Ebike Companies Don’t Want You to Know THIS
Over the years of running my ebike shop I’ve worked with many companies and I’ve seen many of them blatantly disregard this issue. It’s my hope that this video will helps consumers raise their awareness of this and help build a more sustainable industry.
TIMECODES:
00:00 Introduction
00:14 The Question of Long Term Serviceability
1:22 Dependence on Companies for Specific Parts
1:58 The Story of Continental and Companies Closing Up Shop
02:42 Propel Commits to Long Term Support
03:06 Consumer Responsibility
03:35 Environmental Considerations of Cheap Electric Bikes
04:22 Current State of the Electric Bike Market
05:39 Final Thoughts
Music Bed ID: MB01L66CZ6WAMK3
I installed a Bafang mid drive this year. So far so good.
Then it would be better to support not only the companies by buying their bikes but also offering more standard products like "conversion kits" with more adaptable parts, that would be the most responsible thing to do. In the end, and if the product is accepted, these are standardized by the same market, such as cell phones at the time. It would also be helpful to democratize the market more by offering better prices.
Thank you, Good Info. How can I get a Bosch electric system added to my three wheel trike and what is the cost involved?
hello maybe you can help me I bought an e-bike from a company called juiced bikes, it was the rip current S and it cost me $2499.00 my bike arrived and had some damage it was dusty, dirty, and some chips here and there the battery was the big thing it had a big gouge on the side of it. but what really got me mad was the bike came with different tires on their website they show the bike with Kenda crusader SPORT tires. my bike came with just black wall Kenda crusaders. I keep getting the run-around just wondering if you might have a solution
That is why I build my own bikes and I only use dual hub motors geared in the back and non-geared in the front. and dual battery packs. It doesn’t matter what the manufacture does because I can always replace the parts with out any issues. Also never use Chinese batteries, and always use quality parts. I would use a mid drive motor because of the great torque but they are so proprietary. Anyway thanks for the video
Bosch is interesting.. I bought a Moustache (to some large extend due to your reviews…). So Bosch. I bought a Bike and a Fridge. So after that the normal response should be "I should buy some Stocks". But here the interesting thing: Bosch is not a public company, They are are owned (92%) by a non-profit. And not a fake one like IKEA… the most important goal of Bosch is to exist, forever. And that is strangely the same as your goal is when you buy a Bosch based bike. Or when you are a seller of Bosch bikes…
The problem is more large: the disvalutaion of e-bikes will be faster than normal bikes cause of the engines and batteries evolution.
great video. ps you blink a lot, relax.
What a refreshing video! I honestly thought that i did some good research before purchasing an ebike, but I wish I would have seen this video about a month ago. On Aug. 17th I ordered a Lectric XP step thru for my wife. I was expecting the bike to arrive before our anniversary (Sept. 20), which is more than 4 weeks! I just received an email stating that they JUST started shipping the bikes, but that I shouldn’t expect it for at least another 4 days AFTER FEDEX gets it into their system!! I’m seriously considering canceling right now before they officially ship the bike. ALso, I have been on some blog sites and other youtube vids and am starting to hear more negative views than I did at the time of my order.
That’s a good topic, thanks. But what do you recommend? Buy any bike with a bosh motor?
So a hub motor it is. Manufacturers will always build hub motors. The electronics are widely available and the battery could always be rebuilt with fresh battery cells.
Thank you for the honest presentation of this real issue in ebikes and tech consumer products in general. I’m more aware of it now and will consider in future purchases. Thanks for talking about the throw-away, consumer mentality we’ve developed and how material doesn’t just vanish when we don’t want it anymore. Your presentations feel honest and thought out. Thank you.
hello there–volt bikes are out of stock of batteries and they told me if i order one i might have to wait a while as others have ordered before me they are not going to make anymore volt pulse x bikes i believe,the availability of items seems to be out of stock,so people are having to wait,not like ebay or amazon–like something just press buy now and thats it.
This is an excellent topic and one that I’ve personally experienced.
In the early Naughties 2000 to 2003 or there abouts, SRAM took over SACHS who were an internal gear hub manufacturer.
Their best hub was the SRAM P5 Cargo Hub. At the time this was the best hubgear you could get after the Rohloff. In fact, at the time, it was the "go to" hub for tandems and work bikes if you needed something strong and resilient but couldn’t afford the Rohloff!
