when will prices come down out of the stratosphere?

[DDBB]

We also think our ebikes were money well spent. One of the neighbors that immediately asked me how much my bike cost goes on two cruises a year w/ his wife.. They are in their 70's and appear to be gaining 10lbs. each every year. As far as I can tell, they do no exercise and they complain a lot... I'd guess for the cost of one cruise for two they could have ebikes and start having more fun and be more healthy but I don't tell anyone how to live their lives and I would never ask them how much they spend on a cruise. Maybe I should

 

[larry-new]

My Rad City was $2k, including a spare battery! If someone wants to spend more, that's ok.

 

[MarkF]

I am in the lithium battery industry and i will say "don't hold your breath waiting for prices to come down" The cells currently used in ebikes are the 18650 round metal type. Those will soon be replaced by a new bigger 21700. You can bet those will be more expensive and not cheaper to build packs with. The soft aluminum pouched cells used in everything RC, can be had for a cheaper price, but they are not durable or safe enough to to use as an ebike pack. And I will add that any new formula to come around would still be years away from production and then many more years before it would trickle down to us.
There are plenty of cheap ebikes on Amazon and i think the bike from ride1up has a good looking bike for a grand. I don't foresee the price of ebikes coming down as much as we would like, but it will always boil down to, you get what you pay for.

 

[MisterM]

Yeah, I feel like saying "none of your business!" when people ask. It's rude to ask someone what something cost IMO. Now if they had a genuine interest in the bike and were considering getting one, that's different.

Oh, I don't care if people ask. People are naturally curious what things cost, especially if they have no experience. I hate when bloggers fail to discuss cost (about anything)- that's most people's #1 concern.

The market for $3+K ebikes has to be fairly small - first adopters are willing to spend a lot (Tesla owners are prime examples), but Average Joes won't - not when it takes 10 years to break even vs a conventional vehicle, even with ridiculously high subsidies.

That said, Juiced/Rad and others are selling reasonably priced ebikes with very good demand, so affordable ebikes are available.

 

[PDoz]

When asked what my ebike costs, I reply " a few hundred $ more than an equivalent non electric bike, and I'm using it a LOT more than my other mtb - it's the best health investment I've made" , at which stage most people get a lot more sensible / realistic about expectations. The conversation then shifts to what people want in their next bike , and it's surprising how many people quickly see the value .

Admittedly I'm talking to a biased population - recreational motorbike riders who spend double ebike prices every year on just the maintenanceof their toys, or hard core mtb riders who will lose ebike $ every couple of years when they upgrade their toys.

I was hesitant about buying my giant - there's a perfectly good 2017 norco sitting in my shed .....but thankfully my wife recognised the value and I'm definitely not ashamed of what I spent now. Most people waste more $ on smoking / booze / coffee percyear than we invest in our ebikes - nothing at all to be ashamed off there!!!

 

[pnop]

I have $400-$500 in mine. Now it does depend on what you want.........you'll spend more if you want a hard core trail bike or need to go extreme miles but for that money mine does exactly what I want. A cheap run around bike. Your buddy could have built an electric bike for close to what he spent on the bike he built.

Nobody pays me much attention unlike on a fuel powered bike.

Top speed on mine (measured with GPS) has been 22 mph non pedal assisted. I have no idea how far it will go as it's still going by the time I'm done riding.

 

[JRA]

I agree with Mister F that 2170 cells will be introduced into the eBike market and in fact are already here on a few top end models. However any higher cost is not due to the cost per cell because although individual cell cost is more it takes less cells to get the same amount of Ah's per battery. So that cost is actually not much compared to the cost of engineering, development of new casing/integration and testing by manufacturers.

I have been doing a fair bit of research into getting a replacement type 2170 battery for existing models of eBikes and that is what I have found going down that rabbit hole. In dealing with a US manufacturer that is tied to a large supplier in the EU this was upwards of $35k for a simple brick type battery using LG 5A cells with no case and put the project out of what I felt would be a marketable price point. One of the costs was for 15 batteries to be submitted for testing alone.

At the same time working with an Asian supplier that has developed an HL style, the popularly known as Shark style, 2170 battery case using Samsung 50E cells that if it wasn't for the 25% tariff would be actually pretty much in line with a comparable Ah 18650 one that to be honest I haven't checked on with the added tariff for cost.

