looking to buy first ebike

[SueAG]

Hi all -this looks like a brilliant forum -thanks!
I am looking to buy my first ebike and would be really grateful for some pointers.Main reason is to keep up with my partner who looks at a hill and goes straight up !
We live in a hilly part Devon but also drive over to Europe so need a bike that can manage roads but also unmade up roads /some trails with a reasonable range -at least 60m Budget is about£2000 -I am a slim 5'9.
Guess would be sensible to buy from a reasonably local dealer in case of repairs.
So would be grateful for any tips. Wondered if anyone has tried the Evans pinnacle ion ?
Thank you
sue

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Just about any electric bike will work for you, so take your pick. If you're really serious about 60 mile range, you'll need a battery of at least 500Wh (36 Volts,12 Amp-hours), maybe bigger if you're not so fit. Bigger batteries weigh more. The more your bike weighs, the more power you use, which starts a vicious circle. Someone that's not a regular cyclist can expect about 10 Watt-hours per mile. A reasonably fit person, happy to put in an effort and just use the motor for the hills, can use as low as 5 Wh per mile. I'm confident in these consumption figures. Don't take any notice of anybody who boasts that they can do 70 miles on their bike. Battery consumption depends more on the rider, where and how they ride, rather than the bike. For your riding, the bigger the battery, the further you go, and your consumption rate will be specific to you, more or less independent of the bike.

 

[D8ve]

my bike and battery 36v 16ah. I can get over 160 km
Without power I average 14+ mph add the electric assist and I only go 2-3 mph faster on average.
You need to say how fast you normaly cycle as time over 15 mph is based on you not the battery.

 

[Tigergreen]

Hi all -this looks like a brilliant forum -thanks!
I am looking to buy my first ebike and would be really grateful for some pointers.Main reason is to keep up with my partner who looks at a hill and goes straight up !
We live in a hilly part Devon but also drive over to Europe so need a bike that can manage roads but also unmade up roads /some trails with a reasonable range -at least 60m Budget is about£2000 -I am a slim 5'9.
Guess would be sensible to buy from a reasonably local dealer in case of repairs.
So would be grateful for any tips. Wondered if anyone has tried the Evans pinnacle ion ?
Thank you
sue

I don't know how close you are to Plymouth, but I can highly recommend Devon Electric Bikes
http://devonelectricbikes.co.uk/ebikes/
They've got a good range and Gareth the proprietor is not at all pushy when it comes to a sale. He will allow you to take out several bikes for test rides to see what you find suitable.
Test rides are by appointment only so he can dedicate time to you.
After sales service is excellent too.
( I bought a bike from him just a few weeks ago and the chain snapped when I was out riding on Thursday. Rang him soon as I got back home. He was genuinely surprised as he had never known a chain snap so soon, couldn't apologise enough and even opened early on the Friday so I could drop the bike off to him to replace the chain while I waited before I started work! All without quibbling and free under warranty. )

Andy.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

He was genuinely surprised as he had never known a chain snap so soon,

Yes, normally they take at least 4 weeks before they break. Is that what he meant?

 

[RobF]

Hi all -this looks like a brilliant forum -thanks!
I am looking to buy my first ebike and would be really grateful for some pointers.Main reason is to keep up with my partner who looks at a hill and goes straight up !
We live in a hilly part Devon but also drive over to Europe so need a bike that can manage roads but also unmade up roads /some trails with a reasonable range -at least 60m Budget is about£2000 -I am a slim 5'9.
Guess would be sensible to buy from a reasonably local dealer in case of repairs.
So would be grateful for any tips. Wondered if anyone has tried the Evans pinnacle ion ?
Thank you
sue

The Pinnacle has a good frame - I have the push bike version.

No sus fork, which is a benefit at this price point, and furthermore the rigid fork is cromoly steel, which gives a surprisingly comfortable ride.

For 60 mile rides you might want to think about luggage carrying and, certainly at this time of year, lights.

Both can be sorted retrospectively.

As d8 says, 60 miles means at least a 500wh battery.

The Pinnacle has the Shimano Steps drive which has a 400wh battery, as do a lot of the Bosch and Yamaha drive bikes.

Range is a personal thing, but particularly in hilly terrain, I think you will struggle to get 60 miles from 400wh, and probably 500wh.

The Bosch system has a very low assist eco mode which would eke out a 500wh battery to close to 60 miles even with some climbing.

But eco is not a lot more assist than ordinary cycling, so you would be working fairly hard.

 

[Tigergreen]

Yes, normally they take at least 4 weeks before they break. Is that what he meant?

Nope. He's been involved with e-bikes for several years and reckons should last several hundred if not thousands of miles with regular cleaning and maintenance. My Bosch CX powered Haibike had only done 40 miles!
(He had a Cube in for service with the same Bosch system and that was still on its original chain after 2000 miles!)
He thought, perhaps, that maybe it was a batch of faulty chains and so was going to check all the serial numbers on the rest of his Haibike stock to see if they're consecutive and thus possibly might have the same issue.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Nope. He's been involved with e-bikes for several years and reckons should last several hundred if not thousands of miles with regular cleaning and maintenance.

I wouldn't trust him then!

He probably forgot to set the rear derailleur end-stops in the PDI unless it was something you did that you haven't divulged, like setting off in a high gear on full power, then trying to change down while you were going.

Hang on a minute. "several hundred miles" is about 4 weeks riding isn't it?

 

[Alan Quay]

Ha
Ignore D8ve everyone can....

How confusing can it get for the OP?



Sent from my HTC 10 using Tapatalk

 

[D8ve]

How confusing can it get for the OP?



Sent from my HTC 10 using Tapatalk

My bad I misquoted

 

[SueAG]

Just about any electric bike will work for you, so take your pick. If you're really serious about 60 mile range, you'll need a battery of at least 500Wh (36 Volts,12 Amp-hours), maybe bigger if you're not so fit. Bigger batteries weigh more. The more your bike weighs, the more power you use, which starts a vicious circle. Someone that's not a regular cyclist can expect about 10 Watt-hours per mile. A reasonably fit person, happy to put in an effort and just use the motor for the hills, can use as low as 5 Wh per mile. I'm confident in these consumption figures. Don't take any notice of anybody who boasts that they can do 70 miles on their bike. Battery consumption depends more on the rider, where and how they ride, rather than the bike. For your riding, the bigger the battery, the further you go, and your consumption rate will be specific to you, more or less independent of the bike.

Thanks that v helpful .
Only wanting the 60 mile range as likely we will do some overnight camping trips out in the wilds -he says I can carry the tent !!

 

[trex]

the £939 Woosh Bermuda with 15AH battery would be good for camping use. It has powerful rear driving Bafang SWX02 motor, 15AH Samung battery, 8-speed, fairly lightweight.

http://wooshbikes.co.uk/?bermuda

if you want step through frame then the Santana2 is the same by in step through frame.

http://wooshbikes.co.uk/?santana2