Trek Valencia Ride+

[wookie7070]

Trek Valencia Ride+

Reviewer: Simon Wootton

Purchased From: Edinburgh Cycle Company Limited

Purchase Price:£1600

Time Owned:10 days

Local Terrain: Moderate Hills with a 200 foot altitude difference over the 8 miles


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Strengths: Ease of use, feels very similar to a normal bike except when it powers you up a hill, looks good, comes with everything you need(trip, lights, rack etc)



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Weaknesses:
Quite expensive but it is a quality product, trip doesn’t show time.


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Summary:
Reasons for getting an E-bike:
Hope to get fitter and do it within my normal working day
Sick of ever increasing fuel prices
Start to enjoy commuting

I did a good bit of research online and on these pages before deciding on an E-bike. I was initially going to convert my current bike but after a post on here decided to take a trip to the Edinburgh Cycle Company Limited. I got the chance to try a few bikes from the Giant range and also the Trek Valencia. It was clear from the start that the bikes felt very differently so I thought it was far better to buy a bike I could trial ride rather than buying over the internet.

Neal, the owner of the shop, cut me a decent deal but there was a problem with the initial bike. This was eventually sent back and a replacement arrived a couple of days later. The next day I embarked on my first commute to work on an E-bike. The journey went well with the exception of a spoke working its way loose. Neal again came to rescue bringing up another E-bike to my workplace and taking the Valencia away to be sorted. It turned out that the spoke hadn’t been tightened properly in the factory and no harm was done.

Not a very good start to my E-biking story but after a rocky start things have really fallen into place. I am still in the battery conditioning phase and have covered 50 miles so far. I decided to just stick the bike in maximum assist and pedal as I would a normal bike. So far this has seen a charge last for 3 trips (24 miles) with a couple of bars left on the display. The assist only helps uphill and pulling away from lights as I cycle at around 17mph on the flat.

The bike has really impressed me and it really is a joy to get some fresh air and a bit of exercise at the beginning and end of my working day. My average speed is starting to rise very slowly and is now sitting at 15mph. The bike is quite comfortable as long as the surface isn’t too bad but I lack a bit of confidence on the part of my journey that goes over an unsurfaced cycle path. Narrow slick tyres and no suspension are great however for the vast majority of my ride to work.

The Valencia has fulfilled all the reasons I had for wanting an E-bike. I feel fitter and don’t miss those trips to the filling station. I am also really looking forward to jumping on the bike in the morning which makes it easier getting up for work.

I’ll try to get some photos and some data of my travels over the coming weeks and update this thread when I have done a few more miles.
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Overall Rating (out of 10) :I’ll leave the mark until I’ve covered a few more miles

 

[wookie7070]

Over 300 miles now and the first service sorted out the few gremlins I had noticed.

I ditched the side stand as it worked its way loose and was difficult to tighten. The brakes were adjusted at the service and work really well but the back caliper is in a poor position for adjusting.

Gears were also adjusted at the service and work very slickly now.

I am still impressed with the bike. My average speed is now around 15.7mph and the legs are starting to propel me further each day with the motor kicking in less and less.

 

[kenatnam]

I bought one in 2010. I use it for a 15 mile each way commute, with a really steep 3 mile hill at the start every morning and a long undulating hill on the way home.

It has quite a few faults but it does the job, It has been the most unreliable bike I have ever owned.
On the downside - its too easy to turn the assist off accidently, and when trying to turn the lights on you use the main on/off button!!!! The designer of the control pad obviously never tried using it whilst riding along a bumpy road, or with gloves on! My back wheel spokes have started to snap now - I'm thinking of having them all replaced with the upgraded ones. The stand comes loose & catches the pedals. The back brake cable is badly designed - water flows down into the cable at the rear loop. A battery power pack that lets water in - my bike went bonkers after 30 mins of riding in medium rain - the computer needed 2 reboots to get its act together again ( it was retarding when it should have been assisting!). I cured that by spreading vaseline around all the wire joints (yes they were wet inside) around the battery case join & by putting blutack in the charging port. How can a bike costing £1600 not have a rubber bung in the charging port, or a rubber seal on the battery join - I think Trek only tested this bike in a desert state? They can't have tested it in rain.

It does do a good job, my real beef is that when your legs are so tired that you cannot put much pressure on the pedal, guess what, that is the very time that it will not assist you!!!!!!!! So, it may multiply the torque at the pedals by 400%, but if you cannot put any effort into it through tiredness or injury you end up with a useless e-bike that weighs twice what your other bike weighs, so you are a lot worse off. It could be easily remedied by having an override button that would give you pure e-drive. I don't know why they don't, I know battery range would be severely compromised, but at the end of a long day at work that is a decision that you should be able to make for yourself!

I originally bought the Trek because when the electrics are at the end of their life I can strip it all off, buy a new back wheel & hey presto I still have a Valencia. I am still riding my 1993 Univega, so I like to get good use out of a bike! There have been times when I have thought about doing just that, the faults have been so aggravating!

Overall its a good bike, let down by details - unfortunately too many at once. It is 10 mins faster than my Univega on my commute, 15 mins in a headwind, but if the computer goes haywire, or some water gets into the wiring its slower than my Uni & no use at all.

It would be interesting to know if Trek have designed out any of the issues. I haven't found anywhere to give any feedback so perhaps they think they've got the perfect bike?