2016 Radrover just stopped after 4 miles??

[Commuter101]

Got my 2016 last week, waited a week to ensure all mechanical components were working good. Took the maiden voyage this weekend and it zonked out in 4 miles. The battery won't turn on, let alone hitting 'mode' to turn on. I did notice however the controller was warm to the touch when it stopped working. I was in PAS 1 going 16mph, wattage was at 0. RPB, is not open Sundays, so decided to post here to get some expert owner opinions.
(BTW, took the battery off and on, several times, it still does not light up blue.)

 

[vincent]

that is weird with the battery not turning on, sounds like you got a bad one and they will have to send another

i had issues with my radmini and the first thing they had me do was check all the connections, but mine did not seem to be a battery issue on that one and the battery on the mini is different

so sorry you had trouble with your bike right off the bat, hopefully someone else will chime in with a suggestion

sure rad will get right back with you tomorrow

please let us know what the problem ended up being

 

[Commuter101]

that is weird with the battery not turning on, sounds like you got a bad one and they will have to send another

i had issues with my radmini and the first thing they had me do was check all the connections, but mine did not seem to be a battery issue on that one and the battery on the mini is different

so sorry you had trouble with your bike right off the bat, hopefully someone else will chime in with a suggestion

sure rad will get right back with you tomorrow

please let us know what the problem ended up being

Will definitely post what the issue was, Vincent. Maybe even start a 'sticky' thread as a go to, for new owners, so they know what to do outside of the normal debugging suggested by RPB. Sent them an email this morning describing the issue, hopefully this gets resolved quick.

 

[dm nelson]

Will definitely post what the issue was, Vincent. Maybe even start a 'sticky' thread as a go to, for new owners, so they know what to do outside of the normal debugging suggested by RPB. Sent them an email this morning describing the issue, hopefully this gets resolved quick.

Sorry to hear about that experience, but I can relate. I bought 2 radrovers last month and one had a DOA battery. I sent them a short video showing the symptoms and they sent me a new battery. I found the support experience very helpful. Having to wait for shipping is tough, though. In the mean time I tuned up the bike and rode it around without power and gained appreciation for how well it works under leg power. Quite a workout to go up hill.

 

[Commuter101]

Sorry to hear about that experience, but I can relate. I bought 2 radrovers last month and one had a DOA battery. I sent them a short video showing the symptoms and they sent me a new battery. I found the support experience very helpful. Having to wait for shipping is tough, though. In the mean time I tuned up the bike and rode it around without power and gained appreciation for how well it works under leg power. Quite a workout to go up hill.

I wish the issue with my bike would be just the battery, but I am afraid this might be a little more complex. Since the battery seems to be showing full charge on the LED readout. It shines blue when you turn it on, uninstalled. But as soon as I install it on the bike, it won't turn on. I am assuming, at this point, this is a controller issue. I am not exactly very handy with electronics outside of PC's&Laptops. So it will be a learning experience for me, if I need to install the controller once RPB sends one out to me. I hope it is pretty much plug-n-play. Down time will suck for me, since I bought this bike to make my commute easy for work. Now, I don't know how long I will be biking in to work, till it gets replaced. On a side note, strangely enough, the bike rides pretty smooth even without juice. I rode back 4 miles when it died, while out riding with my family this past Sunday. I think the worst part of it all, was the embarrassment I felt in front of other family members, when they gave me that look...'Oh, so you spent how much on this bike??...and can't do 4 miles!'

 

[Ann M.]

Sorry your having issues with the bike right out of the box, @Commuter101. Although it's annoying, pulling the controller isn't too bad, just tedious. Please do share any diagnostic information you have and your feed back from Rad Power.

Did you check to make sure neither of the brakes was dragging? If there is a serious rubbing issue that could potentially produce enough drag to overheat and damage the controller. Most ebikes that our shop has put together arrive with badly adjusted brakes and sometimes derailleurs.

 

[Commuter101]

Sorry your having issues with the bike right out of the box, @Commuter101. Although it's annoying, pulling the controller isn't too bad, just tedious. Please do share any diagnostic information you have and your feed back from Rad Power.

Did you check to make sure neither of the brakes was dragging? If there is a serious rubbing issue that could potentially produce enough drag to overheat and damage the controller. Most ebikes that our shop has put together arrive with badly adjusted brakes and sometimes derailleurs.

