Buy local (lancashire) or mail order?

[The Maestro]

Hi, I'm new to the forum. Recent circumstances mean I can't drive a car or motorbike so I'm after an electric bike or pedelec for my 20 mile round trip commute to work. I am very fit and could do it on a normal bike but it would be a real pain on those days when I had a bit of a cold, hangover or knackered for some other reason. Because its going to be my main form of transport its got to be fairly reliable and stand up to bad weather etc.

I'm just wondering if anyone knows of any good pedelec/e-bike sellers in the North-West of England? I've searched the forum already and came up with two:

Apple BIkes in Lytham St. Annes who stock the 'Giant' range
Valley Scooters in Bolton that sell the PowaByke, PowaCycle and Urban Mover ranges

At the moment I'm leaning towards the Powercycle Salisbury. I like the look of the Kalkhoff range and maybe the Ezee Liv but all the dealers are 'dahn sowf' and I'm not sure if mail order is a good idea. I've exchanged a few emails with 50Cycles but they didn't really answer my questions and I find their extended warranty which costs 100 pounds a year just to cover shipping costs in the event of a problem VERY off putting to say the least. Its like they are expecting every bike to need shipping back 3 times a year! Are electric bikes still very much a 'work in progress', i.e. 'expect problems' or are they a reliable transport method?

Anyway any advice is greatly appreciated

[carpetbagger]

welcome to the forum,A1 motors in Accrington Darwen and Burnley stock Powabykes and Redline Garage at Cabus Garstang also advertise them.AE Hargreaves at clitheroe also stock some electric bikes but not sure which.I don't know about any other bikes.Three new Powabykes out shortly so don't rush into it.

[Kal]

Originally Posted by The Maestro

Hi, I'm new to the forum. Recent circumstances mean I can't drive a car or motorbike so I'm after an electric bike or pedelec for my 20 mile round trip commute to work. I am very fit and could do it on a normal bike but it would be a real pain on those days when I had a bit of a cold, hangover or knackered for some other reason. Because its going to be my main form of transport its got to be fairly reliable and stand up to bad weather etc.

I'm just wondering if anyone knows of any good pedelec/e-bike sellers in the North-West of England? I've searched the forum already and came up with two:

Apple BIkes in Lytham St. Annes who stock the 'Giant' range
Valley Scooters in Bolton that sell the PowaByke, PowaCycle and Urban Mover ranges

At the moment I'm leaning towards the Powercycle Salisbury. I like the look of the Kalkhoff range and maybe the Ezee Liv but all the dealers are 'dahn sowf' and I'm not sure if mail order is a good idea. I've exchanged a few emails with 50Cycles but they didn't really answer my questions and I find their extended warranty which costs 100 pounds a year just to cover shipping costs in the event of a problem VERY off putting to say the least. Its like they are expecting every bike to need shipping back 3 times a year! Are electric bikes still very much a 'work in progress', i.e. 'expect problems' or are they a reliable transport method?

Anyway any advice is greatly appreciated

Welcome to The Maestro!

Your new e-bike will be used for to commute to work so reliability should be your main priority in which case I think buying local would be the best option for you. Some people do have problems with their electric bikes and if things go wrong then buying locally would enable you to get things sorted out more quickly and with the least amount of hassle. Buying off-line you have the advantage of being able to compare and try the bikes for size and performance.

PowaBykes are good reliable machines and good hill climbers. In this case I personally would go for the basic 6 speed lead battery model. Upgrading to a lithium battery makes this bike too expensive in my opinion. As carpetbagger says new bikes out soon but more expensive no doubt.

The PowaCycle Salisbury is one of the lowest powered electric bikes but is reliable and is cheap. This e-bike has a good range and would be fine if you don't have any steep hills to climb on your commute. Choice of battery too.

When I was researching cheap e-bikes I had the PowaCycle Salisbury on my shortlist. I live in a very hilly area so chose the cheaper more powerful yet still modestly powered Synergie Mistral instead. I have been very pleased with the 36v Lithium Mistral that I have now owned for over two months and have done around 650 miles without any problems except for the useless dynamo lighting. This bike may not be suitable for you because it was an eBay purchase.

Ezee Liv would be a good and not too expensive choice too but would be an online purchase.

Kalkhoff are thought to be, by many enthusiasts, the best pedelec available right now. These use the Panasonic system replacing the now out-of-production Giant Lafree. This system is the best for hill climbing but Kalkhoff are expensive.

One thing I would miss is the throttle control on my Mistral, this is not always included even on expensive machines. E-bikes with throttles give you the choice of going for miles on the flat without having to turn the pedals, make pulling away smooth and give you more control all round.
.

[Django]

Hi Maestro,

There isn't a simple answer, but my experience tells me that your relationship with the supplier will be very important indeed. That is a good reason to buy local or at the very least to visit, talk to and test ride before purchasing from an online supplier. You need to be able to trust them.

Have you considered buying second hand? Unless you have very steep hills and given your description of yourself as 'very fit', you may find a Mark 1 Torq ideal. I'm not sure I would be happy with 15mph now that I am used to zipping along at over 20mph and I suspect you may be similar.

[stokepa31_mk2]

Originally Posted by Kal

Welcome to The Maestro!