Be that as it may the battery cost of an eBike is a big part of the cost, especially if you want to consider the quality of the battery, but is dependent on the voltage and Ah rating. Bigger is more and no getting around it. But what makes one eBike worth $10k and another $1k is not due to the battery but the amount of R&D, components and manufacturing cost of the entire bike. Plus it seems like many are playing the eBikes are popular now so let's make some hay while the sunshines.

 

[Jerry LM]

Before I purchased my Evelo I added up the prices of all the components minus the frame and it adds up fast! Mine was under 3k and when you figure in the engineering and research and manufacturing cost I feel it is a bargain. That doesn’t even figure in the shipping for free! Then add in a four year warranty, pro rated battery replacement it is not a bad deal at all. IMO if they can’t make a reasonable return why be in business? One big investment goes into manufacturing and getting a product to market.

 

[DDBB]

It's funny how the cruising neighbors thought our 38' twin diesel baby flybridge yacht was a great deal and were shocked that we sold it. That boat cost more than the 1st two houses I bought combined yet 2k for an electric bike that you have to pedal? Oh well we're crazy for buying that!

 

[Dewey]

For cheaper ebikes I've found the DIY crowd make a lot of information available online comparing builds, experiences with buying online, and what your budget gets you, for example on the Reddit Ebikes Wiki. Here in the US the cheapest budget importers appear to specialize in ebikes for food delivery riders in New York, or open shops in places with large immigrant communities like Miami, elsewhere without that density of customers there are rebrands competing to resell what can be bought off the internet, and I expect the advantage there is the importer pays customs, provides domestic shipping rates, and a stock of spares. There appears to be a lot of churn with shops opening and closing at an alarming rate potentially leaving the buyer without a supply of spares, and it's unjust how in NYC those shops got away with selling ebikes that exceeded state power/speed regulations leaving the riders to have their livelihood confiscated during crackdowns. That said Sondors, Juiced, and others showed the potential for buying a decent ebike for not a lot of money, I love how entrepreneurs are seeing gaps in the market and bringing prices down eg Scott T and his Argo cargo bike kit, its just pitiful the arbitrary import tariffs push prices up.

 

[Bruce Arnold]

There may be a time in the not-so-distant future, when ebikes really catch on in the US, that economies of scale will come into play and prices will come down some. I don't expect it to be a lot.

 

[Mr. Coffee]

If you look at it as a value proposition as a car replacement a $5k e-bike will pay for itself in two years when you consider fuel costs, parking, and insurance.

 

[glenmorenee]

I am a big proponent of the "cry once" type of decision when making a big purchase. As others have noted, you could burn thru a lot of money before finally ending up with something that is still shy of what you should have bought in the first place.

Discussing cost with anyone not already familiar with the costs is never productive. People are free to spend their money on whatever suits them but don't discount the power of advertising and media that is hell bent on easing more money out of your wallet.

Wouldn't it be amazing if e-bike pricing followed a similar price/features arc of laptop computers? Remember what we used to pay for these things? But that market is selling on the order of 100 million units per year. If only.

My first impression of the emerging e-bike phenomenon was that this seems like a big deal. But I am looking at it thru my lense, an old fart that always loved bikes but is now either e-bike or no bike. This market demo seems good sized but not huge. Unfortunately the high prices for the nice stuff looks pretty sticky.

 

[Bruce Arnold]

If you look at it as a value proposition as a car replacement a $5k e-bike will pay for itself in two years when you consider fuel costs, parking, and insurance.

Agreed. We sold one of our cars when we got ebikes. Total cost ~$5000 for a CCS and a Pedego City Commuter. Had a car payment of $320/month that went away. Ten months later, they're over half paid off. That's not to mention savings on gas (nearly $500), maintenance, etc. Not to mention improvements in health and quality of life.

 

[Dewey]

If you look at it as a value proposition as a car replacement a $5k e-bike will pay for itself in two years when you consider fuel costs, parking, and insurance.

I like how leasing plans like Riide or car loan like repayment plans like Klarna with incentives (eg a replacement ebike every 2-3 years or a low enough interest and extended enough term) help people compare the cost to public transport or car ownership.

