Replacing a 'Cheapo Chinese special'

flecc

Member
Oct 25, 2006
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Hi Flecc
This is the most worrying comment I've noticed on the forum for ages.
If a new battery is only two thirds efficient after it's been on a shelf for two years, how do we know how 'fresh' replacement or additional batteries we buy are? Is there any legislation or consumer protection in place?
The new generation Bosch batteries are £800 a pop!! I'd want to KNOW it was fresh as a daisy before paying that out.
Sorry to hi-jack the OP.
As you see I was careful to say "could lose", and gave a worst case situation with some cheap batteries. That is far from the case with the best high end batteries, which if cared for suffer very small loss over two years.

In addition a few batteries like the Panasonic ones for their crank unit and the Kalkhoff-BMZ batteries have a sleep mode which cuts in after about two weeks unused, further reducing capacity loss with age.

On the basis that an e-bike supplier would be unlikely to tie up money in more than three months or so of consumable stock, there's nothing to worry the buyer.

But of course my advice still applies that one shouldn't buy a battery to save it unused for a couple of years or more, since it's just paying for such loss as does occur with money that could be earning interest in a savings account for two or more years. Plus there's the nuisance of charging every three months or so to maintain good condition.
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