Reviewers like Court provide a great, FREE, service to those interested in buying an electric bike. They raise awareness and provide an objective history and on the road test of the bikes. Otherwise you're just looking at a bunch of false advertising.
HOWEVER, these reviewers have a limited amount of time and experience with each bike, and their opinions are limited by who they are, their body type and riding style. All these things may be quite different than you, esp for larger or smaller riders.
In my experience reviewers were completely off the mark of the two bikes i've owned.. A 2009 A2B Metro was hailed as the greatest eBike design, unique styling and well engineered by a company with a plethora of ebike experience in India. I read many reviews and they all said the same thing: This was THE ebike to own if you could afford it.
So I bought an A2B and had so many problems I won't even list them.. Estimated that the total cost of warranty repairs was well over $5000 on a $2500 bike.. At least it had a 2 year warranty. Company declared bankruptcy and was bought out by Hero. In the end the bike did become reliable.. Felt like i was a beta tester.
In 2013 I was looking to replace my eBike and I ran across a Stromer Elite... The reviews on the bike were middling to terrible. That's when i realized what they were reviewing had little to do with actually owning the bike... So carefully looked at the bike assembly, rode it and rode it some more. The bike actually used a modified version of the A2B motor, which I knew had become reliable after years of upgrades. Bought the bike and have been trouble free for 3000 miles, pretty much. Bike also had a 2 year warranty.
IMO before you buy a bike check what other owners have said about it, and when they said it. Then decide what is important to you, then RIDE THE BIKE. Price isn't everything, but discounts are readily available if you know when to buy (like December and January).
HOWEVER, these reviewers have a limited amount of time and experience with each bike, and their opinions are limited by who they are, their body type and riding style. All these things may be quite different than you, esp for larger or smaller riders.
In my experience reviewers were completely off the mark of the two bikes i've owned.. A 2009 A2B Metro was hailed as the greatest eBike design, unique styling and well engineered by a company with a plethora of ebike experience in India. I read many reviews and they all said the same thing: This was THE ebike to own if you could afford it.
So I bought an A2B and had so many problems I won't even list them.. Estimated that the total cost of warranty repairs was well over $5000 on a $2500 bike.. At least it had a 2 year warranty. Company declared bankruptcy and was bought out by Hero. In the end the bike did become reliable.. Felt like i was a beta tester.
In 2013 I was looking to replace my eBike and I ran across a Stromer Elite... The reviews on the bike were middling to terrible. That's when i realized what they were reviewing had little to do with actually owning the bike... So carefully looked at the bike assembly, rode it and rode it some more. The bike actually used a modified version of the A2B motor, which I knew had become reliable after years of upgrades. Bought the bike and have been trouble free for 3000 miles, pretty much. Bike also had a 2 year warranty.
IMO before you buy a bike check what other owners have said about it, and when they said it. Then decide what is important to you, then RIDE THE BIKE. Price isn't everything, but discounts are readily available if you know when to buy (like December and January).
