Woosh Sirocco CDL First Impressions

[crE]

Hello all.

I got this bike a week ago and have done 60 miles on it so far. I'm completely new to electric bikes so I don't have anything to compare it to.

Initial impressions are wow! Overall it seems sturdy. But there are some niggling issues. The rear mud guard spikes come off occasionally and i haven't figured out why. This can cause rattling and i have to stop to refit it. Also the bike is quite heavy which you tend to realise if you go over a pothole as you do get a thunk noise. Apart from that everything is remaining in place and nicely fitted.

The ride is great. You can feel instantly when the motor kicks in and it really does help going up hills. I commute to work on it now (10 miles) and it takes me 30 minutes. It used to take me 25 minutes in the car! I get to work relatively sweat free which is great. On a normal bike I'd be wheezing and soaked in my own juices.

I am still haven't trouble aligning the front disc brakes. I've never done it before but after watching videos and taking advice I still can't do it. I'm going to pop into a local bike shop on Friday for some help. I'm getting by on the rear v brakes for now which are fine.

The battery seems never ending. After 20 miles round trip it will still show full battery when arriving home. Although it can go down as far as half way when climbing hills throughout the journey. It quickly shoots back up to full when coasting down a hill though.

The throttle is brilliant. Although I sometimes wish it wasn't the whole handle bar grip as I do find myself activating it on accident. But I have started disabling it for long roads when I don't need it. I only generally use it for quick getaways from a standstill.

I'm finding the seat plenty comfortable for my needs. A nice easy way to adjust the ride height too.

I'm not having any major issues with the crank drive gear changing. I stop pedalling momentarily and change gears smoothly and i don't generally change down on a hill.

Overall I'm very impressed with the bike. It's transformed the way i commute and is saving money to boot! I still feel like I've had a decent amount of excercise too.

 

[RobF]

It's a heavy bike to stop and as with all bikes it is the front brake that does most of the stopping.

In other words, it needs to be up to the job.

You can now get cable operated hydraulic discs - the cylinder is fixed to the calliper.

Worth considering, no more messing about with adjustment, and both callipers move so you have a proper brake.

Because you are using the existing lever the cut out will still work, and there's no need to mess around with the other stuff on the handlebars or worry about cable/hydraulic hose routing.

 

[crE]

Thanks RobF. I'm taking it to a bike shop next week. I am actually working fine with just the rear brake at the moment! But I can see it would take a little longer to stop. I have also noticed how inconsiderate some motorists are with bikers. Up my arse on a island until I had to fling my arms (arm) up in disgust.

Getting rattling from the back still upon going over a bump or rough bits of road. Not sure what it is. Everything is tight. Maybe it's the chain... It does seem quite buoyant

 

[Deleted member 4366]

If the bike shop can't fix it by simple adjustment, don't waste any more time on it. Don't spend any money on anything other that a proper hydraulic brake that you can get for about £40. They're very easy to fit. No modification is necessary. Just take off the old lever, cable and caliper complete, and on goes the new lever, hosr and caliper. Don't waste your money trying different pads or worst of all different cable-operated calipers. Nothing else can match the control and power of a hydraulic brake. They're the best single improvement that you can make to a bike without them.

 

[Kinninvie]

The cable operated disc brakes on my bike were next to useless so I bought a pair of Clarks Exo Skeletal hydraulic brakes from Chain Reaction for less than £40 delivered and now can lock up both wheels if I choose to.
If you can only fit a front one thats £20 which is no more than a cable setup would cost anyway.
I had a rattle on the back of my bike at first but it turned out to be the metal plate on my keyring attached to the rear mounted battery.
Cut it off and now its silent.

It would be interesting to see what mileage you are getting out of your battery,perhaps you could do a few miles close to home one weekend till it goes flat and let us know how it does?

 

[Nealh]

For the money and an off the shelf bike not to a bad bike Cre, I rode one at Redbridge and liked it. Ok for the road and commuting, any niggles should easily be sorted. Just check with Hatti to ensure any upgrades won't affect the warranty. Most road bikes tend to be in the 20 -25 kg area, my recent convert is about 22.5kg. Otherwise agree with d8veh and Kinninvie add a Hyd-brake to the front, I have them front and Back and they are awsome. Easy to adjust with small allen key on the lever cam depending on the lever travel you require.

 

[mountainsport]

I love the colour of the Big Bear a mixture of blue and grey.

MS.

 

[crE]

I took it into halfords and they guy sorted my front brakes in 30 seconds. Charged me 4 quid (should have been 6). They are bedding in well too.

Chain gard has tempered the rattling too.

The gear changes are smooth now. I find it best to gently nudge the breaks and i can fly through the gears nice and quick.

I am however getting a quiet knocking / tick tocking sound when the motor is running. But this doesn't happen all the time. It doesn't sound under distress or strain though.

 

[trex]

...
I am however getting a quiet knocking / tick tocking sound when the motor is running. But this doesn't happen all the time. It doesn't sound under distress or strain though.

from the non drive side, check if the chain flaps against the chainguard.
The chainguard is mounted on two soft long steel brackets, easy to flex, push the chainguard away from the chain if you find the chain too close.

 

[crE]

I have had the chain guard removed for a few days so it's not that. (In my earlier post I meant to say chain guard protector has tempered the rattling, not chain guard, apologies)

 

[crE]

It's a very consistent tocking sound that speeds up or slows down depending on rotation of the gears

 

[trex]

do you get the sound when you use the throttle and rest your legs?

 

[crE]

Yep

 

[trex]

I don't know.
there is a freewheel/sprag clutch built into the CD motor on the chain side. Turn the cranks backward, you can hear the (tiny) soft sound made by the ratchet mechanism. If it's the same sound, then it's normal. But you can't hear it when the motor is doing the driving.
There is also a tiny sound made by the gearbox. Again, I can't say I hear it when riding. If you can record the sound, then we may be able to guess.

 

[crE]

I will try and record later today or tomorrow. Thanks guys. Such a great help

 

[crE]

Not got round to recording the sound yet. But my issue of "creaking" sound when pedalling seems to be 90% resolved. My allen key arrived yesterday and I tightened the 8mm bits. They did actually need tightening somewhat (they weren't very loose but could easily managed another turn). There is still the faintest squeak but I will tighten a touch more tonight.