Hi folks,

I'm looking to buy a new electric bike, with my main requirements being reliability, durability and battery life/range. With so many options available, I'm wondering if there are certain 'gold standard' companies which I should look at first - i.e. companies that have a good reputation and are likely to get the basics right? I've had a disappointing experience in the past, and I'm hoping that by being prepared to pay a bit more I might avoid some of the pitfalls.

Any thoughts? Thanks.

Hello, welcome.

 

You might want to narrow down the question a bit. If you can say a bit about what kind of bike (MTB, tourer, frame style) what kind of riding you want to do (commute on flat terrain, off road, very hilly etc) and what ball-park budget you're playing with, folk might be able to offer better advice for you.

 

I notice you're in Bristol - Atmosphere seems to have a very good reputation as a retailer so maybe a trip there to have a chat and try out a few bikes is worth thinking about, too.

Good point, sorry about the vagueness. So -

a) Usage. Mainly cycling round Bristol - on-road only, some substantail hills.

b) Type. Open to ideas, have previously had a Smarta step-thru type of bike.

c) Main thing is reliability esp. of engine and battery. Plus good max. range.

d) Price range: anything from £1,000 to £3,000 (top end for something that is likely to last).

Sorry I know that broad price-range doesn't help much but I have no fixed budget - just want to get something well-made, reliable and easy to have serviced/repaired etc.

And thanks for the tip re Atmosphere. This Raleight looks nice - thoughts?

http://www.electricbikes.org.uk/bikes-for-sale/raleigh/raleigh-motus/

Edited September 21, 20169 yr by Jay Lewis

I bought my Wisper from them.....no problems with it and they have improved so even better. Try the Wisper Torque it gets good right ups. I think they also sell the Oxygen brand..they get good write ups too.

Hi folks,

I'm looking to buy a new electric bike, with my main requirements being reliability, durability and battery life/range. With so many options available, I'm wondering if there are certain 'gold standard' companies which I should look at first - i.e. companies that have a good reputation and are likely to get the basics right? I've had a disappointing experience in the past, and I'm hoping that by being prepared to pay a bit more I might avoid some of the pitfalls.

Any thoughts? Thanks.

The main players are the bike manufacturers with the most money behind them for design, research and development,the ones who sell the most non powered bikes and powered ones.

Giant,Scott,Haibike,Cube and Ktm all use the best motor and battery technology available and use top frame materials and designs.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcJGe_WM6xKnB_J8ynIYx2A

And thanks for the tip re Atmosphere. This Raleight looks nice - thoughts?

http://www.electricbikes.org.uk/bikes-for-sale/raleigh/raleigh-motus/

 

I test rode a Motus - quite nice but I ended up buying a Wisper 705 Torque (I reviewed it here if you're interested). Mine's pretty new so I don't have the track history that Crockers' bike has but I've been pleased with it so far. It has a 10 year warranty on the frame and 2 years on all the other (non-consumable) bits which seems fair in comparison to other offerings. My poking around pre-purchase suggested that most folk who have had their Wispers for years are still getting use out of them and things like battery availability and support from base seems good (David of Amps is often around on the forum and always ready to offer help and advice as well as the phone number of his really technical guy if an issue needs talking through).

 

Your parameters do narrow it down believe it or not - you can pay as much for an e-bike as for a car so a £3K cut-off is a useful bit of information!

 

Others may not agree with this point of view but I'd say that if you don't want to take it off-road then you might be best to stay away from some of the trendier MTB styling - they just look eminently more attractive to thieves in my book! A step-through is extremely versatile but perhaps doesn't have the "kerb appeal" that will attract thieving eyes so much!

 

Getting an idea of what you might want is a good idea but nothing will substitute for a few test rides, I reckon. Getting an idea of your local retailer's expertise and the back-up they might offer is also a good thing.

Giant,Scott,Haibike,Cube and Ktm all use the best motor and battery technology available and use top frame materials and designs.

 

As do we!

 

All the best, David

Hi OP

 

It's very simple.

 

If you want to find a gold standard use EN15194 as a starting point.

 

Every EBike on sale in the UK must conform to EN15194, the current European standard, if it does not it is not exempt from motor vehicle regs.

 

Unfortunately there are many ebikes that simply don't conform or cannot prove they conform. Same thing.

 

If you are worried, ask to see at least the Certificate of Conformity for each bike with full description i.e. Wisper 905se the certificate should not offer a code, these are normally not worth the paper they are printed on. For complete proof ask to see the TUV or SGS report on the model you are interested in. The reports will include images of the actual bike tested. It's almost foolproof.

 

There will be a few companies that will try and fob you off with certification for similar bikes. But if there is any change to the original specs a new certificate is required.

 

We have recently made a couple of changes to our folding 806 Torque and we are in the process of re-certifying.

 

All the best, David

The main players are the bike manufacturers with the most money behind them for design, research and development,the ones who sell the most non powered bikes and powered ones.

Giant,Scott,Haibike,Cube and Ktm all use the best motor and battery technology available and use top frame materials and designs.

