How many of you have suffered water damage to your ebikes?

[donoharm]

I'm about to pull the trigger on my ebike to replace my current bike as my daily commuter, but it's been a little disheartening to see that most companies don't warranty their bikes against water damage from rain or snow. I've even emailed 4 of them to confirm/clarify and the answer is that they all act like their bikes are made of sugar and will be destroyed by the rain - one very well known company even called it a "killer" of it's bikes. If ebikes are to replace cars as transportation, they have to be built in a way that the manufacturer will be comfortable standing by their product being used as basic transportation, even if it's something minimal like just for a year!

It does seem that a lot of people are doing things like putting plastic bags on their sensitive components and I'd be curious to hear how many of you are riding in the rain/snow and what protection you are using. Thanks. (Photo not mine, found on google)

 

[fooferdoggie]

don't buy a cheap bike and it will be fine in the rain and snow.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I have been riding the following e-bikes under the most unfavourable conditions, often riding through puddles so deep these covered the mid-drive motor:

• Lovelec, a generic Czech hybrid, hub-drive motor e-bike
• Specialized Vado 5.0
• Specialized Vado SL 4.0
• Giant Trance E+ 2 Pro.

All these ebikes turned out to be totally waterproof. The only glitch was Giant RideControl EVO display that was damaged, and not by rain but by power-washing (by another person).

 

[indianajo]

My ebikeling.com geared hub motor kit has performed okay in the rain. Heavy rain will inactivate the throttle, but treatment with a hair dryer repairs it.
By contrast the ASI controller I bought with a MAC12t motor from lunabikes shorted out and burned 2 pins off in the rain. The pins were melted into the connector to the motor, destroying that harness too. The ASI pins are too close together. The ASI controller was mounted under my battery but still got wet enough to short & burn. Don't buy anything with an ASI controller. Most controllers with the wires coming out of the aluminum case, you can point that end down and leave a drip loop to keep the rain from flowing into the case.
Don't submerge any ebike component in water. I've ridden pedal bikes through water over the crank and axle, and preserved them with drying & lubricating everything that got wet.

 

[PDoz]

I had a few water related gremlins with my 2018 giant full e pro, but everything was fixed under warranty and each time the item was visibly improved. Nb this list reflects use in conditions outside normal - lots of river crossings, a 4 hour drive across the alps in torrential rain with waves across the road !! Mud, Australian dust, and a healthy dose of neglect.

I had 3 evo screens replaced, the original was definitely not water proof, the second had much better sealing around the edges but nothing was going to survive that drive. The third started misting up after an over the bars incident and I expect I'd damaged something.

Two handle bar power control switches - similar story.

The ( yamaha) motor was replaced for a torque sensor issue , it started after a ride with 20 x knee deep river crossings in 30 degree c weather - I suspect the motor got too hot, then rapid cooling on the river crossings sucked water past the seals?

The battery to motor connections are showing signs of corrosion - this is despite dialectic grease. Bad design with this bike - water pools in this site.

It's been great fun!!!

 

[mschwett]

specialized turbo creo here, ridden through hundreds of miles of pouring rain, and stupidly also through standing salt water a foot high. (pedals and motor submerged).

wouldn’t recommend anyone do that, but the bike was/is totally fine.

an eBike which can’t be ridden in the rain is not much of a bike. power washing is another story, of course. don’t!!

 

[sc00ter]

My Pedego Commuter went thru many a serious rainstorm and never missed a beat, including water almost up to the hub. And my RadRunner 1 has been thru some crazy rain and one snow fall and never missed a beat. I also recall getting stuck in the rain once with the E-Lux, no issues with it as well. When I get my Juiced RipRacer it'll get ridden in the rain. I don't even think about it. I just ride them and enjoy them.

 

[Cowlitz]

My bike is a Dutch made bike. It has been parked outside in some pretty heavy downpours with no adverse effects. Buy a bike that comes from a rainy area.

 

[mschwett]

We always recommend our customers keep their ebike in the garage because the majority of ebikes are not waterproof expecially the battery. In case of you have to put your E-bike outside, just remove the battery.

what about when they have to, you know, ride them? do they have to ride them only in the garage ?!?

