July 19, 20223 yr Hi all I'm after some advice if I may. A friend has offered me a haibike sduro hardseven SL 27.5 Yamaha 2016 for £1k. He bought it new and hardly used it, only done 350 miles. My first question is if the battery has not been used much will it still be ok. I know if he had put lots of miles on it a 6 year old battery would be showing signs of age, but what if it is not used? It only has a 400Wh battery, but I'm not planning long journeys, just running around town, going to the tennis club etc. So basically is it a good deal or is it being 6 years old a no go ? ps the bike looks to be in very good condition. Any comments will be gladly received. Thanks
July 19, 20223 yr Whether used or not, a six year old pedelec lithium battery is usually at or near to end of life. However, as the seller is friend, ask him if you can have a one or two day trial on the sort of local trips you are planning. If it completes those ok with plenty left in the battery, it may well be a worthwhile buy. .
July 19, 20223 yr Hi all I'm after some advice if I may. A friend has offered me a haibike sduro hardseven SL 27.5 Yamaha 2016 for £1k. He bought it new and hardly used it, only done 350 miles. My first question is if the battery has not been used much will it still be ok. I know if he had put lots of miles on it a 6 year old battery would be showing signs of age, but what if it is not used? It only has a 400Wh battery, but I'm not planning long journeys, just running around town, going to the tennis club etc. So basically is it a good deal or is it being 6 years old a no go ? ps the bike looks to be in very good condition. Any comments will be gladly received. Thanks Have a test ride, if it seems OK, then likely to be a good deal. Read this thread for long term history of a similar bike: https://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/threads/haibike-sduro-hardseven-sl-2015-yamaha-7-month-1600-miles.22644/page-12
July 19, 20223 yr It looks good but There’s a lot to consider, once out of warranty, values drop quite low. Yes battery’s do loose capacity over time and are very expensive to replace. Stored correctly you can minimise the losses but there will still be some losses. With my Bosch battery’s I can get a status report from my local dealer, maybe you can do the same? Alternatively you could go for a ride to see if it has the range you’d like (making sure your not too far from home as the battery depletes) As to valve. I think 1K seems a little high, 6 years ago they were about £1.800 new ! Around 2018 I sold my 4 year old £1,700 cube for £500 and earlier this year I brought a 6 month old Crossfuse (only 230miles) new it was £1.800 and I paid £950. Personally I’d start looking online to see what they are selling for (not what sellers are asking)
July 19, 20223 yr Author Thanks for all the replies and links. I've arranged to borrow it for the day and see how it goes. He says the battery has been stored in doors. I'll be honest, I've wanted one for ages, so if this looks good I'm really keen to join in the fun you all seem to have.
July 19, 20223 yr well the Yamaha motor is the most fixable out of all of them as parts and controllers are available to buy but 1k is to expensive as you will need at least 750-850 for a new batt and new new cube is about £2300.
July 19, 20223 yr £800 for a battery, are they that expensive? My Shimano 504Wh is expensive but not that much. l would expect nearer £400 or it could maybe be recelled, if necessary
July 19, 20223 yr https://electricgarageshop.co.uk/p/yamaha-500wh-frame-sduro-battery depends where you buy one from but these motors use uart programming so cant be recelled without the bypass chip. https://www.avdweb.nl/solar-bike/batteries/battery-hack#top
July 19, 20223 yr Ah okay l didn't know that. Looks like l was wrong on battery prices as well. £795, and not rebuildable.... crikey that will write off an older ebike.
July 19, 20223 yr My calculation with any electric bike is ....Price new - price of a battery then 1/2.. I wouldn't go over that. To me anything second hand is 1/2 the value of full RRP. With any battery you have to factor the cost of a new one. You can pick most things up in sales for way less than RRP and old bikes go so cheap when new models come out.
July 19, 20223 yr i just had to buy a new 500w batt for my bike and it was £633 and the only one i could find in stock in the hole uk as made to order and peter has a 18 month waiting list so get that or nothing. liofit can recell most of them but in fkn germany
July 19, 20223 yr Author Wow, battery prices are horrendous !!!!! This will really affect my decision.
July 19, 20223 yr https://www.allbatteries.co.uk/electric-bike-battery-yamaha-type-522wh-36v-14-5ah-aml9144cc.html still a chunk of cash tho
July 19, 20223 yr Author https://www.allbatteries.co.uk/electric-bike-battery-yamaha-type-522wh-36v-14-5ah-aml9144cc.html still a chunk of cash tho True, but not so bad.
