How do you like your Bulls?

[cgreer00]

I have been researching eBikes for a long time and have slowly been narrowing things down. I am still not 100% sure if I want a mid-drive or a hub-drive with throttle. Some of the hub drive bikes, with a 28 mph top speed and throttle, are intriguing to me for riding on the road. But I also like the looks and capabilities of the more dedicated MTBs. I will ride singletrack as well as paved roads, and I want something that is fun to ride, well put together, and offers solid assist for the times when I am worn out.

So, if you could buy your Bulls again, would you do it? If not, what would you get instead?

Thanks!!

 

[oldmanonabike]

Yes. Absolutely. I have a 2016 Evo Estream FS3 and it is so good I am packing it up to take to Europe for a 3 month tour. We ride a wide range of roads and tracks and even use them for commuting. If I could afford it I would buy one of the new models, as long as it has the Brose motor, but there is no real need to replace it yet, nor probably for some years yet.

 

[cgreer00]

Yes. Absolutely. I have a 2016 Evo Estream FS3 and it is so good I am packing it up to take to Europe for a 3 month tour. We ride a wide range of roads and tracks and even use them for commuting. If I could afford it I would buy one of the new models, as long as it has the Brose motor, but there is no real need to replace it yet, nor probably for some years yet.

Thanks for your reply! On maximum assist what is it like to ride?

 

[racer cletus]

I also have the estream fs3. I ride very hard and it has never let me down. More than enough power and torque too. Mine has three levels and I only use the second level even on uphills. Max assist makes for a very easy ride, especially on flat trails. The battery has a lot of storage too so you don’t have to worry about running out of charge. Bulls give the best value for money going, in my view.

 

[AM 4]

I have been researching eBikes for a long time and have slowly been narrowing things down. I am still not 100% sure if I want a mid-drive or a hub-drive with throttle. Some of the hub drive bikes, with a 28 mph top speed and throttle, are intriguing to me for riding on the road. But I also like the looks and capabilities of the more dedicated MTBs. I will ride singletrack as well as paved roads, and I want something that is fun to ride, well put together, and offers solid assist for the times when I am worn out.

So, if you could buy your Bulls again, would you do it? If not, what would you get instead?

Thanks!!

The 2018 Estream Evos were apparently rushed to market. They have problems right out of the box on the front end (noise). BULLS USA won't fully address the scope of their problem and offer a real fix to dealers or customers. Corporate needs to step up and get behind this problem, which they privately acknowledge. Feel fee to contact me anytime, Bulls, and I'll describe my experience in detail.

 

[SkiKiteBike]

The 2018 Estream Evos were apparently rushed to market. They have problems right out of the box on the front end (noise). BULLS USA won't fully address the scope of their problem and offer a real fix to dealers or customers. Corporate needs to step up and get behind this problem, which they privately acknowledge. Feel fee to contact me anytime, Bulls, and I'll describe my experience in detail.

Hi, if your talking about the headset being loose, mine had that too. After 10 or 20 miles the grease in the headset distributes and it started to feel loose. I adjusted it a couple times before realizing no amount of force on the top cap bolt would snug the fork into the headset. The problem is the steering tube is cut a few thousandths too long. The top cap sits on a spacer that's too thin on my AM3. It let's the cap recess too deep. It drops into the stem far enough that it touches the steering tube. The quick easy fix in the woods was to flip the top cap over so the recess step isn't allowing it to drop into the stem. Snug up the fork, then tighten the pinch bolts to hold the fork tight. You can then put the top cap back on the right way. I bought a thicker top spacer when I got home

 

[SkiKiteBike]

And for the record, I love the bike. It's really quiet and has a similar geometry to my 2017 Troy. That said, I'm not exactly a bulls fan as they failed to deliver the AM4 I had ordered a few weeks before the container arrived. A week after they got here in the states I was told my order wasn't going to be delivered. I was pissed. I had waited for 4 or 5 weeks. They should have well known that they didn't have enough bikes to meet their orders. Yet they left dealers and customers hanging.....

