Juiced CCX not as fast as I thought

[beester]

I just got my juiced CCX for Christmas, and it really is not as fast as I thought it would be. It is advertised as a 28 mph class 3 pedelec, but the only way to get up to that speed in R or S mode is a full on sprint. Also, R mode is no different than S for my bike. There is also a sticker on the downtube that says it is a class 2 bike with a top assist speed of 20 mph! It really is not much faster than my carbon fiber road bike, even on S mode. Any suggestions?

Bee

 

[dave stearns]

You have to remove the sticker to make it go faster.

Seriously though. Also new ccx'er. You can pull the sticker and find the class 3 specs imprinted.

At max peddle and a 25 mph gust at my back, I hit 32. 28 is not long term maintainable for me. So similar experience here perhaps, although honestly, my glass was half full; my personal sense of safety on a bike frame diminishes rapidly above about 23. I just learned that about myself.

All I can say is holy crap if you can sustain 25+ on human power!

 

[beester]

T

You have to remove the sticker to make it go faster.

Seriously though. Also new ccx'er. You can pull the sticker and find the class 3 specs imprinted.

At max peddle and a 25 mph gust at my back, I hit 32. 28 is not long term maintainable for me. So similar experience here perhaps, although honestly, my glass was half full; my personal sense of safety on a bike frame diminishes rapidly above about 23. I just learned that about myself.

All I can say is holy crap if you can sustain 25+ on human power!

 

[Akrotiri]

I just got my juiced CCX for Christmas, and it really is not as fast as I thought it would be. It is advertised as a 28 mph class 3 pedelec, but the only way to get up to that speed in R or S mode is a full on sprint. Also, R mode is no different than S for my bike. There is also a sticker on the downtube that says it is a class 2 bike with a top assist speed of 20 mph! It really is not much faster than my carbon fiber road bike, even on S mode. Any suggestions?

Bee

Remove the sticker

Rider weight matters when it comes to top speed on e-bikes. I top out at 32mph in S or R mode on my Juiced RCS but at 135lbs I'm a light rider so it's easier for me to sustain that top speed as well.

 

[michael mitchell]

I have an older CC Air and can hit 28mph easily in gear 8. A few things to check:

1. Battery level. Ebikes get slower as the battery drains. Are you seeing those slower speeds with a full battery?

2. Tire pressure/clothing wind resistance. I'm guessing you already know this since you have a road bike.

3. Temperature. I've had several ebikes from different manufacturers, and they all feel slower at temperatures below about 55F.

 

[larock]

Have you checked the settings in the Setup Menu on the display?

I wonder if your “Speed Limit” shipped set at 20 MPH (class 2).


My RipCurrent can keep 25-30 MPH with moderate effort on flat pavement.

 

[linklemming]

Have you checked the settings in the Setup Menu on the display?

I wonder if your “Speed Limit” shipped set at 20 MPH (class 2).


My RipCurrent can keep 25-30 MPH with moderate effort on flat pavement.

Another vote for checking the speed settings in the setup menu.

My CCX seemed slow out of the box but it came with it set to 20mph. I first noticed it when running in S mode (I have never even tried R mode)

No problems running at 28mph on flat ground. It does take some moderate effort.

 

[beester]

Thanks for the reply Dave. Can anybody maintain 25 mph at S level for 30-45 min? I bought this bike thinking I could shave some time from my commute (I can average 20 mph on my road bike)
Or is the weight and wind resistance too much to overcome - the CCX is a lot less aero than my Trek madone.

 

[beester]

It is indeed set to 20 mph! Thanks for the tip. Will change setting and see how it goes. Was it a legal thing for the speed limit at 20 mph and the class 2 sticker?

 

[Bruce Arnold]

Have you checked the settings in the Setup Menu on the display?

I wonder if your “Speed Limit” shipped set at 20 MPH (class 2).


My RipCurrent can keep 25-30 MPH with moderate effort on flat pavement.

Same here, on my CCS. And I'm no lightweight.

Your guess about the 20 mph limit is brilliant.

 

[Bruce Arnold]

Thanks for the reply Dave. Can anybody maintain 25 mph at S level for 30-45 min? I bought this bike thinking I could shave some time from my commute (I can average 20 mph on my road bike)
Or is the weight and wind resistance too much to overcome - the CCX is a lot less aero than my Trek madone.

@Chris Hammond does this every day out in Utah -- his commute is ~30 miles each way and he is booking the whole way.

 

[xerxez]

I can get to 25 MPH on my CCS2. I have gotten as high as 32 MPH. But, I notice anything above 20 MPH used the battery very quickly. Granted it's chilly out, and maybe that makes battery performance dull.

But, my prior (not electronic) bike did 10 MPH with very minimal effort. My CCS2 can do 15 MPH wit very minimal effort and maybe sustain it for 35 to 40 miles.

I think my CCS2 could only sustain 25 MPH for about 10 miles and then require a charge. Some of that's stop and go.

