The motor is not driving the wheels, its driving the crankset, which is connected to a chain, connected to a freewheel/cassette, there is no scenario where the cranks keep turning due to motor power if your feet are on the pedals. ie the motor cannot propel the bike when you are coasting. This is in contrast to a hub drive, where the motor directly powers the wheel, coasting on motor power is possible, hence the requirement for a cutoff. If the motor fails you're not going to shop for a replacement motor on amazon, you would not do that for a hub motor. As for batteries, I've yet to see interchangeable batteries or standard of any kind. The motor and battery are not some alibaba fly-by-night no name brand. Brose motors are a German brand and are used on Specialized bikes and a host of other ebike brands in Europe. Even if the Prodigy uses Shimano or Bosch branded mid drive motors, you're not going to get a replacement from Amazon, you have to go through a dealer to get it serviced. As for the throttle being a deal breaker. . .that is definitely a personal choice.