Motus v Wisper

[Nebulous]

My wife has an Ebco step-thru e-bike and has really liked it. She has arthritis and it has made a big difference to our ability to go cycling together. However the battery seems to have lost a fair bit of capacity. On a recent ride it dropped more dramatically than it has ever done before, running out at just under 20 miles. I had to cycle back for the car to rescue her. Batteries are difficult to get, and cost almost as much as the bike did.

We're thinking about buying a new bike. Requirements are step-thru, sit up position (no weight on wrists) and a decent battery. Preferably a battery which will last several years and a lot of charges as well. I'd probably prefer disc brakes, but they may not be essential.

I've seen positive comments on a Raleigh Motus here. There seems to be two different battery sizes, 300 or 400 watt hour and a hub gear option.

I've also seen a Wisper torque 705, which comes with 3 different battery sizes, the top one being a 700 watt hour battery more than twice the 320 which her current battery has/had.

Any thoughts on those two? Anyone got a Wisper?

 

[Yellow Saddle]

Plenty of variables here, including battery type. Is it a lithium battery?

Those don't like the cold. On very cold days I get less than half the performance from my lithium-powered power tools in my cold workshop. They won't even charge when below 5 degrees C. A lithium battery should give you at least 500 charges but, it needs good circuitry to prevent over-charging, over-heating and complete drainage.

If it is a Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) battery, it is probably kaput. They don't accept as many charges and are more susceptible to poor battery management.

 

[Nebulous]

It might be the cold then. It is a lithium battery. We are not generally out under 10 centigrade but this ride was around 3.

The bike has a very rudimentary charge display. 4 lights that go off as charge level drops. We generally get 8-9 miles per light, which has always been enough. 30 miles is about our maximum when out together.

This time they were popping off every 5 miles. I didn't appreciate cold would have such an impact.

Battery has been looked after, kept inside, charged once a month if not used.

 

[Yellow Saddle]

It might be the cold then. It is a lithium battery. We are not generally out under 10 centigrade but this ride was around 3.

The bike has a very rudimentary charge display. 4 lights that go off as charge level drops. We generally get 8-9 miles per light, which has always been enough. 30 miles is about our maximum when out together.

This time they were popping off every 5 miles. I didn't appreciate cold would have such an impact.

Battery has been looked after, kept inside, charged once a month if not used.

The battery can be kept in cold conditions, it won't damage it, but it won't provide what it is capable of when cold. It also shouldn't be charged when cold.

If it is Lithium, there is no need to charge it once a month since it's self-discharge is just about zero. By charging it all the time you are just using up the 500 charge cycles you have.

Try it on a warmer ride and see.

 

[Pale Rider]

The Motus also comes with a 500wh battery, although still not as big as the biggest Wisper.

The Motus has the Bosch crank drive which has a pleasant, natural power delivery - it makes some hub motor bikes seem crude in comparison.

Wisper use an Aikema motor, which is, er, whisper quiet.

Wisper is Chinese (mostly) but has been around for a while.

I'm acquainted with the owner, David Miall, he's a good guy who likes to see satisfied customers.

Battery service life depends on use.

I have a Bosch battery which is six years old and still holding a full charge.

That's partly because the Bosch system is conservatively engineered, the controller will not let you 'thrash' the battery even if you wanted to.

At one time Bosch spare batteries were a lot more than Chinese ones, but the Chinese prices have caught up a bit.

Bosch promise to keep spares for at least seven years after they stop original equipment production.

No such guarantee from Wisper, but David does pride himself on keeping old Wispers on the road so he would try to help you.

@welsh dragon has a Wisper which has given her good service.

 

[welsh dragon]

I have a Wisper 806 torque nexus hub folder. In June it will be 4 years old and i still use the original battery. It has proven to be practically bomb proof. Nothing has gone wrong with it in all that time. As Pale Rider says battery life depends on the amount of use and how you use the bike itself as well as the weight of the rider etc as anyone who that owns an ebike knows.

I can recommend the Wisper and as Pale rider says David is always willing to listen and always ready to help. And the motor is very very quiet indeed. I often get people looking at the bike and telling me how nice it looks and often people comment on it and ask questions about it.

 

[Nebulous]

Thank you folks. First step has to be to check the battery in warmer conditions. Despite being a cheap front hub engined bike she has been very happy with it.

I've just looked back at my posts on here when I bought it and it is around 2.5 years old (July 2016) It isn't used daily - maybe once a week in the summer, a bit less in winter and several times a week on holiday. This is the first time it has let us down and the first time the battery has run out.

 

[welsh dragon]

Thank you folks. First step has to be to check the battery in warmer conditions. Despite being a cheap front hub engined bike she has been very happy with it.

I've just looked back at my posts on here when I bought it and it is around 2.5 years old (July 2016) It isn't used daily - maybe once a week in the summer, a bit less in winter and several times a week on holiday. This is the first time it has let us down and the first time the battery has run out.

No battery likes the cold weather and the mileage you get will always be less the colder it is.

 

[BlueFox]

I think the Motus is pretty - have you considered the Raleigh Strada with Shimano steps?

 

[Nebulous]

An update on this. We were out last weekend and the battery performed much better. We didn't go quite as far, but the power didn't go down as quickly.

The good news though, is after months when we couldn't locate batteries anywhere, they've reappeared in a Dutch bike shop. They are the bigger ones as well, 11amps compared with the current 8.8amp one, which should be a useful upgrade. It arrived today 4 days after ordering, so pretty happy with that.