Atlas first impressions

[Recycle]

@rbeckert said: One of the issues I have with the ebike is the length of the front lower fender support is too short.

Common Atlas problem. This is how I fixed the front fender rubbing on the tire (image 1). Worked for me, your mileage may vary.



There are three adjustment points that work in conjunction for this problem (image 2).



For the strut attachment points (1), add spacer (one piece or multiple washers) and attach with M5-0.8x18mm screws (Home Depot).



Rear centering adjustment bracket (2), loosen screws and center fender on tire.

Add washers to headlight attach point as shown. Try additional washers on one side or the other of the fender tab. When in front of fender tab, this moves the fender to the rear slightly. In my case, this configuration (behind the tab) gave the fender enough clearance.



Tightening sequence, 1-2-3. Good Luck!

 

[rbeckert]

Common Atlas problem. This is how I fixed the front fender rubbing on the tire (image 1). Worked for me, your mileage may vary.

View attachment 145730

There are three adjustment points that work in conjunction for this problem (image 2).

View attachment 145733

For the strut attachment points (1), add spacer (one piece or multiple washers) and attach with M5-0.8x18mm screws (Home Depot).

View attachment 145736 View attachment 145732 View attachment 145735

Rear centering adjustment bracket (2), loosen screws and center fender on tire.

Add washers to headlight attach point as shown. Try additional washers on one side or the other of the fender tab. When in front of fender tab, this moves the fender to the rear slightly. In my case, this configuration (behind the tab) gave the fender enough clearance.

View attachment 145734

Tightening sequence, 1-2-3. Good Luck!

Thanks for the input. My solution was re-angle the arm with the attachment loop. That still didn't reach so I used a longer bolt and shimmed the attachment point to the fork with a nut and 3 flat washers that I had lying around. The design clearance between the tire and the fender is super close.

 

[kneebenderbiker]

Evelo has been super getting back to me on other things. I've emailed them with questions before and after receiving the Atlas and their response time is like 3 hours and very friendly.

Yes, I like the R&M. They have a dealer both in Columbus OH and Pittsburgh PA, each a 4 hour round trip so I decided to learn to do minor maintenance. I replaced the seat and the pedals on the R&M and put identical seat and pedals on the Atlas. I hadn't ridden a bicycle for 30 years until I bought the Trek. 76 years old here and never did any bicycle maintenance until I owned the ebikes. I have since changed 3 inner tubes, replaced seats and pedals like I said, replaced the remote control for the SmartPhoneHub on the R&M and also the Enviolo manual controller, replaced disk brake pads, installed 2 rear cargo racks, 1 Abus café lock, assembled the Atlas, and disassembled and packaged the Trek to ship to Pro's Closet as that's who bought the Trek from me.

I learned to do all this by watching YouTube videos. The same one's over and over till I 'got it'! Next, I'm going to tackle bleeding the brakes.

Final note. I would purchase from Evelo again.

Wow! Congratulations on learning all the maintenance and adjustments and stuff. You give me hope as I'm only 65 - plenty of time to catch up to you and your skills! I'm sure it's very rewarding to do all that yourself. I'm still debating whether or not I'm willing to try. One advantage I do have is using the bike for recreation rather than commuting or car replacement, so if it's out of order while I figure out how to change a tire or something, no problem.

Good to hear you would still buy Evelo as I am very interested in the Atlas. The advice I'm getting from most on these forums is to consider local support, which means, more or less, I'm narrowed down to Gazelle due to my requirements; belt drive and IGH, Class 3, throttle would be nice. The only other local choice is Specialized and I'd love one if they gave it to me or was 1/4 the price.

 

[Recycle]

Thanks for the input. My solution was re-angle the arm with the attachment loop. That still didn't reach so I used a longer bolt and shimmed the attachment point to the fork with a nut and 3 flat washers that I had lying around. The design clearance between the tire and the fender is super close.

Should not have to reshape the struts. Most likely the fender tab configuration is the problem. Evelo shows two different positions of the tab (see images), one in front, the other in back of the headlight arm ( confusing to be sure! ). I found by just moving the spacer forward (between the fork and tab, image below), this moves the fender back slightly. Then adding the spacers on the strut attachment points provides adequate spacing between the fender and tire. HTH.

 

[AHicks]

My fender does runs pretty snug, collecting an oak leaf on occasion that gets caught making noise until the bike is stopped and backed up a few feet, but I had no trouble attaching it. I think the big 2.8" tires have a lot to do with it.

 

[fdeezle]

New Atlas owner and I too had issues with the front fender. A relief knowing I wasn't the only one with the problem. Like other posters the issue was solved by adding spacers to the strut attachment points. First ride yesterday and everything looks good. I'm curious if anyone knows the difference between Eco & Sport modes. Didn't see anything in manual or anything online.