Your new e-bike will be used for to commute to work so reliability should be your main priority in which case I think buying local would be the best option for you. Some people do have problems with their electric bikes and if things go wrong then buying locally would enable you to get things sorted out more quickly and with the least amount of hassle. Buying off-line you have the advantage of being able to compare and try the bikes for size and performance..

I agree strongly here. when my wheel needed to be respoked none of my local shops waned to touch my torq 2. This meant I had to get it to loughborough for 50c to fix. even with their quick turnaound on the work, my diary etc meant I was off the road for over a week and im only a 40 min drive from them.

on a long commute i would really want a throttle for those mornings when you just cant be bothered or are hung over or under the weather.

all my research pointed me to the torq as i live in a flattish area and like to go fast. Ive not tried the wispers although ive not heard much bad about them and may get one next. I think Harry has found his agattu is about the same time wise on a long commute when compared to the torq but has since modded the gears. will be interesting to see the results when his wheel is fixed. (have I got that right Harry or am I miss remebering what ive read)

so for me, even if i lived next door to powabyke i'd still go for a torq or agattu or wisper depending on what I wanted out of the bike.

All that may change when the new models come out and we live (or rather ride) in an ever evolving world.

Regards
Paul

[HarryB]

Originally Posted by stokepa31_mk2

I think Harry has found his agattu is about the same time wise on a long commute when compared to the torq but has since modded the gears. will be interesting to see the results when his wheel is fixed. (have I got that right Harry or am I miss remebering what ive read)

Yes that is right. Robert44 and myself are still waiting for wheels/hubs to come from Kahlkoff. No sign of them yet.

I am expecting the Agattu to be marginally faster than a restricted Torq 1 but it cannot compete with the Torq 1 when de-restricted.

[The Maestro]

Originally Posted by Django

Hi Maestro,

There isn't a simple answer, but my experience tells me that your relationship with the supplier will be very important indeed. That is a good reason to buy local or at the very least to visit, talk to and test ride before purchasing from an online supplier. You need to be able to trust them.

Have you considered buying second hand? Unless you have very steep hills and given your description of yourself as 'very fit', you may find a Mark 1 Torq ideal. I'm not sure I would be happy with 15mph now that I am used to zipping along at over 20mph and I suspect you may be similar.

Yep I think the 15 mph cut-out could make the bike a bit pointless a lot of the time since I'd generally be doing above that on the flat anyway. My trip to work is very flat. If I was cycling normally on my Marin bike I'd be doing 25+ for reasonably chunks of the trip. I'd like to be able to do that but not get sweaty. I also agree with the other poster who said that a throttle would be essential for those days when I'm really not up to it.

I like the look of the Wisper 905se at the moment because it looks pretty cool and has 20mph derestricted mode. Problems are its a bit pricey and the company are a very long way from me. I'm trying to find out what their returns policy is or if they have any local dealers near me.

The Torq you mention also sounds good but I've not had much luck locating any decent bikes second hand, the ones on ebay look a bit like old heath-robinson affairs.

The bikes I can get locally are Giants, PowaCycle, powabyke and urban mover. At the moment the Salisbury is still winning out if only because of the throttle and decent range. On most days I suspect I'd find the 15mph cut off a pain though. Is there any scope for derestricing any of these brands?

[The Maestro]

Originally Posted by HarryB

Yes that is right. Robert44 and myself are still waiting for wheels/hubs to come from Kahlkoff. No sign of them yet.

I am expecting the Agattu to be marginally faster than a restricted Torq 1 but it cannot compete with the Torq 1 when de-restricted.

Torq is and Ezee bike right? Are the nature of the changes you are making to the Agattu to make it provide power assist at greater speeds? Is is a bit job to modify it?

[frank9755]

I'd advise you to try any bike carefully before buying, ideally with a computer so you can see the speed you are doing.

Bikes like the powacycle, and the others you mention are available locally, can't be derestricted. If you can cycle at 25 or even 20 mph on the flat on a normal bike, I think you will find most electric bikes unsuitable! Even on a Mark 1 Torq you will not be able to go that fast. You'll be spending most of your time above the assisted range, so you won't benefit from the power, and they will not be as pleasant to ride unpowered as your current bike. For example owners report that the Torq 1 provides good assistance to 22mph but is very hard to pedal faster than that due to factors such as motor resistance.

Good luck with your search, but I fear that, unless you are happy to go a lot slower than on your normal bike, you may not find an electric bike that meets your needs.

[The Maestro]

Originally Posted by frank9755

I'd advise you to try any bike carefully before buying, ideally with a computer so you can see the speed you are doing.

Bikes like the powacycle, and the others you mention are available locally, can't be derestricted. If you can cycle at 25 or even 20 mph on the flat on a normal bike, I think you will find most electric bikes unsuitable! Even on a Mark 1 Torq you will not be able to go that fast. You'll be spending most of your time above the assisted range, so you won't benefit from the power, and they will not be as pleasant to ride unpowered as your current bike. For example owners report that the Torq 1 provides good assistance to 22mph but is very hard to pedal faster than that due to factors such as motor resistance.

Good luck with your search, but I fear that, unless you are happy to go a lot slower than on your normal bike, you may not find an electric bike that meets your needs.

I guess in that case buying a cheap one with a throttle would be my best bet.