Battery replacement on a emotion bike

[Susan]

I'm debating between getting the Emotion Neo Cross or converting my existing bike with the Falco motor + battery.

I like the openness of the Falco system - the fact that the battery is non-proprietary and can be replaced with other batteries.

So in weighing this with the E-motion bike, the questions that come up --- where does one get E-Motion battery replacements? How much do they cost?

Furthermore, should I worry about them continuing to manufacture old battery styles as they move towards newer models?

 

[Ravi Kempaiah]

One can order a spare battery through the dealer.
Depending on the [Whr] rating, it costs between $400 to $600.

PS: The cells used in eBikes are constantly evolving from 2.6 mAh to 3.2mAh and next year you'll see 4.1 mAh cells in production.
That means you can get 36V, 18Ah battery for the exact same dimension and weight you have now for a 36V, 12Ah battery.

 

[Deleted member 803]

Given my 30 years in the high tech industry.....................During the nascency of an industry companies try to establish leadership by developing proprietary behavior. If a company is successful enough to establish long term leadership then it can protect its proprietary behavior. Apple is famous for using non-standard protocols and can do so because it has a fairly loyal (read happy) user base. Given the state of the e-bike industry, we are years, perhaps decades, away from seeing higher levels of standardization.

My opinion is that you should view an e-bike purchase as a short term purchase of perhaps 2-3 years. During that period, there will be many changes as the industry evolves and hopefully improves. Folks who buy e-bikes today are early adopters and as such should expect lots of change/improvement.

We can expect to see oneupsmanship on a fairly consistent basis.

Now, as to purchase, it is probably wise to stick to a vendor that appears to have substantive market share, has a broad dealer network, and has a solid warranty. The advantage of buying a popular brand is that the likelihood of resale is enhanced. The other advantage to buying an e-bike is that they tend to be better integrated and designed as purpose built.