Haibike Bosch or Yamaha

EddiePJ

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Jul 7, 2013
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I have to confess to loving the look and quality appearance of the Yamaha motor. I also prefer the use of the larger size front sprocket. Sadly not tried one yet, so no help to you really. :(

I've also not looked to see what the battery output is on the Yamaha. You might also want to take that aspect of things into consideration when deciding.
 
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Emo Rider

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Jan 10, 2014
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I have rode both systems, most recently the £2400 Yamaha powered trekking. I really like the way the power cuts in compared to the Bosch system. Given the choice of similar bikes I might be tempted to take the Yamaha, except..........yes there is always the except. If you saw a power and torque graph for the two systems, you would take the Bosch. The Bosch has 4 power levels while the Yamaha has 3. The Yamaha is a much simpler system while the Bosch is a tech freak's dream. There is the price difference, the Yamaha being less expensive. However the similar Bosch powered bike has better spec in the components. To summarize, it pretty much boils down to you get what you pay for. Try to get some test rides. You could write volumes and fail to convey the feeling you get in the first 200yards.

Cheers
 

Emo Rider

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Jan 10, 2014
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Another thing that leans me toward the Yamaha trekking is the 20 speed gear train set up. You could really cover some serious daily tour distances without killing you battery. A cycle tourer's dream come true.
 
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EddiePJ

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I'm guessing that the larger front sprocket will also mean less wear and tear?


edit.. Not so difficult Dave. You just moved the goal posts in respect of price. :)
Lovely looking bit of kit, but I'm a sucker for the aesthetics of integrated batteries.
 
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mfj197

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Jul 18, 2014
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The Yamaha system looks great - apart from the bit you look at most frequently, the display. It just looks a bit cheap to me, compared to the Bosch Intuvia display. If go for the Yamaha all the time apart from that one element.

Michael
 

RobF

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Sep 22, 2012
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Three levels looks to be a blunt instrument to me, but as Emo says, the 20 gears on the Yamaha should give you more opportunity to eke out the battery.

But by how much?

A single Bosch battery doesn't go far enough for my longer rides - 50+ miles - and I suspect the Yamaha would be the same.
 

rsyme

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Aug 9, 2013
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Co.Wexford, Ireland
I usually ride about 25 - 30 miles so there should be enough in either the Bosch or Yamaha battery. I was wondering if the Bosch powered bike has any really significant better components - I am not competent to judge!! I have ridden the cross with Yamaha power and the hard nine with Bosch power and felt that the Yamaha had more "grunt" on the hills. Also the range on the Bosch at similar power -i.e eco on Yamaha and Tour on Bosch (100% assist) seems less than the Yamaha.

I will go for the Trekking versions and am in the quandary of which to go for!!

Robbie
 

RobF

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Sep 22, 2012
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Too early to judge the component quality on the Yamaha.

I've had two Bosch bikes for a couple of years, and so far, so good.

There have been reports of an internal nylon gear stripping on the Bosch system, but there are, in ebike terms, lots and lots of Bosch bikes, so a failure or two is inevitable.

The Yamaha is suppose to have a bit more grunt, which your impressions confirm.

Having said that, I increasingly ride my bikes most of the time on eco or tour, so outright grunt is not important.

Battery range is far more critical.

If you are never going to ride more than 30 miles, either will do.

But most of us find we ride further then we envisaged, so I would factor the cost of a spare battery into the equation.
 

EddiePJ

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rsyme, I think that you might have mentioned the reasons for your choice before, but in case you haven't, is there a specific reason for the bike and motor choice.
There are other mid drive motors out there, as well as hub drive trekking bikes.
Not knowing what you have or haven't tried, I would suggest trying both options out. I've had one hub drive bike, the BH, and two mid drives, the Haibike Trekking and now the KTM.
If I'm being honest, mid drive/crank drive kind of leaves me wanting something more. I'm coming to the conclusion that they just don't float my boat. Superb at their job yes, and I've already clocked up roughly 400 miles on the KTM, but something is lacking. It certainly has nothing to do the bike itself, that is superb, but I do feel that I need to get my leg back over a Panasonic hub drive to confirm my suspicions.
 
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rsyme

Pedelecer
Aug 9, 2013
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Co.Wexford, Ireland
Eddie,
Most of the reason is that there are very few dealers here in Ireland and the dealer I have confidence in deals in BH, Kalkhoff, Staiger Sinus, Momentum and Haibike. Whereas there is a place selling KTM, they know little and one guy's purchase experience left a lot to be desired.
I ride up to 30 miles mostly on road so the mid drive suits well. I presently have a Kalkhoff Impulse Ergo but have had a lot of problems with it 2 motors and 3 batteries in 18 months so have lost confidence in it and want a change. Of the makes the dealer has and I have tried I like the Haibike, but have to make up my mind between the Bosch power or Yamaha power trekking models

Cheers and Happy New Year
Robbie
 

SRS

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Nov 30, 2012
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I'd have to ask if Yamaha prevent owners from purchasing motor unit spares in the same way that Bosch do.

I wish to maintain my own bikes and I see no reason why that cannot include motor / crank bearings and gear wheels etc.
 

Electrifying Cycles

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Jun 4, 2011
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Spares for the Yamaha motor will not be available straight away but in a few years time you should be able to by motor parts which means you would not normally need to replace the entire motor if there was a problem after the expiry of the warranty.
 
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Martin@e-bikeshop

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I'd have to ask if Yamaha prevent owners from purchasing motor unit spares in the same way that Bosch do.

I wish to maintain my own bikes and I see no reason why that cannot include motor / crank bearings and gear wheels etc.
Ian: I already have some external spares available in stock.
Also have split diagrams of motor internals with part numbers attached. Which I know is something we have talked about with the Bosch.
I will have access to these internal spares in approx 4 weeks should they be required.

rsyme: you know I have both the Yamaha and Bosch Trek's in stock right here in front of me? Maybe you could book an appointment to come over?

You can see which you prefer in the flesh.

You probably already seen it but here is my extensive side by side comparison.
https://www.e-bikeshop.co.uk/blog/post/bosch-yamaha-ebikes-differences-explained/

I also have my own review of each of the bikes on the blog too.

Regards
Martin
 
Apr 19, 2011
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Robbie if you have to choose between Yamaha & Bosch then I'd go for Yamaha every time. It's a bit of an unknown in terms of reliability, but Bosch have hardly covered themselves in glory on that front.

There is a simple power output and power to weight ratio comparison table here: Rotwild / Bosch / Yamaha
 

Electrifying Cycles

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