Wheel change on 2014 bike

saneagle · Apr 5, 2025

Seanoge said:
It was pointed out to me at Halfords that my 2014 Freego Regency needed a new back Wheel Rim. If I change the whole wheel out with a new Motor.......would this change the "Grandfather Rights" on the bike?

Changing the motor shouldn't change anything. Your bike is still a 2014 Freego Regency that had the throttle on it in 2014. What about when you change the tyre or the brake pads? Nobody cares about that, so I don't see why the motor would make a difference.

Do you have an old forum post with a picture of your bike or anything like that, or is there a plate on the bike showing its date, or maybe the serial number? Anything like that would help as evidence.

Although you're supposed to be innocent until proved guilty, in this case it's more likely to be the other way round. If you haven't got anything, it might be an idea to find an old review of your bike and download it onto your phone or do a printout, so that if ever you were asked, you'd have the evidence.

thelarkbox · Apr 5, 2025

Rebuilding a wheel with a new rim is no longer the dark art thanks to lots n lots of 10,imute+ youtube how-to vids..

Yes you will screw up and have to restart at least once , missing a hole or not

but the tools needed are minimal and empty front forks make an adequate balancing jig using snipped cable ties as guides (watch the vids and the penny will drop)

saneagle · Apr 5, 2025

thelarkbox said:
Rebuilding a wheel with a new rim is no longer the dark art thanks to lots n lots of 10,imute+ youtube how-to vids..

Yes you will screw up and have to restart at least once , missing a hole or not but the tools needed are minimal and empty front forks make an adequate balancing jig using snipped cable ties as guides (watch the vids and the penny will drop)

It's a rear motor, so won't fit in forks. Personally, I never use any sort of jig. I just do it on my lap until all the spokes are in, then I put it in the actual frame to finish it off, using a couple of cable ties to show where it needs truing. That way, you get the rim exactly in the middle of the frame. Rear motors usually need a bit of offset built in to get the rim in the centre, so doing it in a jig isn't as good unless you know the offset before you start.

flecc · Apr 5, 2025

Seanoge said:
It was pointed out to me at Halfords that my 2014 Freego Regency needed a new back Wheel Rim. If I change the whole wheel out with a new Motor.......would this change the "Grandfather Rights" on the bike?

saneagle said:
Do you have an old forum post with a picture of your bike or anything like that, or is there a plate on the bike showing its date, or maybe the serial number? Anything like that would help as evidence.

I can't see you've posted about it early enough, only posts from 2020 and 2021 referring to its 5 or 6 years age respectively.

However, here are three links from 2011 to 2015 referring to the Freego Regency in the days long ago when it was a current model, so they should be proof enough of your Wife's elderly bike's vintage:

decision time !!! ECOBIKE ELEGANCE V FREEGO REGENCY

Hi just narrowed my search for my 1st EBike , due to fusion on my spine top and bottom a step through bike seems practical{ yes it looks like a girly bike lol } so what are your opinions on these bike? All your views and comments are appreciated and cant recommend this forum enough as I find...

www.pedelecs.co.uk

Hi from Fife

Hi I'm Blythe from Fife, Scotland. I'm looking to buy first e bike, have been impressed by grace easy gates belt drive for me, and freego regency for my wife. Any advice hints greatly appreciated Cheers Blythe

www.pedelecs.co.uk

Hi there

Middle aged lady in Lincolnshire, just bought a Freego Regency for my 14 mile round trip commute to work...loving it!

www.pedelecs.co.uk

.

AndyBike · Apr 5, 2025

saneagle said:
What about when you change the tyre or the brake pads? Nobody cares about that, so I don't see why the motor would make a difference.

Bit of a grey area really.

Was the work carried out by a qualified bike mechanic ?(home trained isnt the same as qualified professional)

If not then that might invalidate the guarantee .

Even changing wheels or anything, needs to be done by pro mechanic.

There was a recent case with Giant. Their carbon Ebike frames were in some cases suffering from cracking, and the owners found that Giant wouldnt honour the guarantee. Reason given was the owner had fitted oem/new parts.

