Starting my ebike purchase journey

[PatriciaK]

Thank you so much for the suggestion. When I get through the holidays, I’ll get serious about the bike search and check out the racks. Just curious; we are midway tonight between houses. Couldn’t leave for our 8 1/2 hr trek til 1, so in a motel for the night. If I had the bike/rack on my car, would I have to take the bike off and bring it to the room? (Probably a dumb question, and I’m pretty sure I know the answer…)

I would !

Also remember removing battery lightens the bike by several pounds... we always remove ours before putting bikes on the rack.

 

[California Flash]

Thank you so much for the suggestion. When I get through the holidays, I’ll get serious about the bike search and check out the racks. Just curious; we are midway tonight between houses. Couldn’t leave for our 8 1/2 hr trek til 1, so in a motel for the night. If I had the bike/rack on my car, would I have to take the bike off and bring it to the room? (Probably a dumb question, and I’m pretty sure I know the answer…)

There are various ways to lock the rack and bike to your vehicle. None are foolproof for a determined thief. It is always a good idea to take the battery off the bike when putting it on a rack or leaving the bike outdoors at night. Some models have issues with the battery coming unlatched. I had this happen with my Trek Alllant+ 8s. I did not damage the battery, however I must now wait for a new cover as it was damaged. ETA, April 2022. I now have the battery secured with Velcro to guarantee that it will not fall out. When it fell out it damaged the cover so I could not reinsert it. Had to call my wife to get me.

The other issue is weight of your bike(s). Most racks are designed to be used on fairly smooth roads. Once you go off road, or on a bumpy road, the weight limits are reduced. My rack is rated for two 66 pound bikes. However, it is rated at 40 pounds per bike off-road or on an RV.

 

[Noobebiker]

Exciting news my friends. TLDR: I bought the Momentum Vida E+ at a large discount!

I got to ride four Giant and Momentum bikes today. First was the 2020 Fastroad E+ EX Pro. Loved this bike as it was light, powerful, and well equipped. It was being sold for around $2500 as it was an older model. Only problem was that I had a hard time getting my leg over the bar as I have knee issues so had to skip it. Also rode the Roam E+ but it wasn’t as exciting and had the same issue with regard to my knee. Both bikes had plenty of power for me and felt natural to ride. Next up was a medium sized Momentum LaFree E+ which I really liked. Then I noticed there was one in red right next to it at $280 off ($1999) and then a white step-thru bike next to that one at $2199. Both were large size but the white one was a Vida E+ (375 Wh battery) which retails at $2850. I rode the Vida E+ and found that I had no issue getting on it and in fact loved how it shifted with the Nexus IGH 7 speed and how it rode overall.

Told the shop that I would discuss with my wife and get back to them. Called my wife on the way home and she said if I liked it and it was pretty much the same price as the LaFree E+ I was considering so I should get it. She didn’t mind that it may be too big for her but I think she may be able to ride it anyway as it is a step-thru. The Vida E+ more than met my criteria (except that the battery is smaller) and came in at a reasonable price so I called the shop back and put a $100 deposit on it!

Thank you all for helping me in my search. I feel like I made a choice after a good amount of research and testing bikes (rode 14 of them). @GoGranny51 you may want to try this bike out as it appears to meet your criteria. Feel free to let me know if you think I made a mistake as I guess I can still cancel and get my deposit back.

 

[PatriciaK]

Exciting news my friends. TLDR: I bought the Momentum Vida E+ at a large discount!

I got to ride four Giant and Momentum bikes today. First was the 2020 Fastroad E+ EX Pro. Loved this bike as it was light, powerful, and well equipped. It was being sold for around $2500 as it was an older model. Only problem was that I had a hard time getting my leg over the bar as I have knee issues so had to skip it. Also rode the Roam E+ but it wasn’t as exciting and had the same issue with regard to my knee. Both bikes had plenty of power for me and felt natural to ride. Next up was a medium sized Momentum LaFree E+ which I really liked. Then I noticed there was one in red right next to it at $280 off ($1999) and then a white step-thru bike next to that one at $2199. Both were large size but the white one was a Vida E+ (375 Wh battery) which retails at $2850. I rode the Vida E+ and found that I had no issue getting on it and in fact loved how it shifted with the Nexus IGH 7 speed and how it rode overall.

Told the shop that I would discuss with my wife and get back to them. Called my wife on the way home and she said if I liked it and it was pretty much the same price as the LaFree E+ I was considering so I should get it. She didn’t mind that it may be too big for her but I think she may be able to ride it anyway as it is a step-thru. The Vida E+ more than met my criteria (except that the battery is smaller) and came in at a reasonable price so I called the shop back and put a $100 deposit on it!