I'd hoped for a bit more distance at higher speeds. But, I can work at optimizing my ride once it's warmer out.

Overall, I still like the bike. I wonder if I should have bought the bigger battery.

 

[Explorer-1]

I'm hoping the JUICED battery gauge is garbage like most others, but it seems really bad compared to the detailed screen; I suspect the battery detail screen is really the one that is completely useless.

Yesterday we had a very warm day +17C and I went 40.2km and the detailed screen for the battery said I used 388Wh and 7.2Ah All very good. However; the main screen was showing only 4 bars (out of 9) left for the battery which is crap (relatively). The reported Voltage was 50.9, but I did not measure it myself, that would equate to between 45% and 50% capacity remaining which is what the main meter says. So from what I can see the detailed screen is either useless (most likely), or the main screen gauge (and reported volatge) is very inaccurate.

The difference between the two screens is just unacceptable, it cannot be considered a feature if it does not work. Unfortunately; I believe it is most likely the detailed screen that cannot be believed.

ps.. this was on a RCS

 

[ElevenAD]

It is indeed set to 20 mph! Thanks for the tip. Will change setting and see how it goes. Was it a legal thing for the speed limit at 20 mph and the class 2 sticker?

reset the limit go for a ride and let us know if this fixed the issue! hopefully it does!

 

[Deleted member 4210]

All I can say is holy crap if you can sustain 25+ on human power!

That's not happening for the vast majority of cyclists without electric assist. Any wind at all plays a big role, then add even a small amount of hills, that affects average speed too.

Most riders are between what would be beginners and medium riding experience, and beginners would be lucky to maintain an average speed of 12 mph for 10 to 15 miles.

If someone has a medium level of experience and rides 3 to 4 times a week for 35 to 40 miles each time, they can build up to average 16 to 19 mph, with no wind either against or behind, and negligible amount of hills.

Someone who is very competent, rides on club rides very regularly, and pretty much year round, and goes distances of 50- 60 miles at least a few times a week, can possibly get to 20 to 24 mph average speeds. It's rare. These people are in exceptional shape, with very well defined muscles in their calves, likely rather thin, very aggressively aerodynamic posture while riding,, and probably could easily run on two legs over 8 mph's for quite some distance too.

Averaging 25 mph ? Good luck with that without e-assist, and unless you are in a group where people draft off of each other frequently, or you are not likely maintaining that speed for any meaningful distance. (Over 10 miles ?) Even with no wind , and being on perfectly flat surface, the wind resistance a rider faces at that speed, is exponentially greater than doing 15 mph. Wind resistance curve is not linear, as your speed increases. Wind resistance plays a greater role than any other force.

 

[Bruce Arnold]

@Deleted Member 4210 Your point is well taken. I volunteer as a SAG driver for the local Bike MS bikeathon every year -- 20+ years and counting. There is a small group who ride the 100 mile route who finish in under 5 hours. They work together as a unit, drafting etc. They are highly trained and very fit cyclists who do this all the time. We have a very flat course. So they've got all the advantages, and are averaging somewhere between 20 and 25 mph. Anecdotal data, but I think it supports what you are saying.

We've also got folks who take 9 or more hours to finish the century -- averaging 11 mph -- we really try to discourage them, they are clearly over-exerting themselves and will pay for it in soreness (at best) or injury. They also keep hundreds of volunteers from finishing for the day while they take an hour to go the last 5 miles. But now I'm just whining.

 

[Andy_in_CA]

I easily maintain 25mph-28mph on my CCX. I had to turn up the speed limiter all the way to get the class 3 speed and feel i got from my CCS.

Andy

 

[Chris Hammond]

Thanks for the reply Dave. Can anybody maintain 25 mph at S level for 30-45 min? I bought this bike thinking I could shave some time from my commute (I can average 20 mph on my road bike)
Or is the weight and wind resistance too much to overcome - the CCX is a lot less aero than my Trek madone.

Simply put, yes. Seems like your speed limiter was set too low. I set mine at 40 just so I never have the "governor" check my speed. I only use S mode when climbing hills or big head winds. I'm in level 2-3 assist most of the time and my cruising speed is generally 26-32 mph depending on slope and wind. The "max assisted" speed is directly tied to battery pack voltage. At 100% charge 58.8V on 52V pack, assistance stops at ~ 38mph, but this is only attainable with tailwind or downhill (due to assist tapering off at max speed), ~35 mph is max sustained speed on flat, no wind condition. Top assisted speed drops with pack voltage. You will know you are approaching "max assist" speed for a given state of charge by monitoring "real time" watt output. It begins tapering off as you reach max speed, and ultimately drops to ~25-30 watts output (essentially no assist from the bike motor) with speed above that. Obviously this is only encountered on down hills.

 

[beester]

I found out what the issue is. The wheelsize setting was set at 1800 from the factory. Once I changed it 2225, the bike flies now! Maintaining 28 mph on the flats is a breeze.