2018 Gen 1 Ripcurrent S battery upgrade

[Airship]

I want to upgrade my battery. My bike came with the 48V 13AH standard battery. Is the controller set up for a 52V battery? It was optional when I bought the bike but I'm not finding any info on the controllers that came with the older Ripcurrent S. Green Bike Kit sells brand new Gen 1 batteries, 52V 19AH and 21AH which were the optional batteries back then. They are not sure they are compatible even though they list the Ripcurrent. Does anyone have experience with them or these batteries? Thanks for the info...

 

[Chazmo]

I’d love to help you, @Airship , but what I did was to try to run a used, older battery on the newer (2022) RipCurrent and that didn’t turn out well. This battery is labeled 52V/15Ah, as you can see in the photo below. This battery installed and ran OK on my bike for about 1/2-hour before it quit on me. I don’t know if the problem was some incompatibility or if there is something wrong with the battery. I have a theory that the on/off power switch is bad, but I have not found a replacement to try, and I have not found an easy way to remove sealant that they used around the wiring. Anyway, sorry.

I read in one of the manuals that there was supposed to be a 48V/52V setting somewhere in the menus, but there isn’t. At least not on the 2022 model. Even if what you try does work, I would guess that the battery charge indicator will be wrong since (I think) your bike had a 48V battery originally. I didn’t think the RipCurrect used those, though??

 

[Airship]

Thanks Chazmo. Yes, my bike, 2018 Ripppcurrent S came with the 48v battery when new. I don't think my 48V controller is compatible with the 52V battery. I bought a brand new Youz Gen2 52V 19ah battery from amazon. It was even branded "Juiced Bikes" on the case and in the instructions in the box, so it was the real deal. It fit okay but the bike would not power up at all. They said it was compatible, so I was able to return it.

Just a heads up, I also bought the Juiced Bikes Smart Display to go with the new battery. Since I had it, I went ahead and plugged it in. It works with the 48v battery, but sport and race mode cut on and off at high speed in 9th gear. The rest of the power levels seem to work okay but I'm still evaluating it...

 

[Chazmo]

Glad you were able to return the incompatible battery. I guess you’ll have to stick with a 48V one.

That’s odd about the sport and race mode cutting out with the new display (on the old controller and battery I presume?). I wouldn’t think the display has anything to do with that behavior. Are you sure your battery has sufficient charge to run those modes? Do they work (properly) with the old display?

Anyway, best wishes. I’ve got a lot of spare parts (for the 2022 version) because I bought a parts bike when Juiced disappeared. I think that’s the only way I’ll be able to keep my RipCurrent going for another few years. SIgh.

 

[Chazmo]

Any luck, @Airship ?

 

[Airship]

Hi Chazmo,
The new display works great other than the power surging on and off in Sport and Race mode. It doesn't do it at low speed and seems to only do it pedaling hard in 8th and 9th gear. It feels like the speed limiter is cutting in, even though I have the NDW mode set to 5 and the speed set to 62 MPH. Since my bike is a 2018 with the 48v controller and the old programing, I'm guessing that maybe the issue. It also could be the 48v battery and the display is designed to work with 52v.

I did a back-to-back comparison plugging in the original display and the bike returned to normal. Other than that, everything works great, it's full color and the display looks really nice compared to the original. It also includes a clock, and the numbers are all bigger so it's a big improvement. So, for right now I'm just living with it and waiting for Juiced Bikes to come back online and get more info.

This company has a new replacement 52v battery, but they could not confirm if it will work with the 48v controller. It looks exactly like the original battery and is the same size. The battery's price is good, but they charge an additional $122 to ship it. I might give it a try and get the 19ah since the 48v controller tops out at 20ah. Juice being out of business is making getting info tough and I can't find any reviews on this battery. The company does get good reviews however and they respond very quickly when I Email them with questions. I also found this company which will rebuild your original 48-52v battery and increase the amp hours. They are pricy but that's another option. Thanks for checking in...

Juiced bike battery 52V19.2AH/13AH(G1) rebuild-Greenbikekit.com BBS, ebike batteries, Bafang M620, Bafang M600, Bafang M500, Bafang M510, KT controller with display-GreenBikeKit.com

Juiced bike battery 52V19.2AH/13AH G1 replacement battery suitable for RipCurrent, HyperFat 1100, CityScrambler, CampScrambler, HyperScrambler， CrossCurrent S2, CrossCurrent X, Hyper Scorpion, HyperScrambler 2.

www.greenbikekit.com

Juiced Bikes Battery Rebuild Service

www.hicbattery.com

 

[Chazmo]

I did a back-to-back comparison plugging in the original display and the bike returned to normal. Other than that, everything works great, it's full color and the display looks really nice compared to the original. It also includes a clock, and the numbers are all bigger so it's a big improvement. So, for right now I'm just living with it and waiting for Juiced Bikes to come back online and get more info.

That’s great. I’m glad it’s (mostly) working for you. I was able to get Juiced’s final display before they shut down and it was a vast improvement which I am delighted with. The original was unreadable in New England winter, so I’m really glad I got the new one (see below).

But, the fact that the display is doing something different that affects your high assist modes seems strange to me. I assume you’re talking about the fact that you’re pedaling when the assist cuts out? If you’re not pedaling, well, I think that’s the way it’s supposed to behave, Airship. The speed limit setting is only for assist while pedaling. At least (I think) that’s what’s true for the 2022 RipCurrent model.

Thanks for the info on the rebuilders. I’ve also seen a few batteries being sold (as new) on eBay. I would think these would be the best replacements assuming they’re legit.

 

[Airship]

Yes, only while I'm pedaling, 8-9th gear in Sport or Race mode. On the throttle it works fine, 20 mph. It's definitely the display causing the problem. The original display works flawlessly. 0-3 assist works fine though, got to love electronics...