Vanmoof pauses sales

I believe the boom is over.
Just look around. It looks like the discounts are starting.
I expect there are going to be some fantastic money saving deals out there in the near future especially on the higher end bikes.
Nobody dealer wants ebikes sitting in inventory with the batteries deteriorating.
 
i did like the design of that bike and my understanding is it was supposed to not look like an ebike to skate the rules in places banning ebikes, i have always been met with really positive interest everywhere i have biked which has been really nice and a fun conversation starter. i suspect more companies will go down or consolidate, just look at the list in the forums of the brands, unbelievable. fwiw, my brother just bought a lectric 3 based on my recommendation and i suspect they will be around a while because it's the number one bike i see on the bike path! i took it for a ride and was very impressed for the price point.
 
How could VanMoof be "the ebike darling" when I'd never heard of it before? No wonder they're in financial trouble... lousy marketing! 😆
 
Rexlion said:
How could VanMoof be "the ebike darling" when I'd never heard of it before? No wonder they're in financial trouble... lousy marketing! 😆
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Oh, the brand is known. Perhaps more in Europe than the U.S.

1689093310091.png

One year ago (July 10th, 2022) I wrote: 'In the front of the Van Moof store in Battersea (Battersea Power Station, London, an expensive area). Van Moof is Dutch cr*p of attractive shape, and decidedly not cheap, so people with money let themself be misled and buy it. (These are not good e-bikes!)'

Nearby, I met an Englishman with a very nice R&M Roadster e-bike, and we had a lot to talk about!
 
Rexlion said:
How could VanMoof be "the ebike darling" when I'd never heard of it before? No wonder they're in financial trouble... lousy marketing! 😆
Click to expand...

They are very popular here - i see many on the road every day. I don’t know for sure but I’d guess it’s the most common single model of e-bike on the streets here, although if you added up all the different models of somewhat similar looking rad and tern bikes they might be as numerous. vanmoof drove a LOT of sales with a number of very useful design features, but unfortunately they didn’t do a great job with some important quality control or testing issues, which resulted in a lot of required service, lots of warranty costs, and lots of unhappy customers. Add to that bikes that can only be fixed at their own repair facilities, and it’s a recipe for trouble. I live just a short ride from one of their first/few repair hubs so it was never a problem for me personally.

their revenue was estimated to be around $220m last year, which corresponds to something like 80,000 bikes a year. In the US I would guess a very large percentage of them are in San Francisco and Brooklyn/Manhattan. The only type of bike which has ever appeared twice at once in our office bike room (typically around 25 bikes on a normal morning) is the vanMoof S3.
 
mschwett said:
They are very popular here - i see many on the road every day. I don’t know for sure but I’d guess it’s the most common single model of e-bike on the streets here, although if you added up all the different models of somewhat similar looking rad and tern bikes they might be as numerous. vanmoof drove a LOT of sales with a number of very useful design features, but unfortunately they didn’t do a great job with some important quality control or testing issues, which resulted in a lot of required service, lots of warranty costs, and lots of unhappy customers. Add to that bikes that can only be fixed at their own repair facilities, and it’s a recipe for trouble. I live just a short ride from one of their first/few repair hubs so it was never a problem for me personally.

their revenue was estimated to be around $220m last year, which corresponds to something like 80,000 bikes a year. In the US I would guess a very large percentage of them are in San Francisco and Brooklyn/Manhattan. The only type of bike which has ever appeared twice at once in our office bike room (typically around 25 bikes on a normal morning) is the vanMoof S3.
Click to expand...

I have a friend who has a Van Moof and I ride with him casually on occasion. He bought it three years ago and he absolutely loves the bicycle to bits. He is older and he is NOT mechanically inclined. I normally would offer to handle some routine maintenance for him as I do with my father's ebike......but that Van Moof is all proprietary.
There are a few other reasons why I was never drawn to the Van Moof ecosystem...but those proprietary parts were a non-starter for me. I hope for the sake of Van Moof customers and fans everywhere that they are able to keep chugging along.

My Van Moof friend....again a big fan of the brand....had already commented that his next bicycle would be a known brand with a service network which can be easily and locally accessed.
My father bought a "Story Bicycle" and I tried to talk him into a Specialized instead but the almighty dollar won that bargain. At least I can do some basic maintenance on that Story Bicycle and it uses parts which can be easily obtained from virtually anywhere.

Funny thing...my Van Moof friend is a bit taller than I am. I have never even ridden his Van Moof despite his being the smallest available size......it is too tall for me (I am 5'7")
 
mfgrep said:
I have a friend who has a Van Moof and I ride with him casually on occasion. He bought it three years ago and he absolutely loves the bicycle to bits. He is older and he is NOT mechanically inclined. I normally would offer to handle some routine maintenance for him as I do with my father's ebike......but that Van Moof is all proprietary.
There are a few other reasons why I was never drawn to the Van Moof ecosystem...but those proprietary parts were a non-starter for me. I hope for the sake of Van Moof customers and fans everywhere that they are able to keep chugging along.