 

[AM 4]

And for the record, I love the bike. It's really quiet and has a similar geometry to my 2017 Troy. That said, I'm not exactly a bulls fan as they failed to deliver the AM4 I had ordered a few weeks before the container arrived. A week after they got here in the states I was told my order wasn't going to be delivered. I was pissed. I had waited for 4 or 5 weeks. They should have well known that they didn't have enough bikes to meet their orders. Yet they left dealers and customers hanging.....

Hi, there. Your responses are very interesting to me. Regarding your first response, I did not experience any looseness in the headset. I just experienced a ton of noise coming from the front end-- a metallic, rubbing sound. The dealer guessed it's probably the brake pads/rotor. It worsened when cornering at speed. The dealer could not fix it and he also noted that it occurred on every am3 and am4 they had received for this year. Bulls USA supposedly took a look at my bike, but could not figure it out! Dealer said the big Bulls will need to step up on this issue and people must report the issue. I love the bike otherwise, but I am seriously considering returning it now. Too many better options exist !!

 

[SkiKiteBike]

Hi, there. Your responses are very interesting to me. Regarding your first response, I did not experience any looseness in the headset. I just experienced a ton of noise coming from the front end-- a metallic, rubbing sound. The dealer guessed it's probably the brake pads/rotor. It worsened when cornering at speed. The dealer could not fix it and he also noted that it occurred on every am3 and am4 they had received for this year. Bulls USA supposedly took a look at my bike, but could not figure it out! Dealer said the big Bulls will need to step up on this issue and people must report the issue. I love the bike otherwise, but I am seriously considering returning it now. Too many better options exist !!

No I don't seem to have that issue. Sounds like the rotor might be poorly torqued or the hub has some play and needs adjusting. I immediately replaced the nobby Nick's with Minions and converted to tubeless after 2 rides. So far no troubles like your describing. Try mounting another rim - tire on the bike and see if it quites down

 

[AM 4]

No I don't seem to have that issue. Sounds like the rotor might be poorly torqued or the hub has some play and needs adjusting. I immediately replaced the nobby Nick's with Minions and converted to tubeless after 2 rides. So far no troubles like your describing. Try mounting another rim - tire on the bike and see if it quites down

Thanks!! Your suggestions make a ton of sense.

Btw, initially I tried switching out the rotor-- to no effect. Then Bulls supposedly promised to switch out the rim. Unfortunately, the bike came back from them w/o said new rim on it.

...why did you switch out your N.Nick? Poor traction ?

 

[SkiKiteBike]

The Nicks have a pretty bad reputation for durability issues. I ride mostly in chunky, rocky, ledgy conditions in the northeast. I did not want to risk getting caught deep in the forest with a torn sidewall and have to push a 60 pound bike for miles to reach a road. The 2.8 nics are good for gravel, and smoother trails without a lot of rocky sections like we have here.
I'm riding the 2.5 DHF and 2.6 DHR II. So far so good!

 

[LimboJim]

The Nicks have a pretty bad reputation for durability issues. I ride mostly in chunky, rocky, ledgy conditions in the northeast. I did not want to risk getting caught deep in the forest with a torn sidewall and have to push a 60 pound bike for miles to reach a road. The 2.8 nics are good for gravel, and smoother trails without a lot of rocky sections like we have here.
I'm riding the 2.5 DHF and 2.6 DHR II. So far so good!

I think that's why Schwalbe ditched the "TrailStar" (TS) and PaceStar" (PS) names of their compounds for "SpeedGrip" and "Soft/Ultrasoft" recently (TS was softer/grippier). I noticed that their softer compound nobs disintegrated way faster on my rear wheels, but not so much on front (where I wanted the grippier effect anyway).

As far as their sidewalls go, I also found that the "SnakeSkin" tires were far more durable than the "LiteSkin" ones, making the weight savings even more moot than the fact that I ride eMTBs.