I imagine as well as the up-front cost the unpredictability of ebike quality/lifespan, the availability of trained shop support, legal limbo around liability, inadequate bike infrastructure and difficulties riding on fast roads, put people off. I liked my local bikeshare offered free rides to the polls this week, and a local family cycling group had a cargo bike show and tell at the start of the summer. The more opportunities to get people to test ride an ebike the better and this needs to be an organic locally organized thing, the industry traveling ebike expo skipped DC this year and say they have no plans to return, that sucks.

 

[indianajo]

Agreed. We sold one of our cars when we got ebikes. Total cost ~$5000 for a CCS and a Pedego City Commuter. Had a car payment of $320/month that went away. Ten months later, they're over half paid off. That's not to mention savings on gas (nearly $500), maintenance, etc. Not to mention improvements in health and quality of life.

I'm not saving money since I haven't driven my car since 2011. But I don't have to cut my own hair in winter anymore, my range has been extended to where I can ride out and back from the barber in one day instead of staying at my summer camp overnight. I saved 2.5 hours yesterday buying concert tickets in Louisville over taking the bus, since I have a bad cold and didn't feel like struggling up over the Ohio bridge. Quality of life is way up, Sudden attacks of the Army vet knees aren't going to immobilize me in future either. And I only spent $830 over the price of my 15% grade capable rain brake capable cargo bike.
Pity a radwagon or xtracycle wouldn't fit me, I could have avoided the messiness of conversion. If only someone would put air-ride on a cargo bike. I carry a pump everywhere anyway, it would be easy to compensate for 50 extra lb of groceries and have a suspension.

 

[TAZMANIMAN]

Yeah, I feel like saying "none of your business!" when people ask. It's rude to ask someone what something cost IMO. Now if they had a genuine interest in the bike and were considering getting one, that's different.

I have gotten the price request from interested folks, many who become disinterested after price is told. However with some explanation they get a better grasp of why. With that said the bikes I purchased for the wife and me were 1600 each. they have changed our lives and with that, they are priceless!

 

[DDBB]

I just got in from a 10 mi. ride.. Temp is 35f.. snow on the grass but not on the road. So much for hanging up the e-bikes for the winter. .I wore winter gloves, balaclava etc. and it wasn't too bad as long as I went slow. I agree that these bikes are priceless. I don't need to lose weight but I've been doing so much riding I can already feel I'm in better shape. I haven't been taking my typical afternoon nap because my energy level has increased. I'm sure the neighbors are looking out their windows saying "there goes that crazy guy on his $2,000 bike again" My wife loves her ebike too but declined to ride in these temps with snow on the ground. If I get grief again for spending 2 grand on a bike my new reply is going to be "what is your health worth?" They still don't get it though, they think I'm "cheating"... Sure, I'm cheating but it beats doing absolutely nothing

 

[TAZMANIMAN]

I just got in from a 10 mi. ride.. Temp is 35f.. snow on the grass but not on the road. So much for hanging up the e-bikes for the winter. .I wore winter gloves, balaclava etc. and it wasn't too bad as long as I went slow. I agree that these bikes are priceless. I don't need to lose weight but I've been doing so much riding I can already feel I'm in better shape. I haven't been taking my typical afternoon nap because my energy level has increased. I'm sure the neighbors are looking out their windows saying "there goes that crazy guy on his $2,000 bike again" My wife loves her ebike too but declined to ride in these temps with snow on the ground. If I get grief again for spending 2 grand on a bike my new reply is going to be "what is your health worth?" They still don't get it though, they think I'm "cheating"... Sure, I'm cheating but it beats doing absolutely nothing

My wife and I went this past weekend at 40 degrees. We dressed in layers and a hoodie for our ears. doubled up thin gloves under our biking gloves and all went well. We live for the next ride and our hunger has been for new places to ride that are off roads. Lots of Rail trails and we have been running all over our state to different locations to ride. We are absolutely addicted to our bikes and am already chomping at the bit for next year. We still hope to get one more ride in as our goal for the year was 1000 miles, We are at 986!

 

[steve mercier]

now that my wife and I are retired we shed one of our two cars....the savings in gas, insurance and parts/repairs will pay for a pair of the priciest ebikes ...just tell them it was a gift