12 AH Option for Neo Cross

[Ravi Kempaiah]

I agree with you Dave and Chris.
I have ridden them and they are some of the best bikes out there. I did find that Eco mode had too much punch and I am glad they toned it down. Now, it will extend the range in Eco mode and possibly in all other modes.
Neo City is probably the best city bike. Too bad that they are not bringing in Xenion and Wave/Diamond etc.

 

[Dave]

The more I think about the changes Turbo Bob talks about, the more I appreciate Easy Motion standing firm. Certainly not all bad ideas, but some changes would probably have turned me away from the product.

 

[Aushiker]

Hi Vern,
The New 12ah batteries are compatible with the old 2013 models.

Thanks for posting this. I actually asked a few dealers this yesterday here in Australia as there are a few offering the 2013 Neo Race at discount price. Having the option to upgrade the battery is appealing as my commute is 42 km/h each way with the return leg along the coast into serious headwinds and I am a little concerned the 9Ah battery might be stretched.

Anyway it gives me more options in my shopping

Thanks
Andrew

 

[Dean Groom]

Thanks for the link to our website. In Australia at least, we've seen 11.6AH (12Ah) batteries arriving since late October 2014. We get a mix of US and Euro stock. The US models have the brakes the wrong way around and of course MPH speedos which generally get changed my the importer or if not in-store in pre-delivery. The 12Ah models we have found should carry the battery size on them where the 9Ah didn't. You might also notice that the revised display has the brake cut off symbol, where the vast majority of 9Ah didn't have this. There are some 'odd' models out there which are bit of a mix of both. We occasionally got a BH Cross with a throttle on it for example, and the older size brake disc.

From what we've seen in recent Taiwan and China shows, most eBike manufacturers are moving to the 6kmh crawl throttle now, even kit conversions. I ride a Cross daily and have done over 3000kms since September 2013 on hilly commutes. The 12Ah battery is a lot better than the 9Ah and I would say that on 'standard' mode it would easily do 80kms. I ride 50kms on 'sport' and has 2 bars left when I get home. The 9Ah would not do that -- I know, I've tried. As others have said, the programming on the 12Ah bikes has improved a lot -- as has braking. Standard mode will see you cruising at about 26kmh with little effort, Sport will be 30kmh. Add some effort and you'll pull 38 even with a laptop and change of clothes on the back.

Pricing has increased in 2013 in Australia, which has been controversial as it related to a change in pricing by BH and the falling AU dollar mid-year. The supply of bikes are steadily improved over the year with most people only waiting a short time for Cross in particular which is by far the most popular model due to it's versatility and we're a 'city shop'.

I hope this info is of use, -- of course we're selling these things at Sydney EBikes and this is just my view as someone who works there and chose a BH as a daily ride.

 

[Admin]

Thanks for the input Dean! Great website by the way, noticed it's responsive and the videos are cool too.

Your point about ebikes changing to 6 km/hour throttles is thought provoking. I wonder if they're doing this to extend battery range (so they can list more impressive specs) and maybe avoid liability for accidents at higher speeds.

Over here in the US we are seeing more speed pedelec ebikes that can hit ~28 miles per hour but that requires rigorous pedaling by the rider. It's interesting to see the space evolve

 

[Ravi Kempaiah]

Thanks for the link to our website. In Australia at least, we've seen 11.6AH (12Ah) batteries arriving since late October 2014.
I hope this info is of use, -- of course we're selling these things at Sydney EBikes and this is just my view as someone who works there and chose a BH as a daily ride.

Dean ,
Good to see you here. I follow your FB page and seems like you guys are revolutionizing the ebike space in Sydney.
I also enjoy Mark Sedhom's reviews. Good stuff from you guys.

 

[EddieJ]

. The 12Ah battery is a lot better than the 9Ah and I would say that on 'standard' mode it would easily do 80kms. I ride 50kms on 'sport' and has 2 bars left when I get home. The 9Ah would not do that -- I know, I've tried. As others have said, the programming on the 12Ah bikes has improved a lot.

Can I assume that you are talking about road miles rather than off road miles, and also assume that you are using mix of pedal only to get this kind of distance? I've pretty much reached the limit of what I can achieve with my 9ah battery as fitted to my NEO Xtrem, and desperately need more battery power/range to complete the off road events that I'm entering. I'd say for certain that off road, if I was to solely use assist mode (eco) with no with pedalling, then my 9ah battery would probably die after about 10-14 miles max.