My Van Moof friend....again a big fan of the brand....had already commented that his next bicycle would be a known brand with a service network which can be easily and locally accessed.
My father bought a "Story Bicycle" and I tried to talk him into a Specialized instead but the almighty dollar won that bargain. At least I can do some basic maintenance on that Story Bicycle and it uses parts which can be easily obtained from virtually anywhere.

Funny thing...my Van Moof friend is a bit taller than I am. I have never even ridden his Van Moof despite his being the smallest available size......it is too tall for me (I am 5'7")
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wierd, lots of short people ride the X3. but yes, the S3 is only one size and for taller people.

it’s a mix of proprietary and not, so the question is what’s going to fail and when and how often 😂

the bottom bracket and cranks are standard
the chain is standard
the rear IGH is a sturmey archer
the motor is a bafang geared hub, but the cable is customized afaik
the brakes are fairly standard, standard pads, standard mounts for rotors
the stem, bars, controls, electronics, battery, and e-shifter are all totally proprietary.
 
mschwett said:
wierd, lots of short people ride the X3. but yes, the S3 is only one size and for taller people.

it’s a mix of proprietary and not, so the question is what’s going to fail and when and how often 😂

the bottom bracket and cranks are standard
the chain is standard
the rear IGH is a sturmey archer
the motor is a bafang geared hub, but the cable is customized afaik
the brakes are fairly standard, standard pads, standard mounts for rotors
the stem, bars, controls, electronics, battery, and e-shifter are all totally proprietary.
Click to expand...

He has the S3. Ironically his friend's wife has the X3 and after a little crash is scared to ride....so they were offering (to sell) it to me when I was seeking an ebike.

Interesting. I will take a closer look at his bike next time we ride. Casually glancing at the bike it appears more foreign to me than your post suggests.

I called him to give him the scoop on Van Moof rumblings and asked how much his deposit was for the S5. He thinks it was only like $25 so no biggie should the bottom drop out.
 
mschwett said:
the stem, bars, controls, electronics, battery, and e-shifter are all totally proprietary.
Click to expand...
This feels different than when Faraday or Bionx went bust. Faraday bikes could have the controller replaced or power wiring rerouted to a 3rd party battery. Bionx could have the controller bypassed to keep using it as a direct drive motor with a 3rd party controller and battery. Are VanMoof bikes going to the landfill once their proprietary parts fail?
 
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Stefan Mikes said:
It would barely fit my 5'8". Or not. I have relatively short legs.

In a premium e-bike?!
Sorry but I cannot stop laughing :D
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not sure what criteria you ascribe to "premium," which is a marketing word more than a meaningful one, but remember that at full price these bikes cost something like half (at least in the US) of a vado 5 sl! not sure i'd consider that "premium."

that said, the motors have been reliable and appropriate for the type of bike. the real problems were with the IGH and e-shifter.
 
mfgrep said:
He has the S3. Ironically his friend's wife has the X3 and after a little crash is scared to ride....so they were offering (to sell) it to me when I was seeking an ebike.

Interesting. I will take a closer look at his bike next time we ride. Casually glancing at the bike it appears more foreign to me than your post suggests.

I called him to give him the scoop on Van Moof rumblings and asked how much his deposit was for the S5. He thinks it was only like $25 so no biggie should the bottom drop out.
Click to expand...

the drivetrain looks more "custom" than it is because of the chain cover, which of course is totally removable. but there are a lot of custom parts, for example in the cockpit, the integrated brake levers, which fit totally flush, the boost button, etc etc. i am not aware that you'd have any way to replace such a thing if it failed, which the buttons have for some people.

the situation may end up a lot like boosted, which made really great scooters, went under, but another company bought the remaining assets and makes money selling parts from inventory. i bought a new battery for my daughter's a while ago. unfortunately i do think there's a decent chance that in more than 3-5 years, there will not be support for the electronics which are necessary to make the bike work. of course this would be the exact same problem if, say, specialized or trek went under, but that kind of thing seems highly unlikely given the age and stability of the biggest legacy bike makers.
 
mschwett said:
not sure what criteria you ascribe to "premium," which is a marketing word more than a meaningful one, but remember that at full price these bikes cost something like half (at least in the US) of a vado 5 sl! not sure i'd consider that "premium."
Click to expand...
Indeed. No wonder it's bafang powered 🤣

I have my opinion on many Dutch (I used to work with them) but I choose not to express my opinion. (A friend asked 'how much pot was necessary to invent the VanMoof?') On the other hand, the Gazelle represents the healthy Dutch values!
 
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