Thank you all for helping me in my search. I feel like I made a choice after a good amount of research and testing bikes (rode 14 of them). @GoGranny51 you may want to try this bike out as it appears to meet your criteria. Feel free to let me know if you think I made a mistake as I guess I can still cancel and get my deposit back.

So exciting - enjoy your new bike!

 

[Noobebiker]

Here’s the beauty that I’m about to get!

 

[retiredNH]

Interesting that they keep the cost down by using a smaller battery, 375 wh. That could be reasonable if your rides are like mine. I have a 625 wh battery, but the most I've ever used is about 40% of it! I haven't done any marathon rides yet. My longest was about 18 miles. We live in a hilly area, but I don't go for speed - I only use power for getting up the steeper hills.

 

[dodgeman]

Nice looking bike, enjoy it. Me and the wife have e bikes, hers is a medium and mine a large. She is tall enough I she can ride mine and I can get the seat high enough I can ride hers. When I ride hers I mostly notice the handlebars being closer to me.

 

[Coolbob]

Congrats on your new bike!

I got my 2020 Momentum Transend E+ almost two years ago. It has a 375w battery and I typically ride 20-25 miles and only use about 50% of the battery capacity riding at 12-15mph average speed in a very hilly area. Momentum changed the battery on the Transend from 375w to 500w in 2021. We bought a 2020 Momentum Vida E+ from our LBS last spring for my wife, we got $200 off since it was last year's model. She never rides more than 15 miles at a time, so it's plenty of battery for her needs.

Both the Transend and Vida use the Shimano 7-speed rear hub. It's awesome, but you need to know how to shift it properly and expect to adjust the shifter cable a few times until it breaks in.

Shifting:
Unlike a typical derailleur, you should stop peddling and wait 1/2 second or so for the motor assist to cut off before shifting gears. Although it's technically possible to shift gears under a light load, it's not something I'd recommend.

You can shift several gears at a time, but don't spin the shifter from one gear to a very different gear in one motion. Let's say you are in 5th gear and get caught at a red light and you want to start out in 2nd. Don't spin the shifter from 5 to 2, click from 5 to 4, 4 to 3, 3 to 2 and you're good to go.

Hub Cable adjustment:
Adjusting the hub cable is not difficult and does not require any tools. There are several YouTube videos showing how to do it, I'd recommend watching a couple of the videos and doing this yourself.

If the hub seems to slip, then it may be out of adjustment because the shifter cable has stretched. I'd recommend checking the hub/cable for proper adjustment after every few rides at first and then every hundred miles or so thereafter.

Shift to 7th gear, then slowly shift all the way to 1st gear. Now shift from 1st gear to 4th gear and leave the shifter in 4th gear. Look at the right side of the rear hub near where the shifter cable is located, you will see a small inspection window with two yellow lines inside. The two yellow lines should line up exactly in 4th gear. If they don't it's because the shifter cable has stretched and you need to adjust the shifter cable to line them up again. You can turn the adjustment knob surrounding the cable where it attaches to the shifter to lengthen or shorten the cable. Make small adjustments and click through the gears from 7 to 1 to 4 and reinspect the lines until they are aligned.

Congrats again on your new bike!

 

[Noobebiker]

Appreciate the tips! We don’t plan on riding too far on each ride so I think the battery should be fine. I’ll ask the LBS what an upgrade to 500 Wh costs but will be prepared for sticker shock.

Can you shift while stopped using your suggested technique of one gear at a time? So I could come to a stop in 5th gear and then shift down to 2nd by going one gear at a time with a pause in between gears shifts? That would be great!

Thanks again!

 

[Coolbob]

Yes, you can shift as many gears as you like, just click through them one at a time. Yes, unlike a derailleur, you can shift even while at a complete stop.

Depending on when your bike was manufactured, there may be a supplemental sheet explaining the shifting do's and don'ts that are unique to the Shimanl hub. Our bikes did not include the adendum, but two friends who bought Momentum Transend E+ bikes more recently received the supplement. Basically, shift when there is no torque being applied to the hub from you or the motor and don't 'multi-shift', just click one gear at a time.

*** Peddling at about 60rpm is more efficient and better for your muscles and knees than straining and peddling too slowly. The Giant/Momentum system backs off on assistance if you peddle too slowly, pick up the cadence and you will feel the bike reward you by helping more. After you ride a bit you will learn to anticipate what gear is the best for different hills and you will enjoy riding much more once you learn to shift to the correct gear and maintain a good cadence before you find yourself struggling up hills in the wrong gear.

