E-Bike Price Distribution (just for fun)

[Deleted member 4210]

The reviews here date back to 2012, and there are 780 of them.

There are supposedly over 300 brands out there today, and some of the brands and models shown here at EBR are no longer available. And of those 300 brands, many can have dozens of models, so take all of this with a grain of salt. (i.e. there could easily be 2000 to 4000 models out there on the market today here in the US, with model years going from 2015 to 2019 available and being sold as 'new')

But here on EBR, there are:
48 Models priced between ~ $0 and $1000
208 Models priced between ~ $1000 and $2000
216 Models priced between ~ $2000 and $3000
120 Models priced between ~ $3000 and $4000
72 Models priced between ~ $4000 and $5000
40 Models priced between ~ $5000 and $6000
17 Models priced between ~ $6000 and $7000
26 Models priced between ~ $7000 and $18000

The reason ~ (approximate) is used is bc it was hard to get the price cursor to line up precisely on some of the price categories in the advanced search function.


So its hard to say if the above is representative of the entire US market, but if you do a VERY ROUGH extrapolation, it appears the bulk of the ebikes out there , are most likely to be priced in the $1000 to $4000 price range.

I did this for my own curiosity since it seems there are a lot more ebike models coming out lately that seem like they are in the above $3000 price point, than below. Not sure this cursory search here on EBR is proof of anything conclusive, since I didn't just look at the models that came out in the past 2 years. And there is admittedly a small sampling of reviews in the past 2 years here, versus the larger population of ebikes coming out on the market.

.... Anyway for what it's worth (Chits and giggles)

 

[LewSchiller]

Nice..thanks!
How much better is a $4000 bike than a $2000 bike?
The LeBS I bought my < $2000 bike from also sells Pedigo. (That have them in a separate room as Pedigo required. (I'm surprised Pedigo didn't require a waiver to enter the room.) I looked at them. Didn't see anything that justified the significant price difference.
They had 2 of those eBikes made to look like 20's Board Track Racing motorcycles on the floor. List price $6000. They were offering them at $3,000. Riding position was ...silly...in my opinion.
Anyway, When you buy a $40,000 car instead of a $20,000 car you get identifiable benefits. You and I might disagree about the value of those but there they are . When you buy a $4000 eBike instead of a $2000 eBike....what more do you really get?

 

[Feliz]

With Pedego it's the after sales service you're paying for most buyers know that. And I don't believe a Mercedes is 5-10 times better than my Mazda.

 

[LewSchiller]

Okay - service matters.
That said the same service department that supports my <2000 bike also supports the Pedigo.

 

[Feliz]

Okay - service matters.
That said the same service department that supports my <2000 bike also supports the Pedigo.

No one is making you purchase a Pedego or any other bike, buy what you like.

 

[LewSchiller]

Yes of course. "Force" has nothing to do with it.
I'm looking at the price spread Mike put together and wondering what makes one eBike worth 2 or 3 times another. They all use variations of the same three drives...Front rear and center. There's direct drive and gear drive. For the sake of conversation we can say 36 or 48 volt systems. Looking at a Pedigo for example, it's a nice bike but what makes it worth $4,000?

 

[PDoz]

Yes of course. "Force" has nothing to do with it.
I'm looking at the price spread Mike put together and wondering what makes one eBike worth 2 or 3 times another. They all use variations of the same three drives...Front rear and center. There's direct drive and gear drive. For the sake of conversation we can say 36 or 48 volt systems. Looking at a Pedigo for example, it's a nice bike but what makes it worth $4,000?

It's hard to answer that without knowing what you're expecting for that $2-4 k

For example, a $2 k mtb is going to be a very different riding rxperience to a $4 k ! Subtle things, like brakes / wheels / suspension suitable for purpose....

 

[Mr. Coffee]

Yes of course. "Force" has nothing to do with it.
I'm looking at the price spread Mike put together and wondering what makes one eBike worth 2 or 3 times another. They all use variations of the same three drives...Front rear and center. There's direct drive and gear drive. For the sake of conversation we can say 36 or 48 volt systems. Looking at a Pedigo for example, it's a nice bike but what makes it worth $4,000?