It would be nice if BH UK were to help me out with a discounted price on 12ah battery given the amount of free advertising that they are getting from me at these off road events. I can dream

Also if you ever get a spare mph console, I'd be quite willing to buy one. I don't understand why UK bikes don't have them as standard, given that the country uses mph, not kph

 

[Ravi Kempaiah]

Can I assume that you are talking about road miles rather than off road miles, and also assume that you are using mix of pedal only to get this kind of distance? I've pretty much reached the limit of what I can achieve with my 9ah battery as fitted to my NEO Xtrem, and desperately need more battery power/range to complete the off road events that I'm entering. I'd say for certain that off road, if I was to solely use assist mode (eco) with no with pedalling, then my 9ah battery would probably die after about 10-14 miles max.

It would be nice if BH UK were to help me out with a discounted price on 12ah battery given the amount of free advertising that they are getting from me at these off road events. I can dream

Also if you ever get a spare mph console, I'd be quite willing to buy one. I don't understand why UK bikes don't have them as standard, given that the country uses mph, not kph

You honestly deserve some recognition and better support from BH UK.
Perhaps, you could become a distributor and set a new trend. An avid ebike rider + distributor will make a formidable combination.

 

[EddieJ]

You'll have to email them on my behalf.

After the hassles that I've had with them, I don't think that they would listen to me.

 

[James]

You'll have to email them on my behalf.

After the hassles that I've had with them, I don't think that they would listen to me.

I think you should hit them up and explain your involvement in not only your rides that you participate in but online forums such as this! Explain the benefits of having an active customer essentially promoting their good name on here with your updates but with face to face time on your rides... common sense would have me believe they could see the upside on such a vocal customer.

 

[Admin]

I'll reach out to BH US to see if there's anything we can do for you Eddie. I appreciate your presence here and would help more if I had the resources myself

 

[JRod0802]

Regarding the battery upgrade to 12ah, these batteries are available for the new bikes released this year (Jet, Jumper 650B, 650B), but it will be a couple of months till models like the Cross can be purchased with the 12ah battery. You could purchase the batteries separately, but they won't match the colored decals.

Regarding the top speed, it's possibly but as you probably found with the Jumper it's not easy to maintain for an extended period, unless you're in really good shape.

The new NEO Cross, which we expect to arrive this week or next, will come with the new 12ah battery and available in both medium and large frame sizes. There will be NO 12ah batteries available for purchase until around April when we expect to have 12ah batteries available for most 2013 and 2014 models and will match the 2013 and 2014 color schemes.

Hi. I'm a bit confused by your statement from just over 10 weeks ago Undercover Brother. Here's what it looks like for a few of the bikes on the Easy Motion Website:

Easy Motion Neo Xtrem - 36v / 9ah battery
Easy Motion Neo 650B - 36v / 12ah battery
Easy Motion Neo Cross - 36v / 9ah battery
Easy Motion Neo Race - 36v / 9ah battery

Are you sure that the Cross is currently shipping with a 12ah battery? Is the Easy Motion website wrong?

Also, now that April is over, are the 12ah batteries are for sale for each of the 2013 and 2014 models? How much are they? Are they available on the website, or does that have to be handled over the phone?

Thanks!

 

[Chris Nolte]

Hi. I'm a bit confused by your statement from just over 10 weeks ago Undercover Brother. Here's what it looks like for a few of the bikes on the Easy Motion Website:

Easy Motion Neo Xtrem - 36v / 9ah battery
Easy Motion Neo 650B - 36v / 12ah battery
Easy Motion Neo Cross - 36v / 9ah battery
Easy Motion Neo Race - 36v / 9ah battery

Are you sure that the Cross is currently shipping with a 12ah battery? Is the Easy Motion website wrong?

Also, now that April is over, are the 12ah batteries are for sale for each of the 2013 and 2014 models? How much are they? Are they available on the website, or does that have to be handled over the phone?

Thanks!

JROD - EM has a couple of 9ah Cross bikes left, but all the new ones they are bringing in are 12ah, and there are still shops like mine with both. Not everyone needs the extended range of the 12ah battery so it makes sense to save the $200. Regarding the availability of extra 12ah batteries, currently there is a limited supply till June so if you want an extra you will have to wait till then. Same goes for 12ah batteries for bikes that came standard with 9ah batteries, like the 26" jumper for example.

