E Bike Preorders ?

[phoenixtoohot]

I'm ready to buy a step-thru e-bike for my wife, but it seems like there is little to no inventory, at least in the under $2,000 market. Also, pre-order dates seem to be stretching out each week. I checked Aventon, Ride1Up, Juiced and RadPower ... all have little to no inventory, many stating June, July and August availability. Anyone have more specific insight into when the pipeline will fill up again?

 

[Nova Haibike]

It is not only e-bikes that are in short supply, it is all bikes. I would say if there is one you know you want, pre-order it. Otherwise, everyone else will fill the pre-order availability, and you will end up playing the same waiting game all over again.

 

[rich c]

Specific insight? It takes about 21 days on the water from China to Southern California. No idea when the specific factories started back up and what kind of parts inventory they had before the shutdown. I'm guessing September for the inventories to reach pretty good numbers. But right now, I'm more worried about our meat supply chain here in America. I wouldn't make a very good vegan.

 

[Deleted member 4210]

Aventon's dealers will have inventory in a few weeks, if they don't have them now. I stocked up in anticipation of this possibility, primarily bc I thought Corona virus (back in late Jan) would lead to significant supply disruptions. Aventon's on-line sales pre-orders are backed up as long as they are, because demand from dealers has been simply unprecendented. For all ebike OEM's, its a 2 fold problem - 70 day or longer delays due to china on lockdowns (factories completely closed) starting around Chinese new year, which caught many OEM's flat footed, as their normal orders would have shipped right after Chinese new years, and then demand for ebikes and regular bikes skyrocketed, once lockdowns hit here in US.

Ironic. Its the total inverse of oil. Oil supply was at record highs, storage was already nearly full at its 5 year running highs, and then demand just evaporated. They couldnt even give that black stuff away, going negative $-32, and its going to go negative again. Too many oil producing countries NEED the revenue. and nobody is buying cars either. and nobody is flying, and Buffet screwed got burned for a second time with airlines.

 

[Deleted member 4210]

Specific insight? It takes about 21 days on the water from China to Southern California. No idea when the specific factories started back up and what kind of parts inventory they had before the shutdown. I'm guessing September for the inventories to reach pretty good numbers. But right now, I'm more worried about our meat supply chain here in America. I wouldn't make a very good vegan.

Certain OEM's can get basic things like frames, motors, and tires. Its the rest of the component supply chain upstream thats still a mess. All sorts of component makers, battery producers, and more have had disruptions not only in getting basic materials, but in the entire logistics and transportation chain. Its a real mixed bag on getting full number of workers, and even if they can get enough workers, the manufacturing process itself, got slowed way down due to change in how they need to do breaks, PPE, or varying province rules, or inconsistent city lockdowns and even inability of workers to get to factories due to a wide array of transportation issues, or many fearing public transport, and different zones being locked down, when others are open. I think raw materials will become a very large issue soon. From everything I can gather from contacts I have there, China's food supply has been disrupted worse than ours. China isn't letting any of this info out, but its happening, and the waves of the virus still keep hitting different pockets, which they have not been admitting or reporting.

 

[phoenixtoohot]

I think the Chinese ebikes had the hardest hit because of Covid 19.

It's been reported a while back that Bafang (motor supplier for Rad, Juiced, etc.) had to cease the production due to Covid 19.

Coronavirus and its effect on the bike industry

Supply bottlenecks, limited choice, empty stores – is this what the next few months or even the year will look like? With many production facilities across China falling silent, we’ve consulted the experts to find out what sort of an impact the virus may have on the industry. It has been met...

ebike-mtb.com

Unfortunately, I don't think anyone has a specific insight, because your question is related to when will pandemic end?

I think all you can do is to wait and see what happens?

If you want a bike now, it's above your budget, but if you're willing to go up to $2,399, there's Yamaha CrossCore.
I'm sure there are other alternatives too if you're willing to go up a little higher.

https://www.electriccyclery.com/shop/electric-bikes/electric-electric-bikes/yamaha-cross-core/

E Bike | Yamaha E Bikes

Yamaha e-bikes enable more roads and trails bicycle riding. Cutting edge electric bike motors, reliable, long-lasting batteries and intuitive controls make Yamaha e bikes the perfect do-more ride. Yamahabicycles.com

www.yamahabicycles.com

That said, I'm sure some Yamaha parts are made in China so I don't know how long their stock will last.
I recommend Yamaha because they have a solid reputation with 3 year warranty, and their price is (generally) cheaper than Trek or Specialized counterpart.
But I don't even know what kind of bike you're looking for.. fat bike, step through, commuter, etc?

Cross Core looks very impressive, but my wife needs a step thru frame and we both like a throttle option.

 

[ruffruff]

You may already know this but, the "Pre-order" thing is all about getting enough orders to fill a land/sea crate so they can cover the cost of shipping.
So a couple things come into play...if the bike seller doesn't get enough orders fast enough they will keep pushing the due date back.

Now add the fact that Covid-19 has probably drastically curtailed the ability to build up the bikes for shipping; you may be in for a long wait.

Like others have said, if you want to ride now, look locally or call and see if LBS have stock. Otherwise, you may waste your entire summer waiting.
I live in Mn and every spring/summer day counts!

Maybe CrazyLenny has something you like? They will ship to your door.

Shop | Crazy Lenny's eBikes

Shop for high-quality eBikes at Crazy Lenny's, North America's largest single-location eBike retailer. Choose from our wide selection of top brands, perfect for commuting, adventure, or leisure. Enjoy excellent customer service and competitive prices. Start your eBike journey today!

www.crazylennysebikes.com

 

[TMH]

Likely the best advice has already been given:

1) Lock in a pre-order now, as initial pre-order lots are probably selling out and future pre-orders will have to come from future build lots; or
2) Look for last year models at a discount from bike shops who do mail order sales.

