I got myself an eBike last month (Boardman ADV 8.9e), with a Fazua drive. I wanted something that'd let me start cycling through winter again (wide clearance to fit studded tyres and some assist to remove the dreaded, soul-sucking slogs into awful headwinds), but without the massive weight of the eMTBs with the Bosch/Yamaha motors. I live in a top-floor flat and didn't fancy giving myself a hernia lugging one of those up the stairs.
I've been riding it for the last couple of weeks to shake it down and get used to it before winter really sets in, and here are my observations of the less-powerful Fazua drive:
1. You'll still need to put in a fair bit of effort to get uphill. You can get away with less effort if you're prepared to slow right down and spin the pedals in a high cadence, as that's the way to get the best boost from the assist. You're not going to get away with climbing with almost no effort, which you would do using a more powerful eMTB-style drive system.
2. I haven't found it to be any less energetic or much faster over the length of my commutes. This is due to the fact that I've found that my usual speed for most of my ride is above the assist levels so it's not giving me any help most of the time. It's also heavier than my road bike, so the effort involved in keeping those speeds up is higher.
3. Where it does really help* is setting off from a standing start, or when you've scrubbed off a lot of speed and you're getting back up to speed from less than 15.5mph. The assist (even on its lowest level) really does take the strain out of getting going, so you don't tire your legs out if you do a lot of stopping and starting. That energy saved can go into keeping a decent pace up once you're really moving again.
Overall, although it was - for me - a hefty investment, it's proving to be a fantastic bike and I'm really looking forward to a great winter of commuting on it!
*EDIT - I should also have said that it's been an absolute boon into stiff headwinds. I can maintain a decent clip without totally wearing myself out or my seeing my speed dropping by half.
Evening commute is westwards with a different uphill section and often a battle against strong head/cross winds to the point that when not on the ebike the need to pedal hard going downhill can arise.
