We did have an all-British e-bike, the TGA Electrobike, and it was in production longer than any other e-bike ever, from the 1980s to only a couple of years ago. It came as a bike and two trike models, one with larger rear carrier container. Not only that, as a crank drive through the gears, they easily did 20 mph and more!If only we had a 'Sir Clive Sinclair', a British patron saint for ebikes, someone actually manufacturing these things, or coming up with world leading technologies, and thereby export these coal to china. Im sure in the future it will be cost effective to have a manufacturing plant in the uk, at least for the motors.
I was thinking if the speed limit was upped to 20mph, and the legal age raised from 14 to 16, this would make the ebike appear a more serious contender as a means of transport. Of course then you would need a 300w motor to boot, which would only upset the established status quo. Not that it matters much with all those 'off road' bikes out there.
ah well its easy to dream.
Always a small seller, the company found it's mobility vehicle side far more rewarding which no doubt led to their dropping the bikes.
Clive Sinclair would be a disastrous choice for popularising e-bikes, he's repeatedly tried and failed. Apart from the infamous C5, which was in reality an e-recumbent trike, he also produced the Zike e-bike, and also a pathetically weak and useless add-on Zeta bike motor. There followed the Zeta II, also an underpowered flop.
He's also announced the A bike as if it was his own idea, though in fact it was designed by engineering student Alex Kalogroulis who he employed as chief engineer to adopt his design. Most recently he announced the Sinclair X1 design, a covered recumbent e-bike which looks hopelessly impractical for use in anything other than still air on an isolated track.
Poor Clive means well I'm sure, but he's essentially an eccentric with a myriad of impractical ideas.
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