Jaundice

I didn't know this! Very interesting. Geeky battery link

I'm surprised they did replace them, the warranty explicitly states that the batteries aren't covered and one of them was a freebie special offer when I first bought the bike. Can't fault Gtech customer service though, they've been brilliant. I think I've worn them out quickly by charging from 90 to 100% so often. This is the point where the most degradation happens on Li-Ion batteries.

5000 miles done now and the bike is showing a couple of issues. My 2 batteries have degraded somewhat and no longer charge to full capacity, they have however both been replaced under warranty. I would expect a similar life from the replacements though so about 2500 miles from each. I hammer my batteries as I charge to full each time I use them (sometimes 3 times a day!) even if only going a short distance, if you were a bit more careful then you might get a bit more life. The second issue is the rim on the rear wheel, Its a bit flimsy and is clearly where costs were saved in the production of the bike, I've managed to buckle it and the repair from Halfords wasn't great so it buckled again pretty quickly. I just left it that time and managed to wear out the rear rim where it was catching the brake. I've had the hub rebuilt onto a Mavic touring rim, again by Halfords as my local bike shop owner told me that Gtech will not provide parts to him. New battery and new rear wheel and it rides like new again. Rear tire is almost slick now, but still has plenty of rubber, still only second set of brake blocks at the front, third at the rear due to the buckled wheel.

Crossed the 3500 mile mark with this bike now. My right pedal is showing signs of wear (the bearing is worn) but should be OK for a bit, I don't usually get pedals when I buy a new bike, so these are still a bonus as far as I'm concerned. I've buckled the rear wheel which led to a broken spoke (carrying too much weight). I reckon there's maybe only another 1000 miles left in the rear tyre before its down to the canvas. Apart from that, still going strong, still the lowest maintenance bike I've ever owned...

Its definitely possible, I've got through many BB bearings in far fewer miles than that. You'll feel some play in the pedals if it that, or resistance/grinding. Do you have any warranty left on your bike? If so call Gtech or take it back to the store you bought it from and see what they say (01905 345 891).

Single ring will be totally fine if you match it up with something like this: 11-42 tooth and you'll have loads of range. Mountain bikes have been using single rings for a while now so there's plenty of options for 11-42 cassettes. If you're feeling a bit flush you can go up to 11 speed 11-46... 11-46 tooth You'd need a good derailleur and shifter set up to go with it though.

I promise you, mine will be worth absolutely nothing when I'm done with it. I always struggle to part with bikes, but this one is getting ridden until its completely worn out. When it gets to 3700 miles, its paid for itself in fuel savings, thats all I care about now.

Varies wildly depending on weather. Worst ever was 12 miles with only 4% remaining into a very strong headwind (storm Gareth). Best was 36 miles with 30%ish remaining, with what felt like calm weather, but was in fact a pretty good tailwind. I'd say on average though I usually get to work (12 miles, 614ft ascent) on the top 30-40% and charge back up to 100% when I get there, the return leg from work (12 miles, 456ft ascent is usually the top 20-30%. But I'm a reasonably fit 39 year old, with a long history of cycling, including cycle commuting most of my working life, cross country MTB racing and audax riding, I make more effort than the motor does. If you let the motor do all the work, you won't get that far.

I have once tested an immediate drop in to Halfords, (not on my Gtech though as I haven't needed to) for a same day warranty repair. Service was excellent, part was replaced and bike fixed same day. I admit, some Halfords branches are better than others when it comes to the ability of their mechanics, but what I've found is what they can't repair they can replace. Woosh by your own admission you are unable to offer the same support as you'd "be out of business a long time ago". Cheapest Turbo Levo, £3k, triple the price of a Gtech, cheapest Kalkhoff, £2k+. They are in a different league. There you go again comparing the Gtech to something completely irrelevant. Oh and the Smart bike £1800.... No longer available, I guess it wasn't very successful. My Gtech didn't break down, the battery display failed I still got home with assistance on. A new one was dispatched the same day and received the following. As I said previously, this is easily the most reliable bike I have EVER owned. Over 2300 miles for 2 sets of brake blocks, one puncture and the display on a battery. Some of us just want reliability so we can cover the 12 miles to work in the morning and not have to faff with bike maintenance at weekends (I have 6 other bikes that bring me enough work in that department). I don't understand why you lot are slagging off the Gtech so much? So many people on this thread have said how happy they are with their purchase, but the same few characters keep popping up to tell us how rubbish they actually are despite never owning or in most cases even riding one. Even after one person posted about how it was perfect for their child specifically because of the lack of gears, another Gtech hater immediately starts on about how they should have bought blah because blah blah blah. They are a £1000 ebike. Comparatively cheap looking at the market as it stands today. Available on the R2W scheme through Halfords which is very tax efficient so the real cost to me was £683 (YMMV). I also got a £100 Halfords voucher which bought me a rack, mudguards, lock and waterproof gloves. A fantastic deal in my opinion. For my requirements it has been excellent and surpassed my expectations. My previous commuter was (is some days when the weather is better) a£2500 custom built Kinesis Tripster ATR (but the earlier version designed by Dom Mason). In its approx 1800 miles, its needed several sets of front brake pads, guards fettling about every 100 miles, gears (Shimano 105) indexing every 2-300 miles and cleaned down every 50-100 miles (depending on the weather). It is the most comfortable and fastest bike I have ever owned, but it requires a lot of maintenance. The Gtech has had front and rear brake pads and one puncture. The battery was replaced by Gtech, I haven't even cleaned it yet. Yes I'd prefer to have gears, but there is nothing in that price range with a groupset I want, a decent hub gear system with a Gates belt drive would blow most of the budget before you had a bike to attach it to. Similarly, Tektro V-Brakes, could be better, but they are perfectly adequate. I agree that for a lot more money, there are better ebikes available, but not everybody has £3k, or wants lots of gears, I want reliability that I can buy on the Halfords R2W scheme (because thats all my company offer) for less than £1k.