 

[Noobebiker]

This is a great feature! I can’t wait to try it out. I asked the LBS what it would take to add fenders, rear rack, integrated lights, and upgrade the battery to 500 Wh. T hey said I might as well get a different model with all that but they will check for me. unfortunately there isn’t a different model with all of that on it unless I go away from Momentum. I can live without some of those items including the battery and perhaps fenders. Would like the lights and rear rack though and I’ve seen your (@Coolbob) posts on getting those on the bike so if I feel adventurous I’ll take those on myself. Any ideas on fenders or locks from anyone would be much appreciated.

 

[retiredNH]

Why are you set on fenders? Do you plan to ride in bad weather? If not, fenders don't add anything. Lights? Riding at night? or for safety? FWIW, adding a rack should be easy if the mfgr included dropouts - rack attachment points - and most do. Lights are another easy add, but it depends on your expectations. Lights running off the bike battery are a different story from lights running off internal batteries.

 

[Coolbob]

@Noobebiker In addition to the post I made on installing the hardwired headlight and taillight on my Momentum, I made a YouTube video covering all the accessories I've added.

I'm with you @retiredNH, I don't like fenders either.

​

 

[Noobebiker]

Why are you set on fenders? Do you plan to ride in bad weather? If not, fenders don't add anything. Lights? Riding at night? or for safety? FWIW, adding a rack should be easy if the mfgr included dropouts - rack attachment points - and most do. Lights are another easy add, but it depends on your expectations. Lights running off the bike battery are a different story from lights running off internal batteries.

Good questions all. I guess I don’t expect to ride in the rain but didn’t want to get caught in rain unexpectedly. I could live without fenders I guess. Lights for safety or if I get caught outside after sunset. I would lean towards getting lights I think but could live without for awhile and see. Rack would be nice to have so I could do some light grocery shopping. In that case a good lock or set of locks would be good to have too I think. So maybe my absolutes are really a rack and locks.

 

[retiredNH]

Good questions all. I guess I don’t expect to ride in the rain but didn’t want to get caught in rain unexpectedly. I could live without fenders I guess. Lights for safety or if I get caught outside after sunset. I would lean towards getting lights I think but could live without for awhile and see. Rack would be nice to have so I could do some light grocery shopping. In that case a good lock or set of locks would be good to have too I think. So maybe my absolutes are really a rack and locks.

Good thoughts. There are a number of threads here on locks. Personally, I haven't bought any yet because I just don't trust any of them. That's probably more my problem than a comment on locks though. Instead, I always ride with my spouse and one of us is always with the bikes, or they remain in sight like when we had lunch on our last ride before winter.
Lights are a decent safety feature. You might think, to start, about inexpensive lights, one for the front that can mount on your bar and one for the rear, maybe a flasher, that can mount on your rack or seatpost. No need for overkill, though. Just something to remind motorists that you're there.

 

[Dewey]

Any ideas on fenders or locks from anyone would be much appreciated.

Fenders can be tricky, if Giant don’t have any for the Momentum Vida I wonder if the ones they fit to the LaFree model might work, as they are the same 26” wheel size. Otherwise you might consider the one’s Trek sell for the Electra Townie Go in White, or the wider plastic one’s from SKS. Either way you may need to make a trip the hardware store to buy materials to attach them to the Vida’s chain stay bridge.

 

[Rickman1]

Personally, I would spend the $ and go for the bigger battery. More range. After riding a bit you will find yourself going on longer rides. Good to have the extra range. You can accessorize it later as time and $ allow. Plenty of rear bike racks and lights available.

 

[Noobebiker]

Right now I’m thinking of staying stock and riding it for a bit to decide what I really need. Locks and lights may be the only exceptions and they’ll probable be easy enough to get and install by myself. Rack may come after those. Fenders may not be worth the hassle. I’ll use the current battery as others seem to get enough range out of the 375 Wh. If and when I have to replace it, I’ll opt for the bigger battery or maybe by then I’ll want to move on to another bike. I think I’ll take a wait and see approach.

 

[PatriciaK]

Right now I’m thinking of staying stock and riding it for a bit to decide what I really need. Locks and lights may be the only exceptions and they’ll probable be easy enough to get and install by myself. Rack may come after those. Fenders may not be worth the hassle. I’ll use the current battery as others seem to get enough range out of the 375 Wh. If and when I have to replace it, I’ll opt for the bigger battery or maybe by then I’ll want to move on to another bike. I think I’ll take a wait and see approach.

From my La Free experience, and the general experience of folks here, because your bike is a mid drive (yes?), You don't "need" a larger wattage battery to get range and performance like you would with a hub drive. My 250W battery is rated for about a 60 mile range, and even in the hilly conditions I normally ride, that's pretty much what I get. I suggest you give the stock battery a chance and see how it does with your riding style/terrain/distance - you might want to upgrade later, but you'll probably be quite satisfied with the one that comes in the bike.

 

[Noobebiker]

Yes the Vida E+ is a mid drive. The same motor as the LaFree E+ I believe.