Well I'd say at the very high end there are things like dual-battery e-bikes and Rohloff hubs that you can't simply get anywhere else and that there isn't really a direct comparison for.

I'd also say that as some components (e.g. wheels) get lighter their prices go up exponentially. And lighter wheels are really nice. As I've said before, anyone who says weight doesn't matter in an e-bike has never lifted their bike over a fence or carried it up a flight of stairs.

Full disclosure: I own a Pedego Interceptor and an R&M Charger GX Rohloff. Both are great bikes.

One of the things that occurs to me is that Pedego in particular is marketing to some pretty specific groups: one group is well-to-do retirees who don't necessarily have a lot of experience with bikes but want to have one. For them the high-touch experience and the fact that a Pedego is generally wildly over designed make it worth their disposable income. Most of the less expensive bikes don't have as generous a warranty as a Pedego (which basically is that they will fix everything that breaks no questions asked) and also are not as heavily built, or over-built. The over-builtness of Pedego bikes also makes them great for rentals, which is the other group they are targeting.

 

[TForan]

How is the Pedego "wildly over designed " ?

 

[Bruce Arnold]

Okay - service matters.
That said the same service department that supports my <2000 bike also supports the Pedigo.

The warranty support for my wife's Pedego has been friendly, fast, competent, and no questions asked. And all at no additional cost. There is no other ebike dealer in town. So that's worth something, too, like not having to drive 4 hours round-trip to have it worked on. So this service factor is not to be brushed off lightly. Like @ebikemom says, worth every penny.

Oh yeah, it didn't cost close to $4K. Where does that figure come from?

 

[TForan]

The warranty support for my wife's Pedego has been friendly, fast, competent, and no questions asked. And all at no additional cost. There is no other ebike dealer in town. So that's worth something, too, like not having to drive 4 hours round-trip to have it worked on. So this service factor is not to be brushed off lightly. Like @ebikemom says, worth every penny.

Oh yeah, it didn't cost close to $4K. Where does that figure come from?

Interceptor price. Do they discount ?

$4,195.00 – $4,595.00

 

[Mr. Coffee]

How is the Pedego "wildly over designed " ?

I rented quite a few Rad Power Bikes and Pedego Bikes before purchasing one in 2017. I felt overall that the Pedegos all felt beefier and much more solid than the Rads. I also talked to the people doing the renting and the sense I got was that the Pedegos took much more abuse and kept going. As an example, most Pedego e-bikes have a max passenger weight of 250lbs, but the rental companies would routinely have riders much heavier than that with no apparent damage to the bikes.

If you look at some of Court's reviews of the Pedego bikes that over-builtness comes through in the reviews, in fact I think he uses that exact word.

Having said all that, I rather like Rad Power Bikes and would have bought one except that they didn't have a 15ah battery last year.

 

[Bruce Arnold]

Interceptor price. Do they discount ?

$4,195.00 – $4,595.00

I wouldn't say Chevrolets cost $65K just because that's what Corvettes start at.

 

[DDBB]

My Haibike has some top shelf components yet still was nearer the 2k price point. Granted it's a leftover 18' model but things like deore XT drive train and shimano M8000 hydaulic disc brakes are outstanding. I liked Pedego but they were basically the same driving distance as Haibike and more than twice the cost. If Pedego had been in my town I might have considered going that route for the outstanding support they offer.

 

[DDBB]

I inquired about discounts after test riding pedego and was firmly told "no" then given an almost scipted lecture about why Pedego is worth double the cost.. I have to admit the salesman was very convincing and willing to bend over backwards for our business.. Beautiful clean and well stocked store too.. Those things aren't free. If I had more disposable income, I might have bought. I wanted a moutain bike style so I rode the ridge rider. I liked it but wanted to try the mid drive.. Yikes, their mid drive MTB was just too expensive but was beautiful

 

[TForan]

I wouldn't say Chevrolets cost $65K just because that's what Corvettes start at.

