These seem cheap?

flecc

Member
Oct 25, 2006
52,761
30,348
Prices ok, but they fall flat on their face with the opening silly sentence:

Our electric bikes have a 50,000 mile warranty on their batteries.

At their maximum claimed range of 35 miles and maximum number of 450 charges they claim for their batteries, a maximum mileage of only 15750 miles is achievable, which might just be possible.

Anyone can make mistakes, but with that sort of incredible carelessness, I wonder if they can they really be treated seriously as lasting contenders.

Another oddity is the battery on the Charlie model is huge and the battery on the Delta folder is small, but both are claimed to be 36 volt 10Ah lithium. My betting is that the folder is 24 volt and this is another careless mistake.
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rog_london

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jan 3, 2009
764
2
Harrow, Middlesex
Interesting that they all are listed at 29Kg - not much proof reading going on there!
You're not joking - the whole site is full of typos. Nought out of ten for presentation therefore.

I might also suggest that 'Leck-e-bike' is just about the last trading name I'd choose - but maybe that's just me taking an instant dislike.

Rog.
 

flecc

Member
Oct 25, 2006
52,761
30,348
Of course we could all turn out to be wrong and they might be hugely successful and leave us with egg on our faces. :D

After all, Thompson managed to sell over 7000 e-bikes a year from just five shops several years running and are still going after seven years, and just look at the models they were selling! Leck-e-bikes range looks stunning in comparison. :rolleyes:

Thompson Electric Bikes
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rog_london

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jan 3, 2009
764
2
Harrow, Middlesex
Did you scroll across and see the full horror of the choices on the right though. :D

The Euro Tourer has the doubtful distinction of 22" rims, giving very little choice of tyres.
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That is exquisitely awful, isn't it? It reminds me of that Russian copy of a pre-war BMW motorbike called (in Europe) the Ural, which was a somewhat unfortunate choice of name, as of course it immediately became known universally as the 'Urinal'.

I suppose there must be those who would 'almost' buy a mobility scooter, but think they're not *quite* there yet - they're the ones the Euro Tourer might appeal to.

Rog.
 

flecc

Member
Oct 25, 2006
52,761
30,348
Yes, I know the Ural well Rog, and the sidecar version of those Russian bikes, complete with machine gun mount on the sidecar! :eek:

The Euro Tourer and the others sell really well in the "shopper" market where their features are appreciated. They are single geared very low and impossible to pedal much above 8 mph, and the motors only drive to 12 mph, but they climb happily as a result without help from the rider.

As Thompson himself said when the pedal gearing was criticised, "Our customers won't pedal".

Cyclists they ain't, they just want to get to and from the shops without hassle or need for a driving licence.
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rog_london

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jan 3, 2009
764
2
Harrow, Middlesex
The Euro Tourer and the others sell really well in the "shopper" market where their features are appreciated. They are single geared very low and impossible to pedal much above 8 mph, and the motors only drive to 12 mph, but they climb happily as a result without help from the rider.

As Thompson himself said when the pedal gearing was criticised, "Our customers won't pedal".

Cyclists they ain't, they just want to get to and from the shops without hassle or need for a driving licence.
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Haha - so my assessment of the intended market was pretty well spot on, then!

Rog.
 

flecc

Member
Oct 25, 2006
52,761
30,348
Haha - so my assessment of the intended market was pretty well spot on, then!

Rog.
It certainly was!

The best feature of Thompson's original method of selling e-bikes is that they are available on the spot at impulse buy prices, well within almost any credit card. I'm sure that's why he was able to sell so many in only five local areas, but I bet he doesn't do anything like as well online now he's saturated his store areas.
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RedSkywalker

Pedelecer
Jun 16, 2008
87
0
The best feature of Thompson's original method of selling e-bikes is that they are available on the spot at impulse buy prices, well within almost any credit card. I'm sure that's why he was able to sell so many in only five local areas, but I bet he doesn't do anything like as well online now he's saturated his store areas.
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Or could it have been his honest selling technique? I think you missed this wonderful bit of prose from his site "The freedom and economy of a bicycle with all the effort" :D
 

flecc

Member
Oct 25, 2006
52,761
30,348
Yes, the website is a bit messy, probably far from being his strength where running the stores obviously is.

At their prices I don't suppose they want to spend on good professional web design help.
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rog_london

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jan 3, 2009
764
2
Harrow, Middlesex
Yes, the website is a bit messy, probably far from being his strength where running the stores obviously is.

At their prices I don't suppose they want to spend on good professional web design help.
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From what we've already said, their intended market would probably not for the most part be Internet aware in any case.

Rog.
 

tillson

Esteemed Pedelecer
May 29, 2008
5,249
3,197
Did you scroll across and see the full horror of the choices on the right though. :D

The Euro Tourer has the doubtful distinction of 22" rims, giving very little choice of tyres.
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I did see the Euro Tourer. Dreadful!

However, have you seen the prototype for the Euro Tourer EROPs (Extended Range Operations)?

Apparently, its range is governed by battery capacity alone and not by distance between lavatories, which according to their customer base, is a shortcoming with the standard model.
 

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