 

[rbeckert]

New Atlas owner and I too had issues with the front fender. A relief knowing I wasn't the only one with the problem. Like other posters the issue was solved by adding spacers to the strut attachment points. First ride yesterday and everything looks good. I'm curious if anyone knows the difference between Eco & Sport modes. Didn't see anything in manual or anything online.

I received an e-mail from Evelo yesterday wanting me to schedule a 15 minute phone conversation with one of their support team members because it's been 30 days since receiving my Atlas. (Nice gesture!) I'm scheduled to receive a call from them on Wednesday, February 1st, 3:30 ET. The question about the lower fender support strut is #1 on my topics (14) for discussion! Anything else you would like me to discuss with them?

 

[rbeckert]

New Atlas owner and I too had issues with the front fender. A relief knowing I wasn't the only one with the problem. Like other posters the issue was solved by adding spacers to the strut attachment points. First ride yesterday and everything looks good. I'm curious if anyone knows the difference between Eco & Sport modes. Didn't see anything in manual or anything online.

I've got a Riese & Muller Roadster that has "ECO", "TOUR", "SPORT", and "TURBO". "ECO" is 60% assist, "TOUR" is 140% assist, "SPORT" is 240%, assist and "TURBO is 340% assist. I've got my Atlas set up in the 3 level of assist. Pretty cool that this is an available feature.

 

[Recycle]

My fender does runs pretty snug, collecting an oak leaf on occasion that gets caught making noise until the bike is stopped and backed up a few feet, but I had no trouble attaching it. I think the big 2.8" tires have a lot to do with it.

Have worked on Atlas Gen 1 and 2. Front fender clearance seems more of an issue with Gen 2, IMO. These images from the latest Gen 2.

Before (out of the box):

After mods:

 

[Recycle]

I received an e-mail from Evelo yesterday wanting me to schedule a 15 minute phone conversation with one of their support team members because it's been 30 days since receiving my Atlas. (Nice gesture!) I'm scheduled to receive a call from them on Wednesday, February 1st, 3:30 ET. The question about the lower fender support strut is #1 on my topics (14) for discussion! Anything else you would like me to discuss with them?

You might ask about the two conflicting images (previous post) on the Evelo site, showing the placement of the front fender tab, the one with the tab installed at the rear of the light housing, moves the fender rearward the greatest distance. Seems just adding strut spacers and longer bolts, puts unwanted tension on the tab attachment point. Without the struts attached, think about using your hand to pull back and up on the bottom of the front fender, with enough force the plastic would break at the tab attachment point. Seems adjustment at both the strut and tab points is needed. Hope this makes sense !

 

[AHicks]

New Atlas owner and I too had issues with the front fender. A relief knowing I wasn't the only one with the problem. Like other posters the issue was solved by adding spacers to the strut attachment points. First ride yesterday and everything looks good. I'm curious if anyone knows the difference between Eco & Sport modes. Didn't see anything in manual or anything online.

Look up the manual for your display (Bafang 850C I think). It should give you the info you are after. Eco vs. Sport sort of a gimmick to my way of thinking. Internally, the controller is set up for 9 speeds, numbered 1-9. When in Eco mode, 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 are used with a green ring lit on the display. In "Sport" mode, 2, 4, 6, 8, and 9 are used, with a red ring lit on the display. I can also share that 5 PAS levels are PLENTY. You can set it up for 9 levels, but the difference between adjacent levels is so slight they're a waste of time. You'll find yourself jumping 2-3 levels at a time when set for 9.

Info regarding the 9 available levels, and the programming associated with them, familiar to those with the UART based Bafang mid drives that have chosen to customize is where I got my experience.... -Al

 

[fdeezle]

Look up the manual for your display (Bafang 850C I think). It should give you the info you are after. Eco vs. Sport sort of a gimmick to my way of thinking. Internally, the controller is set up for 9 speeds, numbered 1-9. When in Eco mode, 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 are used with a green ring lit on the display. In "Sport" mode, 2, 4, 6, 8, and 9 are used, with a red ring lit on the display. I can also share that 5 PAS levels are PLENTY. You can set it up for 9 levels, but the difference between adjacent levels is so slight they're a waste of time. You'll find yourself jumping 2-3 levels at a time when set for 9.

Info regarding the 9 available levels, and the programming associated with them, familiar to those with the UART based Bafang mid drives that have chosen to customize is where I got my experience.... -Al

Totally agree on the 5 levels of PAS. Yes I tinkered around with the different levels but stayed mainly on level 1 and had a very comfortable ride. Thanks for the info on Sport vs Eco.