 

[AM 4]

The Nicks have a pretty bad reputation for durability issues. I ride mostly in chunky, rocky, ledgy conditions in the northeast. I did not want to risk getting caught deep in the forest with a torn sidewall and have to push a 60 pound bike for miles to reach a road. The 2.8 nics are good for gravel, and smoother trails without a lot of rocky sections like we have here.
I'm riding the 2.5 DHF and 2.6 DHR II. So far so good!

Good call. thank goodness for walk assist. The weight of the bike is a real consideration. Hard to get used to coming my 24 lb 'push' bike (Salsa).

 

[SkiKiteBike]

fwiw, I also did this to try and keep the mud and water from getting into the battery space. Used Tape to secure an extra piece of thin closed cell foam and then a mud guard to the face of the battery that is exposed to all the mud and rock hits.

 

[AM 4]

fwiw, I also did this to try and keep the mud and water from getting into the battery space. Used Tape to secure an extra piece of thin closed cell foam and then a mud guard to the face of the battery that is exposed to all the mud and rock hits.

Love it! My own modifications were throwing away those stupid wellgo pedals and adding some gripper tape to the outside of the battery (to make sure when removing the battery, it will never again slip through my wet enduro gloves onto the ground ''""" ) BMZ should make a handle for their battery.

 

[LimboJim]

fwiw, I also did this to try and keep the mud and water from getting into the battery space. Used Tape to secure an extra piece of thin closed cell foam and then a mud guard to the face of the battery that is exposed to all the mud and rock hits.

Love it! My own modifications were throwing away those stupid wellgo pedals and adding some gripper tape to the outside of the battery (to make sure when removing the battery, it will never again slip through my wet enduro gloves onto the ground ''""" ) BMZ should make a handle for their battery.

Excellent ideas! And SKB, great red chester pedals, too - same ones I use on my black/red fs3, plus I added red Ergon grips when my original back ones ripped.

 

[2monsterefsbikes]

I have been researching eBikes for a long time and have slowly been narrowing things down. I am still not 100% sure if I want a mid-drive or a hub-drive with throttle. Some of the hub drive bikes, with a 28 mph top speed and throttle, are intriguing to me for riding on the road. But I also like the looks and capabilities of the more dedicated MTBs. I will ride singletrack as well as paved roads, and I want something that is fun to ride, well put together, and offers solid assist for the times when I am worn out.

So, if you could buy your Bulls again, would you do it? If not, what would you get instead?

Thanks!!

 

[LimboJim]

Hell yes, my Estream Evo FS3+ has taken a LOT of abuse in its ~1500 rugged trail miles so far (2 years). Of all my eMTBs (I have a few), it was by far the best value. Best battery & range (Estream series), best equipped for the money, and SUPER quiet with the Brose motor (Estream again). They don't offer throttles...

Are you aware that throttles instantly make ebikes Class 2? I know NYS has yet to pass 3-class legislation, but it very likely will soon! On pavement at least, a throttled ebike won't be allowed everywhere a bicycle is.

 

[Shortcurcit]

Bulls estream evo 45 am AWESOME. Wife 145 # age 53 5’2. Went places on this bike that was out of her limit on her regular mountain bike. The more pressure on peddle the more power you receive. 2.5 hour ride and used 20% of battery. Impressed enough to purchase another. Maybe I’ll be able to keep up with her when it gets here. No cons from us. Thank you Bulls for bring this one to USA!!

 

[Afren]

I have owned a Bulls ebike for almost three years. I have done just over 13,000 during these three years. During this period I have had three motors and almost everything on it has had to be replaced. No bike is perfect but get my goat with this make is utter abismal support you receive the moment you part with your money. Unlike ebikes with Bosch motors (I have two of them) spare parts are almost impossible to get hold off. Here I am talking about the items which make an ordinary bike into an ebike such as the motor, battery, cables etc.
I would never, ever buy another Bulls bike or for that matter any bike with Brose motor.