Where can I walk in unannounced for a same day repair of a woosh FOC for 2 years? I can walk in to any halfords with my gtech.... How many £300 spares have you overnighted to customers of the back of a single phone call? Where are your stores/distributors located again?

An old guy I work with lives at the highest part of the Malvern hills you can drive to. He easily gets home on his with barely any effort. Uses lots of battery though and his range under those conditions is probably down to about 12 miles. 3 times further than his journey... Hub drive motors do not gain anything from gears. Crank drive motors maybe, but as hub drive sits after the gears in the drive line, I don't see how having gears can make it more efficient Which components did you find cheap and nasty on the Gtech? The Tektro V brakes? Or the Gates Carbon Drive? They're the only components I could find. I assume whatever bike you currently ride must have a Shimano Alfine hub gear and Hope disc brakes if you think the gtech is made of poor quality parts. Or more likely it's 8 speed Shimano Tourney or Sram x4 and the bike had barely covered 100 miles and only on dry days

I don't need to ask, I own one. I paid £683 for it, it came with a spare battery, mudguards, Sealskinz waterproof gloves, a pannier rack and a lock. Since July, I've done 2356 miles on it. I've only had to change the brake blocks and fix one puncture in that time. Its been out in all weathers, including some terrible rain. The belt has never come off. I've never had to re-index the derailleur (it doesn't have one). Its climbed every hill I've attempted on it without any trouble. The furthest I've been on a single charge is 36 miles. I'm 39 years old, male and have cycled for pretty much my entire life. My last commuter bike was a £2350 Kinesis with a Ti frame and Shimano 105 groupset, but no electric assistance. It was occasionally a PITA and required extensive maintenance to prevent issues with the drivetrain. I completely agree with what Oli Woodman says in his review. There is nothing out there that comes remotely close to the quality of the Gtech in this price range. I do not want a Kudos or a woosh or even a carrera. They are equipped with low end poor quality components. A decent air sprung fork will cost most of your £1k budget. A decent shimano Drivetrain is upwards of £350. They will struggle to continue to operate when exposed to poor weather for long periods. They are nasty to look at. They will have reliability problems. They will come with a huge maintenance burden. They won't have anything like the support offered by Gtech when something goes wrong. I've commuted on various bicycles various distances for many years and I know how much hassle even the higher end shimano components can be. Please stop telling me what I want for my commute, there is nothing I would rather have for less than £2000.

Best sub £1000 commuter according to Bikeradar... Article Link

Relevance is: Just because you lot don't like it (see the Gtech thread), doesn't mean it won't sell. Just because its cheap badly designed rubbish (see the number of Appllo BSO's in the country), doesn't mean it won't sell. In my opinion (and lets face it, its just opinion on this thread), these will sell and do well if priced low enough at POS. If these were £300-400 they will sell buckets of them... I can think of loads of situations where these would be excellent: Holiday parks Huge factory layouts Commuting short distances in Norfolk My original point was that there is a lot of talking down on this forum of anything that doesn't fit in with a few individuals views of what a Pedelec is. You lot need to be a bit more open minded. You're berating this machine based on a few pictures on the internet, you've never seen one in the metal yet you're predicting its instant demise. I'd suggest that 50,000 units shipped, its already pretty successful, and if they hit the £300 mark (unlikely I know), I'd probably buy one myself.

Not mine, I don't want one of these, the wheels are too small for me, my commute is 12 miles and the roads are terrible. I'm also 6'4". My Gtech is an excellent bike for my needs (despite what people have said on here)... That said, I can see a huge potential market for them if they come in at the right price. Look how many appollo bikes are out there.....