Are ebikes "worth" it?

[QuarterMillionMan]

Got my new Bucklos brakes today but may not be able to use it.

[QuarterMillionMan]

My ebike works again, like nothing happened when it died going up the hill yesterday. I hope it does not happen again.

[QuarterMillionMan]

Same problem came back today going up the same hill all LED lights went dark on my ebike. Looks like I will activate the insurance but I wished that the LED lights stays dark and not come back on. The bike shop may say nothing is wrong if everything works again. I may start looking to buy a new ebike.

[QuarterMillionMan]

I just ordered this $329 ebike from eBay and I got the 3 year Allstate insurance for $19 as well. My old ebike's insurance was for another ebike (I mistakenly forgot about it and had a senior moment) which I sold so I'll trash my old ebike or try to sell it for parts or sell just the 36 volt battery for maybe $50 and cut my losses. It kept dieing in San Diego and Tijuana and I kept having to use human power which gave me a good workout but I rather have battery power especially for going up hills. Looking forward to this new ebike. This is a 48 volt 750 peak watts but I think 500 watts continuous which is still good especially at this price. My old ebike I paid $589 from eBay.

[ua_guy]

How many e-bikes have you had? Why not buy something name-brand from here in the US, where replacement parts and service are readily available, and the manufacturers stand behind their stuff for years?

[QuarterMillionMan]

I’m at 7 or 8, hard to keep track. My millionaire buddy in Florida said the same thing. He bought Sounders e-bikes in Malibu for $3000-$5000 each and we’d meet in San Diego and ride to Tijuana together. I just couldn’t see paying that much. Hence me belonging to this site.

[kork13]

I’m at 7 or 8, hard to keep track. My millionaire buddy in Florida said the same thing. He bought Sounders e-bikes in Malibu for $3000-$5000 each and we’d meet in San Diego and ride to Tijuana together. I just couldn’t see paying that much. Hence me belonging to this site.

Have you not paid the same (or more) over time on all of those different, crappy bikes & parts & hassle? You don't have to buy top of the line to get a quality bike. You can get a great mid-range e-bike for $1500-$2500, and it'll last you for many years if you take care of it.

As my family has always tried to convince my father, there's a vast difference between "cheap" & "frugal"

[james.hendrickson]

Have you not paid the same (or more) over time on all of those different, crappy bikes & parts & hassle? You don't have to buy top of the line to get a quality bike. You can get a great mid-range e-bike for $1500-$2500, and it'll last you for many years if you take care of it.

As my family has always tried to convince my father, there's a vast difference between "cheap" & "frugal"

So this has nothing to do with ebikes, but you're entirely right Kork. At one point I was blow away when I realized that better quality clothing lasted longer a per wash basis than cheaper clothing.

[QuarterMillionMan]

Ordered this new $332 ebike on Tuesday at 2 am, rec'd it Wednesday at 10 am, in 1.5 hours had it assembled and road tested it and runs like a champion. Beats a $1500 ebike hands down where I can buy 5 of these cheapos vs a $1500 ebike anyday hands down.

[QuarterMillionMan]

And I bought the 3 years Allstate insurance for $19 should any electrical or mechanical issues arise. Worry-free.

[QuarterMillionMan]

One day I'll drive to bike shops near me and see if they'd buy my old ebike with the full disclosure that it works but at times it will die then later come back on. A wire must be loose somewhere. If no shop wants to buy it, I'll salvage the front tire and battery and store and dump the remainder.

[QuarterMillionMan]

Rode my new ebike today to Hermosa beach for its 1st real ride and it rode very well. Sorry if those who are neggie on cheap ebikes wanted to hear something neggie about it. Only need to do some minor tweaks such as front brake lever a little loose and need to tighten the brake cable a little. Front headlight not working yet but maybe it's just me the operator who hasn't figured out how to turn it on but with previous ebikes I had to hold down the button for a few seconds for the increase in speed button. The lever throttle takes a little getting used to for I had spin throttles in the past. This ebike has 7 gears when previous ones had 14 or 21 gears but 7 is plenty enough. On flat surface top speed is 22 mph, previous ones barely hit 20 mph. Overall I happy with it.

[QuarterMillionMan]

All the above are fixed including head lights turning on now. This new ebike has a 48 volt battery. All my previous ebikes were 36 volt batteries. This new ebike has more torque and high end top speed which can also be very dangerous and I have to remind myself to slow down and not go so fast. Many years ago a car pulled out of a driveway and I almost crashed into the car but luckily didn't get injured.

[QuarterMillionMan]

More comparisons about my old ebike vs the new ebike. The old one had only 3 electric speeds (low, med, high). The new one has 5 electric speeds. Not gears, these are pure electric modes. Engage the throttle which powers the motor and propels the ebike without any effort having to peddle the ebike. The old ebike didn't have a speedometer where I'd have to guess my actual mph. The new ebike has a speedometer which has a digital display showing me my exact mph. And the new ebike has an odometer showing how much miles I've traveled in total. The new ebike is quite high tech. A high school friend on FB once said he intended to build his own ebike from scratch. I told him good luck due to ebikes have a lot of sensors and he'd never be successful. For instance when the brake lever is engaged the sensor cuts off the motor for safety. Or when using manual peddle power sensor kicks in the motor which is called peddle assist which makes it easy especially going up hills. Not even an MIT grad would be able to build an ebike from scratch.

[QuarterMillionMan]

I discovered why eBay won't allow me to sell my old ebike. Their policy requires the UL marking which my old ebike doesn't have. All ebikes must have that UL marking.