Help between Verve+ 4s Gen 2, Electra Vale Go! 9D EQ/EQS, Medio T9

[lisak]

And no I'm not in love with it - I have not ridden it yet. And I'm actually horrible at making decisions.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I'd say wait for the Black Friday. Then have a look at Specialized, too. Even if it sounds silly to buy an e-bike in the cold season, trust me, buying one in the Spring is a pure madness!

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

And no I'm not in love with it - I have not ridden it yet. And I'm actually horrible at making decisions.

Your decision-making would get a lot easier if you tested the bikes first — especially under the conditions you'll be riding. Bikes are a good bit more than their specs.

 

[stompandgo]

I stand corrected - the Trek has the Performance Line Smart System (75 torque) - all other specs do seem the same. I'm thinking that might be more helpful for hills, etc. but not sure how much of a difference I would notice between those two things?

It depends on the total weight, the terrain, your road speed, and fitness. Both are full power e-bikes. 50% more torque is a lot, but will you use it?

 

[fexixav]

I'm purchasing my first eBike. I am a 62 year-old female wanting to use it to join my husband on his bike rides and for casual exercise. He usually rides 30-35 miles a couple of times a week in city roads and bike paths, so it will be mostly for exercise and recreational riding (although I don't expect I'll be ready for a 30 mile ride for a bit!). I'm in fairly good physical condition but have bad knees which has kept me from riding a regular bike for quite a few years now.

Looking at something that will have me sitting fairly upright and just be comfortable and fun to ride, but I want something that is also reputable and high quality, that I can have serviced at a dealer near me. After stopping by a few places I'm looking at:

- Electra Vale Go! 9D EQ or potentially EQS (it is on close out so prices are around $2500 vs $3500)
- Trek Verve+ 3 Gen3 ($3600) -
- Trek Verve+ 4s Gen2 ($2000) - another one that is on closeout so significantly reduced price
- Gazelle Medio T9 ($2900)

I rode the Gazelle last year and liked it, still need to test ride the others (it's been raining here) so much of this is just based so far on research and what is available in the shops near me. If I ever plan a trip to Italy, I might also look at villas near Florence for a relaxing getaway. The Vale 9D EQS and Verve+ 4s Gen 2 both go to 28 mph assisted, but I guess I'm not even sure if that is something someone like me would ever use, so I don't know if I should look for that or not. My husband says on his regular bike he usually goes only 20-22 mph, and if he does go 30 it's on a downhill anyway where you wouldn't need assist, so not sure what the benefit would be.

All of the above have removable batteries (a must for me) and Bosch systems, although it appears some of these systems may vary (at least in terms of the computer on the bike) a bit.

Are all of these really much different? Pros/Cons of any of them from anyone with first hand experience would be much appreciated!

Thank you!

All four are solid picks. If comfort is your top priority, the Electra Vale Go! and Gazelle Medio T9 stand out. The two Trek Verve+ models are great too, especially if you are getting a closeout deal. You do not need the 28 mph assist for recreational rides, so focus on how the bike feels when you test ride and how easily you can mount and dismount.

 

[fritz katzenjammer]

I’ll admit up front to being a bit biased towards Trek, as they do sign my paycheck.

Gazelle is an excellent brand which I once heard described as “ what a bike would look like if Mercedes built a bike”. I have one of their analog bikes simply because they are so well made. My only concern in purchasing a Gazelle e-bike would be serviceability, there are fewer dealers than other big makes like Trek or Giant, so getting parts or service is more difficult.

I was surprised recently when some brought a nice late model Gazelle into our shop with an electrical issue. As a Trek shop we are set up to service Bosch but Gazelle uses a different communication protocol than Trek to interface with the bike for service so we were unable to work on the bike in spite of it being the same Bosch driveline we have on our bikes.

So if you buy a Gazelle you have to take it back to a Gazelle dealer for service. Which begs the question, can you get your Bosch powered Trek serviced at a Gazelle dealer? They never mentioned this when I went to Bosch for training on servicing this stuff.

An update to my earlier comments. A few things have been updated as of late and we can now interface with a Bosch equipped Gazelle as well as we do own own Bosch equipped Trek stuff. I don’t know if the issue was at our end or with Bosch but that should eliminate some of that concern with buying a Gazelle.

meanwhile… times are really friggin bad at bike shops right now with all the part timers sitting at home and the full timers down to 30 hour weeks at our shop so I would assume we’ll be starving by January, so maybe some January/February shopping would be clever.