very topic but that's unreadable for me. The controller is well hidden - I've got the battery, I've got the very small LCD control unit with USB power and I've got the motor, that's all. There are a lot of leads on the battery, so maybe every pack has the controller inside? Would kind of explain the price... Would it be possible to run the motor with some other controller?
Breaking warranties is not an issue with me. I'd rather just have the bike do what it's supposed to, ie. haul very heavy cargo efficiently. It does that, but it's a hassle to have to do charging pit stops, and I would appreciate help with the hills.
