A question about the Amiti e which may relate to other e bikes.

[JohnRC]

I am very new to e bikes and have been out riding four different brands. With the Amiti e I found that when I backed turned off the ECO so that I could pedal it there was a significant “drag” immediately. After doing this a few times I thought that this would a very difficult bike to ride without any assist.

When I rode the other 3 bikes none of them were like this. They all pedaled easily enough without any assist. The dealer rides one to work and back often and says he has not notice anything like this. I began to wonder if there might be some break in period and then the drag goes away.
Has anyone else had similar experiences? Please comment.

Thanks, John

 

[rich c]

Direct drive hub motors have no drag, but do have a cogging feel from spinning past magnets with no boost. Geared drive hub motors have no drag because they have an internal freewheel. Mid drives range from a fair amount of drag to none based on the mechanical design used. Consider that nearly every Ebike weighs in around 55+ pounds. None of them feel like a traditional bike unless you carry 20-25 pounds of gear on the traditional bike all the time

 

[PDoz]

When I first bought my full e pro , there were 2 episodes that the motor seemed to remain engaged / drag after turning off the bike , both times the drag dissapeared by turning the bike on / off again. It hasn't happened since (600 km ) - so I suspect there was some sort of bedding in process or perhaps a gremlin trapped inside who has now found somewhere else to hide?

 

[Roxlimn]

Amiti E is a mid drive using the Yamaha PX motor tuned by Giant. It's similar to the one I use on the Dirt E. There is a slight resistance when the motor is off. It doesn't feel completely smooth. Having said that, I have ridden the bike without any assistance and it is perfectly rideable if you're not overly concerned about speed.