Lectric 2.0 motor and hills. Going, going...gone?

[littledragonfly]

I have a Lectric 2.0 Step Thru. Has about 600 miles on it - got it in August 2021. I weigh 160 lbs. I ride in an hilly area and the motor is going. Beyond the normal motor sound there is a grinding high pitch secondary sound that kicks in. My bike mechanic tried to get Lectric to respond and they wanted a recording. They did not 'appove' his recording so I am going to take it to Phoenix and let them hear it for themselves. The controller has already been replaced on this bike (controller from Lectric). I suppose this is a flat terrain bike and if I were to give advice I would say don't buy it unless you are riding mostly on flat areas. And no, I don't ride with the throttle only.

I have been a huge Lectric supporter but would not buy another one.

 

[Johny Rocket]

What is your go to PAS level typically used? Although it's counter intuitive, increasing PAS on hills to maintain speed is hard on the motor and stresses the motor gears. Having said that, there is no reason that the motor should fail with only 600 miles. I'm at 5400, and if anything, the motor might be a little quieter than when new.

 

[littledragonfly]

PAS 2-3

 

[Johny Rocket]

Definitely not pushing the motor very hard. It's great that you are close enough to have them look at it in person. I've noticed that the desk jockey customer support techs are not very well trained or maybe lack experience in troubleshooting issues with the bikes. They seem to just guess at the problem than really understand what each component does. I'm a retired electronics tech and see Lectric support making poor diagnosis on this forum all the time. Geared hub motors like Lectric uses are pretty noisy though. It's one of the reasons I put a Bafang mid drive motor on my "fitness" bike, it's super quiet, very stealthy.

 

[littledragonfly]

Well it is a heavy traffic 2 hour drive but better than a dead bike!

I called Lectric once about my brakes and the guy said to put WD-40 on them, so ... yeah.

And I am used to the regular motor noise - it's the additional nose that is troublesome and obvious.

THX

 

[fooferdoggie]

I called Lectric once about my brakes and the guy said to put WD-40 on them, so ... yeah.

eatery that then go down a hill maybe you can catch them on fire before you crash.

 

[indianajo]

I've had 3 geared hub motors. I cross 66 to 80 hills on my twice weekly commute in good weather. I weigh 160 and carry 15 lb tools supplies & 50-80 lb groceries+ag supplies the uphill leg. My first $221 motor, the gears wore out in ~4500 miles. No noise, just quit pulling. Was able to pedal it out & back again unpowered. The second $720 motor the pins burnt off the controller in the rain into the harness @3000 miles. I'm on the 3rd motor.
The only undue noise was when the cover was falling off. I had to retorque cover bolts on the $221 motor about twice a year. Blue loktite didn't work. Keytite plumbing sealer did.

 

[littledragonfly]

yikes!

 

[Dorkyman]

Indianajo, these are Lectric hub motors?

We've only had our XP2.0st bikes since Christmas but attack the hills around here often, pulling 18 amps for maybe 2 or 3 minutes at a time. No issues.

As for brakes, I find it hard to believe that someone at Lectric said to "use WD-40" on the pads. Maybe he meant on the cable. I can attest that both of our new bikes had dry cables; once I removed the wires and liberally oiled them, the brakes were much, much more sensitive.

We've had nothing but positive interactions with the staff at Lectric over a half-dozen phone calls.

 

[littledragonfly]

Glad for you. And yes that what he said, and he didn't mean the cable.
I have had positive interactions as well.

 

[FozZ]

I have a Lectric 2.0 Step Thru. Has about 600 miles on it - got it in August 2021. I weigh 160 lbs. I ride in an hilly area and the motor is going. Beyond the normal motor sound there is a grinding high pitch secondary sound that kicks in. My bike mechanic tried to get Lectric to respond and they wanted a recording. They did not 'appove' his recording so I am going to take it to Phoenix and let them hear it for themselves. The controller has already been replaced on this bike (controller from Lectric). I suppose this is a flat terrain bike and if I were to give advice I would say don't buy it unless you are riding mostly on flat areas. And no, I don't ride with the throttle only.

I have been a huge Lectric supporter but would not buy another one.

I am having the same issue with one difference. I have about 1600 miles on my XP2.0 which I got on 8/10/21. I also called support and sent them a recording.
My free replacement rear wheel is arriving today, zero hassle! THANK YOU LECTRIC, GREAT SUPPORT!

 

[RJB58]

Fozz, can you report back on how your new wheel is working out? I only have 70 miles on my XP but I’m not liking the grinding sound I’m hearing in PAS 3 when going up hills. Thanks!