Owner experiences - Road ebikes - 40 lbs or less

[Nova Haibike]

Is pretty much for the same rider , just one ebike is A LOT slower and SHORT RANGE.

The HP has a 1 x 11 drivetrain, lights, a kickstand, wider tires, and a fatter saddle. The LT weighs significantly less, has a 2 x 11 drivetrain, a lighter weight fork, carbon crank, narrower tires, and a skinny saddle with carbon rails. Never mind about the differences in motors.

Not for the same rider, if you ask me.

 

[Captain Slow]

How come you were able to get the Creo but the +HP is not allowed there ? Is that a class 1 Creo ??

Yes, they make a class 1 Creo for Canada even though it's class 3 for the US. With the Domane +HP there's no point making a class 1 version as that's what the LT version is for.

If I want to derestrict the Creo I can get the planet3bike product. But I'm not sure I'm going to bother. I have a feeling traveling above 32 km/hr. is going to use up the battery really quickly. So I think I'm better off just using my own power to go faster than 32 km/hr. when I want to travel above that speed and unlike my CCS this bike is more aero, lighter so I think I can do it with the motor off unlike the CCS.

If the Creo software had the ability to allow me to set an arbitrary speed to turn off the motor above then I might get a derestrictor, but as it is I don't see the point. Of course if I could have 1,000 wh of power like the Domane +HP well that would be a different matter.

 

[Captain Slow]

Makes sense until you look up the definition of the word "acoustic".

Captain Slow, I'm interested in your Creo's comfort level, since it has an aluminum frame. If I were to buy a Creo the E5 would be the model I'd purchase. The $6000 (Can) price tag looks to be very fair, considering I paid $5500 for my 2018 Giant Defy Advanced Pro 0. The carbon version probably has a better ride, but it's also $2000 more.

The only thing holding me back is I want to get another year out of my Defy, because I probably won't ride much after I purchase something like the Creo.

King Me, I also like the Neo SE and the price also looks to be decent. Too bad Cannondale didn't go with the Gen 4 Bosch motor for 2020.

I have only ridden the bike about 80 km's since I got it. So far I haven't noticed much of a difference in comfort other than the saddle. I have a Selle SMP Avant on my Cervelo and it's way more comfortable to me than the saddle that came on the Specialized. I might swap the two.

One difference that might affect the comfort level is that I run 25s on my Cervelo. 28 might not even fit on the Cervelo as I tried sticking my wife's wheel in there last summer and it wouldn't fit. I didn't try to hard and maybe if I deflated the tire mounted the wheel and then inflated then maybe it would fit. The Creo comes with 28s so in general that gives a more forgiving ride and perhaps offsets any harshness of the aluminum.

I'll report back when I have more mileage under my belt. But put it this way, it's not a night and day difference where I notice immediately.

I hear you on the Defy as I've been thinking that I would sell the Cervelo. But then I've been thinking that if I enter Fondos and do group rides I might still want the Cervelo as I'm not sure how hard core roadies are going to react to me being on an ebike. There's another thread about the culture of cycling and there are a lot of hard core riders out there who really don't like ebikes.

For now I'm keeping the Cervelo and if I can ever convince my son that there's merit to road riding (he only wants to ride Enduro) then it might make sense to have 2 road bikes so we can ride together.

 

[King me]

Hey Deacon, If I knew more about the Gen 4 motor I might wish I had it. What are some of the differences & improvements? I suspect weight is and ongoing target for ebike motor companies.

 

[Deacon Blues]

The Gen 4 motor is 20% more compact, which allows, in some bikes, the installation of a larger 625Wh battery, and it's also 20% lighter, I imagine the reason Cannondale didn't go with the Gen 4 motor is the frame would need to be modified. Supposedly, the new motor also has less resistance when a rider goes past the top speed cut-off.

 

[King me]

Deacon, I sincerely have not been able to detect any resistance above the 20mph cutoff. The weight savings and room for more battery capacity are definite pluses. Any of the major manufacturers that are using it in their current year models?

 

[Deacon Blues]

Just some of the companies that are using the Gen 4 motor: Bulls, Moustache and Riese & Mueller. I'm sure there are more.

 

[Captain Slow]

Does BMC use the gen 4 motor?

 

[Deacon Blues]

Looks like the AMP Road model uses a Shimano motor.

 

[King me]

I watched a YouTube video about the 2020 Bosch motors. Very informative. The Performance Line model now weighs vitually the same as the 2019 Active Line. Supposedly it is the identical form factor as well. That means is someone wanted to spend the dinero, he could retro-fit his Active Line equipped ebike with a Performance Line motor. Benefit? 65Nm of torque vs. 50Nm, but both still Class 1 (20mph) motors. Other improvement: Bosch got rid of the 20mph "wall" issue on the Performance Line motor. I think some weight reduction has been achieved in their Class 3 (28mph) Performance Line Speed motor. Does that mean the Active Line motors are even lighter & smaller than their predecessors? The video spent no time on the Active Line or Active Line Plus motors.

 

[Deacon Blues]

Last summer I rode a Moustach Samedi Xroad with the older Bosch motor. I liked the bike and the motor, but I did notice the aburpt motor cutout when I peddled over 32 kph (20 mph).

 

[King me]

I'm thankful that the Active Line Plus on my bike does not seem to have that problem. Crossing the 20mph threshold is very seamless to me.

 

[Captain Slow]

So far my biggest complaint about the Creo is the gearing or lack of high gearing. A high gear of 46x11 when you have a motor is not high enough. I was thinking geez, wish I could have gotten a Domane+HP in Canada. Then I check the US website and see the Domane+ HP uses the same Praxis crank and chainring in a 1 x 11 set up and has the same 46 x 11 gearing.

After seeing that I don't feel so bad that it's not available in Canada.

Now I'm wondering if I should have gotten the Cannondale Synapse Neo, which was essentially the same price as the Creo but it has a dual chain ring and regular road bike gearing. It would have weighed more though.

 

[Deacon Blues]

Captain Slow, have you weighed your Creo?

 

[Ebiker01]

have gotten the Cannondale Synapse Neo

The Neo 1 ?
It doesn't mention the speed on the website , assuming is a 28mph one.

But it has the older Bosch gen. 3 and it weights 42lb .

Positive things are that it has a 4amp charger.

But Trek +HP Is definetly the ultimate e road bike for now. I could charge that @6-7amps with a Satiator.

 

[Captain Slow]

I used to like the idea of a Trek +HP but it has the same issue I have with the Creo, top gear of only 46X11. I'm not sure I see the point of the bigger motor and battery if the top gear is limited. Now I'd rather have a lighter bike.

I didn't think you could charge Bosch batteries with anything but a Bosch charger.

 

[King me]

Unless Cannondale has made a very recent change, all of the Neo line of e-road bikes (Neo 1,2,3, & SE) have the same Bosch Active Line Plus motor with a 500wh battery. That means a 20mph assist limit, but really good range from the big battery. I bought the SE because I thought it hit the right balance of relative lightness, amount of assist, and RANGE. Not knocking the Domane, Creo, etc., but for me they climb the sticker-shock ladder very quickly.

 

[Ebiker01]

Bosch batteries with anything but a Bosch charger.

Yes you can charge with any charger , as long as the charging plug modifications are made. A simple cable cut and soldering job.