Haibike SDURO Trekking 3.0 - 800+ miles in

Senor Humphrey

Just Joined
Oct 6, 2019
3
2
Hanging on the wall of the garage is my old (25+ years old) Dawes Super Galaxy. It had one or two outings early this summer but it’s pretty much destined to remain on the wall from now on. TBH, it’s had increasingly fewer trips over the past few years. Here in the Costwolds, you’re faced by hill climbs wherever you set out and I began to find that more and more demotivating. E-bikes began to call to me… But I’d also damaged my coccyx riding a mountain bike a while ago so before I got in the saddle again, I wanted to make sure e-bikes were comfortable.

My requirements were:
  • Good battery life sufficient for 40-50 miles in Cotwolds terrain
  • Plenty of assistance available on hill climbs
  • Disc brakes and front suspension to cope with steep descents and the shockingly poor state of roads around here
  • A comfortable ride that wouldn’t over stretch my back
  • And, considering the complexities of e-bikes, good local after-sales and support.
I bought the bike in mid-July from a local dealer. It has met my requirements.
  • Battery life: Lots of factors affect this but I can easily get 40-50 miles or so on a Cotswold trip. The Bosch Performance CX motor has four modes: Eco, Tour, Sport, and Turbo. I tend to ride most of the time in Eco mode and switch to Sport for steeper climbs. The Sport mode seems to switch automatically between Tour and Turbo depending on the power needed to maintain the climb rate. The best I’ve had is a day tour across the Cotswolds where I got just under 60 miles – the power cut out 200 yards from home! That was fairly early on with the bike and I think I could eke out more now I know the bike better – and am a bit fitter!
  • Power Assistance: It’s coped with everything that it’s faced. There’s a hill nearby that’s always defeated me. You turn a corner on the climb and there’s this cliff in front of you. No problem for the Haibike. I got up it in third gear using the Turbo mode. It was a bit of hard work, but I enjoyed the success of it so much I headed back down and did it again. I would have made it up a lot easier in a lower gear but I didn’t have gears 1 or 2 at the time. More on that later…
  • The disc brakes supplied do their job well. I’m pretty careful about descents (don’t bounce as well as I used to) and there are too many potholes on the lanes around here. The front shocks seem OK. I’ve nothing to judge them against but they seem to do the job. I tend to ride with the suspension on as the roads are so poor
  • Comfort: As part of the deal, I got the dealer to fit a good suspension seat post, gel saddle and extend the handlebars forward. The result is a bike that I can ride for hours in comfort, no pins and needles in the hands, and no back pain.
  • Local support: The local dealer has been really good, helpful, and supportive. There have been problems but these have been responded to and remedied.
What have been the problems?
  • I took the bike back to the shop after 49 miles. I couldn’t select gears 1 and 2. Gears 4 and 5 sometimes slipped. Gear changes were noisier and clunkier than my old Dawes. There was also noise from the front of the bike when freewheeling downhill. Adjustments were made.
  • I took the bike back again at 151 miles. The lower gears were still not accessible and connectors to the front light had come loose. More adjustments were made. We began to discuss whether there was a serious fault with the gear mechanism.
  • At 602 miles I took the bike in for its first free dealer service. New disc pads were fitted. Having never had the opportunity to use gears 1 and 2, I was not too happy. A new rear wheel was fitted to investigate if the hub was at fault.
  • A bike ride later, and still with no improvement to the gear change, the dealer concluded that the Sunrace (11-40 teeth) cassette was poorly manufactured and ordered a replacement. I was told that others have had the same problem.
  • At 796 miles a new cassette was fitted, a loose rear mudguard tightened, and the original wheel refitted.
  • The bike now rides perfectly. Gear changes are smooth, and I can now save battery power on climbs by using the lowest two gears.
For me, the local dealer support has been an important part of the whole experience. They gave me test rides on other makes and, when I made the decision to buy, took the time to help me choose the right frame size and then make further adjustments so it fitted me. Post-purchase, I’ve been able to pop in, discuss things, get the bike serviced quickly, and even have a loan e-bike.

The Haibike itself is very sturdy, looks well built, and is comfortable. It copes well with poor roads and tracks and is a pleasure to ride. It still rides nicely once you get above the 25 kph cut off, or if you turn off the motor to save battery on a long ride. For a £2k+ bike, it’d be nice if it had water bottle fixings though. I’ve had to fit a plastic bottle carrier with cable ties. This works well and doesn’t look too unsightly but really?

The Bosch Performance CX motor is impressive. It whirrs away a bit but it’s not too noisy. I ease off pedal pressure as I change gears as this seems to suit both the gears and the motor. I’ve read that the motor can ‘drag’ once above 25 kph but I’ve not noticed that myself. The Intuvia screen is clear and easy to read in all weathers, and it’s simple to switch power modes or display information.

So, am I pleased with the Haibike? You bet! It’s got me back in the saddle, is a real pleasure to ride and I’ve covered 829 miles – that’s about 829 more miles than I’d have travelled on the old Dawes (bless it…)
 
  • Like
Reactions: Twinkleten