Almost ready to pull the trigger on an ebike

Darlinsk

Member
Region
USA
Hello All -
Another old fart here looking to make cycling fun again. I'm a 67-year-old woman who's been on the back of a tandem for 35+ years and many tens of thousands of miles. You might say, I've had an acoustic ebike for all those years. While I did what I could, there is no doubt that my husband did more than his fair share; I could never have done on a single bike what we could do on a tandem. My husband, who was a very strong cyclist, has lung cancer and can no longer pick up the slack for me, particularly as we have retired to a mountainous area. He got a Specialized Evo Creo Comp last year and has been having a blast; he says it's like being 35 again.

So, now it's my turn to get an ebike, and I'm struggling with the decision. In a perfect world, here's what I would like:

- Be able to ride on asphalt or gravel roads (fire roads and bike paths)
- Downturned handlebars
- Lots of torque to get me up the hills
- Braze-ons for loaded touring
- Reasonable weight
- 1X Drivetrain
- Good battery capacity, preferably with a removable battery

The Niner RLT e9 RDO is the only bike I've found that checks all the boxes, and I'm close to putting a deposit on it. I would be happy with a Class 1 bike. In fact, it would be preferable in terms of bike path access, but I am reluctant to give up the 85 Nm in the Bosch Performance Line CX motor.

I'm not an engineer and might not be thinking about this clearly. I welcome any input and guidance.
 
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The Niner looks to be a very nice ebike. I bought a very similar ebike (Cannondale Topstone Neo Lefty 3) and I've been very happy with it's off and on road performance. It's really nice that the Niner has braze-ons for touring and fenders. I wish my Lefty 3 had mounts for fenders.
Also, I love the Bosch Gen 4 motor!
 
Trek Domane+ HP?
Giant Revolt E+ Pro?
It is vital you buy from a Local Bike Shop. And that you had the chance to demo ride the bike.
The Trek Domane+ HP is a great bike, but it's really set up as an endurance bike, not a gravel bike; no braze-ons and 35mm tires. But the purple color makes me swoon, as does the price!

I tried the Giant Revolt last spring. I might have unfairly judged it after disliking the motor on a Yamaha Wabash a couple of days earlier. I got this notion that I didn't like Yamaha motors, but now that I look at it, they're not even the same motors. I'll revisit it; I was less informed last year. Thank you.
 
they're not even the same motors.
True. Yamaha PW-X2 (GiantSyncDrive Pro) is an excellent motor (85 Nm, 520 W max peak power). However, I've noticed the Revolt was not available in the United States. Which leaves you with Giant Road E+ Pro (2021), and that one might not meet your criteria...

Do Cannondale have anything you might like?

I know nothing on Niner. Can you buy it from LBS? (The specs look very promising, except of the dreaded Purion display).
 
True. Yamaha PW-X2 (GiantSyncDrive Pro) is an excellent motor (85 Nm, 520 W max peak power). However, I've noticed the Revolt was not available in the United States. Which leaves you with Giant Road E+ Pro (2021), and that one might not meet your criteria...

Do Cannondale have anything you might like?

I know nothing on Niner. Can you buy it from LBS? (The specs look very promising, except of the dreaded Purion display).
I'm not even sure that Giant USA are doing the Road E+ Pro any more either. The Giant options seem to be either a Fastroad E+ Pro or a Fastroad E+ EX Pro. It might be worth looking at putting drop bars on the EX but if you are re-visiting Yamaha motors you could also look at the Yamaha Wabash. I love my Giant Fastroad but I would also love to see Yamaha e-bikes for sale here in Australia.
 
I'm not even sure that Giant USA are doing the Road E+ Pro any more either.
Here's what you can find of the 2021 collection in the United States:

Fastroad E+ EX Pro
The idea of replacing the handlebars on that model makes sense.

I re-iterate: The Niner looks sweet. I'm only worried about post-sales service and warranty handling.
 
The Niner is available through an almost local bike store ... a small place about a half hour from my house. I tried one a couple weeks ago, but it was too big, in a highly trafficked area, and I wound up only taking it around a school running track — not much of a test. I believe the Purion display can be upgraded to the Kiox, albeit for a not insignificant cost. I guess Niner had to make concessions to hit that price point.

One thing I like about the Niner is that there is nothing proprietary on it, which should make it serviceable by any bike store with Bosch certification. The store I generally use sells Treks. Am I not thinking correctly about this? Would I be married to the store I bought it from?
 
No, you wouldn't. Everything looks fine with the Niner. Go for it!
(I'd only prefer an aluminium frame for durability. On the other hand the thing is so lightweight!)
 
85 Nm is a lot of power. Even loaded up with gear, you would be able to glide up hills in max assist, hardly pedaling.
Or, in low gear. I'm jealous reading it is a Class 3 e-bike. Honestly, finding e-bike matching the OP requirements was not easy, and I'm glad she's found it.
 
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