Recommendations for cheap low risk Car replacement

[FrodoBaggins]

Hello All

I am a 39 year old, 5'8" 65Kg male reasonably fit but peed off with living at the bottom of a valley
I live in W Yorkshire on the edge of the Dales so lots of hills.

I had never considered an ebike before but sadly due to a seizure I have now lost my driving license for a minimum of 12 months. I feel with all of the restrictions and medical tests I need something fun to happen in my life and ebike shopping is that! It seems the one thing I am still allowed to do.
I have only ever tried out 1 ebike and that was a CUBE mountain bike with a Bosch motor in. I have to admit I thought it was amazing and wonder what the latest batteries do as that was 2 years ago now.

I still plan to cycle on my normal hybrid bike as a fitness thing, but would love something that takes far less effort to say get to the shops etc and replace short car journeys.
Very unlike me I put a blind bid in on ebay for a Wisper 906 bike. I didnt win and at first I was quite glad but now looking around I maybe wish I had as it seems nice and went for about £600, I have now realised that these things are far from cheap!

Ideally I would like to buy second hand as my main concern is getting it knicked and as such would want something less desirable than the £2K options but as is always the way websites and forums seem to tempt you with higher and higher specs.

I know that I should really try them out and get an idea but before I can do that I want to get some idea from the good folks here, especially as I may be forced into last minute ebay bidding!
So my questions are as follows of you good people?

1. Is second hand worth it? Buying "normal" bikes I have always found much better deals 2nd hand and as such rarely pay more than £500 for 2 year old bikes with an original RRP of £2K. Is this the case with things like batteries?
2. Would a conversion on say an older specialized hybrid be a good option as a cheaper method or would this be a false economy?
3. I feel that a purpose built bike might be better, in which case bikes such as Woosh Karoo, G Tech sport and a Cyclotricity Revolver and of course the Wisper 906 are all options that have got my attention, so far that seem to cost around £1000 new. Any thoughts on these models based on my height and weight?

Basically any advice from someone who has had the same dilemma would be welcome, specifically around removing the battery for security when out and about.

Many thanks

Ben

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Only buy a used electric bike if you're convinced that it's OK by test riding it and check that the battery shows fully charged. Don't buy it if there's a story for why the seller forgot to charge it or any other story about anything that's wrong. Don't believe any stories about the battery being replaced with a new one recently.

At only 65kg, any electric bike will be OK for what you want. You don't need anything special.They all work and they all do the same speed.

 

[Trevormonty]

A kit is worth while if your donor bike is good quality and you like it. With 2nd hand most of factory middrives like bosch, Shimano, brose, yamaha come with 2yr warranty on drive and battery. Assuming warranty is transferrable, a <2yr one would give you some piece of mind. Do your homework on warranty before buying. Outside warranty these drives and batteries cost lot to repair/replace.



Sent from my SM-G570Y using Tapatalk

 

[Woosh]

Hi Ben,

2. Would a conversion on say an older specialized hybrid be a good option as a cheaper method or would this be a false economy?

it's not a false economy if you already know and like the donor bike well.

 

[Woosh]

3. I feel that a purpose built bike might be better, in which case bikes such as Woosh Karoo, G Tech sport and a Cyclotricity Revolver and of course the Wisper 906 are all options that have got my attention, so far that seem to cost around £1000 new. Any thoughts on these models based on my height and weight?

I would recommend the Woosh Rio.
It has a larger motor than the Karoo, better acceleration and hill climbing ability.
http://wooshbikes.co.uk/?rio-mtb

 

[FrodoBaggins]

I would recommend the Woosh Rio.
It has a larger motor than the Karoo, better acceleration and hill climbing ability.
http://wooshbikes.co.uk/?rio-mtb

Hi Woosh, thanks for your reply.
Just a couple of questions:
1. What makes this or any other bike for that matter "better" on hills? If it has the same capacity battery and motor wouldnt the lighter bike be better?
2. Also I have heard lots of good things about Woosh but is there anywhere up North (around Yorkshire way ideally) that I can see the various makes and models?

Many thanks

Ben

 

[FrodoBaggins]

Thanks to everyone for all of your replies.

I have done a bit of reading around kits but for me it starts to get complicated once you move to anything above a front drive.
I have a 700c hybrid specialized bike that I like riding and is comfy. I would need to swap the forks out to get rid of the suspension but in theory a kit could do it.
However a 15Ah battery front wheel drive kit is around £450 and say £70 for forks and a bit of labour and faffing to fit the battery and brakes and I am getting into the larger sums of money and effort for something that is inferior to a custom built option.

I guess this is the same as pretty much everyone on here thinks when starting out.

 

[Gaz]

Hello Ben

There's a Woosh Kreiger in the classifieds which might suit you.
(EDIT: Just noticed it's sold - serves me right for not looking first!)

Pete (tisme) is selling a Haibike too, but that's possibly too big for you. I bought his last bike and am still a bit tempted with this one

Gaz

 

[FrodoBaggins]

Hello Ben

There's a Woosh Kreiger in the classifieds which might suit you.
(EDIT: Just noticed it's sold - serves me right for not looking first!)

Pete (tisme) is selling a Haibike too, but that's possibly too big for you. I bought his last bike and am still a bit tempted with this one

Gaz

Thanks for looking out for me Gaz and I did see that advert, it looks like the business but sadly it now says sold.

I will keep an eye out for similar though.

 

[Woosh]

However a 15Ah battery front wheel drive kit is around £450

Hi frodo,

You are not heavy enough for a front wheel drive, you will lose a fair bit of traction.

 

[Woosh]

1. What makes this or any other bike for that matter "better" on hills? If it has the same capacity battery and motor wouldnt the lighter bike be better?

a lightweight motor weighs about 2.5-3kgs, medium weight like the SWX02 on the Rio about 3.6kgs and big motor like the Bafang BPM on the Woosh Big Bear weighs about 4.5kgs.
The extra weight is the result of having larger gearbox, magnets and copper wires. They translate to more torque at the output.
Torque means acceleration and hill climbing ability. A lightweight Bafang motor has maximum torque about 35NM, a medium weight like the SWX02 on the Rio about 45NM and on the BPM about 50NM.

 

[Woosh]

2. Also I have heard lots of good things about Woosh but is there anywhere up North (around Yorkshire way ideally) that I can see the various makes and models?

We don't have showrooms in your area but we can arrange for a local owner to show you the bike you are interested in.