Thanks Vern.
I went for the Haibike as I wanted a bike that would be able to cover greater distances on one charge, be relatively light weight, have a good component spec and be reliable. The Haibike just happened to be far cheaper than any of the other bikes that I had been looking at. I'd have loved a
NEO Race, but as the BH factory support just isn't there, I didn't want to risk paying out an extra £500.00. Buying the Haibike from Germany I still don't get the factory support, but just about every E-bike dealer knows Bosch systems, and the rest is just cycle parts.
I get the impression that BH support is taken far more seriously in the States than here in the UK, and you certainly won't find anyone from BH on UK forums supporting and answering questions. I certainly wouldn't recommend that anyone in the UK buys a BH Easy Motion product. It will just end in tears.
If I were in the States, I probably wouldn't hesitate to recommend the product.
Over here when there is an issue, it appears to become a series of the dealer hassling the importer, the importer hassling Spain, Spain not responding and so the circle continues. Here in the UK if you need parts, you had better hope that you have a second bike to ride and plenty of patience.
Sadly it seems that no importance is given to customer support and it doesn't take long for people to such as myself to begin to get fed up. One other aspect that I don't like is that BH use some fairly low spec components on the bikes, the forks being the biggest of that list. Fitting a set of £50.00 front forks to a £2,000.00 bike isn't good practice. Ravi has already mentioned not being able to bunny hop his bike, and I couldn't either until the forks were replaced. Obviously the rear end is still a dead weight, but the now light front end more than makes up for it, and bunny hops are now a realistic proposition.
In relation to the mid drive, I just can't get excited by it. Mid drives are meant to climb better, and stay cooler but I have certainly never found the BH wanting in either department.
All hub drive motors are an unsprung weight/mass which isn't a great thing to have, so 4.5kg of motor and wheel probably is not a good thing to have, and this is where mid drive motors score, as they don't have this unsprung extra weight/mass, as the motor is sprung weight/mass. In real world terms, I don't think that it makes any difference to what I'm asking of a bike. In some respects having the hub motor makes the bike possibly more stable, and maybe even cut into the soft ground better.
I have in the past considered a hub drive E-MTB, as to me there is far less risk of water ever getting into the motor, and rear wheel maintenance is obviously far less hassle. We also don't tend to have throttles on bikes over here, but the hub drive can be tricked just enough to power you through sections of mud or ruts, that you wouldn't otherwise be able to pedal through. So that again is a distinct advantage over mid drive, as when you stop peddling the motor also instantly stops. I also enjoy the near silence that a hub drive motors has. The mid drive isn't overly noisy, but I still find it an irritation.
Another possible hassle of my owning a mid drive E-MTB could be the entry into event such as the one that I am about to do. There is no getting away from the fact that the Bosch mid drive and motor stand out like a sore thumb, where as the BH has a very un e-bike look about it, and many people don't even notice that it is one, so no unwanted attention drawn.
Perhaps over time my opinion will change, but for now, hub drive is my favourite method of power, and the BH always makes me smile with every ride.