I'm locked into a pre-order situation on one bike (ordered in early Feb) and have already watched the ship date slip from May to July. And who knows whether July ship will actually happen?

It is a very unusual situation we are in with the production & transportation disruptions in China, the likely scenario where Chinese manufacturers work using 'just-in-time' inventory management (don't stock lots of component parts), and current e-bike sales unusually strong due to folks looking for alternatives to public transit. I don't believe that things will get back to 'normal' ever this year.

 

[phoenixtoohot]

ProdecoTech Genesis R 400

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ProdecoTech Stride 400 M

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Thank you Timpo ... You've opened up several bikes I had not considered.

 

[Johnmj1]

I think the Chinese ebikes had the hardest hit because of Covid 19.

It's been reported a while back that Bafang (motor supplier for Rad, Juiced, etc.) had to cease the production due to Covid 19.

Coronavirus and its effect on the bike industry

Supply bottlenecks, limited choice, empty stores – is this what the next few months or even the year will look like? With many production facilities across China falling silent, we’ve consulted the experts to find out what sort of an impact the virus may have on the industry. It has been met...

ebike-mtb.com

Unfortunately, I don't think anyone has a specific insight, because your question is related to when will pandemic end?

I think all you can do is to wait and see what happens?

If you want a bike now, it's above your budget, but if you're willing to go up to $2,399, there's Yamaha CrossCore.
I'm sure there are other alternatives too if you're willing to go up a little higher.

https://www.electriccyclery.com/shop/electric-bikes/electric-electric-bikes/yamaha-cross-core/

E Bike | Yamaha E Bikes

Yamaha e-bikes enable more roads and trails bicycle riding. Cutting edge electric bike motors, reliable, long-lasting batteries and intuitive controls make Yamaha e bikes the perfect do-more ride. Yamahabicycles.com

www.yamahabicycles.com

That said, I'm sure some Yamaha parts are made in China so I don't know how long their stock will last.
I recommend Yamaha because they have a solid reputation with 3 year warranty, and their price is (generally) cheaper than Trek or Specialized counterpart.
But I don't even know what kind of bike you're looking for.. fat bike, step through, commuter, etc?

No Yamaha dealers in New Mexico, unfortunately.

 

[phoenixtoohot]

I called Aventon, Ride1up, and Espin today. All are talking about early July deliveries now, even though some still show early June on their website. Tough situation for all ... sellers and buyers.

 

[Ebiker33]

Here is one with 8 Days lead time
"Please Note: Each bike is individually assembled, tuned, inspected, and packed. Currently, this process takes 8 business days"
Volt Yukon $1799

 

[erider_61]

As I said above, I can tell you right now it is very unlikely Volt Bike will follow that deadline.
I personally know someone who had to wait 2 months, and I found that average for VoltBike waiting time is approximately 6 weeks, and I'm talking about before pandemic.

I ordered my Voltbike Bravo in July of 2019...took over 4 weeks for it to arrive...great ebike and warranty service has been quick...but I would not trust their website delivery timeframe at all...

 

[Ebiker33]

I ordered my Voltbike Bravo in July of 2019...took over 4 weeks for it to arrive...great ebike and warranty service has been quick...but I would not trust their website delivery timeframe at all...

I looked at the EBR Video review for that bike seems to be a nice entry price point into the Ebike market. Throttle too.
But they are out of stock.

 

[RoadRash47]

Voltbike is very similar to the Rize bikes. Maybe something to look into. The derailleur system and shifter could be better but they do give you a decent size battery.

 

[TMH]

It had been explained elsewhere on this site that Spark Bikes had to change their name as they began to further expand their geographic distribution and ran into copyright issues. No, I am not certain that this is all that happened but they have been forthright in explaining this and I see no history of bankruptcy associated with them.

No affiliation with them and I don't own one of their bikes, but I don't see anything nefarious about them either.

 

[TMH]

It is kind of funny that in the text describing the Rize RX it used to read "The M620 Bafang mid-drive motor is only suited for a fighter jet and the Spark RX."

I hadn't checked the site in a couple of weeks, but they've now fixed it to actually say Rize RX.

 

[phoenixtoohot]

I went to a Wal-Mart in Houston today and walked by their bicycle racks. There was not a single adult bike available. Considering that Wal-Mart is probably the single biggest importer of Chinese products ... some estimate 80 % of their COGS come from "made in China" imports, and their annual sales are above $500 billion per year. Annual , total , U.S. imports from China are about $550 billion, so Walmart probably imports around $200, or more, billion from China annualy.

If a $200 billion customer with one of the most sophisticated supply chain management systems in the world, can't keep bicycles in stock, what's the chance of your typical, mom & pop, Direct to Consumer (DTC) business getting bikes.

For me, I'm not putting any money into a pre-order until I have more confidence that the sellers can actually procure product. And that goes especially for the DTC sellers that demand full payment now for bikes forecast for 60 to 90 day delivery, and will charge a 3 % fee if you cancel the order.

 

[Alex M]

If a $200 billion customer with one of the most sophisticated supply chain management systems in the world, can't keep bicycles in stock, what's the chance of your typical, mom & pop, DTC business getting bikes.

We've been had. Sadly, the lesson will be forgotten after the imports will have been resumed in a few months.

Electric Bike Company was mentioned - they assemble and pack their bikes locally, but this is about the only thing they do. Nearly all the parts they import from China, I think they only cut spokes in their shop, so expect same inventory problems. Their model Y looks very elegant due to battery hidden in the basket, but I wouldn't buy it for AZ summer for this exact reason. This battery is not removable, not without tools and some work. You want the battery inside at room temperature when not riding.

 

[TMH]

"Direct to Consumer" sales.