http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Topic: Electric bikes - how good at hills? en Wed, 01 Jul 2026 14:23:46 +0000 http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10346#post-112928 Tue, 04 Jun 2013 11:08:03 +0000 Roibeard 112928@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>@rust - such beasts exist...</p> <p><a href="http://www.ridekick.com/" rel="nofollow">http://www.ridekick.com/</a></p> <p>I'm sure others are available, but I wonder about the possibilities for a spectacular jack-knife!</p> <p>Robert </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10346#post-112905 Tue, 04 Jun 2013 09:14:45 +0000 rust 112905@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>If it's towing a trailer is there anyway to have an additional battery in the trailer that could be hooked up? </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10346#post-112903 Tue, 04 Jun 2013 08:47:43 +0000 Wilmington's Cow 112903@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Well I saw one get to the top of the Tourmalet last year.... </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10346#post-112902 Tue, 04 Jun 2013 08:41:08 +0000 Smudge 112902@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>@ LeS' thanks, I'd probably go for one from alien in Fife if I go down that route. 1000w would be somewhat illegal however!</p> <p>@Chdot, good story :-) </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10346#post-112870 Mon, 03 Jun 2013 19:52:04 +0000 chdot 112870@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Nice story here -</p> <p><a href="http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=3860#post-101803" rel="nofollow">http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=3860#post-101803</a> </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10346#post-112869 Mon, 03 Jun 2013 19:40:54 +0000 le_soigneur 112869@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p><a href="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Electric-Bicycle-E-Bike-Conversion-Kit-250W-24V-with-Battery-UK-Seller-26-Wheel-/221204916445?pt=UK_Motorcycle_Parts&amp;hash=item3380d728dd">Here is a half-way house</a>: "The range of the unit obviously depends on how you ride and the terrain (number and steepness of hills!) – If you struggle up hills and arrive exhausted then this<br /> electric bike kit will make all the difference and it is great for gliding through town or along the canal. We had a great deal of fun testing them around Accrington and it is a hilly town I can assure you. It does need a little help up hills, it is not a motorbike, but we never broke into a sweat on any of the hills and we smoke and don't do much exercise!! we weigh about 75kilos and had a mornings fun when not doing much pedalling before recharging and we got a full day with the battery when pedalling too. It is up to you how you ride the bicycle, but I'm sure you'll find the best compromise between pedalling/effort/battery in a short time, to make your cycling easier, quicker and more productive."<br /> You can get them up to 1000W. The Pb-acid battery might not last more than one winter but if you tried it out, you could either sell-on or invest in a Li-ion battery. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10346#post-112865 Mon, 03 Jun 2013 18:43:36 +0000 Smudge 112865@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Thanks for the input everyone, the alternative is probably to do the bike test and either use my bike or get wee 250 or something. I wouldn't choose a 50 for our route, worst of all worlds!<br /> Range shouldn't be an issue though as it's only 2 or 3 miles at each end, and the morning phase is pretty much all downhill (steep enough that it's a 40mph descent on the Surly! Yet someone on strava can allegedly average over 30mph up the hill? Yeah right!) </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10346#post-112862 Mon, 03 Jun 2013 18:07:14 +0000 Dave 112862@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>They can be quite fast - I used to sometimes struggle to pass electric bikes on a couple of bits of my commute.</p> <p>The range is another question though, and I don't like the pedelec model - when you're going slowly trying to manoeuvre (say waiting for an oncoming car before turning right) the motor can kick in. I'd prefer a throttle myself (and yes, then you could certainly consider a scooter) </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10346#post-112854 Mon, 03 Jun 2013 17:16:54 +0000 SRD 112854@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>@smudge my gut reaction is that if she really wants to sit on it and not pedal, then a motorbike makes more sense. but not sure you can tow a kiddietrailer behind! </p> <p>maybe someone would let you borrow theirs and have a go? then you could judge how it would work? </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10346#post-112802 Mon, 03 Jun 2013 14:01:29 +0000 cb 112802@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Probably worth glancing through the A to B pages on electric bikes:</p> <p><a href="http://www.atob.org.uk/electric-bikes/electric-bike-buyers-guide-uk/">http://www.atob.org.uk/electric-bikes/electric-bike-buyers-guide-uk/</a></p> <p>(plus pages linked from the right-hand column).</p> <p>I notice on the<br /> <a href="http://www.atob.org.uk/electric-bikes/electric-bike-legislation-uk/">legislation page</a> it states "The motor alone cannot be used to propel the bicycle, so power can only be brought in while the rider is pedaling"<br /> Seems to be a conflict between 1983 UK legislation and 2002 EU legislation.</p> <p>Re. hills note that the<br /> <a href="http://www.atob.org.uk/electric-bikes/electric-bike-technical-guide/">technical guide</a> states:</p> <p>"If you are expecting to tackle very steep hills (in excess of 17%, or 1 in 6), we’d recommend a Crank Drive motor"</p> <p>Pedelecs can be problematic for hill starts as you sometimes need to get in a revolution or two of the pedals before the power kicks in.</p> <p>I should have all A to B mags from about the last 10 years so if you're interested in borrowing any for reading reviews let me know. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10346#post-112785 Mon, 03 Jun 2013 13:36:16 +0000 Uberuce 112785@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>The error bars of this approach are huge, but you could point Strava to the hill and see what 250 watts gets you. </p> <p>Up Arthur's Seat, it seems to be good for a 7-8mph average. </p> http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/topic.php?id=10346#post-112759 Mon, 03 Jun 2013 11:27:39 +0000 Smudge 112759@http://citycyclingedinburgh.info/bbpress/ <p>Ok here's the situation, Mrs Smudge doesn't ride bicycles, she famously fell off during her cycling proficiency and there her interest in and use of bicycles ended.<br /> She has however since ridden motorcycles briefly, now for various reasons we don't need to go into here, we're considering a range of travel options, one of which is an E-bike for her (as according to the Brompton Nano website pedelec is not a legal requirement in the UK and it can be ridden on a twistgrip "throttle" in the manner of a motorcycle)</p> <p>Given that we live at the top of a serious 2 mile hill, my question is, does anyone know if an E-Bike (and I'm thinking initially here of a Brompton with a Nano conversion, though it's all brainstorming at this stage) with rider and a daysack will climb hills at useable speed purely on the electric motor? (I'm planning for worst case naturally!.)<br /> If they can do that, do they have the "oomph" (I know, too much technical jargon;-)) to tow a child trailer as well?</p> <p>They're a nice idea, and the principle is good, but never having used one I've no real idea of the performance.</p> <p>Incidentally, we are talking purely about e-bikes within the legal limits, no high power off road specials unfortunately :-( </p>