 

[JRod0802]

JROD - EM has a couple of 9ah Cross bikes left, but all the new ones they are bringing in are 12ah, and there are still shops like mine with both. Not everyone needs the extended range of the 12ah battery so it makes sense to save the $200. Regarding the availability of extra 12ah batteries, currently there is a limited supply till June so if you want an extra you will have to wait till then. Same goes for 12ah batteries for bikes that came standard with 9ah batteries, like the 26" jumper for example.

Thanks for your reply Chris!

So is this right?

Easy Motion Neo Xtrem - 36v / 9ah battery (until June, then 12ah will be available)
Easy Motion Neo 650B - 36v / 12ah battery
Easy Motion Neo Cross - 36v / 9ah battery or 12ah battery (both available, $200 more for the 12ah battery)
Easy Motion Neo Race - 36v / 9ah battery (until June, then 12ah will be available)

Also, is this true throughout the USA, or just at Long Island Electric Bikes? I know sometimes you guys get stuff before other retailers.

 

[Chris Nolte]

Thanks for your reply Chris!

So is this right?

Easy Motion Neo Xtrem - 36v / 9ah battery (until June, then 12ah will be available)
Easy Motion Neo 650B - 36v / 12ah battery
Easy Motion Neo Cross - 36v / 9ah battery or 12ah battery (both available, $200 more for the 12ah battery)
Easy Motion Neo Race - 36v / 9ah battery (until June, then 12ah will be available)

Also, is this true throughout the USA, or just at Long Island Electric Bikes? I know sometimes you guys get stuff before other retailers.

There's no official word on 12ah batteries for the Race or the Extrem, so we'll have to wait and see, but there's a good chance they will continue as usual on those models. The Cross will be available in 9ah as long as there is stock available and I think at that point they will all transition to the 12ah as a standard. This will be the case across the board last I heard and believe me I inquire about this stuff often. I hope that clarifies things.

 

[JRod0802]

There's no official word on 12ah batteries for the Race or the Extrem, so we'll have to wait and see, but there's a good chance they will continue as usual on those models. The Cross will be available in 9ah as long as there is stock available and I think at that point they will all transition to the 12ah as a standard. This will be the case across the board last I heard and believe me I inquire about this stuff often. I hope that clarifies things.

Thanks again Chris! Once I have a better idea of which bike I'm interested in I'll email Easy Motion directly regarding release times. Hopefully Easy Motion doesn't end up becoming victim to the Osborne Effect, because now that I know the 12ah batteries are coming out, I have no intention of buying the old 9ah battery. Also 324wh just isn't enough juice for what I want. I was thinking more like 400wh minimum (interesting side note: 400wh would power a Tesla at highway speed for about 1 minute before running out of power).

 

[Chris Nolte]

I hear you. I wouldn't hold your breath for the 12ah on the Extrem or the Race, if you really needed to have it we could potentially swap the cover on an Extrem or Race battery with a Cross or Jet. It's not the easiest thing to do, but we've done much more than that to accommodate customers needs.

 

[JRod0802]

I hear you. I wouldn't hold your breath for the 12ah on the Extrem or the Race, if you really needed to have it we could potentially swap the cover on an Extrem or Race battery with a Cross or Jet. It's not the easiest thing to do, but we've done much more than that to accommodate customers needs.

Wow. I will certainly take that into consideration. FWIW, I emailed Easy Motion, and they pretty much dodged the question. Looks like they won't tell me if/when they plan on offering the 12ah battery for the Xtrem (I didn't mention the Race because I'm kind of leaning away from that one). For all I know, they're just waiting until they run out of stock of the 9ah, and that's when they'll switch.

 

[Admin]

That's a pretty sweet offer Chris! Thanks for the new vocabulary on Osborne Effect JRod... something I'm sure every company wants to avoid but especially relevant to them right now with the battery upgrades.

 

[Deleted member 803]

I visited New Wheel today and was told that the 2014 Neo models have had a software modification that tames Eco mode slightly, but that speed pedelec has not changed and you can get assistance beyond 20mph. Brett at New Wheel suggested that its probably more like 24 or 25mph.