Are ebikes (finally) mainstream?

[Dwn]

The majority of people who ride bikes don't give a fig about any exercise benefits. They just want a cheap method of transport and the easier to ride the better.

I haven’t met a a single person who cycled that doesn't give a fig about exercise benefits. People cycle for multiple reasons, including your examples of being cheap transport and easy to ride.

Of course exercise may be a very low priority for some on the list of reason for cycling, but I can’t imagine many wouldn’t place exercise somewhere on that list.

 

[Pale Rider]

pre 2016 ebike had throttles and pedal-assist under granddad rules are allowed on the roads

Yes, always worth bearing in the grandfather rights, although a lot of early throttle ebikes were dreadful contraptions so few of those will be still running.

Some of the better later ones will be approaching battery replacement time, and rightly or wrongly, owners are reluctant to spend up to £750 on a five or more year old bike, always assuming the battery is still available.

Cell replacement, where possible, is a better bet, although I have a mate with a cheap Chinese ebike in need of new cells who is reluctant to spend even £250-£350 on it.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

I have had one for over 10 years - original was obviously a pre-2016 rules so <200w motor (actually 180W) and had a throttle - but the throttle power was so low that it could really only be used on the flat.
As far as how common they are - round here I see one sometimes but it is quite rare. There is an older bloke with one that I see quite often by the airport and I occaisionally see local young people (which for me means <30) on one.
Apart from that they are quite rare - becoming more common but only slowly.
but based on reports here and on other sites loads of them have been sold so they must be somewhere
LBS certainly reports a lot of sales - and would have loads more sales if only he could get hold of them to sell

 

[DRM]

On yesterday's BBC Breakfast news they had one of the presenters going round Salford Quays, she was on a hybrid, the person being interviewed was on a Brompton, discussing them, and their popularity

 

[Pale Rider]

On yesterday's BBC Breakfast news they had one of the presenters going round Salford Quays, she was on a hybrid, the person being interviewed was on a Brompton, discussing them, and their popularity

E or non e?

 

[Drago]

Yes, always worth bearing in the grandfather rights, although a lot of early throttle ebikes were dreadful contraptions so few of those will be still running.

Some of the better later ones will be approaching battery replacement time, and rightly or wrongly, owners are reluctant to spend up to £750 on a five or more year old bike, always assuming the battery is still available.

Cell replacement, where possible, is a better bet, although I have a mate with a cheap Chinese ebike in need of new cells who is reluctant to spend even £250-£350 on it.

That raises an interesting prospect.

Theres been a surge of ebike buying and useabe, as people hsve more leisure time while on furlough, or try to avoid public transport.

It won't last forever, and as things return to a new normal both sales and usage are liable to reduce.

Lack of use is not conducive to a long battery life, and we face the prospect of 3 to 5 years ebike batteries starting to turn faulty. This will lead to a lot of people being reluctant to either spend hundreds repairing a buke that cost them thousands, or then spend further thousands buying a new bike that may eventhally go the same way.

Outside for the more infomed, more hard core cycling community, this will imapct negatively upon the image of an ebike, and urban lore will be such that the wider public may then be reluctant to invest.

So, my prediction...

Short term, sales will continue, bit will taper off as the situation normalised.

Medium term, 3 to 7 years, batteries will expensively fail as described above, and this will in turn impact sales. There will be a sio in ebike sales and usage.

Long term, as the wider puvlic suddenly realise there arent enough materials to give a battery car to everyone who wants one they'll be looking at affordable personal transport once more, and ebike sales will rise qhain, less sharply but more sustained, a longer term rise.

 

[Boopop]

The definition of a moped yrs ago was that it had to be capable of being pedalled, Suzuki AP50, Fizzie, SS50 etc, your youth let's you down 😉

Hmm even so, I somehow doubt they were pedal assist. Comparing a modern ebike to some that can be "twist-and-go" seems to be a disservice to modern ebikes and those that choose to ride them. They're still putting effort in.

Happy to have my youth!

 

[Pale Rider]

That raises an interesting prospect.

Theres been a surge of ebike buying and useabe, as people hsve more leisure time while on furlough, or try to avoid public transport.

It won't last forever, and as things return to a new normal both sales and usage are liable to reduce.

Lack of use is not conducive to a long battery life, and we face the prospect of 3 to 5 years ebike batteries starting to turn faulty. This will lead to a lot of people being reluctant to either spend hundreds repairing a buke that cost them thousands, or then spend further thousands buying a new bike that may eventhally go the same way.

Outside for the more infomed, more hard core cycling community, this will imapct negatively upon the image of an ebike, and urban lore will be such that the wider public may then be reluctant to invest.

So, my prediction...

