Controller Compatibility

Emily Joy

Pedelecer
Apr 27, 2018
61
4
37
Warwickshire
The same old story. I have bought a new-old-stock Gazelle Orange Innergy. It was mechanically perfect, but electric assistance didn't work. It was diagnosed by the dealer as controller issue. The battery was also dead, but this was easy to resolve by getting a new battery. The UK dealer said that controllers are no longer available from the manufacturer, and I extended my search to Holland. I did manage to find a dealer in Holland who had the controller left in stock. So I bought it and took the new controller and the bike to the UK dealer's workshop for installation...

Alas once we opened the headlight we immediately realized that the control boards are different and have different connectors. The conclusion was that what I was sold a wrong controller. I got in touch then with the shop in Holland and they insist that it is "the right and the only" controller and one has to replace the connectors( here could be a problem with translation --?)

The current state: I have an electric bike which doesn't assist in pedalling. However, both front and back light are powered on by battery and work perfectly.

So I am looking for an independent opinion.

Is it possible that two controllers for the same model have control boards with different sockets? I am no expert, but I would have thought that one doesn't usually move sockets between boards... (At least when dealing with computer's motherboard you typically replace the whole board)
 

Emily Joy

Pedelecer
Apr 27, 2018
61
4
37
Warwickshire
My bike with front light open looks like this:

controller01cut.jpg

The controller sold to me looks like that:

controller03cut.jpg

The cables connecting controller to the front wheel motor are not compatible, too. :confused:
 

John5001

Pedelecer
Oct 6, 2014
127
26
69
Could you just change the connectors on the cables so they will fit?
Bearing in mind the supplier insisted the controller, is the correct one for your mode.
 

Emily Joy

Pedelecer
Apr 27, 2018
61
4
37
Warwickshire
Could you just change the connectors on the cables so they will fit?
Bearing in mind the supplier insisted the controller, is the correct one for your mode.
Probably I am missing something... there seems to be more cables than sockets on the board!
 

wheeliepete

Esteemed Pedelecer
Feb 28, 2016
2,047
755
60
Devon
Well, I'm no expert on Gazelle ebikes, but that is deff. not a controller from what I can see. Might control the lights at a push. What connectors can you change? There only one one the board. I would e-mail these photos the the supplier and ask them to explain how it's the right part.
 

wheeliepete

Esteemed Pedelecer
Feb 28, 2016
2,047
755
60
Devon
Looking closer at your photos, it looks like maybe that PCB sits under the controller board, in which case, the controller PCB is missing.:eek:
 

Nealh

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 7, 2014
19,991
8,173
60
West Sx RH
Not the same.
 

Emily Joy

Pedelecer
Apr 27, 2018
61
4
37
Warwickshire
What connectors can you change? There only one one the board. I would e-mail these photos the the supplier and ask them to explain how it's the right part.
I did e-mail the photos and got a reply saying that apparently I haven't got the right person to fit it! :rolleyes: I am going to see if I can open it again carefully and see what is behind the grey cover...

Do you mean that Printed Circuit Board is missing from the new controller?

Is it possible at all the controllers and PCB are sold separately? I doubt that o_O
 

Woosh

Trade Member
May 19, 2012
19,407
16,387
Southend on Sea
wooshbikes.co.uk
this blog post may be of interest to you.
http://www.avdweb.nl/arduino/libraries/34-solarbike/298-gazelle-orange-innergy-rebuild.html

If yours is an early model, then it's quite possible that the new battery's serial number needs to be programmed into the controller by Gazelle's accredited dealer. If this is the case, the only solution to re-use the new battery and motor is to replace the controller, pedal sensor, LCD and wiring.

Quote:

The author of this article is Paul Alting van Geusau, Summer 2017, Munich, Germany

Gazelle Orange Innergy e-Bikes and home-made derivation
When introducing their Orange Innergy e-Bike (about 2007) in the Netherlands it was, despite its price (about 2199 €), a Gazelle best seller until numerous problems threw doubt on the quality of the electric drive system. Apparently the dealers were unable to solve the problems and many furious buyers wanted their money back. In later models a number of the problems were taken care of by Gazelle but the disastrous Gazelle crises management resulted in many buyers avoiding Gazelle products, see this video: https://radar.avrotros.nl/uitzendingen/gemist

The problems encountered
In itself a well-designed product, the bike suffered from a number of issues and it appears that the Gazelle management relied too much on their component suppliers without carrying out sufficient in-house product evaluation beforehand. Furthermore, in an attempt to avoid theft, the battery number had to be programmed in the controller before the bike could be used. An absolute nuisance because this could only be done by a dealer with Gazelle software and no other battery, for example from another Gazelle bike, could be used temporarily to check whether the problem was the battery or not, and in case of a battery problem, get home. Luckily in later models this idea was abandoned. Other issues causing a lot of irritation were defective pedal force sensors, broken supply cables, bad batteries and rain water entering the display and controller.
 

Emily Joy

Pedelecer
Apr 27, 2018
61
4
37
Warwickshire
The new battery has been programmed into old controller. I do know that because (1) the display doesn't show any error messages (2) the lights work - powered by the battery and can be controlled from the display (as well as by the day light sensor).
 

Woosh

Trade Member
May 19, 2012
19,407
16,387
Southend on Sea
wooshbikes.co.uk
that's good to know.
One less thing to worry about.
The next step is to check for the torque sensor output.
 

SilverTurfer

Finding my (electric) wheels
Jul 27, 2019
19
4
Cambridge
Hi Emily!

Did you have success with your Innergy in the end?
I notice that it was 12 months since your last post on the problem.
I ask because I have an Innergy as well that is giving trouble.
I bought it 2nd hand on eBay from Shropshire and it seemed alright, if a bit intermittent with the drive.
I had to have the gearbox replaced in the rear hub last week as the Nexus gave up.
Now I've got it back from the repair shop it does have any pedal assist at all.
It looks as though someone has swapped the LCD display on me, I don't know if that has to be programmed but when I picked it up there were two buttons missing from it.
I don't want t blame the repair shop. I should have taken it off when I left it there.
I've read the "Gazelle Rebuild" blog on "Advweb.nl" which is helpful and I intend to replace all the Display, Sensors and Motor Controller.
I'm also trying to get a bit of guidance on what is currently the best LCD & Controller kit to buy, if things have moved on since the KT-LCD3.

Cheers and I hope yours got sorted in the end.