eBikes - many questions

[NeelsBasson]

It has been a while since I did some mountain biking. When I was younger and fitter, we used the Hazendal trails a lot. I currently own a Silverback Stride SX which has turned into a garage wall queen. We started getting active again and I bought my wife a Giant Talon E+ ebike and then made the mistake of riding it.  I am getting older and it is not so easy to get fit again and the ebike helps to get me to places where I can ride.  Now comes the questions as I want to buy myself an ebike. I took the Giant and rode it where we normally ride our motorbikes and I loved it. Some nice sandy tweespoor. I am concerned that I will get bored of the Giant too soon and I am looking for an ebike with some nice components and a powerfull motor. Will it benefit a casual rider like me to go for something like the Giant Stance or Scott Strike 940, or will the Giant Talon E+ be enough? I don't want to overspend and the budget is tight. It seems it is a toss up between Yamaha and Bosch as the Shimano motors gets mixed reviews. I have never owned a dual suspension bike as well so not sure if it is needed? Thanks. 

[Danger Dassie]

Paging @ChrisF ....

[ChrisF]

Neels you clearly know enough about this topic to know how difficult it is to provide a single answer.

 

A few random thoughts ....

 

1. Once you are mobile on the ebike, where AND how far do you want to ride ?

NOTE - Distance becomes much less of an issue once to figure out how to save the battery on the straights and how to flatten the hills with the ebike .... and suddenly range becomes an issue ....

 

2. Whichever bike you go for, do your homework on a second battery, or "battery extender" as some brands prefer to go.  Negotiate that battery down to cost and include it in the deal !!  When I bought my Giant Trance E the second battery would have been R12k .... 8 months later I paid just short of R20k.  (sure, this was just past lockdown and prices went ape)

PS - These brand name shops take us for a ride with the price of batteries !!!!!  I paid R5k for second battery for the Darrrvin, when Giant was asking R20k+ for a second battery .... only difference being 500Wh vs 625W.h

 

The Talon comes with a 500Wh battery (or so it seems from the specs on the web, may well be a 625Wh by now).  Simply crazy that the BIKE costs R42k, and a spare battery may well cost more than R20k.

 

For practical purposes .... 100Wh = 10km when planning your rides.  Very hilly and strong winds and you wont reach 10km per 100W.h.  Ideal conditions and limiting the battery use 20km per 100Wh is very possible, but plan on this and you will get caught out every so often.

 

3. Motors .... uhmmmmm .... Go chat with Louise at Knipe_Racing.  They work on ebikes, even service some of the motors .... pretty sure that might be an interesting chat.  Though Louise does not bad mouth, so listen carefully for his recommendations ....

 

4. Pedal assist speed limit ..... "legally" SA follows the European regulations, with a speed assist limit of 25km/h.  This is frustratingly low, thus most bikes sold in SA are sold with the American specification of a speed assist limit at 32km/h.  Short of playing with the roadies on Bottelary, this is fast enough, and a good balance between speed and battery range.

Motor issues become issues when the computer is plugged in and they see you de-restricted the motor .... warrantee void ...

PPS - With Giant, the dealer can see how long I spent in each power assist zone, speeds, etc ...

 

5. Water bottels ..... scary how many ebike frames have place for a battery extender and NO place for a water bottle !  I can barely sqeuze a 650ml bottle into my Giant's frame.  I use this for my gummyberry juice, and a camelback for water.  For long rides I take a second 650ml bottel in the backpack.

 

6. Maintenance .... chain and cassette last surprisingly long (I do avoid excessive muddy rides).  Brake pads goes quicker.  Also brake discs.  But I still get a good few years out of it, so not a big issue.

 

 

 

Neels have you considered turning your current bike into an ebike ?

 

Chilled Squirrel used to be the go-to for this.  @Zebra has had good miles out of his conversion.

 

Last time I looked their prices were R30k+ ....

 

You can get decent hardtail ebikes new for just over R40k ..... but the price of second batteries ....

 

 

 

Maybe call these guys - https://goelectric.co.za/collections/e-bikes

https://goelectric.co.za/products/darrvin-crest

Would be interesting to hear what they now ask for a second battery.

 

I use a Darrvin hardtail as my roadie .... now just short of 10 000km

Edited June 18 by ChrisF

[ShaunCross]

I had a gaint talon for 6 months. Then upgraded to a gaint trance e 3 2022. What a difference . The trance has tons of power .Better suspension  I only ride in full power and can get around 40 to 50 km range .Riding is in Natal .My wife has a stance pro 1 2022 . The battery range is better . When we ride the same distance she has used 15 percent less battery than I have.She can keep up with me with no problem .The trance is heavier than the stance .check with the dealers if the have any stock of 2022 models. They where having huge discount on 2022 models awhile ago.https://solomonscycles.co.za/products/giant-stance-e1-pro-29-aluxx-aluminum-frame-625wh-e-mountain-bike-2022/

Edited June 18 by ShaunCross

[Sepia]

Done 30 000kms on my Truck Run (conversion on a gravel bike) with no problems. 500W motor is enough for me with loaded panniers etc.  Conversion cost me R20 000 (including local battery).  Good enough for me and I would not go fancy.

Edited June 19 by Sepia

[Pieterlab1]

There's a few nice options in the classified section.

Enjoy!