Can't seem to find the right combination of features

[dandam]

Hi folks,

I've been looking for a bike with the following features, but can't seem to find them all in one bike:

• Able to climb steep hills without stressing the motor too much
• Geared for comfortable sustained speeds of 20 mph or more
• Comes with or can possibly fit fenders and rear rack
• Minimum distance of at least 18 miles (looking to do 36 mile round trip commute, but can charge at work)
• Upright or near upright geometry
• Will be ridden almost exclusively on roads (but some with cracked pavement and sand during parts of the year), so some kind of suspension (either through thick tires and/or front shocks)
• Uses pedal assist that amplifies my own peddling (so likely torque sensor)
• Throttle override of PAS

From the research I've done it seems my best bet would be a mid-drive motor with shift sensing and a decent range of gears. However, I can't seem to find everything in one bike, or even the possibility of making a bike by purchasing a motor, because I haven't found a motor that uses torque sensing that you can buy to retrofit an existing bike.

Any ideas would be much appreciated.

-Dan

 

[Ann M.]

Dan, I think there are some options out there with what you want; use the Search engine on the main EBR site and click on the 'use all Filters' button to dial in for some specific features. While I was at Interbike this year, I got to speak with @Chris Head of e-RAD mid drive motor kits. They are introducing a new motor soon with a torque sensing feature. They were the first to have shift sensing, so this might be a direction to look into if you want to do a conversion.

Court has a nice video review of the Lectric Cycles home where SmartMotion & e-RAD come from.

 

[dandam]

Thanks Ann. I have scoured the EBR site and did use the "all Filters" but did not find anything that matched all of the criteria. Would be very cool if a drive conversion kit came out that had torque sensing and used that in a way to ramp up the power, rather than just having an on/off for the motor. I did ride a few bikes that had cadence sensing, but the jarring on/off nature of that type of system made me feel like I had a foot throttle along with the thumb throttle. At high power I would occasionally peddle a little. I'd rather a feeling of "stronger legs," which seems like some torque sensing systems try to do.

 

[dandam]

I think the closest thing I've found so far is the Colt: https://electricbikereview.com/surface-604/colt/

But it is a hub motor and I'm not sure how this would handle steep hills.

 

[Nirmala]

The review page on EBR seems to not be loading properly, but the Hi-Power HPC Freedom might fit the bill.
Here is the youtube video:

I am not sure if they are still selling it as the page on their own website does not have any info on it. But here is a dealer who has it listed: http://hitrekcycles.com/product/2015-hpc-freedom-2/

Note added: Actually, I think this uses a cadence sensor, so if a torque sensor is an absolute necessity, maybe it would not be the right bike. Otherwise, it seems to tick all of the boxes, and is relatively inexpensive for what you get. On my ebike with a cadence sensor, I find I can adjust the feel of the assist by raising and lowering the assist level, and this bike does have 9 levels of assist. On the lower levels, the assist is not so obvious or intrusive and the bike feels pretty natural to me. So I only use the higher levels for bigger hills.

 

[MLB]

The old ideas of what type motor for what conditions means a whole lot less than it used to. Mostly because todays new generation of motors are so darned strong. Forget old speak about direct drive motors. Falco's has a 500lb load limit now and will out pull plenty of geared motors uphill. They also fit all the rest of your criteria.

 

[dandam]

Interesting option in the Falco motors. I have not seen these before. Quite pricey, but given my list, I should expect that I guess. I just hear nightmares about people heading up a long steep hill with their high power direct drive motor and melting the wires while frying the motor. They do have a five year warranty though.

 

[Sumant]

have you given any thought to E-Joe epik 2017?

 

[JohnT]

The Pedego "Platinum" Interceptor or Pedego Ridge Rider might satisfy your needs.

