Travel Mode experiences

[Stefan Mikes]

I'm curious about your experiences with the Travel Modes or PAS levels on different e-bikes.

I think any e-bike has the Off mode and some of you actually do use it for battery energy saving and/or for harder work out. My illness doesn't allow me riding in the Off mode except emergency situations. A
part from the Off mode (and the Walk mode), my Turbo Vado has three Travel Modes that can be customised:

1. Eco mode, which I use just to compensate the bike weight, for longer trips with no adverse wind, for economic riding with the wind and for better workout;
2. Sport mode that makes the Vado what it really is: a fast commuter. It helps riding into the wind very much at the cost of the battery;
3. Turbo mode, which I use for climbing, for short and very fast commute (especially against the headwind) and to reach home quickly at the end of the ride.

Great thing about the Vado is you can tune the Travel Modes with an app:

Settings for a longer ride. Pressed by necessity, I changed the Turbo mode to 100% on my last ride to be able to catch the train while riding against massive headwind. Note: With my weak legs, the 40% for the Eco mode is the minimum making my Vado behaving as a normal bike (the default is 35%).

My hub-drive e-bike has as many as five fixed powered assistance levels (numbered from 1 to 5). Since the 250 W hub-drive motor doesn't support pedalling as good as an advanced mid-drive one, I use PAS 2 for normal rides, PAS 3 instead of the Vado Sport mode and PAS 5 as the Turbo mode (the latter takes a little effect compared to the PAS 3). PAS 1 is good for very long rides under mild conditions (something such as Super Eco mode).

Now, I am very much interested what Travel Modes are available in your e-bikes and how you use them. Participate!

 

[Mr. Coffee]

I ride with a Bosch CX, so I'll give an executive summary of how and when I use the various modes:

• Eco approximates riding an acoustic bike that is fully loaded, but with less optimal gearing.
• Tour approximates riding a lightly loaded hardtail mountain bike, but again with suboptimal gearing.
• Sport/EMTB -- this mode adjusts the assist dramatically based on how hard you are pedaling. I generally use it for long or steep uphills.
• Turbo is a full power pedal assist. I only use it for the longest and steepest uphills.

If I am riding on fast flats or slight downhills I will generally ride with no assist at all, either because I shut the assist off or I am riding faster than 32kph and the CX refuses to help me.

Most of the time I ride in Eco or Tour, although which one depends on wind, road surface, and terrain. In general for climbs of less than 100m I will just suck it up in Eco or Tour.

I use EMTB or Turbo for long, steep, or long and steep hills. I will also use them on scary sections where I just need to get through quickly -- like riding on a busy shoulderless road with poor sight lines.

The general distribution of assist over a typical ride is something like this:

• 20% -- No assist at all
• 60% -- Tour or Eco
• 20% -- EMTB or Turbo