Which e-bike for up to £3k

pichipedals

Pedelecer
Jan 7, 2016
44
13
56
So a bit of background. My partner bought a Kalkhoff Groove about 5 years ago and it’s been a great bike for her, although she lost a bit of confidence in her riding ability in slippery conditions and it’s not got much use of late. At the time I was riding a few a forest trails with son , but he quickly lost interest. That left me with a heavy full suspension mountain/downhill bike on bobbly tyres; not the kit to keep up with the Kalkhoff on cycle paths and roads with plenty of undulations !

I’ve now sold the MTB and started looking at pedal power city hybrids like Boardman hyb range, figuring with slick narrow tyres and a lighter bike I’d be able to keep up with the Kalkhoff on 10-15 mile rides. Then reality struck that my gorilla frame was never going to be zipping around the local roads and towns like a courier/deliveroo rider!

That reality check means I’m noW looking at the following..

Trek Allant+ 7 I’m pretty happy sitting on the medium frame version in my local bike shop, the higher and adjustable stem makes for a comfortable riding position and less weight on the wrists (avoiding pins n needles that I sometimes suffered on the MTB). A large frame would be a better fit again. I like the build quality and the 500wh battery

Giant Fastroad e EX+ Pro - same shop have a large frame in stock, it suits me fine although the lower bars mean my position is less Upright. It’s well built, feels solid and it’s £300 less than the Trek. Only downsides I can see are the smaller battery (375) and the solid fork (a hint to my original aspiration for a zippy solid hybrid lol!). I know I could add a range extender battery if needed , albeit bringing the bike up to Trek pricing. I’m a little hesitant as the battery seems small compared to rivals 2021 offerings.

Cube Kathmandu Pro - 625 battery version comes in around the same price, the 500 version saves a few hundred pounds. Looks comparable in most aspects (Not been able to view one though) but I,m not sure about the pannier being non removable . I guess in the back of my mind I have visions of a stripped down version of all these bikes without mudguards and panniers!

my local shop also have a Merida espresso but I didn’t feel as comfortable on that, didn’t like the less Integrated battery nor the rider view looking down at thinner wheels n tyres.

So , availabiliy aside as I’m in no rush, which would people recommend? I’d ask for experiences of these bikes but as they are relatively new I don’t expect a flood of reviews. My local bike shop have sold Giant for many many years and Giant’s Bristol store is only an hours drive away if I were to have issues/ service

apologies for the long post but thought I’d try to put my circumstances / usage to aid responses.
 

Lamby55

Finding my (electric) wheels
May 14, 2020
13
2
I have a trek dual sport plus which has a similar specification to the trek you were looking at. I have now done 1000 miles on the bike and it’s wonderful. I would really recommend you do not go for a bike with a battery of less than 500 W, I live in the hilly Ribble Valley and get about 50 to 60 miles on one charge.

I did get pins and needles initially but have fitted Ergon GP 4 grips and these are very comfortable.
 
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pichipedals

Pedelecer
Jan 7, 2016
44
13
56
Many thanks for the reply. the batteries do seem to be getting bigger Every year, not sure whether that’s a marketing ploy , keeping prices at certain levels or a real demand for buyers to want to cover bigger distances. 375wh is no doubt big enough for my needs, I can’t see me/us doing more than 15-20 miles on any ride. It just feels a bit like id be buying ‘last years model’ if you know what I mean. Whether the Yamaha unit in the Giant is slightly more efficient than the Bosch gen4 units of the other two , and therefore the battery capacity difference isn’t so big , is debatable.

i certainly wouldn’t commute on it, it’s 27 miles Each way in a car and avoiding major dual carriageways and the M4 on a bike would probably mean a contorted route and well over an hours ride. Maybe in the best of the UK weather I’d find somewhere to park mid way but thats currently a pipe dream!

ergo grips did help on my MTB; a higher and lower reach stem would probably have overcome the pins n needles completely.
 

pichipedals

Pedelecer
Jan 7, 2016
44
13
56
Well I had a drive out to the Giant store in Bristol this afternoon, thought it was a good chance to look at a variety of bike styles - hard tail MTBs, non e hybrid road bikes and the Fastroad EX+ e pro.

the latter was in the showroom in ML frame size which felt better than the L I’d tried last weekend in my local shop. The bars are still a little low but the stem will be flipped over which will bring it up ca an Inch which should be about right. I was offered a test ride, so took it up the cycle track and into a poorly surfaced road section to a park area. Did about 3 miles in next to no time, tried all the 5 power modes observing the drop in range for each. I even tried it with no assist which was ok on a flat area but the weight of the bike immediately became apparent, switching back to eco power mode made it feel weightless ! so so easy to get to the max assisted speed ! The battery was on ca 80% charge and 53 miles shown on the display in eco, so should be over 60 when fully charged. And I can always add the range extender battery for another 20+ miles In the future.

great service from the guys in store, all very friendly and knowledgeable.

will be prepped through the workshop and ready for me from Thursday
Thanks for the inputs.
 
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D C

Esteemed Pedelecer
Apr 25, 2013
1,140
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The bars are still a little low but the stem will be flipped over which will bring it up ca an Inch which should be about right
I fitted this stem to my Giant Fathom.


I've had my Giant almost a year and going towards 3000 miles, a superb and well made bike with decent components as I'm sure yours will be.
I also bought a LIV for other half which again is excellent and the batteries are interchangeable.
I also use an NCX suspension post:)
Dave.
 
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