Both have torque sensing pedal assist with throttle override. Both have front suspensions. Both cruise easily at 20 mph on fairly level surfaces. Neither is mid-drive, but it'd take a fairly heavy Rider on a fairly steep hill to stress our geared hubmotors. With a 175 lb Rider on the steepest hills I can find around here, only light pedaling is needed to maintain 12 to 15 mph.

Fitting a fender to front suspension is harder, but doable. Fitting rear fenders on either of these bikes is easy. All Interceptors come with rear battery racks. The Ridge Rider battery is mounted in the downtube, so most standard mountain bike racks should fit on the back.

The Interceptor has an upright, beach cruiser riding position, but the Ridge Rider leans forward a bit, like most mountain bikes. An inexpensive stem extender can easily lift the bars higher. If you need more, an adjustable stem or bars with a higher rise could be fitted.

Both come with excellent quality components, including hydraulic disk brakes.

With their biggest batteries, either should do close to 30 miles per charge with no pedaling on fairly level terrain. With moderate pedaling, 50-60 miles should be easily attainable.

You could save a little money by going with the standard Interceptor instead of the Platinum edition, but you'd lose the front suspension and the pedal assist would have a cadence sensor instead of torque. There are a few other differences that you didn't mention caring about.

The Platinum Interceptor is available in Classic or Step-Thru frames. The Ridge Rider only comes in one frame type.

If you'd like more info on these bikes, feel free to ask!

 

[Alan Acock]

I ride a Trek xm 700+. It seems like it easily meets your criteria. It doesn't have mountain bike front suspension, but does have a small suspension built in the headset and it has 700x38 tires. It is fairly upright. Has fenders and a head light, could do your 36 mile round trip without bothering to recharge. It provides assistance up to 26mph so easily meeting your 20+mph criterion. The Bosch mid drive meets your criteria. The bike would not be very useful for any kind of serious off road riding, but that is not one of your criterion. I may be missing something but there seem to be a number of bikes that meet your criteria.

 

[Christopher]

Hi folks,

I've been looking for a bike with the following features, but can't seem to find them all in one bike:

• Able to climb steep hills without stressing the motor too much
• Geared for comfortable sustained speeds of 20 mph or more
• Comes with or can possibly fit fenders and rear rack
• Minimum distance of at least 18 miles (looking to do 36 mile round trip commute, but can charge at work)
• Upright or near upright geometry
• Will be ridden almost exclusively on roads (but some with cracked pavement and sand during parts of the year), so some kind of suspension (either through thick tires and/or front shocks)
• Uses pedal assist that amplifies my own peddling (so likely torque sensor)
• Throttle override of PAS

From the research I've done it seems my best bet would be a mid-drive motor with shift sensing and a decent range of gears. However, I can't seem to find everything in one bike, or even the possibility of making a bike by purchasing a motor, because I haven't found a motor that uses torque sensing that you can buy to retrofit an existing bike.

Any ideas would be much appreciated.

-Dan

Hi Dan,

I second JohnT, the 2017 Pedego Interceptor Platinum Edition is the best e-bike to suit your needs:

• A larger front chainring and deluxe quick-shift 10-speed for fluid shifting to climb the steepest of hills with ease.
  
• Powerful 500 watt Dapu geared hub motor will easily sustain 20mph cruising and delivers best in class hill climbing.
  
• Solid frame built-in rear rack with optional clamp and ability to add fenders if you desire.
  
• New and improved battery (transitioning from Samsung to Panasonic) for 50+ mile range on your round trip commute.
• New and improved swept back handle bars for a more relaxed / easy / upright geometry position.
• New front suspension (RST Zeus) and Kevlar belted puncture resistant balloon tires to comfortably glide over bumps in the road.
• 5-levels of pedal assist; 1-4 use a state of the art torque sensor to deliver proportional assistance based on how hard you pedal.
• Levels 1-5 all have a throttle override for full power on demand!

The Pedego Interceptor Platinum Edition is hands-down the ultimate cruiser-style e-bike on the market today, especially suitable for your needs.


Cheers,

Christopher