More eBike Questions

In My Humble Opinion
1

I am definitely going to purchase one, but I have not yet. Want to pretty soon, not just because, tariffs, but also because all the companies are having deep discounts now, and trying pretty aggressively to move them, which I’m gleaning from some other sources is because new models are about to come out (a thing which was planned before knowledge of tariffs being levied).

So, what I’m looking at now is a model from a brand called Aipas, which has great customer reviews, and the best price (by far) on a 1100w motor model with 90Nm of torque. Because s. Indiana is hilly, those numbers are important.

It also has a very good range-- if I had to, I could get to work and back without recharging (albeit, unless something went gravely wrong, removing the battery and charging it while I’m at work should be doable.) It says the battery is “removable for charging,” and “4 hours to full charge.” It also claims 28MPH. Comes with remote turn signals, and thumb trigger throttle.

Public transport here has buses with bike carriers, and this bike should fit, as the tires are not wider than standard mountain bike, and the measurements are standard for a non-e bike. I can ride about 20 minutes to a bus stop, then ride a bus for about 20 minutes, then have a 10-minute bike ride to work. Not as fast as my own car, but just as fast as waiting 20 minutes for an Uber, if my car is unavailable.

The seat goes down to 33 inches, important, because my inseam is 30 inches. I am 5’5, and the height recommendation for a rider is 5’1 - 6’1.

Soooooo:
First, does anyone have any experience with Aipas bikes? recommend? no?

Anyone have experience with ebikes on hills? how do the specs look?

What have I missed? forgotten? overlooked?

2

1110W will definitely get you up a hill. You have to assume it is also heavier than a smaller motor, and consumes more power, obviously (and a high-capacity battery pack is also heavy).

I would also double-check whether bicycles are allowed on public transportation (maybe not during rush hour? sometimes only folding bikes? etc.)

For comparison/reference a 49cc Honda Metropolitan weighs 179 lb and has a 1.2 gal fuel tank.

3

How heavy is the bike? My e-bike weighs a little over 50 lbs, and that’s before adding the rack and panniers. Lifting it up onto a bike carrier on a bus is doable, but I’m a big guy in reasonable shape, (If pear is a shape).

4

The bus has bike carriers. And I have never seen them full. Each bus has 4 - 6 carrier slots. I don’t think I’ve ever seen more than 2 bikes on one. The bus system’s website does not say that there are any times bikes are not allowed, and at any rate, I would be traveling a bit before rush hour.

I can lift 50 lbs. The bike weighs 57, and I used to be able to bench 180. I can’t do that anymore, but I can pick up my dog, who weighs about 57 lbs, and is usually wiggling.

5

You should probably check with them first. A lot of bike racks aren’t built for heavy e-bikes and nearly 60 lbs is pretty much 2-3 times the weight of a non-e bike. It’s even more critical for those long multi-bike carriers: The further out you put that heavy bike, the worse it is for the rack.

6

Good idea-- thanks!

7

28 mph is going to feel really fast on a bike. I’d be terrified riding that fast on city streets, and I’m a regular cyclist. I know you don’t have to go that fast, but just consider if this bike is oversized for your needs.

Another consideration: there is a lot of controversy about ebikes in regular bike lanes. Some localities have imposed or are considering restrictions. A common restriction is that bikes with pedal assist are allowed in bike lanes, but bikes with a throttle are not. Check your area if this is an issue, and be prepared if it happens in the future.

8

Yeah, I checked our local transit and they have a 55 lb limit. I suspect no one will be there checking with a scale, but if something happens to the bike or it damages their equipment, at that point it will be checked.

9

I know nothing about them. I’m pretty sure the American headquarters is just a drop-shipper as it appears to be fully run by SHENZHEN AIBOSI SPORT TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD out of China. Even their facebook page has that company as the page owner.

10

If you have the option, get one with a torque sensor instead of a speed sensor, otherwise starting from a dead stop is very difficult.

11

My e-scooter can do 40+ and that really is scary. I never go that fast though and I can electronically set the speed limit for the scooter. I usually go about 15mph which would be pretty fast for most cyclists (I know bike athletes can do much better). When I would ride my bike into work I had an app that tracked the ride and I usually averaged 12-13mph on the ride with little bursts that were a bit faster. And that was me trying and not just poking around.

I see the extra power as being there for hill climbing and/or riding into a strong wind pushing back.