July 19, 20223 yr that is a 3rd party batt mind and not official Yamaha but they do work and half the price. id offer him £400 as you will need to spend that again on a new batt worst case as these batts dont like not being used. the forks and wheels are shite same as the group set and brakes but that motor is near bomb proof and a full bearing rebuild is only £230 inc labour. also these bikes have non boost and all forks and frames these days are all boost so limited parts as this standard died in 2019
July 20, 20223 yr Hi all I'm after some advice if I may. A friend has offered me a haibike sduro hardseven SL 27.5 Yamaha 2016 for £1k. He bought it new and hardly used it, only done 350 miles. My first question is if the battery has not been used much will it still be ok. I know if he had put lots of miles on it a 6 year old battery would be showing signs of age, but what if it is not used? It only has a 400Wh battery, but I'm not planning long journeys, just running around town, going to the tennis club etc. So basically is it a good deal or is it being 6 years old a no go ? ps the bike looks to be in very good condition. Any comments will be gladly received. Thanks I would advise that you avoid the complete bike for the following reasons:- 1) A betting man would bet that the battery is either bad, or going bad and a replacement will be very expensive. 2) Its a mid motor, and due to the fact that all power, muscular and motor, goes through the same piece of chain, mid motor bikes suffer high wear to the chain and sprocket components, requiring regular replacement. 3) If on a long ride, any of your chain components fails (and you either have no spare handy, or its night and or raining), then you are in for a long unpleasant walk home, even if the motor is OK and the battery is full. On a hub bike chain failure (rare!), you can usually trick the bike into letting you ride home just on the electric motor power. 4) New hub bikes are available for around the price your friend is asking. Mine cost under 1,000 UK pounds and had 2 batteries, transport and custom costs included. There are others out there for a similar price. 5) Due to the simplicity of hub bikes, reliability is far better and replacement parts far cheaper. 6) Mid motors are expensive to repair/replace, about the price your friend wants, and often must take place at the will of the manufacturer......or not! regards Andy
July 20, 20223 yr I would advise that you avoid the complete bike for the following reasons:- 1) A betting man would bet that the battery is either bad, or going bad and a replacement will be very expensive. 2) Its a mid motor, and due to the fact that all power, muscular and motor, goes through the same piece of chain, mid motor bikes suffer high wear to the chain and sprocket components, requiring regular replacement. 3) If on a long ride, any of your chain components fails (and you either have no spare handy, or its night and or raining), then you are in for a long unpleasant walk home, even if the motor is OK and the battery is full. On a hub bike chain failure (rare!), you can usually trick the bike into letting you ride home just on the electric motor power. 4) New hub bikes are available for around the price your friend is asking. Mine cost under 1,000 UK pounds and had 2 batteries, transport and custom costs included. There are others out there for a similar price. 5) Due to the simplicity of hub bikes, reliability is far better and replacement parts far cheaper. 6) Mid motors are expensive to repair/replace, about the price your friend wants, and often must take place at the will of the manufacturer......or not! regards Andy Sorry, I forgot to mention that certain people who LOVE mid motor e-bikes (been lucky or ride them seldom!), who accept all the disadvantages and negatives, will make erroneous comments to possibly mislead your personal choices. A secondhand mid-motor e-bike is a scary option for most informed people, and in no way comparable to a new, simple, rear hub bike, that can be easily repaired, with standard parts from many different makers and suppliers, for relatively low prices, with DIY if you are capable of DIY. But with mid motors, you are usually FIXED with one supplier/manufacturer, and their own rules, fair or not, as the case may be. You should look around on Pedelec for all the problems that can happen to either type, but keep an eye on the costs involved. Mid motors are only a small segment of the industry, hub bikes are the are the largest percentage of all. The cost of buying and maintaining a Ferari are huge, and everyone accepts it, even those who cannot afford one......its not dissimilar! best wishes and remember, its your choice personal either way, not anyone elses! Andy
July 23, 20223 yr A mid mounted motor is better, because it drives through the gears. But l agree with the above, unless you are riding serious off road a hub motor is fine and a lot simpler/cheaper to repair. l've got both, and l've found myself using the hub motor bike more, because it's actually more fun to ride than my £5,000 full suspension Kona ebike. (which is fitted with a Shimano mid mounted motor that's not serviceable if it fails and costs around £900 to replace) Off road the Kona will wipe the floor with the hub motor bike, but on road there's not a lot in it, despite the fact that the mid motor has a torque sensor so is more intuitive.
