Well, I have a dilemma, from issues on multiple fronts, and need help with a decision. Mostly about bike size, but a little about whether I picked the wrong bike style just to get the more powerful Bosche 350W vs 250W motor (while trying to figure out how the 250W gets 75NM torque vs only 63 from the 350W motor).
The bike came in and is at the bike shop. It would have been ready this weekend but Trek shipped it without a key to remove the battery. So the Trek representative has to come to the shop early next week (Mon/Tues) to re-key the battery lock. He is willing to give me the lock core and keys from his Trek Powerfly so that I don't have to wait too long to get new ones. I have no idea how he plans to remove the current lock core when the battery is locked onto the bike (it shipped assembled, wheels and all, except for the handle bars not installed).
Unfortunately, in the meantime this 50mm bike is very tall for me, and it's the smallest XM700+ they make. Just standing over the top tube is a "nut crusher". I'm 5-9 (215 lb) with a 30" inseam for my pants (31" pants tend to drag the ground a little) and the standover is about 80mm, which is 31.5". I've only owned mountain bikes for the past 25 years and a tall road bike is new to me. When straddling the top tube I can only lift the bike front tire up 1/4 to 1/2" before my nuts are in my throat and it won't go higher, and the dealer says this is normal.
Not only is the top tube a nut crusher, but with the proper seat height to reach the pedals with full leg extension I can only get one foot down on the ball of the foot if I don't come off the seat. If I don't slide off the seat I feel like I'll fall over, and again the dealer says this is normal.
If I slide forward off the seat to straddle the top tube (not recommended as per above) then I barely have any room between the seat and handle bars to maneuver the bike at a walking pace. This is because the bike with swept back bars may be too short in length for me (yet too tall at the same time). The shop wants me to try it with a 90x100 stem at 15-17 degrees to move the bar up and forward so I still have a relaxed riding position and weight off my wrists.
Next, the suspension travel seems much shorter than 35mm (about half that), and I wanted to be able to ride a few trails with my wife on her Neko+ and I'm worried that the street tires and short travel will be a problem. That's why I considered the Paragon Gold forks that Jeff is rocking, and maybe losing the street tires and fenders for larger and more aggressive knobby tires. But without fenders I'd still only be able to go up to a 42 or 45 tire to fit inside the fork and rails (it has 40c on the bike now).
Additionally, I'm being told that some bikes are too fast to be allowed onto some trails, and that the XM700+ could get me into trouble here in Colorado. I'm sold on only the Bosche system (no Shimano please), and wanted the 350W motor on the XM700+ as I'm 215 lbs with one working lung at 6000+ feet, and need to be able to climb 800 feet over 2.7 miles to get back to my house, with a grade that varies from 2% to 10% (avg 6%). I had no idea at the time the Powerfly Bosche CX motor had 20% more torque. My understanding is that more torque will get me moving more quickly (grunt), and more power will keep me moving more easily (speed), and I need climbing power and distance more than speed.
After a short test ride (1 mile) my Intuvia display says I'll get 53 miles on ECO, 27 miles on TOUR, 23 miles on SPORT, and 19 miles on TURBO mode. My wife's Neko+ display right now says she'll get 58 miles in ECO, 48 in NORM, and 43 in SPORT on a single charge. That's a lot more range than mine, unless I don't use anything higher than ECO mode. I really want closer to 30 miles minimum for some of the rides that we'll do, and I was going to add the 500WH battery to get me there. The 500WH already comes on the Powerfly 7/8FS+ and it will hit my goal of 30 miles in SPORT mode (level 3/4) vs 23 for the XM700+. And I'm told it will do 43 miles in TOUR (level 2/4) vs 27 for XM700+.
It was only today that I saw that the Powerfly 7/8FS+ has more torque (75 NM vs 63NM) despite only 250W, and just gives less top speed and more range in return. I won't be commuting with my bike on the streets (except to go down to the shopping center at the bottom of Cheyenne Mountain). Rather, we'll be riding on both paved and gravel bike paths most of the time, plus a few trails that can be fairly bumpy and loose. I picked the XM700+ more for the 350W power than it's 28MPH top speed. I won't be going faster than 20 if I want my wife to keep up and not make me suffer later for leaving her in my dust, but I need the 63-75 NM of torque from the Bosche over the 50NM from the Shimano drive on the Dual Sport+ and Neko+.
If I upgrade my suspension and tires, and maybe order a 500WH battery pack, I'll be closer to the price of the Powerfully 7 or 8S. With those I'll only need a handlebar stem riser (and maybe new bars) to get to a less aggressive riding position with less weight on my hands. I've only made a deposit on the bike, and I don't pay the balance until I take delivery (after they get the battery lock core and keys replaced).
Basically my concerns in a nut shell are:
(1) is it too tall ?
(2) is it not long enough ?
(3) is 400WH not enough juice for distance on the 350W motor ?
(4) is the 75NM/250 watt motor with 500WH battery and 20MPH top speed a better choice for me wanting increased ride range and climbing hills (vs 63NM/350W/400WH)?
(5) On the Trek website it says top speed for power assist on the Powerfly 7/8FS+ is 20MPH in one spot, and 15MPH in another spot. So which is it?
(6) is the XM700+ speed-pedelec too fast to legally take on many off-road mountain bike trails, and how badly will the front mono-shock hold it back on slower off-road rides?
ADVICE PLEASE: Should I just take a step back and have them order a Powerfly 7 or 8FS+, and then do the stem riser on that bike to get the weight of my old wrists? I have to know if the upgrade to 75NM torque in the PF7 or 8FS+ is enough to offset it's less powerful 250W motor for climbing hills vs the XM700 350W/63NM motor.
PS: if the riding position is too aggressive my right hand will go to sleep after 15 minutes - not counting the Lift+ that I don't want, the XM700+ is the least aggressive of the Trek eBikes.