 

[kneebenderbiker]

I've probably about read this somewhere but thought it can't hurt to ask all these very helpful Atlas owners.
Does it ship with the rear fender installed? or with both fenders uninstalled?
Could the 2 fenders be left off with out issue since it has no lights or anything attached to them.
The bike I have now doesn't have fenders, although I do see the value of having them. Just curious.

 

[AHicks]

Totally agree on the 5 levels of PAS. Yes I tinkered around with the different levels but stayed mainly on level 1 and had a very comfortable ride. Thanks for the info on Sport vs Eco.

I use PAS 1 frequently, but when riding the Atlas, I use 2 as well. Not so much for the little extra power available, but for the wider range of power available while pedaling - without even having to change/adjust gearing. Not so much a deal when riding in smooth paved conditions but for light off road/packed trail conditions where conditions aren't so constant. Not interested in the higher speed that might be provided so much, just the reduced effort on slight inclines, etc.

 

[AHicks]

I've probably about read this somewhere but thought it can't hurt to ask all these very helpful Atlas owners.
Does it ship with the rear fender installed? or with both fenders uninstalled?
Could the 2 fenders be left off with out issue since it has no lights or anything attached to them.
The bike I have now doesn't have fenders, although I do see the value of having them. Just curious.

Front wheel, fender, and handlebars will be installed by the owner - to keep the package as compact as possible is my thought. Rear fender carries an electrical connection for the aux battery - whether you use it or not. So it's installed.

 

[kneebenderbiker]

Front wheel, fender, and handlebars will be installed by the owner - to keep the package as compact as possible is my thought. Rear fender carries an electrical connection for the aux battery - whether you use it or not. So it's installed.

Perfect.
Thanks for that info @AHicks

 

[fdeezle]

I've probably about read this somewhere but thought it can't hurt to ask all these very helpful Atlas owners.
Does it ship with the rear fender installed? or with both fenders uninstalled?
Could the 2 fenders be left off with out issue since it has no lights or anything attached to them.
The bike I have now doesn't have fenders, although I do see the value of having them. Just curious.

Yes it shipped with rear fender installed.

 

[KnobbyGuy]

I purchased the Atlas at the end of last December and overall, I'm pleased with the ebike. I currently own a 2021 Riese & Müller Roadster Vario (7,700 miles) and previously owned a 2020 Trek Allant+ 7s (1,600 Miles). The Atlas survived the UPS shipping to northeast Ohio intact except for a bent rear fender support strut. I've ridden it a few times in the past 3 weeks and have about 100 miles on it.

One of the issues I have with the ebike is the length of the front lower fender support is too short. I tried re-angling the arm with the attachment loop to lengthen the support but I ended up having to add a longer bolt to accommodate 3 flat washers and a nut as shims. Here's the communication with Evelo's Support Team:

ME: "I’ve included some photos of the fender stays on the front wheel. Did I install these incorrectly or is there some other problem? The stays are too short to reach the mounting points on the fork. The stay was installed with the looped end facing UP. I noticed in the assembly information that they are pictured facing DOWN (photo #1).

I reversed them and they still did not reach the attachment points. You can see that the fender is smack against the tire (photo #2)!

With the fender positioned properly for tire clearance, the stay loop is ± ½” short (photos #3 and #4). I bent the stay to try and meet the fork but it was still too short. I added 3 washers and a nut as shims to complete the connection (photo #5)."

EVELO: "I am happy to address your concerns and issues on your Atlas.

It certainly looks like your front fender stay is too short. I will ask the warranty department for a longer option and get back in touch with you."

That was on January 13, 2023. I haven't received an answer from the "...warranty department..." yet. (See attached photos)

Another issue is the display dims automatically when the lights are turned on. I prefer to ride in daylight with the lights illuminated so as to provide greater visibility to others. Think DRL's. In sunlight, the only discernible characters on the display are 'Speed' and 'Pedal Assist Level'.

The Bafang pedal assist seems to be less refined than the Bosch systems on the Trek and R&M ebikes. There's a lag from the time you initially put pressure on the pedal to start pedaling until the assist kicks in on the Bafang and it is abrupt. The Bosch systems are smoother.

The build quality seems excellent with smooth welds and fine paint application.

View attachment 145718

rbeckert!! Your front axle is installed wrong! That knurled nut needs to be on the left fork. It should not be sticking out like that. Remove the axle and insert it thru the right side fork.

 

[rbeckert]

rbeckert!! Your front axle is installed wrong! That knurled nut needs to be on the left fork. It should not be sticking out like that. Remove the axle and insert it thru the right side fork.

Good catch! Plus, the nut was reversed with the knurled end to the outside!

 

[KnobbyGuy]

Good catch! Plus, the nut was reversed with the knurled end to the outside!

NO! The knurled end must remain on the outside! The longer smooth end recesses into the left fork leg.