On balance, I still am not a fan of e-bikes (previously known as ‘I just don’t get E bikes’)

[greencat]

I've got 2 ebikes too. My first was a Fiido D1 which was £350. 3.5 years old and done over 3K miles. It's proved to be a great workhorse - taking me to the classes I teach, carrying shopping etc. Just over a week after I came out of hospital after major abdominal surgery, I was on it - doing a mile or two every few days (I couldn't even walk a hundred yards at the time). Looks a bit battered now - but still going strong.

My second, is a Whyte 901 that I converted last year for around 400 quid, and probably done 3K miles on that too.

 

[Chopper the ex Copper]

Which Powerfly is it you have ? sus or hardtail ?

Hard. Harder than a Ross Kemp documentary.

 

[synchronicity]

It's not e-bikes that bother me. It's e-bike riders!
Sure, they are great for people with limited mobility yada yada yada. That has been elaborated upon and I don't disagree.
So I'm not referring to those people.
(heck I could probably have done with an e-bike myself after my foot reconstruction surgery)

But it's when someone dressed in normal clothes wooshes past you on some climb. There is no, how should I say, "climbing etiquette" apparent among these people. Surely they must know that they aren't as fit as a regular non e-bike rider. And yet I detect some form of smugness emanating from them as they whizz past uphill on a much heavier bike (with less experience to boot).

We both know they couldn't ride that fast without the motor. Or maybe that's it; they don't know? And even if the bike didn't have the extra weight of the e-bike, never mind the motor assist, there's still no way they could ride at that pace uphill. No way in the world. They'd be crawling along at 7 or 8km/hr max.

 

[averagebiker]

Its not just that, its the fact that its a bicycle with standard bicycle parts that are interchangeable, can be fixed, replaced etc etc just like a non ebike, and that means it can easily last decades. But its also the fact that you can replace the motor and battery, effectively making it a brand new ebike.
Not an easy thing to replace the engine or gearbox etc on a £4 or £5k car, and there you're looking at spending the same amount again.

All in all the simplicity of renewing a motor or battery make the Ebike such a good proposition.
Its only a shame theres no rainproof cover or inbuilt heater

Which Powerfly is it you have ? sus or hardtail ?

I have to wonder if you and chopper the ex copper are hoping (banking on) the manufacturers keeping spares and software support etc for decades? I fear that after a few years support and spares will dry up, standards will have evolved and only the technically gifted and/or ingenious will be able to keep one running more than say 5 years?
That's not to say I think this would be acceptable behaviour by makers, or that Ebikes are a waste of time

 

[novocaine]

I have to wonder if you and chopper the ex copper are hoping (banking on) the manufacturers keeping spares and software support etc for decades? I fear that after a few years support and spares will dry up, standards will have evolved and only the technically gifted and/or ingenious will be able to keep one running more than say 5 years?
That's not to say I think this would be acceptable behaviour by makers, or that Ebikes are a waste of time

given the recent study about "smart" appliances and support provided by manufacturers were firmware patches are only being done for 2 years effectively reducing the lifespan of the project from 10 years (typical) to 4-5 years max I suspect that it won't be component failure that gets you it will be software based redundancy that kills a bike (FIL has a whyte, it had a software update q3 last year while in for a gearbox change as the bearings couldn't be replaced. prior to it the software was reducing the mileage by 2 miles every 2 months, now it doesn't). it does leave an interesting worry.

I'm now looking at conversions for my wifes bike as she can't ride a normal bike anymore due to illness.

 

[2manyoranges]

N-Caine I think that’s exactly the type of ‘modern’ problem which will descend and screw up all the research about e-bikes being a greener alternative to non-E (real?) bikes. Human-interest-induced problems to maximise sales and profit, again with he environment and all species picking up the can. There are some analysts who simply say ‘digging up all this copper and rare earth for batteries’ is just unsustainable even in the short term. A proper end to end audit shows that bike companies are using materials from supplier companies which are gross polluters and poor employers - all this is not the whinging of a soft leftie - its a stark reality. Steel real bikes are not made by angels - after all, Reynolds tubing does use some exotic minerals - but the level of consumption is way lower and the potential longevity way higher.

 

[Imlach]

Everything electric will date faster and be obsolete faster than any mechanical setup. Also the proprietary nature of electronics means that you're stuck with overpriced repairs, or no repairs at all, considering how tech as a whole is entering a stage where component level repairs is a risk to the manufacturer, and instead you'll have to ship it off to have the whole thing replaced.

At the current cost of an ebike, coupled with the longevity issues, it is clear that e bikes are a fad soon to be killed off or reserved for those with more money than sense.

 

[amoto65]

E-bike sales are at their highest ever and as for being a fad they have been on the market for over 20yrs and as for more money than sense have you seen the price of some of the bikes advertised on this site lol.

 

[rwm1962]

I'm now looking at conversions for my wifes bike as she can't ride a normal bike anymore due to illness.

Great idea. I ride a self-build ebike for my bad days (major ankle & foot surgery still gives me jip - on feet all day at work). You still have a usable bike & whole bike isn't a write off if any of the ebike parts need changing but unavailable - there'll likely be a 3rd party alternative. My wife has health issues & was a great rider when she was younger. Her's is not a self build but it's been fine for 3+ years now & she enjoys getting out on it.

I commuted on my ebike about 200 miles last year. 2000 miles on the regular bike. I only work 3 days but driving costs about £12 with fuel & parking with clean air zone charges coming later in the year. With cycling my work day extends to 12 hours already. If I got the bus it could be longer plus the cost along with my work performance issues if buses late or cancelled.

 

[Imlach]

E-bike sales are at their highest ever and as for being a fad they have been on the market for over 20yrs and as for more money than sense have you seen the price of some of the bikes advertised on this site lol.

I'd be interested to see how many of the bikes of the last two decades are still going, my guess is the vast majority are either run down and rotting in a shed, or at the landfill. The ebike sales are at an all time high, precisely because the technology has improved immensely, but as it improves things become more proprietary, manufacturers do not want competitors to be able to reverse engineer and they also do not want consumers or unlicensed third party shops to be able to repair, following the trend of big tech brands. And sadly many of the proper good ebikes now have the entire frame designed around the motor itself, usually a mid drive one, and as such it cannot even be repurposed as a push bike. So it's just waste once the motor is gone - and it inevitably will go.

E bike conversions are far better. At least you've got a functioning bike should the motor fail, and the motors can usually be repaired - many have reverse engineered them.