Electric bicycle, months of research and 300 miles in, I made the perfect electric bike decision

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  • Nebulous2
    Nebulous2 Posts: 5,073
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    My wife has arthritis and has an e-bike. It has dramatically changed the cycling we can do together. Previously she could only do short distances on the flat, canal paths, old railway lines etc. Now we can go further and tackle some hills.

    It is a boring, cheap, legal, front hub motor one but the benefits have been beyond anything we expected. We both have British Cycling membership which gives third party insurance. I’d recommend that to anyone as well.

    So yup e-bikes are great, but I’d recommend keeping it legal and getting insurance.
  • lazer-zxr wrote: »
    I just wanted to encourage people to be a bit more green, and look at this form of economical transport that really can replace the car. There's a setting in the menu that restricts it to 15.5mph and 250w. It's a simple restriction to enable, and personally I ride with safety and responsibility as primary considerations when on the road. If you look at the current draw data of most ebikes labelled as 250w and legally compliant, they'll pull way more than that under normal riding conditions. At least the restriction on this bike can guarantee no more current is drawn.

    I drive my car in the same manner hence why I don't have Insurance, a valid MOT or even a driving license. That makes it okay :beer::beer::j:j



    :p
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  • EVERYBODY knows some people will boringly condemn cyclist whatever they do.


    Yep, I think his real name must be Egriff and I'm claiming my £5!



    (One for below the line Guardian readers).;-)
  • Richard53
    Richard53 Posts: 3,173
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    edited 3 January 2020 at 1:39AM
    I'm delighted that the OP is pleased with his ebike, and I agree that we should be promoting them as alternatives to cars whenever possible.


    But I am disappointed that someone is blatantly promoting a version that is illegal on UK roads. If it has a 250W motor and is restricted to 15 mph, than it is technically a pedelec and is treated in law exactly like a bicycle. If the motor is >250W and the assisted top speed higher than 15* mph, then it is technically a moped/light motorcycle and the rider needs the appropriate licence and insurance, and to wear an approved helmet - which will be a heavy motorbike helmet, not a cycle helmet. The rider would be restricted to riding on the roads or restricted off-road areas, similar to trail and enduro bikes. Bridleways and dedicated cycle routes and paths would be out of bounds.


    I understand the nascent pedelec industry in the UK worked very hard against some very tough opposition to get the 'legal' pedelecs treated as bicycles - able to use cycle paths, free of licensing and insurance requirements etc. If people see folk like the OP tearing round at 35 mph or more on pavements and cycleways, pedelecs will have their legal status changed very quickly, and we will all suffer.


    I love my (totally legal) electric bike, mainly because I can use it just like my push bike, but going further and in hillier terrain. If the Govt start regulating and restricting their use because of a few idiots who think the law doesn't apply to them, it will be a great pity.


    *I think it is 15.5 mph, which equates exactly to 25 kph, as the basis for the legislation originated in the EU.
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  • Richard53
    Richard53 Posts: 3,173
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    Fiona_CW wrote: »
    "PLEASE NOTE 1500W VERSION OF THIS KIT IS FOR OFF ROAD USE ONLY" - even the manufacturer says this!
    They are a bunch of scallywags. The paragraph of text above this disclaimer talks specifically about how an ebike makes your commuting easier: "Today an ebike is a real alternative to taking the car ..."


    The message is - we are selling this product for you to use on the road to speed up your cycling, but here's a disclaimer which my mate who read Commercial Law for Dummies says will keep us out of trouble. Probably.
    If someone is nice to you but rude to the waiter, they are not a nice person.
  • lazer-zxr
    lazer-zxr Posts: 446
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    Richard53 wrote: »
    I'm delighted that the OP is pleased with his ebike, and I agree that we should be promoting them as alternatives to cars whenever possible.

    Thanks for this post, it has persuaded me to amend my original post. Let's all promote legal ebikes, I am removing any promotion of illegal ebikes from my review and from forums. Thanks.
  • Johnmcl7
    Johnmcl7 Posts: 2,816
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    Richard53 wrote: »
    They are a bunch of scallywags. The paragraph of text above this disclaimer talks specifically about how an ebike makes your commuting easier: "Today an ebike is a real alternative to taking the car ..."


    The message is - we are selling this product for you to use on the road to speed up your cycling, but here's a disclaimer which my mate who read Commercial Law for Dummies says will keep us out of trouble. Probably.

    I've seen other illegal bikes with the same disclaimer and wonder how it would hold up, I suspect it's enough to get the company selling the bike off the hook but not for the owner. I'd like to think these illegal overpowered bikes are a small minority and there's only one I've seen locally which I checked and found it's sold with the same road use limiter. I think in reality what will happen is these riders will get spotted at some point as they stand out a mile from legal users and when they're stopped there will be no defence against the many charges since it's a motor vehicle.
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