The Conveyor is $5000 with a little battery. I rode a different model and the balance was the least like a normal bike that I rode. The combination of the hub and rear mounted battery just felt weird to me. I ride fairly aggressively , so that might have something to do with my perception. Mom and Dad putting around town probably wouldn't notice it. And I sure don't need someone holding my hand for simple adjustments or basic repairs.

 

[Mr. Coffee]

The Conveyor is $5000 with a little battery. I rode a different model and the balance was the least like a normal bike that I rode. The combination of the hub and rear mounted battery just felt weird to me. I ride fairly aggressively , so that might have something to do with my perception. Mom and Dad putting around town probably wouldn't notice it. And I sure don't need someone holding my hand for simple adjustments or basic repairs.

Just because it isn't the right bike for you doesn't necessarily make it a bad bike.

One interesting thing about the design of the Interceptor/City Commuter/Comfort Cruiser/&C Pedego bikes is that the rear "rack" encasing the battery is made of the nearly the same tubes that the chain stays and seat stays are made of, and is welded to the frame rather than attached with bolts. This adds a great deal of structural rigidity and strength to the whole bike, and combined with the preference for an upright riding position with their bikes makes their odd weight distribution a fairly reasonable (or more precisely less unreasonable) choice.

Most Pedego customers seem pretty happy with their purchase, and most Pedego dealers seem to be doing pretty well selling them. Many here may gnash their teeth in frustration and not understand how this is even possible. If its stupid and it works it isn't stupid.

 

[ebikemom]

I hope that as years pass there will be quality/reliability measures in place like there are for cars.

I purchased Pedego because I want to ride my bike for years and years, and I want a company that will be in business so that I can get parts and service, and a local dealer to provide that service. Dealerships are modeled after the Harley Davidson model, according to my dealer. My local dealer could quit, sure, but I thought that my chances were best with Pedego due to their longevity (which is saying something in the ebike business) and demonstrated history of service that is based on the goal of delighting the customer. We have about 7,000 family miles and counting ...

 

[Feliz]

Just because it isn't the right bike for you doesn't necessarily make it a bad bike.

One interesting thing about the design of the Interceptor/City Commuter/Comfort Cruiser/&C Pedego bikes is that the rear "rack" encasing the battery is made of the nearly the same tubes that the chain stays and seat stays are made of, and is welded to the frame rather than attached with bolts. This adds a great deal of structural rigidity and strength to the whole bike, and combined with the preference for an upright riding position with their bikes makes their odd weight distribution a fairly reasonable (or more precisely less unreasonable) choice.

Most Pedego customers seem pretty happy with their purchase, and most Pedego dealers seem to be doing pretty well selling them. Many here may gnash their teeth in frustration and not understand how this is even possible. If its stupid and it works it isn't stupid.

Right, I don't get the Pedego thing, if you want a <$2000 bike buy one. I bought a Pedego which I store at my dealers, a perfect location. It's right in the middle of a rail trail and beside a lake. I've had two very minor issues with my Interceptor which my dealer addressed immediately, I was receiving phone calls from both Canadian and American Pedego customer service reps making sure the bike was okay. After every ride my bike gets washed and the battery charged, something I never asked for or expected. He has at least a dozen rental bikes and I don't think in the year he's been in business a customer riding a rental has ever been stranded due to a broken bike. As Tforan states most of his customers are "mom and dad" but so what, he sells a LOT of bikes. If you can get the warranty, service, and a similar bike somewhere else for under $2000 buy it. I'm 80 years old, I raced motorcycles and competed in the early days of mountain biking, I'm an engineer and know the difference between a good and a bad bike, I don't buy bad bikes and don't mind paying for a good one.

 

[JRA]

A list of non eBikes would look like the above but with way more options in all $$ categories. It’s the bicycle industrial complex and it will produce what it projects the market will bear.