Help & Advice wanted on electric bikes

[iancleach]

We have a new motor home - Peugot Boxer style (Autosleeper). It was fitted with a bike rack to hold two bikes. We were new to 'motorhoming' & we purchased a couple of cheap bikes to see if it was something we could get used to on our travels. Yes in essence but hard work on hills so we thought we would look at e-bikes. Found this site & the info has been invaluable as one possible option was going to be a 'Lifecycle'. However may now have been put off these. seemed strange that there was no feed back anywhere.

However the problem we have is that the Fiamma bike rack we have fitted states max load 35Kg even though it holds two bikes. Most of the electric type seem to be in the region of 23Kg each. Can the bike rack be modified in any way to support the extra load. The motorhome has two doors on the rear & the rack is fitted to one of them.

The next question is what type of bike & how much to pay. I did not realise ther was so much option. We would like something that will last & not cut out or break after a short time but our usage, particularly in the early stages, is likely to be just riding locally from the campsite. However if it is as easy to ride as suggested we may make a lot more use of them. But £1500 - £2000 apiece seems a lot to fork out just in case. All bike manufacturers seem to suggest that theirs are the best & it is quite confusing. The battery seems to be a large portion of the cost. Is it worth paying more for a better battery? How long would they last? are they easily charged from a leisure battery within the motorhome (I have a solar panel).
Any advice would be welcome to help us make a practical decision.
Many thanks to all in anticipation

 

[indalo]

However the problem we have is that the Fiamma bike rack we have fitted states max load 35Kg even though it holds two bikes. Most of the electric type seem to be in the region of 23Kg each. Can the bike rack be modified in any way to support the extra load.

Hi and welcome.

With a bit of ingenuity, I suppose it is possible to strengthen any standard bike rack but It has to be remembered that the Fiamma racks designed for motorhome fitment don't fit on to large chassis sections as is the case with a towbar. I have a triple-channel Fiamma on the back of my truck and I happily attach three regular bikes to it. However, I refuse to mount my 27Kg ebike on it as each channel has a safe limit, according to Fiamma, of 15Kg. I can reduce the weight by removing the battery but that still leaves the ebike way over the recommended limit.

The other deterrent in my case is that I ride a Panasonic-powered model with the battery behind the seatpost, lengthening the wheelbase to the point where the vertical centre-lines through the 28" wheels occur right on or slightly outside the extreme edges of the channels.

Fortunately, in my case, I can utilise the in-built garage for the ebike but given the type of motorhome you described, you don't enjoy that luxury. In summary, I would caution against modifying a Fiamma rack to accommodate heavy bikes. My advice is that you need to seek out very lightweight, standard wheelbase ebikes or utilise electric folders if regular bikes are out of the question. The other alternative is to consider a towbar-mounted ebike carrier or a suitable trailer. It can get expensive though!

There are other motorhomers in the membership here and I think Eddieo now has a smaller truck with a similar back-end to yours. He may be able to guide you to an appropriate solution.

Best of luck,
Indalo

 

[mike_j]

Hi,

I am new to the forum but am considering an electric bike for my campervan (Autosleeper Duetto). The Fiamma rack won't do, partly because of load but also, since it is mounted quite high I couldn't lift a heavy bike on to it. I have in mind fitting a rack basically consisting of an aluminium channel bolted to the rear step of the van, it may even have a folding ramp to wheel the bike up. If I can't find a suitable commercial one I'll get it made by local metal workshop.

Like you I am trying to decide just how much to spend. As I have a perfectly decent Giant hybrid bike with much better cycle parts than I would get in a cheap new electric bike I am tempted by a conversion kit but have lots of questions I would like answered before going down this route.