Ann M., I spent a week before riding, ensuring all the mechanical components were good to go, which includes the derailleur and brakes. The rear caliper was rubbing quite a bit at first so I adjusted the gap to the point where the rear wheel ran freely without contact from the brake pads. The front had a mild touch as well, which I adjusted, was a lot easier with the adjuster disk on the inside of the brakes. BTW, I did not get any ERR codes when I took my first ride after assembling which was down the street and back. Once all the mechanical components were all good, after a week of checking I headed out for a cruise mainly on my own effort since I was in PAS 1 at 15-16mph. Then without warning zap, felt like I got hit by an e-bomb! Everything just shut down.

 

[walawn]

@Commuter101 Remove the battery from the bike to see if it will turn on by itself. The blue light should illuminate on here. If it doesn't after being fully charged, RPB should send you a replacement. If they are MIA with this matter, then I would take the case apart if I were you to see if a wire came lose. I would also test the battery beforehand to see if it has a bad cell perhaps. I have a thread on here with pictures and steps to take the battery apart.

 

[Commuter101]

@Commuter101 Remove the battery from the bike to see if it will turn on by itself. The blue light should illuminate on here. If it doesn't after being fully charged, RPB should send you a replacement. If they are MIA with this matter, then I would take the case apart if I were you to see if a wire came lose. I would also test the battery beforehand to see if it has a bad cell perhaps. I have a thread on here with pictures and steps to take the battery apart.

Walawn,
I don't think it is the battery, it turns on when off the bike. The LED's light up all the way blue while the top most bar is red. I have a good hunch that it is most likely the controller. But am going to wait on RPB's response before I decide to take anything apart.

 

[dm nelson]

Walawn,
I don't think it is the battery, it turns on when off the bike. The LED's light up all the way blue while the top most bar is red. I have a good hunch that it is most likely the controller. But am going to wait on RPB's response before I decide to take anything apart.

The battery can be checked with an dc-capable electric meter on the positive & negative terminals, with it turned on. Should read in the 48v range. Good luck getting this resolved.

 

[vincent]

Pretty sure the 2016 rover will be easy to change the controller, the Mini is not bad except for getting one of the plugs Through the controller case but you won't have that problem on the rover

It should just be 4-5 wires and you can only plug them in to the other correctly shaped wire

Probably take 10-15 minutes to do it

 

[walawn]

@vincent You are correct. Radrover controller is easy to exchange. 4 screws, a couple of cable ties, and unplug/replug.

 

[Commuter101]

(Update)
Got my new controller this past week, thanks RPB! Installed it this weekend and am back on the road, racking up the miles. Installing the controller was a cinch, once you find out how to get to one of the internally routed wires. All you have to do is turn the handle bar to the right and the wire drops out of the tube, to disconnect/connect.

 

[walawn]

Awesome! Glad you're up and running!

 

[SteelHorseRider]

Honestly, after all the problems and major disappointment you had with you NEW purchase of your RR. They should have just sent you out a BRAND NEW BIKE!

I am thinking about buying a Rover, but this is giving me second thoughts and a moment on pause...

 

[totalnovice]

@SteelHorseRider ... I did a post awhile back (link below) about what I thought about RAD PB as a company, their products, and whether I would refer a friend. I have a 2015 RR purchased thru the original IndieGoGo CF deal. My motor crapped out after 100 miles (RPB replaced since still in 1-yr warranty period). I still have my RR, and enjoy it, but I went into it with my eyes wide open. There's a reason the RPB ebikes are less expensive than most other models out there.

Don't know what your budget is, or when you want to buy ... but @Court recently posted a crap load of video from Interbike (look for electric bike review on you tube) for the new ebikes coming in 2017. Lotta great choices out there.

https://electricbikereview.com/forums/threads/rad-power-bikes-rpb-the-company.6894/

 

[dm nelson]

Honestly, after all the problems and major disappointment you had with you NEW purchase of your RR. They should have just sent you out a BRAND NEW BIKE!

I am thinking about buying a Rover, but this is giving me second thoughts and a moment on pause...

My partner's and my Radrovers are great fun & work great. There were a few problems when they arrived but the customer service resolved the issues in a timely manner. If there was a lbs that sold ebikes I would have shopped their first, but that was not an option for me. Like totalnovice indicates above, that these are inexpensive bikes for a reason. But with a little bike tuning and maintenance experience, most issues are resolved.Seems like there are many youtubes on bike maintenance now. I just saw one the other day that refreshed my memory on disc brake cleaning. & yes, there does seem to be lots of new choices arriving for your ebike shopping pleasure.