Which MTB for under £800 please, recommendations/advice appreciated.

[seadragon]

Hi All,

I am selling one of my bikes and want to use this chance with the spare money to get an electric bike, so when the weather starts warming up I can use the car less and save money on petrol, which is costing me about £100-120 a month.

An electric MTB is what I want as I would be off-road most of the time on the way to work and back as I am in village.

I was looking at some bikes on ebay and on the net but cant tell one from another in how good or awful the batteries/motors are.

I am only looking to spend about £600-800 max.

Thanks in advance.

 

[jazper53]

Hi seadragon,

Welcome to the site, there are quite a few choices for you to look at. I own a Kudos sport which I have owned for the last 9 months and thorughly pleased with its performance both mechanically and electrically. The battery is 36v 9amp which fits behind the seat, the drive is FWD which with pedaling gives you 2 wheel drive, and the weight is well balanced when trying to manhandle, a good hill climber. Presently priced £695. I recommend you have a look at some of the personal reviews on site.
.: Kudos Cycles - e-bikes with style :.

Ps not sure about its off-road ability as never tried it out on rough terrain

 

[Deleted member 4366]

All the bikes in that price range are much the same and adequate for what you want, but some have smallish frames, which can be a problem if you're tall. If you're good at fixing things, then there's some nice bikes on Ebay, otherwise you need to get one with dealer support. The ones with 10aH or bigger batteries tend to be a bit more poweful, which might be important if you're heavy and/or you have hills to go up.

 

[Old_Dave]

Just seen this (Maybe I've seen it before, but forgot)

The Sirocco CD | Chain Drive Electric Bikes from Woosh | electric bike sales & hire

 

[Deleted member 4366]

They kept that quiet. If you're reading, Hatti, send one to me and I'll review it for you.
£799. This one could be intersting!

Throttle as well! We just need to find out how to hack that King meter. I wonder if you can change it like the Oxygen one.

 

[Old_Dave]

They kept that quiet. If you're reading, Hatti, send one to me and I'll review it for you.
£799. This one could be intersting!

Get to ***k Dave

I want one first

Its a great choice of battery.. well done Hatti, the spec and the £ could make self building almost pointless

 

[Deleted member 4366]

'koff, I was first!

But as I'm a gentleman and I've already had a turn, I'll let you go first if she offers.

Where's Wissy. This could be what she's been waiting for as long as she likes black.

 

[Old_Dave]

I already had a demo / review of the Santana

Maybe as trusted reviewers.. send to you and then onto me, or me onto you, then maybe back to Woosh....


Hattttttttttttttiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

 

[jazper53]

Look forward to the review who ever does it

 

[wissy]

No idea about these bikes... Motor isn't a Bosch because they are expensive they say which ok point I guess but doesn't say much about their motor quality which bit disconcerting? says it should do x amount charge blah but who makes these motors. Tem? is it only them? I didn't recognise many of the component parts either.... Website makes it look appealing i suppose but not for me. I like Ritchey and Shimanos and nice stuff ... and I like Bosch!

 

[Old_Dave]

You can lead a horse to water... but

 

[seadragon]

No idea about these bikes... Motor isn't a Bosch because they are expensive they say which ok point I guess but doesn't say much about their motor quality which bit disconcerting? says it should do x amount charge blah but who makes these motors. Tem? is it only them? I didn't recognise many of the component parts either.... Website makes it look appealing i suppose but not for me. I like Ritchey and Shimanos and nice stuff ... and I like Bosch!

Well thanks guys and if I get it first someone can borrow it and do a review for the site, happy to help

Cheers for the advice and thanks for the welcome

 

[GaRRy]

... and I like Bosch!

Until you try one you really need to be more open minded. Speaking from personal experience I did not like a single Bosch driven bike I tried. Now this is not because they were/are bad bikes just that I personally did not like the feel of the power delivery. Obviously you may feel different but until you try you wont know.

 

[wissy]

not wanting to get into a dispute or interfere in this post but I do like the Bosch.. A bit like I like Brad Pitt. Not tried him (yet)

 

[RobF]

The shiny new crank drive is an attraction, but the existing Scirocco Sport is cheaper and fits the OP's spec.

The Sirocco-Sport | Electric Bikes from Woosh | electric bike sales & hire

Review by one of the forum Daves here:

http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/electric-bike-reviews/13064-woosh-sirocco-sport.html

 

[seadragon]

The shiny new crank drive is an attraction, but the existing Scirocco Sport is cheaper and fits the OP's spec.

The Sirocco-Sport | Electric Bikes from Woosh | electric bike sales & hire

Review by one of the forum Daves here:

http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/electric-bike-reviews/13064-woosh-sirocco-sport.html

Thanks guys, I appreciate the help. I dont think the sirocco cd will suit as the guys from the company have emailed me back and reckon that although the bike will be fine, the location of the rear battery rack wont take alll the jolts.

They have a new Sport CD model coming out in the summer, with full suspension and a Nuvinci system (which I had on a non ebike in the past and enjoyed), so I might get myself on a waiting list or something.

I might get something else instead but a proper off road bike with 15A sounds about right to me. I will still consider the Sirocco Sport, just need to be sure the hardtail with battery mount can cope.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Thanks guys, I appreciate the help. I dont think the sirocco cd will suit as the guys from the company have emailed me back and reckon that although the bike will be fine, the location of the rear battery rack wont take alll the jolts.

That's a shame. I understand the problem. The racks are a daft design, and I'm surprised that they haven't fixed it yet. Nearly all racks for batteries are like it. The main struts go to the top of the rack that rarely has any significant weight on it. The battery rests on a platform that's tack-welded to the struts. If you have a bumpy ride, the platform and its welds get a pounding, and they eventually fail through metal fatigue. It would be much better if the main struts were fixed to the bottom platform, ideally wrapped underneath, and then the top platform should be tack-welded on. Maybe one day the penny will drop. If you look at the rack half-way down this page, it shows how it should be done - in case Woosh is reading.
http://electricbikereport.com/izip-e3-path-electric-bike-specs-video-pictures/

Personally, I hate those racks. If I bought a bike like that I'd chuck the rack, gut the battery out of its case and make it more discrete like this, and save 1 to 2 kg. This is a 20aH battery and it's solid as a rock, and we go off-road a lot: