Ezee Torq cutting out...

[peter999]

Could I have some advice please. My Mk1 Ezee Torq (less than 100 miles from new) cuts out after a mile or so and when under load. Prior to this there is a slight clicking from the motor and then everything (including the led gauge lights) goes off. Switching off and on cures the problem then it happens again after a few hundred yards. Nothing appears to be overheating and the battery guage always shows green before it goes off. The battery seems OK and charges correctly showing about 41 volts. The red controller LED shows no fault. Very frustrating to ride and I have no idea where to start. Any help would be most welcome.
thanks.

 

[flecc]

Those are normally the characteristics of a dud battery from the earlier battery series Peter. The mark 1 Torq hasn't been made for some while so I'm guessing the battery is an old one. That mileage seems extraordinarily low, but it isn't the whole story since lithium-ion batteries die with age whether used or not, and they also die if not charged at least every three months.

Can you let me know the full alpha-numeric serial number of the battery and I can tell you more. That's the number beginning with a J.
.

 

[fishingpaul]

Although the bike has only done 100 miles, the early lithium batterys do not age well, if it is a lithium battery and over 18 months old i would suspect this is most likely the cause.looks like we both posted at the same time flecc.

 

[joab]

loose connection

Check for any loose connection from the battery pack to the controller. Also check the fuse on the battery pack and make sure its well closed.

Regards,
Jo

 

[peter999]

Check for any loose connection from the battery pack to the controller. Also check the fuse on the battery pack and make sure its well closed.

Regards,
Jo

Thank you all for the prompt response. I have checked for loose connections and the fuse - all appears OK.
The serial number from the battery is : JGJABB100184
How can I confirm the battery is faulty and what options do I have - sounds like an expensive one !

 

[flecc]

Not good news I'm afraid. That battery was made on 22nd January 2007 and it will be at the end of it's life as I predicted. I had one of these January 2007 batteries myself on my Torq and in regular use it only lasted to October that year, giving an indication of how poor they could be. Two years was maximum on that series, and they could last much less.

There has been a lot of development work going into Li-ion batteries since then and they are now greatly improved, the latest eZee one not only lasting much better but giving better performance and also being a full kilo lighter at 3.3 kilos.

That's the good news. The bad news is that with current exchange rates those batteries are now £395, plus £20 next day delivery. If you do want to get one, the current eZee agent is Cyclepoint, batteries on this link.

If you do get one, make sure you charge it at least every three months, never leaving it longer.
.

 

[BLADERUNNER]

Not good news I'm afraid. That battery was made on 22nd January 2007 and it will be at the end of it's life as I predicted. I had one of these January 2007 batteries myself on my Torq and in regular use it only lasted to October that year, giving an indication of how poor they could be. Two years was maximum on that series, and they could last much less.

There has been a lot of development work going into Li-ion batteries since then and they are now greatly improved, the latest eZee one not only lasting much better but giving better performance and also being a full kilo lighter at 3.3 kilos.

That's the good news. The bad news is that with current exchange rates those batteries are now £395, plus £20 next day delivery. If you do want to get one, the current eZee agent is Cyclepoint, batteries on this link.

If you do get one, make sure you charge it at least every three months, never leaving it longer.
.

Wow, over £400 for a battery!I have a Mk1 Torq that has a NIMH battery.The battery is doing ok,but when it dies that will probably be the end of the bike as well at those prices!

 

[flecc]

The new generation batteries all up there these days Bladerunner:

eZee 37 volt 10 Ah battery = £395

Kalkhoff 26 volt 10 Ah battery = £395

Wisper 37 volt 14 Ah battery = £515

A small amount of these high prices is due to inflation and development costs, but most of it has been caused by the collapse in the value of the pound.
.

 

[Wisper Bikes]

Battery prices

The new generation batteries all up there these days Bladerunner:

Ezee 37 volt 10 Ah battery = £395

Kalkhoff 26 volt 10 Ah battery = £395

Wisper 37 volt 14 Ah battery = £515

A small amount of these high prices is due to inflation and development costs, but most of it has been caused by the collapse in the value of the pound.
.

Yes it has been a struggle this year, the good news is the £ is currently getting stronger again and these prices are set to come down a little next year. Higher battery prices was one of the reasons we introduced the 36V 8A (288Wh) £315 at the beginning of 2008 on all our bikes. What has been very interesting is the lack of uptake of the cheaper battery.

Best regards

David

 

[fcurran]

Yes it has been a struggle this year, the good news is the £ is currently getting stronger again and these prices are set to come down a little next year. Higher battery prices was one of the reasons we introduced the 36V 8A (288Wh) £315 at the beginning of 2008 on all our bikes. What has been very interesting is the lack of uptake of the cheaper battery.

Best regards

David

FYI - Powabyke 36V 6A £265

Regards

FrankC
Powabyke Ltd

 

[Wisper Bikes]

About right

Hi Frank

High quality batteries should cost just over £1.00 per Wh with the larger capacity batteries being less expensive because the cost of the BMS and case remains pretty well constant on any good quality ebike, irrespective of the quantity of cells.

Powabyke 36V 6Ah battery = £265 216Wh/265 = £1.22/Wh
Ezee 37V 10Ah battery = £395 370Wh/395 = £1.06/Wh
Kalkhoff 26V 10Ah battery = £395 260Wh/395 = £1.51/Wh
Wisper 36V 14Ah battery = £515 504Wh/515 = £1.02/Wh
Wisper 36V 8Ah battery = £315 288Wh/315 = £1.09/Wh

This equation also works pretty well on ranges with each 10Wh giving about a mile per charge and takes a lot of the guess work and mystery out of choosing the correct ebike for a particular need.