Short term, sales will continue, bit will taper off as the situation normalised.

Medium term, 3 to 7 years, batteries will expensively fail as described above, and this will in turn impact sales. There will be a sio in ebike sales and usage.

Long term, as the wider puvlic suddenly realise there arent enough materials to give a battery car to everyone who wants one they'll be looking at affordable personal transport once more, and ebike sales will rise qhain, less sharply but more sustained, a longer term rise.

I agree battery replacement will test the resolve of the new ebikers.

Technology creeps along in terms of battery life, and someone replacing a battery in five years will be able to take advantage of that.

Thus their replacement battery may have a slightly longer predicted service life than the original, but the cash will still have to be pulled out to buy it.

 

[Mike_P]

Compared to a moped aside from the pedal issues, ebikes do not require a licence, insurance, tax or MOT; are permitted on cycle lanes/routes, typically have a greater range, are slower (in terms of power assistance), weigh around a third less, have smaller batteries, and the cost per mile is around a quarter. Source:https://urbanebikes.com/blogs/news/electric-bike-vs-electric-moped

 

[CXRAndy]

If you use the Mahle eBikemotion-powered bikes (Ribble, Orbea, Bianchi and others I forget) you can use a heart rate monitor to control when the assist kicks in, effectively riding to a target heart rate so you can get a proper workout and a good sweat on - you just end up farther away from home when you're done For an even more taxing workout, just turn the assist off.

Or just use it as a viable car alternative, suitable for a wider range of people and enjoy continually fresh legs.

This is one of the main reason of getting an ebike myself. I have until recently been an avid non assist rider. I have ridden up some of Europe's epic mountains and cycled many hours. I've not been riding for nearly a year and lost most of my riding fitness. I see the ebike, firstly as a fun item, but as a tool to ride myself back into fitness, with controlled rides at set HR zones. In the early parts of achieving fitness I can add more assistance as I tire but able to keep going.

 

[ColinJ]

you may joke mr nuts, but raise a point - they are not as green as some seem to imagine. Similar issues with electric cars of course.

We had a day last week where more than 50% of the electricity used in the UK came from wind power!

The government plans to greatly increase capacity. The problem with wind power is that sometimes the wind does not blow when you need it to, and sometimes it does when you don't! Having millions of electric cars and bikes trickle charging would be a great way of smoothing out the variations.

 

[Pale Rider]

We had a day last week where more than 50% of the electricity used in the UK came from wind power!

The government plans to greatly increase capacity. The problem with wind power is that sometimes the wind does not blow when you need it to, and sometimes it does when you don't! Having millions of electric cars and bikes trickle charging would be a great way of smoothing out the variations.

I agree the problem of demand for electricity for electric vehicles looks like it will be progressively sorted out as the demand itself progressively increases.

On a side point, I don't hear much these days about tidal power.

At one time there were some teardrop shaped floats off our coast bobbing up and down.

Tides must be attractive at least in one respect because they ebb and flow predictably all the time.

 

[Mo1959]

I was just chatting briefly to a guy I met on my walk who I follow on Strava. He is around ten years younger than me and still knocks out rides averaging 17mph with ease so I was slightly gobsmacked when he said he was considering one. Mainly for commutes I think but not sure I would be bothering yet while I was still managing what he does. Suppose arriving at work not too done in and sweaty when he's an air ambulance paramedic is probably a good thing.

 

[CXRAndy]

I was just chatting briefly to a guy I met on my walk who I follow on Strava. He is around ten years younger than me and still knocks out rides averaging 17mph with ease so I was slightly gobsmacked when he said he was considering one. Mainly for commutes I think but not sure I would be bothering yet while I was still managing what he does. Suppose arriving at work not too done in and sweaty when he's an air ambulance paramedic is probably a good thing.

I met a extremely cycle fit young lady in Tenerife a few years ago. We were doing a cycling tour with the same company. She was a bloody good rider. As you do, you chat after rides and such, she used an ebike to cycle to and from work in Geneva. She and her firm were sorted regarding cycling. She would go out for an hour at lunchtime on her normal road bike (stored at work) , showered on return then cycle home on her ebike.
She worked for one of the many banks in Switzerland. Cyclists dream-wouldnt you agree.

 

[Baldy]

I agree the problem of demand for electricity for electric vehicles looks like it will be progressively sorted out as the demand itself progressively increases.

On a side point, I don't hear much these days about tidal power.

At one time there were some teardrop shaped floats off our coast bobbing up and down.

Tides must be attractive at least in one respect because they ebb and flow predictably all the time.

Bifab the firm that made the tidal floaty things went bust, there's a plan to reopen the plant but it's early days. They had lots of good ideas but not enough investment.