New Gtech ebike
- Thread starter spikey
- Start date
whilst cycling alone local canal me on kudos vita uno mtb,was passed by someone on some kind of ebike. caught up with the person on his houseboat.
turns out the bike was a gtech,the first I have seen in the flesh, the bottle battery was small so no bother to carry around off the bike,
general opnion of the owner was good on the flat, no good on hills the local area is quite hilly, he liked the belt rather than chain.
the local canal path has a couple of short steep bits where it crosses a footbridge ok on kudos with a run up,. but the owner said he could not do it on the gtech
turns out the bike was a gtech,the first I have seen in the flesh, the bottle battery was small so no bother to carry around off the bike,
general opnion of the owner was good on the flat, no good on hills the local area is quite hilly, he liked the belt rather than chain.
the local canal path has a couple of short steep bits where it crosses a footbridge ok on kudos with a run up,. but the owner said he could not do it on the gtech
I've not had any problems on hills with mine, in fact hills were the reason I bought it. My trip to the shops is down and up a steep hill. OK there is steep and there is steep. This one is not steep in a car but on my pedal mountain bike going up hill I was standing up, 1st or 2nd gear and puffing like the flying scotsman. With the Gtech I have to pedal a bit harder than on the flat and it slows down but I can do it all sitting down and not sweating and at least keep it going a slow cycling speed rather than walking speed as I was when pedling.. I'm 85 kg so the motor is doing a fair bit of work, lighter people will be able to tackle even steaper hills. So far I haven't come accross a hill where I have had to dismount. If I lived in a really hilly area with very steap hills then I might consider something with more power but for ordinary hills its fine.
Interesting post Bigg1es. I would just point out that to a thief, the design wouldn't make a huge amount of difference. All they see is a wad of bank notes and it it's sellable they'll steal it. They won't research how popular it is or how easy or not it is to sell before taking it. Bear in mind if they get £50 for it, it's £50 profit so they're not too fussy.
Anyway for what it's worth the missus saw a Peugeot EC03-200 for £999 at a shop in the next town. Not quite brand new but the previous owner was apparently an elderly lady that only used it half a dozen times but couldn't get on with it, so but for a very slight bit of wear on the tyres you wouldn't know.
She liked it so we bought it. I know nothing about bikes, electric or other wise but it looks very solid and seems to be well built and well specced:
The motor is in the front wheel, which seems to differ from every other bike I've seen and the battery is under the luggage thing at the back. Best thing is this one has a 15Ah, 36v battery which we're told is good for around 80 miles. We have only charged it once and so far she has done, in my estimation, around 25 miles and the power indicator on the handlebars still reads 3 (out of 4), and on the actual battery still reads 5 out of 5.
That's interesting because the Peugeot site has the latest version, the EC01-200, which has an 11Ah battery and they claim to get up to 75 miles out of that. The two bikes look very similar but there are no gears on the latest one (I think they have been replaced by a variable mid-mounted motor), but the new one retails at £2000 so this one looks like an extremely good buy. I'm not keen on the dull grey colour but the main thing is she is happy with it.
Oh, and the dealer included a Kryptonite lock and cable too, don't ask me which model but it retails around the £40 mark.
Anyway for what it's worth the missus saw a Peugeot EC03-200 for £999 at a shop in the next town. Not quite brand new but the previous owner was apparently an elderly lady that only used it half a dozen times but couldn't get on with it, so but for a very slight bit of wear on the tyres you wouldn't know.
She liked it so we bought it. I know nothing about bikes, electric or other wise but it looks very solid and seems to be well built and well specced:
- Gears: Shimano Altus 7 + derailleur system
- Motor - E-Going 250w
- Rims: Double wall 700c
- Brakes: Shimano Front and Rear V brakes
- Seatpost: Alloy suspension 31.6
- Cockpit: Alloy handlebars and adjustable stem
- Range: 400W/75km *(that's for the 11Ah battery)
- Shifters: Shimano Altus7 shifters
- Control System: E-Going LED
- Lights: Axa Pico LED lighting system
- Battery: 15Ah 36v
The motor is in the front wheel, which seems to differ from every other bike I've seen and the battery is under the luggage thing at the back. Best thing is this one has a 15Ah, 36v battery which we're told is good for around 80 miles. We have only charged it once and so far she has done, in my estimation, around 25 miles and the power indicator on the handlebars still reads 3 (out of 4), and on the actual battery still reads 5 out of 5.
That's interesting because the Peugeot site has the latest version, the EC01-200, which has an 11Ah battery and they claim to get up to 75 miles out of that. The two bikes look very similar but there are no gears on the latest one (I think they have been replaced by a variable mid-mounted motor), but the new one retails at £2000 so this one looks like an extremely good buy. I'm not keen on the dull grey colour but the main thing is she is happy with it.
Oh, and the dealer included a Kryptonite lock and cable too, don't ask me which model but it retails around the £40 mark.
The advert for this bike was on again yesterday, at a time when Old Farts like myself would be watching. I still feel it is over-priced for what it is, but if you are happy and out on the road, then good for you. A lot of the GTech stuff seems dear for what it is, with very clever marketing. 'You pay to learn' my mum always said, and I've found that to be true. I agree with your comment about 'cycle lanes'. They just are not safe. There was some unofficial research done somewhere, I remember, which established that cyclists were safer without them. http://freddio.ueuo.com/cyclelanes/index.html this site is interesting, and the item about those lethal lanes may well be on there somewhere. The bike on this site: http://www.feneticwellbeing.com/shop/fenetic-energy-step-through-electric-bike/ is almost identical to the one I bought from Woosh over four years ago, and almost the same price. Very comfortable, practical transport, with all you need fitted. Happy cycling folks, while the weather is good.
