Fixing punctures on e-bikes - is it a problem?

[This Wreckage]

I'm considering replacing my manual Gazelle Esprit belt drive bike with a similar e-bike at around the £2000 mark. I am considering the Tenways CGO800S; one positive review states:

changing a puncture on the rear wheel would not be a job for home. First it’s a belt drive, so you’ll require some knowhow of tensioning those in replacing the wheel, but more so because the rear hub motor’s cabling seats within the chainstay with a connector apparently buried. That’s not a home DIY task

I can fix punctures on my current belt driven bike, but it seems that the motor connector position rules out DIY repairs. How is that to be solved 15 miles from home? Is this a problem common to electric bikes?

 

[roubaixtuesday]

I've no experience of ebikes, but it is possible to patch a tube in situ without removing the wheel - pull out the tube whilst still attached at the valve, glue a patch, replace.

Alternatively, special linear inner tubes are available which allow swapping the tube without removing the wheel. I think that's what I would do rather than risk being stranded.

https://gaadi.de/en/

I guess it's an issue for all hub drive bikes, but more or less severe depending on the cabling and drivetrain.

If you want to avoid the issue completely, a mid drive ebike would presumably do that.

 

[All uphill]

My ebike is conventional in that it has mid-drive, QR and a chain, but I still dread fixing a puncture by the roadside just because of the weight of the thing.

I know I should practice at home, but, but, but...

 

[Dadam]

Depends on the bike but I'd say it's not a common problem on electric bikes. Most hub drive bikes like my Orbea Gain have a connector plug on the motor cable, so it's a case of pulling this out to remove the wheel, then reconnecting it. It's a minor extra faff compared to a normal bike or a mid-drive. There's a plastic cover for the cable under the chainstay. I've done it out on a ride before with no issue. I also did it in the car park at work once. Sometimes the plugs can be a bit stiff to remove, especially if they've not been disconnected in a while so I grease mine with some silicone.

Some more modern bikes like the more recent version of the Orbea have a magnetic power connector so you can just remove and replace the wheel as normal.

Some cheapo bikes, conversions and older e-bikes have a wired connection with no plug. These would be a pain, so you'd have to patch the tube in situ, or use a "Gaadi" sausage style tube. Or go tubeless.

If I was interested in that bike I'd be looking for opinions of owners not that review. What does the Tenways manual say? I've no confidence in that reviewer who said this:

All this said, it’s no bad thing to have a professional mechanic handle your servicing anyway.

Servicing the motor maybe but fixing a puncture!?? Ridiculous.

Personally I'd avoid a bike with no plug or an inaccessible one. Do you need a belt drive? I know they're relatively maintenance free but wiping and oiling a chain every week or two isn't much of a hardship.

 

[Yellow Saddle]

Yes, fixing punctures on them is a pain. As you all said, the weight, awkwardness and difficulty in removing the rear wheel all contribures to the problem. The best solution is Gaadi tube. Carry a knife if your current tube isn't a Gaadi, because you will have to get the conventional tube off when you puncture.

Don't compromise with a chain, stick to the belt drive. It is infinitely better than a chain. Chain and sprocket drives on e-bikes were designed for non-electric bikes with very little torque. Using the same equipment on an e-bike doesn't work. You tend to use up the small sprockets very quickly thanks to the motor that helps you start in high gear.

An e-bike only needs a few gears, say 5, with a pre-narrow chain type sprocket.

Belt drives solve all those problems plus more.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

I ahve had 4 ebike - still have the folder and a Bosch mid drive

Only one that was a problem was the first as the cable had no connector to undo
but I could - and did - manage to fix a puncture at the roadside
just just had to work from the non cable side
you undid the axle nuts and just lifted the whull out and tilted it away a bit and the tyre and tube could be taken off
OK - it was a bit more faf that normal - but not too bad after a bit of practice

and as for weight - OK - my mid drive Bosch weight a fair bit more than a normal bike

but it doesn;t require Ross Kemp to turn it over and put it on its bars and saddle
after that it is "just a bike" when it come to punctures

the folder is hub drive - as was the intermediate one that had to go back - and they had connectors and punctures were just normal - the extra weight was not really enough to be a problem

and I am not the most muscular bloke in the world - and my wrists as teh thinnest I have ever seen on a bloke!

 

[N0bodyOfTheGoat]

I got a practice go of sorts in early summer, when I decided to swap the supplied 40mm WTB Nanos on my GT eGrade Bolt for 35/40mm Marathon Supremes that had been on my old commuter hybrid for several years (but not had several years of actual use).

IIRC besides disconnecting the motor cable plug socket and removing the cable from a chainstay clamp, it was simply a washer and 8mm nut on each side of the axle... I shall probably have another quick practice run in spring to remind myself, just in case I do get a puncture on it in '26, possibly involving a tube switch and maybe another tyre swap to Caracal Races {or wider Pirelli P Zeros or GP5000s}!

 

[Dadam]

Yeah the worst faff in changing the rear tube on my Gain is aligning the axles in the dropouts. Get it lined up to drop in with the chain on the cog then the derailleur spring tension always pulls the hub round so the long axis is side on to the dropout!

 

[albion]

Near everyone fixes ebike punctures in-situ. Though that might be mainly for hub motors, not mid ones.
Those CST tyres are decent so you will not get many. If you do switch to CST Xperium Level 7 or Marathon Plus Ebike edition.

I do wonder though. If you manage with, I assume single speed belt drive, why on earth do you need an ebike?
if you use hub gears then quite likely that single speed ebike is a wrong choice.

 

[Dadam]

albion raises a good point about gears, the Tenways is a single speed. You're going from a geared belt drive to a single speed, albeit with a motor. If there are any hills near you this might be too limiting even with the motor.

In this case I'd definitely be looking at chain drive, notwithstanding Yellow Saddle's comments. Or if you must have a belt drive, go for a mid motor.

I've been very impressed with my mid motor Vado SL, the outgoing model of which is currently on offer for well under 2k. (albeit only Large size). 11 gears with a sizable range. Not belt drive though.
The motor isn't the strongest but that doesn't matter as you can reap the benefit of changing to a lower gear.
It's also only 16kg.

 

[Jenkins]

There's an image on the Tenways help page showing the cable location - it appears to be partly hidden within the chainstay, but is easily exposed for disconnection simply by pulling it out a bit so it's not as difficult as the linked review implies.

 

[fritz katzenjammer]

I’ve had most types of e-bikes to bits. They can all have their back wheels pulled in the field if you want to replace a tube.

I think the Gazelle has a Nexis hub gear, with this or with a hub motor wheel you’ll have to disconnect a cable or connection of some kind from the wheel prior to removal. There may also be a zip tie to clip off in some cases.

if you can already service a belt drive I would think you just need to learn the ins and outs of pulling the wheel in question. The dealer who is selling you the bike should be more than happy to go over the specifics of the job ( or perhaps you need to choose a different dealer )

then you need to be sure you have the tools needed to do the job. Many hub drives need a 15mm or 17mm open ended wrench for instance, not a rare tool but not something usually included in a modern bicycle tool kit.

its not a job to be afraid of, just something you need to learn at home or in the dealership before you need to do it 5 miles from home…

after dark…

in the rain…