Jst_at_home

I am really grateful for your comments.

Just had a phone call this afternoon from the bike dealer. Bosch have sent a new motor. That's good and quite a relief. However I will try to get a proper report on what the problem actually was. Many thanks for everyone's comments. John

Many thanks. I have to say that I haven't been aware of any "float" on the chainring. However if the worst comes to the worst, I may well be in touch. When you say you see this a lot, is this on new bikes or ones that have had repairs which have seen wrong type of sprocket/nut fitted?

Regrettably the chap I spoke to this morning suggested it was the external section.

Hi all. Still waiting for an update from Bosch. I thought they might have been a bit quicker! Bike shop tells me now that the problem they identified was that the splined shaft that the chainring fits in had stripped, albeit that the nut that secures the chainring was correctly torqued. I have to say that I had cleaned the bike and checked the chain the previous day and had not been aware of movement at either the chainring or the rear gear set. Anyone else had this? John

In my case, it just happened mid-ride. I certainly hadn't been aware of any warning signs.

Many thanks for that info, Bearing Man. It's very helpful. Given that the supplying dealer made the comment, could this have been the result of "poor maintenance"? John

I'm certainly hoping so! I'm hoping that the motor will be back later this week. I'll post an update when I get the bike back. John

Hi all I have a Cube Cross Pro with the Bosch CX Performance motor. It has been fine for the last 20 months and almost 4,000 miles. On road use only. Last Monday, I seemed to lose drive assistance in that it felt as if teeth on a ratchet had failed or a gear had stripped. I could get some assistance on a level road with light pedalling but with any pressure, the pedals were almost free-wheeling. I took the bike back to the supplying dealer who investigated and have sent the motor to Bosch. I am a bit concerned that the bike dealer made some comment about Bosch having suggested that the fault may be down to "poor maintenance". I'm still in the warranty period but beginning to wonder if I'm going to be stung with a big bill if they do claim poor maintenance. My bike has been well-maintained (I'm a Transport Manager) but it's disappointing since the Cube has only dome marginally better than my previous Kalkhoff before a major failure. Does my fault description sound familiar to anyone else? Many thanks John

In May this year I threw in the towel and bought a Cube Cross Pro with the Bosch Performance Line motor. have covered almost 900 trouble-free miles since then. It seemed that something had failed within the motor of my Kalkhoff Tasman which would require a new motor and would have been the third. I sold it on eBay as "for repair or parts".

Unfortunately I have lost confidence in Kalkhoff and have bought a Cube Cross Pro. My Kalkhoff Tasman had its motor replaced under warranty at 2 years old. Last summer I reported to the dealer that it did not appear to be giving the same level of assistance as it had and I noted that the battery life was longer. I don't think it was down to my fitness! Cut to April this year. Although the "walk" function still operated, I was convinced there was little or no assistance. Without seeing the bike, the Sealer suggested it may have been a problem the Torque Sensor which would require a new engine. The price of a new engine was said to be £600 but they would replace it for about £350. I decided that rather than throw money into what was by now a 4-year old bike I would (a bit reluctantly) buy a new one. I sold my Kalkhoff on eBay as "for parts or repair". John

Hi all, I bought a Kalkhoff Tasman 8 from 50 Cycles in June 2014. In July 2016, the motor failed completely and 50 Cycles replaced it under warranty. I've now got another problem which could also be the motor or it its electronics. The walk assist function works but the start assist (where the motor gives a boost just as you start pedalling from a standstill doesn't. Also when riding, the motor appears to start and stop. I did contact 50 Cycles a few months ago saying that I felt the bike wasn't giving the same level of assistance as it had previously and wondering whether it was a battery problem. They convinced me the battery was ok, even though it had lost a bit of capacity. And that the assistance issue might have been my improved fitness. I had noticed the difference since last July I had hired a Haibike e-MTBwhile on holiday in Austria. I know they're totally different bikes but my Kalkhoff had felt lifeless by comparison. I'm in the position that if it is the motor it probably won't be cost effective to repair the bike but it seems a shame to scrap it. Anyone got any views? Kind regards John Ps I've asked 50 Cycles for their views but the bike is no w way out if warranty.

Thanks d8veh. Reason I ask us that I have a hankering for an e-MTB after I hired a Haibike in Austria in July. Nice bike but the chain snapped one day and tore the rear derailleur of its mounting but that's another story :-)

So, could anyone take a stab at answering the question "what's the best ebike to get"? I bought my Kalkhoff in the belief that it was a top brand and apart from the hitch with the new engine which 50 cycles sorted, it has been and continues to be OK.

I've only just come back to this forum. 50 Cycles replaced the motor in my Tasman City 8 in the summer of 2016. Since then I've done over 1500 problem-free miles. I didn't have the "clacking" noise, mine showed "pedal" on the screen and assistance was intermittent. I have to say the the service I had from 50 Cycles was excellent and from Joe in particular. I saved the transit carton for "just in case" but it's looking like I won't need it.

To close this down, it seems that there was a motor problem and 50 Cycles have replaced the motor despite the fact that my cycle is almost 2 months out of warranty. I got my cycle back yesterday and have been out on it today. It's a different bike entirely which leads me to believe that there has been a problem of some kind for some time. However many thanks to 50 Cycles (and especially Joe Kneip) who have been extremely attentive, have communicated well and turned the bike around quite quickly. I have posted about less expensive bikes but in getting my cycle road ready yesterday it gave me time to have a good look over it and I have to say that all components are in great condition, there is no corrosion, the only blemishes are my own doing and all in all, the cycle is ageing well. I know the motor failure is a big issue but 50 Cycles have dealt with it and to be fair, how many people have bought a new car and had something go wrong which disabled it. Well done 50 Cycles.

I didn't! I guess that's where the extra cost is. The brakes and all the hardware on my Kalkhoff seems to be top notch.

Ithink they may have Bosch motors. See http://www.ebco-ebikes.co.uk/products-page/ebco/

Might add that I have a few other addresses for 50 Cycles and sent my last e-mail to them all (but if a scatter-gun message) from Outlook with delivery receipt requested, hence after-sales bounced but the others appeared not to. J

My bike is being collected this afternoon and going back to 50 Cycles so we'll see what's what. I have to say, my local car accessory shop also sells cycles and I was looking at an EBCO bike in Saturday. Don't know how good they are but it was less than £1k! J

I think the e-mail address is wrong and should be aftersales@50cycles.com. I want to say at this point that I have found 50 Cycles to be good and when I have spoken to people there they have been attentive (albeit that sometimes it has been difficult to get hold of anyone). I do not envy the position they are in but as another previous poster said in his analogy to Mercedes-Benz, would I buy another? Probably. I told a friend of mine yesterday of my bicycle problem and his reply was "well you've enjoyed it over the last two years". And he's right, I have. John

Spoken to Joe at 50C this morning. My bike will be going to Loughborough in due course. John

Need to mention that 50 Cycles have tried to call me a couple of times this morning but I'd missed them on my mobile.

So, open or closed or are folks totally disinterested?

Good points, never thought of those!