I took delivery of my gtech sport on Friday.
Packaging was great. I only had to fit handle bars, levers, seat, front wheel and battery. The bike itself looks stealthy and it is light. I carried it up stairs no problem. Battery has % charge indicator.
Riding is easy. Off, eco or max. I live in a hilly area and plan to use it for a station commute.
My first ride was 8.5 miles and took me 41 minutes. I used 29% battery. The ride is mostly hills, with the final mile a steep incline. The hill is popular with cyclists and I was able to overtake a fairly young rider (I am54) with ease. In fact I was one handed with other in my jacket pocket.
I was a little apprehensive having no gears, but it works. As I am a lone cyclist I have no one dictating my speed and as a commuting bike it will work for me. The riding position is comfortable and the bike feels responsive, especially when starting.
Having never ridden an e bike before I didn’t really know what to expect, but I can say this is a lot of fun. Particularly not having to change gears.
There are some downsides. The seat is really uncomfortable and I feel every chink in the road. I either need a new seat or a new seat post with suspension.
On climbs I sometimes have to slow my pedalling so I can feel the benefit of the motor, then it seems to kick in with more power and I accelerate. I need to practice I guess.
I also feel the bike holds me to 15 mph. On some flat roads I feel I could go faster and when I push it, I feel the motor pulling me back. Is this a characteristic of e bikes?
Overall, I am pleased. I like the looks, simplicity, quick battery charging and the ample power of the motor to get me up the hills. I just need to sort that seat.
Packaging was great. I only had to fit handle bars, levers, seat, front wheel and battery. The bike itself looks stealthy and it is light. I carried it up stairs no problem. Battery has % charge indicator.
Riding is easy. Off, eco or max. I live in a hilly area and plan to use it for a station commute.
My first ride was 8.5 miles and took me 41 minutes. I used 29% battery. The ride is mostly hills, with the final mile a steep incline. The hill is popular with cyclists and I was able to overtake a fairly young rider (I am54) with ease. In fact I was one handed with other in my jacket pocket.
I was a little apprehensive having no gears, but it works. As I am a lone cyclist I have no one dictating my speed and as a commuting bike it will work for me. The riding position is comfortable and the bike feels responsive, especially when starting.
Having never ridden an e bike before I didn’t really know what to expect, but I can say this is a lot of fun. Particularly not having to change gears.
There are some downsides. The seat is really uncomfortable and I feel every chink in the road. I either need a new seat or a new seat post with suspension.
On climbs I sometimes have to slow my pedalling so I can feel the benefit of the motor, then it seems to kick in with more power and I accelerate. I need to practice I guess.
I also feel the bike holds me to 15 mph. On some flat roads I feel I could go faster and when I push it, I feel the motor pulling me back. Is this a characteristic of e bikes?
Overall, I am pleased. I like the looks, simplicity, quick battery charging and the ample power of the motor to get me up the hills. I just need to sort that seat.
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Welcome!
Come over with your bike, we'll ride together on some steep Basque Country inclines
The hard seat is one of the downsides of the Gtech. I replaced mine with a big comfy saddle plus a Suntour SP-12 Suspension seat post which works very well. I also fitted a Topeak Super Tourist DX pannier rack. Otherwise Gtech is still running fine and I use it every week. Still very pleased with it.
Hi and welcome. I'm glad that you're enjoying your bike. You'll enjoy it more, as Brian did, once you fit a suspension seatpost and a gel saddle.
D
Deleted member 4366
Guest
Please tell us how much you weigh because at 80kg that doesn't match my experience of riding the Gtech.
While I'm here, I should issue a warning. The new Gtech batteries are the easiest batteries to remove out of all electric bikes. Why? Because they no longer have a lock. I can see some people leaving their bikes for two minutes and coming back to find no battery and some hard pedalling/pushing to get home.
Last edited by a moderator:
I weigh 85 kilo. What is your experience?
Yes no lock on the battery. No problem if leaving at station as I will remove it, but inconvenient if only leaving bike for short duration.
I still have 10 days to return. Going out on another ride now.
Yes no lock on the battery. No problem if leaving at station as I will remove it, but inconvenient if only leaving bike for short duration.
I still have 10 days to return. Going out on another ride now.
D
Deleted member 4366
Guest
I rode one when I was 85kg. I'm moderately fit, as I ride a road bike too. The Gtech was fine on the flat, but when I got to a 5% hill, it slowed down to an uncomfortable speed. The motor kept it going, but the cadence was so low that I couldn't get enough power through the pedals to give meaningful help. I can imagine most people having to get off and push up a 10% hill.
Another thing I noticed was that the handling wasn't quite right. The steering wasn't neutral. That could have been tyre pressures, which I didn't check, but I'm pretty sure that it was more from the steering geometry.
D
Deleted member 4366
Guest
Yes, if you're already a cyclist and they're not on road bikes. If they're typical road bikers in lycra, you won't keep up. Also, you'll have problems if there's any steep hills because of the lack of gears. That won't be so bad if you're very light.
If cycling with other techs, no problem. The gearing without battery makes it more difficult. As a commuter bike or for solo rides I think it is ideal. I have a 8 mile round trip commute with hills and it is great.
The bike does climb a decent gradient hill without a problem, but steep ones do take their toll on the battery.
But, I still need to invest in mudguards, a decent saddle and a suspension seat post, so I am wondering if there is a better value for money out there which is as good. The gtech is good and easy to ride. It just works. I only have a week to make up my mind.
The bike does climb a decent gradient hill without a problem, but steep ones do take their toll on the battery.
But, I still need to invest in mudguards, a decent saddle and a suspension seat post, so I am wondering if there is a better value for money out there which is as good. The gtech is good and easy to ride. It just works. I only have a week to make up my mind.
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