12

That particular ebike is not legal for use in Indiana. Who’s gonna check? Probably nobody, but I suppose you never know.

In Indiana, bikes with throttles are Class 2, like most states, and Class 2 bikes can’t have assist beyond 20mph.

Additionally, Indiana limits motor power to 750w.

The fact that this manufacturer is selling a bike not legal in most states without a disclaimer seems shady.

13

I’d bet it’s similar to the weight restriction on buses - probably no one will check until there’s an issue.

So yeah, you probably won’t be pulled over while riding one. But if there’s any kind of accident, it will come out and you could find yourself in a lot more trouble.

14

I’m curious - why not just a pedal bike? 10 min on one side and 20 on the other does not sound like crazy distance.

(I admit - I’m not a fan of e-bikes for most uses.)

15

I love biking but biking up a hill really sucks. Also, sometimes on my 8-mile ride home from work I’d be riding directly into a 20mph wind (and sometimes rain). That also really sucks…like 45 minutes of non-stop sucks. And that was not infrequent.

Having an assist at those times would have been welcome.

16

I live near the Canadian border so we have 4 seasons. I was against e-bikes for a long time as a diehard cyclist. My wife had to get one if she was going to continue biking after being run over by a car. So, we both got them. Now it is my main work commuter bike and I wouldn’t go back to my non e-bike for work commuting. Winter, my knees aren’t hurting (I’m getting old enough where cold knees = sore knees) and it does great with studded tires. Summer I can ride to work and not need be a sweaty mess (I have a climb to and from work - yes, uphill both ways). And contrary to popular belief, you can get a good workout on an ebike if you want (I have the heart monitor data to prove it). With that said, I still use my mountain bike and road bike for my actual biking outside my work commute. I guess I also use my ebike for groceries and errands.

17

Well, that quashes things right there, I guess. There is the same bike with a 750w motor, and (so they say) top speed of 23MPH, but it’s only $40 cheaper than the 1100w version, which makes me think there’s a cheaper, just as good 750w out there.

It matters if I try to insure it. And I don’t mean as a vehicle-- not even sure what the regulations are, but I will follow them-- I mean insuring it as property.

I was nerdy enough back when I was in junior high, and a bike needed a permit to be ridden on city streets, to go to city hall, pay my $2 with my paper route money, and get my permit. (It also meant the bike was registered-- they recorded the serial number against theft.)

I was a regular cyclist in Bloomington, IN (where the Little 500 is-- it’s a cyclists’ town), for almost 20 years in the 80s and 90. I got up to high speeds going down some s. Indiana hills. But yeah–

–that.

I emailed mine. Still awaiting response. Not going to buy until I get one.

This I knew. Doesn’t worry me, other than seeing tariffs kick in.

OK. I wonder if I can get both? I’d like to know my speed to keep track of mileage-- need to know how much time to allot for various routes at different times.

No, I’m going to do it right. I’m the person who gets caught doing piddly stuff. I can’t get away with speeding or parking in a loading zone.

I’m 58 and so are my knees. I get periodic steroid injections, and take the 8hr Tylenol as well as meloxicam. I’ve got a regular pedal bike, and when I was 30, riding it 18 miles to work and back, without any bus at all, would have been a slow day, but I can’t do it now. I’ll be in better shape if I make a point of using the bike on the couple of days a week I go in early, and leave early, and use it for errands of the weekends, and eventually I may regain muscle tone that will make things easier on my knees-- but you can hear them grind when I squat too low.

Thanks to everyone who contributed!

18

Ha! I was a regular cyclist back when I lived in Bloomington in the late 80s. Good place to ride.

I still maintain (at least I think I said this in the other thread) that it’s best to get something sold locally. I don’t know this brand, but Reddit and the e-bike forums are littered with complaints from people that have bought drop-shipped Chinese e-bikes and can’t get warranty support or any kind of maintenance, really.

19

You’d think someone would open a repair shop that caters to e-bikes and e-scooters. Might be unlikely in some rural areas but seems a great business opportunity for someone in a city.

20

Hmm.

I tend not to take anything in Reddit seriously, and there are lots of reviews in other places praising the particular model I was looking at.

I may have bad luck getting stopped for peccadillos, but I have good luck ordering stuff online, even from unseen and faraway places.

Where did you live in B-ton?