E-bike recommendation please

[richtea]

If you want a hybrid, then the Boardman HYB 8.9E is a whisker over £2k* at the moment, with no suspension:
https://www.cyclerepublic.com/boardman-hyb-8-9e-mens-electric-hybrid-bike.html

You'll need to allow £28 for mudguards, and some extra if you want panniers - but the frame has all the necessary fixing holes.
My wife has one, and she definitely doesn't break out in a sweat (unlike me trying to keep up on an ordinary tourer - grr!).

At 6.5 miles each way you can have full power all the time if you really want to irrtitate other cyclists - and still have a lot of battery spare.

 

[Stephenite]

I see Ribble were mentioned upthread and they do indeed have this beauty https://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/ribble-endurance-sl-e/

A bit over the 2k you mentioned but you could sell your other bikes to make up the diff

 

[13 rider]

I see Ribble were mentioned upthread and they do indeed have this beauty https://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/ribble-endurance-sl-e/

A bit over the 2k you mentioned but you could sell your other bikes to make up the diff

On yesterday commute had a chat to a lady riding one of these I had seen her a few times and thought it was an E bike ,but it just looks with a normal road bike but the big rear hub gave it away
She says to uses everyday and just rides as a normal bike on the commute no assistance as it only says around 12kg . She just uses the assistance on weekend rides to keep up with husband and help on the hills .
More than ops budget but it could also replace his standard bike . The only downside ifhe commutes in all weathers it will have to be clip on mudguards

 

[MarkF]

The bike that most appeals to me, having spent hours looking, is the Giant Fast Road. This is the sort of bike I could spend all day out on, the commute could be taken care of by any old e-bike.

But the weight bothers me, the residual values also, both clolour schemes are well drab and the fact my budget would be blasted.

 

[Pale Rider]

The weight is what it is, most full assist ebikes are 20kg+, and there's no chance of that reducing anytime soon.

Batteries were big and heavy when they were invented, fast forward 200 years and they are still big and heavy, ditto motors.

There are a handful of carbon framed hardtail emtbs that have a full assist motor and a large battery which come in at under 20kg, but at a typical cost of £5k.

The bike you've chosen has Giant's branded version of the Yamaha motor.

Nothing wrong with that, but the Bosch motor is reckoned to offer smoother power delivery.

The secondhand ebike market is still immature, but ebikes depreciate swiftly just as a push bike does.

Some indication ebikes may depreciate quicker because buyers are suspicious of battery durability.

Thus a buyer might want to factor in the cost of a replacement battery when making a bid on a secondhand ebike.

In the case of the Giant that would be about £700 which is going to rip a huge lump out of the second hand value.

My view is money spent on any bike, electric or otherwise, is money spent, not invested.

Anything I get back for it after I've finished with it is a bonus.

If residual values are a concern, don't buy an ebike.

 

[Mike_P]

The Yahama on my Giant seems smooth enough. I did come across a web site which rated the Yahama as having better hill climbing performance that the Bosch. The one issue I do currently have is that the associated mobile app is refusing to upload ride data since it's last "update".

 

[Deleted member 26715]

If residual values are a concern, don't buy an ebike.

Or any bike really

 

[Bonefish Blues]

Or any bike mode of transport really

EFA😊

 

[CXRAndy]

Cheapest option, retrofit either a Bafang or Tongscheng TSD motor kit. They will fit most bikes that have a Threaded 68/73 mm bottom bracket. You can have a lot more versatility for far less outlay if you possess the donor bike already.

 

[MarkF]

I've only ever bought one new bike, that was £650 & 10 years ago, I still have it. All my other bikes and the umpteen that have passed through have all been maybe a year or two old and mint. I tend to buy Giant/Spesh/Trek/Dawes too as it makes it easier to move them on, I wouldn't be surprised if I haven't suffered any financial loss in the last decade with around 15/20 bikes coming & going. Residual value & the ease of moving bikes on, matters to me.

