first ebike: giant vs specialized vs trek vs waiting for 2020

[Twin Valley]

as I'm in my retirement years looking for an e-bike to extend my mountain biking years, love my regular giant trance mountain bike everytime out on it which averages about 200 miles a month mostly on fireroads, old railway beds, in the bush picking berries and so forth, lots of up and down mountainous terrain in my area, not as much interest in single track prepared trails or down ski hills (although sometimes), anyways, the lbs for me has at 6500 Canadian ( stretching the old budget) 3 choices: specialized turbo levo, giant trance SXE + 0 or which has caught my attention the trek powerfly LT 9.7 plus (carbon bike at 20% off) anyways the reviews on all 3 bikes seem great, trek supposedly will have a smaller better motor for 2020 and all that stuff to consider, I'm not that mechanically adept so looking for something with just basic maintenance and a yearly visit for a tune-up, just want to get out and ride, much like my mountain bike - any opinions from the e-bike veterans out there on these choices - I have been enjoying the EBR forum

 

[MikeDD]

I have had my turbo levo for 1 year and still love it. I did have the battery replaced under warranty. I do like the mission control app for track mileage, number of charges, motor temperature and more. You should check out the Electric Mountain Bike (embt) forum for the latest on embt's.

 

[Twin Valley]

I have had my turbo levo for 1 year and still love it. I did have the battery replaced under warranty. I do like the mission control app for track mileage, number of charges, motor temperature and more. You should check out the Electric Mountain Bike (embt) forum for the latest on embt's.

hey Mike - thanks for the feedback, and the steer to the emountain bike forum , wow, lots of info there

 

[Browneye]

Those are all really nice bikes - high budget offerings.
I'm fairly new to it all so can't give you blow by blow comparisons, but in talking to the experts it's hard to refute the durability of the Yamaha drive system. It's also comparable or better in power and integration compared to the others, so there's no downside. For this reason I would be partial to the Giant - I did get a new Explore+3, so it's not just talk.

That said, for a yamaha-powered mtb I would also look at the Haibike models - they just seem to offer a little more tech and innovation for a comparable price point. Plus there are Bosch-CX options as well, so they also address the Trek model power-wise. Haibike is just as experienced as a bike builder and as well supported as the big-3, so hard to go wrong with any of them.

The 2020 bikes are out now so if you have your heart set on the latest and greatest your dealer either has one or can get you one. And there are some year-end sales and bargains to be had for the '19's.

I really wished I could jump on the e-mtb train but for a variety of reasons I'm relegated to more easy going with my crossbike, primarily due to numerous previous injuries. You have a lot to look forward to with a pedal-assist - you'll go twice as far and have twice the fun. My bet is your pedal-only will go up for sale, unless you find you can't ride your favorite trails with a e-bike. It's like being a kid all over again.

 

[MikeDD]

hey Mike - thanks for the feedback, and the steer to the emountain bike forum , wow, lots of info there

I am retired also, 69 years. I started mountain biking in 1989. I had to quit because of knee problems. The e-bike changed all that. I also ride mountain roads, some single track if not too steep. I stay away from those steep switch backs.

 

[AHicks]

Unless you're riding season is completely shut down due to local conditions, I'm not a fan of waiting for something new to come out. Too much fun being lost meanwhile. I think somebody looking for a bike needs to get out there ASAP even if the bike isn't a perfect fit. At that point you can enjoy riding the less than perfect bike while waiting for that perfect bike to come along.... with the experience gained by riding the first one. The second bike will nearly always be much closer to your "perfect" bike.

 

[Twin Valley]

Those are all really nice bikes - high budget offerings.
I'm fairly new to it all so can't give you blow by blow comparisons, but in talking to the experts it's hard to refute the durability of the Yamaha drive system. It's also comparable or better in power and integration compared to the others, so there's no downside. For this reason I would be partial to the Giant - I did get a new Explore+3, so it's not just talk.

That said, for a yamaha-powered mtb I would also look at the Haibike models - they just seem to offer a little more tech and innovation for a comparable price point. Plus there are Bosch-CX options as well, so they also address the Trek model power-wise. Haibike is just as experienced as a bike builder and as well supported as the big-3, so hard to go wrong with any of them.

The 2020 bikes are out now so if you have your heart set on the latest and greatest your dealer either has one or can get you one. And there are some year-end sales and bargains to be had for the '19's.

I really wished I could jump on the e-mtb train but for a variety of reasons I'm relegated to more easy going with my crossbike, primarily due to numerous previous injuries. You have a lot to look forward to with a pedal-assist - you'll go twice as far and have twice the fun. My bet is your pedal-only will go up for sale, unless you find you can't ride your favorite trails with a e-bike. It's like being a kid all over again.

thanks for the encouragement, I totally get it, retire and have all the time to follow the news and depressing, rather pedal, feel the wind and alive, and yeah, being a kid all over again is a great way to put it, the wife is not at all interested in my mountain biking part but will enjoy sitting up and looking around on a cross-bike of sorts and that will be the next step of putting this project together, then looking at areas beyond our neck of the woods to visit and ride particularly during our winter months

 

[Browneye]

thanks for the encouragement, I totally get it, retire and have all the time to follow the news and depressing, rather pedal, feel the wind and alive, and yeah, being a kid all over again is a great way to put it, the wife is not at all interested in my mountain biking part but will enjoy sitting up and looking around on a cross-bike of sorts and that will be the next step of putting this project together, then looking at areas beyond our neck of the woods to visit and ride particularly during our winter months

Arizona has absolutely awesome mtb trails.
It's sunny and 82 here today in southern CA...but I'm stuck at my desk. LOL

We just bought new bikes about three years ago, completely unaware of the ebike scene. Some friends made mention of renting some ebikes near here, a RadPower demo facility, and they ended up ordering a pair. It surely piqued my interest so I dug into it a little more.

The previous set of bikes we had were Trek FX's - really nice crossbike/hybrids. For some reason I decided we needed new ones so we got her a Roll Sport and me a Crossroads Elite - Specialized bikes. The thought of spending five to seven grand for a pair of new bikes again wasn't so appealing, so I explored the conversion route. I'm a DIY builder of all sorts, so it was a fascinating challenge.

Her Roll was a really good candidate for a conversion - nearly new, disc brakes, big tires, not particularly high performance, decent gears, perfect for a hub or mid-drive. Her riding style made the most sense for a geared hub conversion so I ordered one from a China importer on Amazon. The vid below is her testing it out.

My bike wasn't such a good candidate - rim brakes, carbon fork, skinny tires, light alloy frame. Every way I looked at it just got more and more expensive, to the point where it didn't make much sense, so I opted for a new one. When I found out Yamaha was making a state-of-the-art mid-drive I was sold - just a matter of deciding what to get.

I started riding motorcycles fifty years ago. So a e-mountianbike would be a natural progression. The problem is I just don't know how to go slow, so surely I would land on my head again. I've been hurt so many times I'm just afraid one more bad crash and I'll be in a wheelchair instead of on two wheels. All the bikes have been sold off, the kids grew up and moved out, and it's just too risky for me. But the newest emtb's are out of this world. One may find its way into my garage at some point anyway.

If your wife isn't into moutain biking (mine surely isn't) potentially you could get an extra set of wheels and tires for a MTB and swap them out for road-riding with the wife. That way one bike would suffice for both types of riding. A real bonus if you're traveling with them.

The ROLL e-conversion:

 

[AHicks]

Florida is doing it's darndest to become bike friendly as quickly as they can. Pick your favorite area and look into the bike trails available down here, on state, county, and more local venues!