If the manufacturer was to play hard ball they could say naff off as an entire new motor isnt part of original equipment

Unlikely of course in most cases, but the law would still stand and you would be unable to fight against it.

saneagle · Apr 5, 2025

Seanoge said:
I presume that 14 refers to year, I have the same bike except 18. I'm worried now as I have the same marks on my wheel rim. Measuring with a caliper they are both 25mm at the widest point.
Halfords said the 14 bike needed a new wheel rim, but I'm sure he didn't examine it much....as he refused to service it. Any advice on how I can actually find out?
The 2nd. image is the 14 bike, the 3rd. the 18.both look the same to me.....

Just point to the serial number and say "Week 04 2014". It would still help to have some backup evidence to show that the throttle was fitted from new, like a review from 2014, forum posts. pictures or anything like that. As time goes on, you won't be able to find those things on the internet, so get them now.

saneagle · Apr 5, 2025

AndyBike said:
Bit of a grey area really.

Was the work carried out by a qualified bike mechanic ?(home trained isnt the same as qualified professional)

If not then that might invalidate the guarantee .

Even changing wheels or anything, needs to be done by pro mechanic.

There was a recent case with Giant. Their carbon Ebike frames were in some cases suffering from cracking, and the owners found that Giant wouldnt honour the guarantee. Reason given was the owner had fitted oem/new parts.

If the manufacturer was to play hard ball they could say naff off as an entire new motor isnt part of original equipment

Unlikely of course in most cases, but the law would still stand and you would be unable to fight against it.

The bike is more than ten years old and Freego have disappeared off the face of the Earth, so I don't think he's too worried about the guarantee.

flecc · Apr 5, 2025

Seanoge said:
I presume that 14 refers to year, I have the same bike except 18. I'm worried now as I have the same marks on my wheel rim. Measuring with a caliper they are both 25mm at the widest point.
Halfords said the 14 bike needed a new wheel rim, but I'm sure he didn't examine it much....as he refused to service it. Any advice on how I can actually find out?
The 2nd. image is the 14 bike, the 3rd. the 18.both look the same to me.....

Below is a link to page 7, Operational Instructions, of the Freego Regency Owners Manual. This refers to the throttle several times and confirms it had a twist throttle fitted as standard.

Print that out as the proof you need.

FreeGo Regency user manual (English - 17 pages)

Manual FreeGo Regency. View the FreeGo Regency manual for free or ask your question to other FreeGo Regency owners.

www.manuals.co.uk

.

Nealh · Apr 5, 2025

Buy a new rim and lace the old hub back in.

Nealh · Apr 5, 2025

Rims have a wear indicator on them , this is a complete shallow grooved line around the rim. Once that indiactor grooved line can no longer be seen/worn away in place's then it is time to think about replacement .
From the pics they don't look nothing to worry about.

Nealh · Apr 6, 2025

Tbh if one is happy with the hub and it has proven reliable then there is little reason to want to change it , for the sake of having something shiny and new.
Your current hub is legal and probably marked 250w or the bike label will denote 250w , with the Yose one will have to be careful and buy a 250w kit.

saneagle · Apr 6, 2025

Seanoge said:
One last question, it will have to have a service somewhere..........was looking at Yose conversion Kits.......reasonably priced......would it be worthwhile installing a new rear wheel and motor......have motors improved much in the last 10 years that it would be worth it?

Motors aren't much better than each other. They're all very reliable. Size matters. The bigger they are, the more power they can handle. There ar exceptions to that: Most AKM motors have a higher reduction ratio that allows them to run faster inside, so that gives a bit more power and torque at low speed. There are also some small Bafangs with high reduction ratio.

I doubt that you'll see much difference from changing the motor. It's the controller that makes more difference than anything, and the Yose one isn't that good.

Whoever is doing the servicing at that Sustrans event, if you ask them nicely, they might build your new wheel for you if you ask them nicely, or at least they'll know someone who can do it. Give them some sob story about why you can't afford to get it done at a shop.

Wheel change on 2014 bike

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