Hmmm!. I don't think that's right. Bafang are the biggest ebike motor manufacturer in the world. They've been making them since before any of those companies dreamt of their first Ebike. Companies like Pedego have probably made more ebikes than all those brands put together. The batteries used in those bikes have cells that are almost collectors items, when you consider the rate at which battery technology is advancing. There's much better cells and batteries available now.

Hmmm!. I don't think that's right. Bafang are the biggest ebike motor manufacturer in the world. They've been making them since before any of those companies dreamt of their first Ebike. Companies like Pedego have probably made more ebikes than all those brands put together. The batteries used in those bikes have cells that are almost collectors items, when you consider the rate at which battery technology is advancing. There's much better cells and batteries available now.

Yes i agree but the manufacturers i stated are right at the cutting edge of design and build technology with carbon frames and the latest full suspension systems plus they are very fashionable and attractive to the younger buyers,some of the 2017 models are stunning.

Really, they are not.

 

They are simply bigger businesses. At least one of the businesses you mention simply chooses all its components including frames from a catalogue bolts the bits together, gets the frames pained in their colours and stick their logos on. Many smaller businesses design fresh frames and develop their own software to run their drive systems. Far more cutting edge.

 

All the best, David

Visit, Test, vist, test, visit, test.....keep doing this until YOU are happy and then buy that bike, enjoy and go out and use it.

 

Do not buy blindly and take a complete strangers word that a certain bike is what you should buy. Everyone is different and no bike fits all, so get out there and do your homework.

 

From my experience as a dealer you need a reasonably local dealer/manufacturer who will support you when things go wrong, because they can and probably will at somepoint and at the moment very few traditional bicycle dealers are happy to service, repair or even look at ebikes.

My local dealer will only sell Bosch powered eBikes. He said they had sold a lot of eBikes but had too many reliability problems with other brands. (he specifically mentioned water ingress as been an issue he had encountered numerous times) Whether they are the 'gold' standard I don't know, but they are certainly a high standard.

 

Now queue a dozen responses about failures and problems with Bosch

 

But I would say whatever you buy, buy it from a local dealer with experience in the brand and who is willing and able to deal with any issues you have. I would say there is the potential for more to go wrong on these bikes and so you need a dealer who knows what they are doing.

My local dealer will only sell Bosch powered eBikes. He said they had sold a lot of eBikes but had too many reliability problems with other brands. (he specifically mentioned water ingress as been an issue he had encountered numerous times) Whether they are the 'gold' standard I don't know, but they are certainly a high standard.

 

Now queue a dozen responses about failures and problems with Bosch

 

What he *probably* means is that there's a bigger profit margin on Bosch bikes.

What he *probably* means is that there's a bigger profit margin on Bosch bikes.

 

I would imagine there is always a bigger profit margin on reliable bikes because dealing with unreliability isn't eating into your profits.

Reliability is certainly a key factor. We have had a few Bosch issues. The most important point is to make certain any issues are quickly dealt with. This can be a problem when dealing with Magura.

Bosch bikes are not without their problems. There were many reported cases of water getting into the display. All ebikes are gradually improving in quality. The likes of Wisper, Freego, Oxygen, Juicy and many others wouldn't still be in business if they hadn't solved all the systematic defects that they had in the past.

 

Wisper and Freego will give you a brand new bike if they can't fix it within 5 days (during warranty). There's been some guys on this forum off the road for months while their Bosch bikes were being fixed.

 

Of course, if you're selling a particular brand, you're going to say that it's the best quality. As far as I can see, all bikes have their faults. If you're unlucky enough to get one, the main thing is that it gets sorted quickly and conveniently. I like the Ebikesdirect system. If your bike develops a fault, you put it back in the rather large box that it was delivered in. The next day, someone comes and takes it away. A couple of days later, it arrives back in its box fixed.

Clearly we need JD Power to cover eBikes

Clearly we need JD Power to cover eBikes

 

You like horror stories do you?

.

Bosch are the best in class as far as mid drive motors are concerned.The CX motor has proven outstanding in reliability and performance.

Now i have heard that dealing with magura who are the distributors can be a little tricky but they probably have so few problems with the latest motors that it isn`t a concern.

Yamaha are close and maybe the new PW-X 2017 motor will be the one to have next year if the claims and specs are correct.

Personally I would buy off someone local who has a good selection of bikes to try. We have previously collected bikes not near us but the person does not often keep the large box so you have to send one out and if you work you have to book a day off and sometimes couriers let you down. Problems are rare but do happen and if you support a local dealer most will look after you. This is why we now personally deliver only and if an issue cannot be resolved remotely it means we are close enough to sort it out and loan a bike at no additional cost.

Hi Nemesis, I agree the CX is superb, however the new Shimano MTB 8000 is probably as good IMO.

I should clarify, that we will supply a loan bike if we cannot fix a problem within 5 working days after the bike has been returned to our workshops here in Kent.

 

This applies to bikes still under warranty and if the issue is covered by our warranty. It applies to the mark 2 Wisper Torque bikes and the new Wisper SE bikes (with rack battery).

 

All the best, David

Thanks for all the ideas and recommendations. One thing that emerges from this is that it's probably worth buying from a local dealer with a good reputation, in case anything does go wrong. Maybe that's more crucial than going for a specific make or model...?