In 2010, SRAM decided they didn’t want to manufacture it anymore, despite it being pretty popular… apparently, it wasn’t making enough profit for them… which was pretty hard to believe given what I’ve mentioned above.
There was no support for those of us in the bike trade at that time who relied on this product to make the various tandems, cargo, disability and work bikes!
What was worse, there wasn’t another hubgear that could even be called a close second to it… such was the quality of the P5 Cargo Hub!
But, it gets even more worse… you see, the P5 was 126mm wide, when a lot of frames were built to accommodate 135mm drop outs. So a lot of bikes built specifically to house it were simply too narrow to take the wider 135mm hubs. That said, depending on the frame and its design, it was possible to widen some of those frames for the wider hubs when the need arose…, but we had to be very careful doing so, and this was with steel framed bikes! If they were made of Aluminium… we just wouldn’t touch them.
I bought a bionx and I have had vibration issues for a while. Everytime I bring it back to the shop they can’t seem to fix it.
Bafang isn’t going out of business any time soon
Enjoying your vids man. Thanks
Remember many people will have the same problem, which will mean big demand, which will probably mean OEM products.
It’s an opinion of a non expert, do you think it makes any sense?
Good topic Chris, but obsolescence is a fact of life. I am an old guy and I have lots of obsolete stuff, but it was much simpler stuff and it still runs today. For example, I have a 1954 BSA and 3,1966 Bultaco motorcycles that are collector items, still running today. I have a German made amphibious 1967 Amphicar, still running/floating today. I have amateur radio transceivers that used tubes; still on the air today. I have snowmobiles that are collectable as well still running in the snow. Years ago, there were nearly 100 manufactures of snowmobiles; now they can be counted on one hand. I have a 1-3/4hp hit-n-miss farm flywheel engine that was built in Indiana in 1927; it still runs perfectly today; company/manufacture long gone. But everything that I mentioned here, are simple machines compared to what is being manufactured today. So when my Lectric XP folding ebike is no longer being supported, I guess that I will be in trouble. But, that’s the way it is.
If not already, standardize the motor size/mounts – this will allow owners to extend the life of their bike as motor tech improves. I just bought a Tern HSD and if, heaven forbid, Bosch dropped out of the eBike motor game and +7 years later out of support… because of the external battery design, I could remove the battery and then have a fabricator create a light-weight (but sturdy) standard crank replacement for where the motor used to be. That’s my contingency plan and hope to never need it.
Absolutely agree with you the ebike or any e-drive is in its infancy. How many decades did it take for spoked wheels to leave the auto industry? What is the pros and cons of spoked wheels? What is the pros and cons of pneumatic tires and solid core tires given the conditions of shock absorbers today in the E-bikes? The batterie industry for electronics is INSANE. what it the real cost to make a batterie? (edit) the American Tesla battery company may have a plethora of info on batterie costs. and why they decided to make batteries instead of letting China make them.
That’s the chance you take when you buy from a new company or a company that goes out of business…you never know…..It’s a roll of the dice.
For many of the points you make, I purchased a Dutch Gazelle with a Bosch motor because in five years time I am confident Gazelle will be offering support.
I have to concur with this video. The fully integrated bikes don’t appeal to me because the battery is a special one-off shape and connector configuration that won’t be available in five years. I test rode a Specialized Como with Bosch BB drive. A replacement battery for this current model is $850 (!) But in a few years, I probably won’t be able to get one at any price.
I work for Canadian ebike company, this is something I worry about too. It isn’t just the electronics, it’s other mechanical parts too. Our manufacturer in China will randomly alter parts without telling us. Some of our bikes have had several revisions over the years, older parts become hard to track down, or can take weeks to ship from China. Often we’ve had to harvest parts from bikes in our warehouse just to keep customers happy. On the plus side, we do have a transferable warranty. In the end, it comes to choosing reliable components that won’t become a nightmare for the customers, as well as the service department.
My 1991 GT Karakoram is still going strong after all these years as a commuter, trail bike, and even used it for BMX. Can’t imagine an ebike making it anywhere close to 30 years.
I did a lot of research back in 2011 and ended up buying an expensive 2011 Trek Valencia e-bike with a Bionx battery. The brand name Trek was a big factor in my decision and I incorrectly thought they did their homework in choosing Bionx as their battery. Bad decision! When I needed a new battery I could only buy it from Bionx and for one third the price I paid for the bike. I balked but in 2018 Bionx went out of business. Now only a handful of bike shops can refurbish the battery and only if the controllers still work. The lesson here is not to be a captive buyer. When it comes time to replace a motor or battery make sure you have choices.
