bosch or kallkoff?

Martin@e-bikeshop · Jun 13, 2015

farmer said:
Devon based and looking to go electric,it's hilly here!
Consider-.
Bosch system bikes look prettier.
K bikes better value but the thread on misleading advert is a concern.
B bikes -can buy a speed dongle in the future if so wish.
B bikes more reliable?
K bikes more powerfull?
Opinions would be appreciated.
Thanks

Try both make your own opinion?
I know I am biased, but the Bosch system is much smoother, particularly on gear changes, also is more advanced with ability for updates from Bosch etc.

Electrifying Cycles · Jun 13, 2015

Hi Farmer

Why limit yourself to those two brands of ebike systems. What bike suits will depend on a number of factors:

How many miles do you need to travel in one go?
Are you going to be using the bike alot? (no need to pay circa £2k if the range and use does not justify it)
Will you be using the bike in a very hilly area? i.e. gradients more than 10% (most ebikes will cope with 10% hills, while others like Bosch, Yamaha can cope with pretty much anything)
Will you be using the bike on road, off road or a mixture of both?

We sell Bosch powered bikes and Yamaha powered bikes as featured on Haibikes (mainly offroad but also trekking model available. Yamaha has more torque than Bosch 70nm and the assistance kicks in sooner but it is not quite as smooth.

We keep parts in stock so if the worst happens we do not keep customers waiting

The best advice is to try a few and see which suits you. Our philosophy is the right bike for the right person.

In terms of reliability best to ask dealer or direct sellor what happens in the event of a problem i.e. do you have to return the bike to them or will they collect it? This can be a problem if you are long way from the dealer.

Dave

Hugh · Jun 13, 2015

I've had both. Both have their pros and cons, but both are well made (generally) with good quality kit. That said, it's Haibike for me every time now - I much prefer the motor layout and improved ground clearance.

Wander · Jun 13, 2015

farmer said:
K bikes better value but the thread on misleading advert is a concern.

The more I contribute to that thread the more I think it should be ignored.

Having said that for me, like Hugh, it would be a Haibike every time.

Deleted member 4366 · Jun 13, 2015

farmer said:
Devon based and looking to go electric,it's hilly here!
Consider-.
Bosch system bikes look prettier.
K bikes better value but the thread on misleading advert is a concern.
B bikes -can buy a speed dongle in the future if so wish.
B bikes more reliable?
K bikes more powerfull?
Opinions would be appreciated.
Thanks

It depends what you want it for. Is it for sporting use, to ride to work to to dobyour shopping? How far do you need to go? There's loads of other bikes too. How did you come to a choice between them? There's Yamaha, Brose, Shimano and others, and very shortly, we can expect to see Bafang Maxi drives in the shops. Why a crank motor, when there's loads of bikes with hub-motors that can climb well?

JohnCade · Jun 13, 2015

Beatles or the Rolling Stones? Jaguar or BMW?

Everyone will have their opinions, but they don’t have to ride it. You do. Try a few if you can and consider as said above what you want it for.

BTW as regards the other thread. No dealer offers an unconditional money back guarantee. 50 Cycles allows you to transfer the warranty when you sell it in the two year warranty period though, and not many other dealers let you do that. I don’t think they all offer a two year warranty either.

Deleted member 4366 · Jun 13, 2015

If you're not over 90 kg and unfit, the Oxygen MTB at £1200 would take some beating. It won the World Championships (hill climb) in Bristol last year with a rank amateur unfit, overweight rider on it against semi-professionals on top spec Bosch and other bikes.

Croxden · Jun 13, 2015

My R&M Delite is doing all you are asking for. It rides better than the Haibike and has been most reliable, over 5000 miles in the first year only oil changes needed in the Rohloff hub gears.

Deleted member 4366 · Jun 13, 2015

Croxden said:
My R&M Delite is doing all you are asking for. It rides better than the Haibike and has been most reliable, over 5000 miles in the first year only oil changes needed in the Rohloff hub gears.

Didn't you have problems with your display and brakes?

soundwave · Jun 13, 2015

Croxden · Jun 13, 2015

d8veh said:
Didn't you have problems with your display and brakes?

Yes, I forgot about that, a replacement Intuvia display was provided, the brake piston was stuck and soon sorted by OnBike but this was after the 5000 miles. None of the above stopped me riding.

Good memory You have D8veh.

Tomtomato · Jun 13, 2015

Best to try yourself both types of bikes.

On the same day, I tried a Macina Cross 9 (Bosch) and a Kalkhoff Pro Connect 9 (Impulse 2).

The Kalkhoff was better value in term of equipment, and I found the impulse system better. Also, the screen/display was much better on the Kalkhoff, as well as the controls.

The issue with the Bosch or Yamaha systems is that they seem to be limited to one type of battery/one capacity, whereas Kalkhoff has a range from 11aH to 17aH

Deleted member 4366 · Jun 13, 2015

Croxden said:
Yes, I forgot about that, a replacement Intuvia display was provided, the brake piston was stuck and soon sorted by OnBike but this was after the 5000 miles. None of the above stopped me riding.

Good memory You have D8veh.

It's good that you post all details in your review. We've had other people on this forum boasting about how great their bikes are, but they conveniently forget to mention all the serious problems they had. That's very bad because people risk their hard earned and precious money after reading what's written here. It's very difficult to get honest long-term reviews. Thank you for yours.

On the point of the dodgy display, this has come up relatively frequently. For you, it didn't cause too much of a problem because you were able to take your bike back to a helpful dealer, but for others, it caused a lot of inconvenience and stress. Some dealers are happy to send out parts for you to fix your bike yourself if you can. Others don't (mainly Bosch bikes). Some dealers like E-bikesdirect and Woosh have a very convenient returns system in place for their bikes in case of problems. When choosing a bike, all these things have to be taken into consideration.

trex · Jun 13, 2015

one not so little detail: the Bosch motors have Isis bottom bracket, the Impulse and Yamaha CD motors have the inferior square taper BB.
If you pedal a lot, the Isis system is the only way.

Deleted member 4366 · Jun 13, 2015

soundwave said:

That's the event, but not the final with the Emate MTB. That video shows club cyclist Jonathan, son of John, owner of SYEBC racing our Colin (KTM). Jonathan is on the Emate City. The guy that trounced them all on the Emate MTB was the warehouse worker, who's only cycling experience was occasionally riding his Tesco bike the 1 mile to work and back when his girlfriend had the car. He didn't even get a practice run. The bike only arrived from China the day before, which is why they put their best rider on the Emate City. He'd been practicing on it (a lot) according to what I was told.

soundwave · Jun 13, 2015

is there a full vid of the event? and will there be any more in the uk.

bosch or kallkoff?

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