"Significant Motor Resistance While Pedalling With Motor Off" Myth Busted: Physical Proof

[fooferdoggie]

plus there wheels overall tend to be heavier too so all that rolling mass even o na stand to get going.

 

[haneyrm]

I have a RadRunner and a Ride1Up 700. Both lower end ebikes by forum standards. I’m impressed at how easy the 700 is to pedal unpowered. It’s really a pleasurable bike to ride with no assistance which I do most of the time. The Rad is a different story. Hardly ever ride the Rad without any assist. It’s a tough bike to pedal unassisted.

I demo’d a Specialized Como over this past weekend and found it to be a very easy bike to pedal as well with zero assist. I have a Specialized Sirrus X which is a ridiculously easy bike to pedal and the Como felt similar. I could feel the weight difference between the Sirrus X and the Como more than anything.

 

[Rider777]

I ride a 2020 R&M Delite with the latest Bosch motor and can ride it with motor off comfortably on flat terrain. Up hills not so much But doable.

 

[dodgeman]

One thing I discovered today is when pedaling on low boost settings, say eco you don’t have the feeling of motor drag if you turn it off. On higher boost settings and you turn it off, it feels like a parachute came out. This just reinforces the point the drag is a perception and not reality.

 

[kmccune]

What's your point?

I made it clear that the quality ebikes that I own don't have issues.

Not entirely sure why you are assuming what I own or do not own.

It was a general reply wasn't specifically targeting you, my point better quality usually equals better results

 

[yellowzebra]

T

What's your point?

I made it clear that the quality ebikes that I own don't have issues.

Not entirely sure why you are assuming what I own or do not own.

The LATEST quality eBikes may not, but 5/6 years back, different story, I think…
I think the person ‘reacting’ to your comment’ -as I too reacted - maybe thought your comment was over-simplistic “just buy a new one, then…”
My read of it, anyway.
Cheers
Chris

 

[Majid]

Hello,

I have a new Cube ebike with Bosch Smart System CX Performance motor. When motor is off mode or even when it is totally off, when I am pedalling I feel something holding me backward and reducing acceleration. I have checked everything like brake disk or any other similar things, when I hold bike in air and pedal, everything is ok, but when I ride it I feel as I said. What can be the problem ?

 

[fooferdoggie]

Hello,

I have a new Cube ebike with Bosch Smart System CX Performance motor. When motor is off mode or even when it is totally off, when I am pedalling I feel something holding me backward and reducing acceleration. I have checked everything like brake disk or any other similar things, when I hold bike in air and pedal, everything is ok, but when I ride it I feel as I said. What can be the problem ?

put it on a stand and try peddling. it feels that way because the bike is heavy. how the bike feels with power throws us off. I find often if I go from tour to sport I tend to actually put out more power myself. it feels easier so I tend to work harder.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Hello,

I have a new Cube ebike with Bosch Smart System CX Performance motor. When motor is off mode or even when it is totally off, when I am pedalling I feel something holding me backward and reducing acceleration. I have checked everything like brake disk or any other similar things, when I hold bike in air and pedal, everything is ok, but when I ride it I feel as I said. What can be the problem ?

It is just the loss of couple of hundred of Watts of assistance.
Do this experiment: Pedal uphill in the maximum assistance, then go from Turbo to Eco. You will experience a feeling of an invisible force pulling you back.

 

[PCeBiker]

Other than dealing with a headwind, the tires have the biggest impact on how much effort it takes to pedal. (Or your motor to push you along)

Road or gravel tires with low rolling resistance can make a HUGE difference.
If you really don't need nobby tires, swapping them out can increase your range (and decrease your efforts) quite a bit.

My ebike weighs ~75 pounds, but with my street treaded tires filled to 30 PSI it's not that bad to pedal.
And it's not bad on the trail either.

 

[fooferdoggie]

It is just the loss of couple of hundred of Watts of assistance.
Do this experiment: Pedal uphill in the maximum assistance, then go from Turbo to Eco. You will experience a feeling of an invisible force pulling you back.

I am riding my bulls right now and the difference in effort is pretty big. 2" tires verses 1.5" tires. lately I am lucky if I can average 120 watts on my commute. on my trek I just did 149 average watts on my bulls. to get that on the trek I have to work my ass off even though the trek has 85nm of torque verses the bulls at 63.

 

[PCeBiker]

I was only using 13 Watts to go 9.4 kph on asphalt.



It took 256 Watts to go 32.6 kph a couple of minutes later.




If I had "normal" nobby fat tires, deflated to 6 PSI for comfort or sand, I'm sure it would take 250 Watts to go 5 kph.

 

[PCeBiker]

Hello,

I have a new Cube ebike with Bosch Smart System CX Performance motor. When motor is off mode or even when it is totally off, when I am pedalling I feel something holding me backward and reducing acceleration.

If this is your ebike,..



And these are your tires,..




And you are not doing this,..




Then more efficient tires can go a long way towards making your ebike easier to pedal and not work your motor as hard.

Something more like this can make a BIG difference,..



Or even more of a street type tread,..




Smooth tread can let go on slippery surfaces (like wet leaves on pavement), but so can nobby tires.

I had a dirt bike with big nobby tires and it was dangerous on pavement.
I had no grip. I was going from one nob to the next like this,..





If you can hear your tread on the pavement, then you are wasting energy and your tread isn't making consistent contact with the road.

 

[fooferdoggie]

the problem too is that you don't really have the gearing to ride without power well for the most part. on my trek without power a 2 to 3% slope took 200 watts.

 

[procreator]

I had an interesting experience with my Ride1Up Series 500. I was riding up a steep hill on PAS 5. The battery ran out of juice and the display turned off. It got very hard to pedal. I was able to turn on the display on again, then lowered it to PAS 2. The pedaling got much easier.

I can't explain why it happened, but that was my experience.

 

[fooferdoggie]

I had an interesting experience with my Ride1Up Series 500. I was riding up a steep hill on PAS 5. The battery ran out of juice and the display turned off. It got very hard to pedal. I was able to turn on the display on again, then lowered it to PAS 2. The pedaling got much easier.

I can't explain why it happened, but that was my experience.

you pulled more juice then the battery could handle. going to a lower assist level was within what the battery could handle.

 

[PCeBiker]

the problem too is that you don't really have the gearing to ride without power well for the most part. on my trek without power a 2 to 3% slope took 200 watts.

I've got nearly no slope anywhere around my place.
Almost 0% grade. Flat.
I've have to travel to find a hill or playground.
I can pedal easily in first gear.
Unless I have a 20 mph headwind.

 

[PCeBiker]

the problem too is that you don't really have the gearing to ride without power well for the most part.

I kinda do, but pedaling along with a decent cadence at 3 mph takes FOREVER !!
It's a long way home, and I'm late for dinner.

 

[PCeBiker]

you pulled more juice then the battery could handle. going to a lower assist level was within what the battery could handle.

I pulled so much juice, that the battery voltage sagged to less than 40v and my controller shut me down.

Turning the power down to "Throttle Mode 2" allows me to make it home without the battery cutting out.

PAS mode 1 or 2 in your case.

 

[procreator]

you pulled more juice then the battery could handle. going to a lower assist level was within what the battery could handle.

The point I was trying to make, apparently unsuccessfully, was the pedaling on 5 with the weak/drained battery was harder than with the battery turned off.