I find that most people that want the build your own kits is becuase they want a throttle. The don’t actually want to pedal. I got bosch because I still like to ride my bike, it just helps to have the motor for commuting.
Any chance you can review a few bikes from Ebike das Original ? There are no reviews anywhere on YouTube that I can find. Recently bought the Ebike Trekking Pro Wave step through model , thanks!
After opening my Bafang BBSHD and comparing it to the interior contents of that Bosh motor, I may just switch to Bosch.
Excellent point raised in this video. Really makes so much sense from a long term ownership point of view, especially keeping in mind that electric bikes don’t come cheap and the cheap ones are not really worth buying!
thats why i think i will buy an e wheel and attach ti my regular bike
Bosch or nothing.
I am soooo glad that I went with both Bosch as well as Propel. The Raleigh Lore I’ve been commuting on has reached over 12,000 miles in just over 2 years. Propel has done my yearly service and the Bopsch components have all held up with ordinary maintenance. This video is good news, I expect to get another 50,000 miles on this bike before I retire. The comparison that Chris makes with the AC industry is a good one; industries change, some companies live and others die.
Chris… you got to chill brother. You are a caring individual trying to help others but you’re just going to eat yourself up with this. Do the best you can for now… the future will take care of itself. Make time for Chris.
All of these points are why, no question, I will be buying my ebike from Costco.
One of the really cool things about owning an ebike for me is that I can do most of the repairs and maintenance tasks myself. In contrast, when your car develops issues you are obliged to take it to a repair shop. I am currently stockpiling parts like tires, tubes and brake pads to help ensure that my bike will last for many years to come.
This is the reason i bought a recognised bike make with good reputation for quality. Kalkhoff with Bosch system.
I’ve had my Pedego Ebike serviced all over the country. I am an RV person. And the service has always been great.
That is such a good point I hadn’t really considered before. Thank you 🙏🏻
Great post. Keep up the great attitude! I am waiting on a pair of Lectric XP’s. I have pondered your topic here and that played a huge part in choosing bikes that were at this lower price point. I saw the price as a kind of insurance policy in the event the bikes didn’t work out. I feel that based on the huge number of youtube videos I’ve watched that I really have to hold myself responsible for maintenance and or upgrading of components. The only bike store in my town just closed so I feel I’m on my own. I’m learning all I can about bikes and their upkeep and I’m just going to rely on my own skills and good sense……with the awesome help of folks like you of course and all the other awesome you tubers out there sharing their precious experience and knowledge!
Kudos to Bosch for their forward thinking and respect of their customers, really something to consider when purchasing an expensive e-bike!!!! I also agree people are getting a bit fed up with the throwaway disposable market, buy a quality product which is built to last is good for us and the environment. Our Miele washing machine was still going strong after twenty years, twice as expensive as the cheaper brands but last much more than twice as long, easily!
Iwas just gonna say bosch has a long term plan! I love my bosch!
get a good frame, and you can just modify. No biiggie.. thise are pretty simple designs and that is what is good. Just find a good mechanic.
👍👍
Great point Chris, it reminds me of the Derby Cycles impulse motor failures back in 2015/16 that greatly effected Kalkhoff e-bike customers here in the UK.
While this is a concern for most people, parts for ebikes are readily available on the internet. If your hub motor goes bad, just replace it. Yes, it does take some time to replace, but the parts are out there. Other parts are easy to replace, gears, brake parts, etc. so I don’t really see the problem.
7 years?!? Seven years is not enough!!! Bikes from 1950 still work perfectly today.
It looks like other "eBike Shops" may need to look at the names that they think might go out of business, and see if they can replace the – motor, let’s say, with a model they carry to help a customer who came into their shop. If this doesn’t happen, what you have is a warning to avoid ALL new ebike manufacturers. From a "legal" standpoint, "Let the buyer beware" prevails.
If I were in the eBike business with a repair shop, I would feel obligated to help a customer even though they didn’t buy from me as well as if my upline dropped out of sight.
What has your experience been with Specialized? I just bought a 2020 Vado 4.0 and this video brought up some good points.