All the best David

 

[BertYardbrush]

If all these batteries are so expensive with such a limited life, then surely the answer is to go for something less expensive with a longer life. By all that I have read on this forum - the answer must be Ping.

So the question is how easy is it to fit Ping batteries into all of the above bikes? Although I am getting about 10 - 15 miles out of my NiMH on a modified Quando 1, (the battery takes 1 1/2 to 2 hrs to charge) there is going to be a time in the near future when I shall have to fork out.

Is Ping a realistic option?

 

[Wisper Bikes]

Ping

Hi Berty

Yes Ping is a good company and as long as they can re cell your existing case I would give them a go.

These new batteries have a much better life than ones even produces two years ago with most of them having two year warranties now. Two years ago most warranties were only 6 months!

But as with all things it is better to shop around before you make a choice but make certain you are buying like for like.

All the best and good luck!

David

 

[peter999]

Frightening prices - Just a couple of points :

1. Is there a warranty period on new batteries (Ezee) - I would expect two years to make it financially worthwhile.
2. From the information I supplied in my first post, can I now assume that my battery is at fault or could there be any other reason for the cutting out. I just need to exhaust all possibilities before purchasing a new one - particularly at these prices !

thanks again

 

[Wisper Bikes]

Speak to Ezee

Hi Peter, your best course of action would be to speak to your supplier, if you bought second hand I would think the UK importer would be eager to help.

Here are their details;

Cyclepoint Ltd
Website: eZee electric bikes and ABICI fine Italian design. | cyclepoint â„¢
email: info@cyclepoint.net
address: 51 Providence Place, Brighton, BN1 4GE
Tel: 01273 672 555

All the best David

 

[flecc]

Frightening prices - Just a couple of points :

1. Is there a warranty period on new batteries (Ezee) - I would expect two years to make it financially worthwhile.
2. From the information I supplied in my first post, can I now assume that my battery is at fault or could there be any other reason for the cutting out. I just need to exhaust all possibilities before purchasing a new one - particularly at these prices !

thanks again

The warranty on the eZee battery is now one year, up from the earlier six months which at one time was the standard for these since they are consumables. While they will normally last around two years, it's difficult to warranty for that due to the 500 full charges potential when used on a very powerful motor. In a rare case of someone doing a very long commute, emptying the battery and fully charging both ends every weekday, that would exceed the maximum possible number of full charges well within two years.

The odd one out of the new generation batteries is the Panasonic unit battery where the unit has a much lower power motor, enabling the software to limit the battery stress. They do have a two year warranty. The same principle applies to the Ping LiFePO4 batteries, with normal use he regards them as capable of 1000 charges, but with much lighter discharge use it can rise to 3000 charges. Your eZee motor is one of the most powerful on the e-bike market and will never give a battery a stress free life though.

You can safely assume your battery is dud, the symptoms point directly to that and I've never heard of one of that age of eZee battery lasting over two years, so your over 2.5 years must mean the end. I had two July 2006 eZee batteries which both failed within 6 months, the January 2007 free replacement lasted ten months. After that I continued with an NiMh battery for a while and then fitted a new generation eZee battery in January 2008 and I'm still using it at over 18 months.

Of course I cannot guarantee that you don't have any fault in addition, but it's very unlikely given all the dud battery symptoms you are getting.

Apart from anything else, if the bike really only has done 100 miles in 2.5 years, it's highly unlikely that the battery has been charged every three months or less throughout all that time, so the battery will be dud anyway if that's the case. Even a new battery can be killed if not charged at least that often once it's been put into use.
.

 

[fishingpaul]

Frightening prices - Just a couple of points :

1. Is there a warranty period on new batteries (Ezee) - I would expect two years to make it financially worthwhile.
2. From the information I supplied in my first post, can I now assume that my battery is at fault or could there be any other reason for the cutting out. I just need to exhaust all possibilities before purchasing a new one - particularly at these prices !

thanks again

Unless you are intending to make far more use of the bike than you have previously,the replacement battery cost would not be worth it,that £400 replacement cost is around the resale value of the bike in working condition,i have recently replaced my torq2 battery for a lead acid one,yes it is much heavier and not so well balanced, but it only cost about £95 with delivery to make up a new 36v 14ah lead acid battery, including a new charger and a box to put the battery in, it does the job its a cheap replacement battery that should last ok given my occasional good weather use.

 

[peter999]

fishingpaul - your cheaper solution seems very interesting to me. Can you please tell me how you made it up, size, how it is mounted and connected and possibly a photo. I'm certainly not averse to making one up with the possible savings to be had. You are right - I won't be doing many miles per year and only use it as transport when motorcaravaning so this could be an ideal solution.

Flecc - thanks for your expert information - al least I know what I need now.

 

[joab]

EZEE battery life

My battery was produced mid September 2007, I got it end January 2008. The battery has 270 cycles. I have the cycle analyst on my bike, my guess the battery still has 7,5ah from the original 9,6ah. The trick try to limit the amps drawn from the battery, always reload after use.
Regards,
Jo

 

[flecc]

My battery was produced mid September 2007, I got it end January 2008. The battery has 270 cycles. I have the cycle analyst on my bike, my guess the battery still has 7,5ah from the original 9,6ah. The trick try to limit the amps drawn from the battery, always reload after use.
Regards,
Jo

The eZee Phylion battery produced from June 2007 onwards was an improved version following urgent work by Phylion to solve the problem of the failing earlier ones. Hence your's lasting much better. From January 2008 the latest series are an even bigger improvement in several respects and are no longer made by Phylion. They can cope with using the full current draw of the eZee and Suzhou Bafang motors used in the eZee bikes.
.