 

[ElevenAD]

OP your worrying to much, please dont let fear of water stop you from pulling the trigger on an E-Bike! Carry some plastic bags and rubber bands in your trunk bag, cover your display if its raining and you should be fine! I ride my bikes in mud, snow and rain for the past 3 years with no issues. towel it down when you finish ridding and you should be fine! One thing i dont do is store my bike outside in the elements, bike and battery are stored inside.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

but we normally don't ride during rainy days, right?

Perhaps you don't.
My e-bikes are waterproof and I ride them at any weather and in any terrain (salty water excluded).

 

[6zfshdb]

I'm about to pull the trigger on my ebike to replace my current bike as my daily commuter, but it's been a little disheartening to see that most companies don't warranty their bikes against water damage from rain or snow. I've even emailed 4 of them to confirm/clarify and the answer is that they all act like their bikes are made of sugar and will be destroyed by the rain - one very well known company even called it a "killer" of it's bikes. If ebikes are to replace cars as transportation, they have to be built in a way that the manufacturer will be comfortable standing by their product being used as basic transportation, even if it's something minimal like just for a year!

It does seem that a lot of people are doing things like putting plastic bags on their sensitive components and I'd be curious to hear how many of you are riding in the rain/snow and what protection you are using. Thanks. (Photo not mine, found on google)

The only water related e-bike damage I've experienced was when moisture got into the Higo 3 pin throttle connector. It caused some corrosion which led to erratic throttle action. The cause was a missing O-ring which was easily replaced.

Although the bike is fairly weatherproof, I do take some precautions when riding in wet weather. I cover sensitive components with these silicone caps:

Robot or human?

They're reusable, transparent and flexible enough to be able to operate display buttons.



During transport, I also use them to cover the opening in the battery case:



I use these additional precautions when transporting. I remove the seat & suspension seatpost and cover the top of the seat tube with a vinyl cap:



And cover the bar ends with these waterproof arm protective sleeves:

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[donoharm]

Thanks everyone for the great tips. My personal opinion is that the manufacturers are missing a great opportunity here to really make their ebikes stand out from the competition and frankly, live up to the promise of being a true year round commuter.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Thanks everyone for the great tips. My personal opinion is that the manufacturers are missing a great opportunity here to really make their ebikes stand out from the competition and frankly, live up to the promise of being a true year round commuter.

You mean Specialized with their IPX6 waterproof rating?

 

[Cowlitz]

Thanks everyone for the great tips. My personal opinion is that the manufacturers are missing a great opportunity here to really make their ebikes stand out from the competition and frankly, live up to the promise of being a true year round commuter.

There are already bikes that are. I've got one, but I don't like to ride on snow and ice. Simply look for folks that live in the Pacific Northwest. Dry can be rare during much of the year.

 

[donoharm]

You mean Specialized with their IPX6 waterproof rating?

I tried confirming that but can’t find anything when I Google Specialized IPX6. Can you link to anything confirming that?

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I tried confirming that but can’t find anything when I Google Specialized IPX6. Can you link to anything confirming that?

IPX6 Rating

Regarding, e.g., Specialized Turbo Vado 2022: Please watch the recent review by Court on EBR.

 

[BigBoyEbike]

I'm about to pull the trigger on my ebike to replace my current bike as my daily commuter, but it's been a little disheartening to see that most companies don't warranty their bikes against water damage from rain or snow. I've even emailed 4 of them to confirm/clarify and the answer is that they all act like their bikes are made of sugar and will be destroyed by the rain - one very well known company even called it a "killer" of it's bikes. If ebikes are to replace cars as transportation, they have to be built in a way that the manufacturer will be comfortable standing by their product being used as basic transportation, even if it's something minimal like just for a year!

It does seem that a lot of people are doing things like putting plastic bags on their sensitive components and I'd be curious to hear how many of you are riding in the rain/snow and what protection you are using. Thanks. (Photo not mine, found on google)

In the year 2000 I purchased a Lee Iacoco Title Force electric bike. It was ginormous! If it rained he just wouldn’t run. It spent most of the time getting fixed.

 

[fu4ko]

I got wet once in the rain. Since I did everything in a hurry and with limited funds, the battery and controller got wet because they are on the trunk. After a while, the BMS refused to charge the battery. After replacing it, everything was fine. Now I have wrapped the battery and controller with nylon. It's ugly, but it works. I'm getting wet snow soon and everything works.