July 25, 20223 yr A friend has offered me a haibike sduro hardseven SL 27.5 Yamaha 2016 for £1k. He bought it new and hardly used it, only done 350 miles. Personally, I don't concur with a number of responses on this thread. Its a very decent bike. Forget stuff like it not having boost spacing or anything on the forks, that's a non issue for 95% of normal people and I'd very much doubt you'll have issues getting spare parts if anything needs replacing, but the reality is, its doubtful you WILL need to replace things like forks etc anyway. The only thing you do need to be wary of is the battery, however all the evidence shows that Yamaha haven't skimped with the quality of the cells, so if the owner has stored it properly, chances are you're going to be fine for a good few more years, despite the age. Look for posts here by George Henry about his yamaha haibike and the age of his battery. And I'm also talking from experience, as my wife has the female version of the bike in question here, and that's even older and has done something like 5000+ miles and the battery is still good. I'm sure it must have dropped in capacity somewhat, but the fact that its not easily quantifiable speaks volumes. Ultimately, the best advice on this thread is something you indeed seem to be doing, which is borrow the bike and try it. So fully charge it up, and ride it until the battery is empty, just keeping an eye on whether the charge does something strange like drop from 40% to zero in one go. If it doesn't do that, and its a nice gradual(ish) decrease with a decent range, I'd say you're good to go, and given the price and availability of new ebikes, well ... I think your mate is going to get the £1000 he's asking. if the battery is knackered, then there are 3rd party ones out there for £300-400, so negotiate with your friend who's selling. But if it was me, I'd be VERY interested in getting this bike.
July 26, 20223 yr Author Personally, I don't concur with a number of responses on this thread. Its a very decent bike. Forget stuff like it not having boost spacing or anything on the forks, that's a non issue for 95% of normal people and I'd very much doubt you'll have issues getting spare parts if anything needs replacing, but the reality is, its doubtful you WILL need to replace things like forks etc anyway. The only thing you do need to be wary of is the battery, however all the evidence shows that Yamaha haven't skimped with the quality of the cells, so if the owner has stored it properly, chances are you're going to be fine for a good few more years, despite the age. Look for posts here by George Henry about his yamaha haibike and the age of his battery. And I'm also talking from experience, as my wife has the female version of the bike in question here, and that's even older and has done something like 5000+ miles and the battery is still good. I'm sure it must have dropped in capacity somewhat, but the fact that its not easily quantifiable speaks volumes. Ultimately, the best advice on this thread is something you indeed seem to be doing, which is borrow the bike and try it. So fully charge it up, and ride it until the battery is empty, just keeping an eye on whether the charge does something strange like drop from 40% to zero in one go. If it doesn't do that, and its a nice gradual(ish) decrease with a decent range, I'd say you're good to go, and given the price and availability of new ebikes, well ... I think your mate is going to get the £1000 he's asking. if the battery is knackered, then there are 3rd party ones out there for £300-400, so negotiate with your friend who's selling. But if it was me, I'd be VERY interested in getting this bike. Thank you for a very honest reply. I did buy it in the end and am absolutely loving it, battery life is fine and it flies along. I use it every day. The brakes were a bit 'soft' so I changed the disks and pads and all good now. I have noticed I need to be careful of braking distances being longer than I'm used to due to the extra weight and momentum. Mid drive is 100% the way to go, it feels and rides like a normal bike but as if you had a pro cyclist and not me on it Thank you to everyone for taking the time to reply, it is very much appreciated.
July 27, 20223 yr It feels and rides like normal bike except is has some 500w + of power added, why do people insist an ebike is like a normal push bike when the answer if very far from the truth !!! People need to just be honest instead of pretending they are similar, the reason people buy ebikes is they can't ride a push far because of the extra effort needed.
July 27, 20223 yr Author It feels and rides like normal bike except is has some 500w + of power added, why do people insist an ebike is like a normal push bike when the answer if very far from the truth !!! People need to just be honest instead of pretending they are similar, the reason people buy ebikes is they can't ride a push far because of the extra effort needed. Wow, some one is tired with a big old axe to grind !!!!! A lot of hub drives I have tested felt like you were being pushed, or pulled. My point was with the mid drive it feels much more natural, like a real bike. Three more effort I put in the more i get out. But we both know you realised that.
July 27, 20223 yr get a dongle and it will be like another bike altogether tho it will half the range of the batt
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