van moof or giant fastroad+ 2019?

[G3561]

I'm currently wanting to improve my fitness and possibly commute to work on a bike longer term. The journey is very hilly and I've had a knee reconstruction so I feel an e-bike is the way to go. Most of the journey is road although there is a flatter alternate route along a canal tow path. I think only the van moof would do the tow path. The bikes are very different specs, the van moof only has two gears for example. Both are a similar price. Does anyone have any experience of the two and which would you recommend?

 

[vfr400]

Which would you prefer?
1. Somebody put your testicles through a mincer.
2. Somebody drill up through your nostril into your brain with a 5mm carbide gun drill.

If it's 1, get the Van Moof. If it's 2, get the Giant.

Seriously, there are thousands of different electric bikes to choose from. Prices start at about £250 and go up to £10,000. Every one has its own characteristics, good points and bad points. How did you come to choose two of the most obscure bikes there are? Are they the only two in your local bike shop?

 

[G3561]

They are the two that seemed to come up highest on the reviews! The van moof I think was on T3 and the Giant generally came high up, that model was the one that fell within my budget of around £2500.

 

[vfr400]

The ones that come up high on the reviews are the ones that spend the most on marketing and the most fluff, smoke and mirrors.

How can the Van Moof come up high when nobody has ever bought one?

 

[georgehenry]

Whatever you buy you should try to use a dealer who impresses you with their customer service and is within hitting distance of home and are happy to offer a decent test ride on the bikes you have short listed and a few you have not.

I have been commuting to work and back on an electric bike since 2011, at its shortest a round trip of 20 miles on the road. But I also have a great off road route that is 12 to 14 miles that is massive fun and keeps me away from cars.

It sounds like your flatter canal tow path gives you a route away from cars and that is a nice option to have. When on the road you need a very bright flashing rear light to make you stand out. As soon as I put one on the back of my bike I noticed that cars knew I was there.

A quality hard tail mountain bike that you can add a rear rack and panniers to can make a tough and very practicable commuting tool and there are loads to choose from and the beauty of an electric bike is that the motor overcomes the resistance of wider tyres and the more upright seating position and wider bars make them agile in traffic.

 

[ohwheely19]

I've been in a similar situation recently. VanMoof are regularly popping up, and must be spending shedloads on their Google Ads budgets but...don't seem to be finding much substance.

If you love the VanMoof Styling, have a look at Coboc.

I've been digging through forums and QWIC keep coming up as being well build and well designed, but not massively known in the UK. Their 2019 release includes a couple of bluetooth enabled models under £2,000 - either rear or front wheel drive.

https://urbanebikes.com/collections/qwic-urban

Or maybe look at the Raleigh Motus? Road.cc seem to sing it's praises and have more detailed reviews than I could find for VanMoof etc

 

[Eagle]

G3561,
Personally I don't think either bike is suitable for what you require.
georgehenry has given you some good advice above.
I second the advice to find a local bike shop and have some test rides on both crank and hub drive machines.
A hardtail MTB or full suspension MTB like a Haibike Sduro Fullseven 3.0 or Raleigh Grand Tour etc are all within your budget.
Also all 3 Oxygen bikes and several Woosh models are well within your budget
As long as you are a strong swimmer, I would go for the tow path route!

 

[Roo]

I'm currently wanting to improve my fitness and possibly commute to work on a bike longer term. The journey is very hilly and I've had a knee reconstruction so I feel an e-bike is the way to go. Most of the journey is road although there is a flatter alternate route along a canal tow path. I think only the van moof would do the tow path. The bikes are very different specs, the van moof only has two gears for example. Both are a similar price. Does anyone have any experience of the two and which would you recommend?

Hi, don't buy a Fastroad, they keep switching off, really disappointed in them. Giant need to address this problem!

 

[acueductomtb]

I'm currently wanting to improve my fitness and possibly commute to work on a bike longer term. The journey is very hilly and I've had a knee reconstruction so I feel an e-bike is the way to go. Most of the journey is road although there is a flatter alternate route along a canal tow path. I think only the van moof would do the tow path. The bikes are very different specs, the van moof only has two gears for example. Both are a similar price. Does anyone have any experience of the two and which would you recommend?

Build your own, if you are starting something new I think is best if you go all the way to take the learning opportunity!