The Giant costs about £2800, one was on Ebay for £1000 less, a low mileage 2019 model, that's a major loss in less than 12 months . If it was local I'd have had a test ride and that is what I definitely need before I part with a big chunk of cash..

 

[MarkF]

Cheapest option, retrofit either a Bafang or Tongscheng TSD motor kit. They will fit most bikes that have a Threaded 68/73 mm bottom bracket. You can have a lot more versatility for far less outlay if you possess the donor bike already.

Hmm, I have a Dawes Clubman that I bought from this forum for a tour this year, that's not going to happen now and it's just sat there.

 

[Mike_P]

I went down the retrofit route, after just over a year it stopped working, presumed it was the torque sensor, got hold of a replacement but no way could I get it to fit
The design had changed slightly but that did not look as if it would cause a problem but their was simply no way it would readily slide into the motor assembly so ended up putting the bike back to normal pedal power and bought the Giant.

 

[Poppppy]

Hi

^ The 'light assistance' provided is enough on my Boardman to make it almost as quick as my road bike, but without the aggressive aero, skinny tires, and rock solid frame.

Fazua is apparently updating the firmware of the motor/battery to give more assistance to make the bike perform closer to a Bosch motors bike.

What ever eBike you get make sure there is good manufacture support for the battery/motor/software. Fazua for example is clearly making updates to things as they develop their software, Bosch I suspect similar.

Opting for a cheaper battery/motor setup now may not offer you the same degree of future proofing.

Having also owned EV since 2015, I can tell you from first hand the software side of electric motor/battery management and user interface is as important as stats on Wh and motor peak torque performance.

£2k isn't a small sum to drop on a bike, get one which looks to have decent ongoing manufacture support and it'll last you much longer going into the future.

Hi after reading your comments I tjoughg you might be able to advise me please . I already have a carrera crosscity ebike foldable and wanted to upgrade to a more powerful ebike . ( incidentally I want bigger wheels and to be able to cycle further on a single charge ) . I am looking at the boardman hybrid 8.9 e ladies . But I am concerned that it is only the same power for hills .as it seems to be only about the same wattage . Or am I getting that wrong . Do I have to compare more than just wattage when comparing the power of bikes at getting up a hill. Thankyou for your help .
The alternative I thought would be the carrera crossfuse ladies ebike. It's so heavy though but wattage is near 500 so thought this would suit my desires better .which are more power and more range on a single charge than my old bike . Not concerned about beauty

 

[Smudge]

Hi

Hi after reading your comments I tjoughg you might be able to advise me please . I already have a carrera crosscity ebike foldable and wanted to upgrade to a more powerful ebike . ( incidentally I want bigger wheels and to be able to cycle further on a single charge ) . I am looking at the boardman hybrid 8.9 e ladies . But I am concerned that it is only the same power for hills .as it seems to be only about the same wattage . Or am I getting that wrong . Do I have to compare more than just wattage when comparing the power of bikes at getting up a hill. Thankyou for your help .
The alternative I thought would be the carrera crossfuse ladies ebike. It's so heavy though but wattage is near 500 so thought this would suit my desires better .which are more power and more range on a single charge than my old bike . Not concerned about beauty

Obviously depends how fit a rider you are and how much power you can put in yourself. But hill climbing is all about torque and you really want crank drive motor for decent torque. Most ebikes with CD will give the torque figures, anything from 40nm to 90nm. The steeper the hills you ride, the bigger the torque you will need.

 

[gzoom]

I am looking at the boardman hybrid 8.9 e ladies . But I am concerned that it is only the same power for hills .as it seems to be only about the same wattage .

I think it depends on what you are looking for. I was/am after something to help take the edge off peak HR on climbs/head wind, so that I can get to work not all that sweaty.

The Fazua system is expensive compared to many others, you are paying for a compact design, natural pedal feel, and low weights rather than high assitance.

Am very happy with how the system works for me, but my average speed on my commute is 16mph+, so I actually use the motor/assistance very sparingly.

If you just want a more powerful/assisted eBike experience I don't think the Fazua system is worth the extra money over a similar spec motor.