Archinutt

I have two bikes that are too similar, (2006-7 Giant OCR-1 and a Bianchi Volpe set up as a road bike with fenders etc) want to get something different and thinking an electric would be fun and a great commuter - Minneapolis to St Paul - 14 miles each way mostly flat, mostly urban roads. My price range is under $2,000. I started doing some homework yesterday and there are a lot of very very very different choices out there.

I will be keeping one of the road bikes for my weekend trips and will commute occasionally too. I’m just thinking on the electric I could commute without the shower and taking work clothes and saddle bag.

Would love to hear peoples thoughts.

linberl

Yup. An e bike should work perfectly for you for that purpose. Give some thought to where you will keep it when you arrive at work - is bike theft an issue where you are? Otherwise, with 2 grand, you should easily be able to find a decent e-bike.

Archinutt

I am noticing that step through bikes are getting better ratings at this price. I have never thought of having one, but I guess it makes sense if I might have work clothes on.

Does anyone have a favorite in the under 2k range?

alloo

I commute in Denver about 12 miles one way mostly flat. I bought a Blix Aveny it came with a rack and lights, I got a basket installed. Love it. I use level 2-3 assist get around 40+ miles per battery charge. I have done three round trips once. Takes me about 50 mins one way. Good luck! Best decision that I made to keep my commute time consistent going both ways.


My current commuter.

alo

When I get on, I plan to get a kit and convert an existing bike.

2old

A relatively flat commute has several good options, those above and to convert one of your bikes with a friction drive (ask Linberl). Depending on the ebike rules for your area, there are 20 mph or 28 mph systems. You should be able to locate either type within your price range, but the 20 mph bikes probably will be better quality.

linberl

Whatever you get, I encourage you to make sure (1) the company has been around a while so parts will be available when you need them, (2) the fewest proprietary parts as possible, (3) the battery has a more-or-less standard style connector to the motor. If it's a decent bike, when the battery finally craps out, you'll want to be able to rebuild it or buy a replacement - Test rides are good. Cadence power assist is fine for commuting; if you're also going to use it frequently for fitness purposes you might see if you can find one in your range with a torque sensor. Electrek and EBR have lots of reviews.

TrojanHorse

Can you briefly explain the difference and how you would tell (reading the specs). TIA. I think I'd prefer to steer clear of moped style e-bikes but it also seems like many of the less expensive chinese kits are that.

linberl

So basically most cadence assist models have levels of assist, some as few as four and some considerably more. Each one delivers a specific amount of "boost" while you pedal. The amount of boost is determined by the level of assist you choose, and your pedaling speed.

A torque sensor system also has different levels of assist. However, the amount of assist is based on the pressure upon the pedals measured by the sensor at the crank rather than the speed with which you turn the pedals. Where the difference is most noticeable is when climbing. Normally, when you climb you shift to an easier gear and your pedaling speed increases - until it drops, lol. With a torque system, this change in pedaling speed does not negatively affect the level of motor assist, it actually is more responsive to pressure (with a quality system). With the cadence system, while you normally would "spin" in the easiest gears up a hill, you want to keep the motor revving at a higher rate so it doesn't drag, so you (or at least - I) tend to shift to a harder gear to maximize the motor effort. But I'm also trying to get some exercise in the process. Perhaps others with cadence sensors take the hills differently - I don't know. The bike specs should clearly state "torque sensor" if it has one and it will definitely be more expensive. It should indicate "pas sensor" or "cadence sensor" if it is not torque. And a throttle....well, it's a throttle. For regular riding I would not get a throttle only bike - it's tiring to have to hold it for more than a brief time.

TrojanHorse

It sounds like a torque sensor would give you more of a normal bike riding experience. I've only ridden an e-bike once and it was a Jump bike. Ear to ear grins for my short ride.

linberl

I've got a cadence assist system, but I don't think it rides "unlike" a normal bike. It's just a matter of getting used to the way your e-bike works. Since I ride analog with a cadence meter normally, it is easy for me to adapt to any level of power assist by checking my cadence rpm. For example, riding analog let's say I'm pushing a normal cadence of 80rpm in my 6th of 8 gears on my Bike Friday. When I switch over to the motor on the same bike, I know I want to also keep my cadence around 80rpm regardless of assist level. For my bike and me, that means shifting one gear harder in my two lowest assist levels. It's just like riding with a good tailwind. I've 9 levels of assist and I never have gone beyond 4; 17mph is as fast as I have any desire to go (although my system goes to 28mph). I would probably spin out on my 8 gears anyway, if I tried to go much faster. It would require a new cassette to be able to spin that fast!
That might be another difference between cadence and torque sensors - maybe someone who has a torque sensor can answer that. Does that system prevent you from spinning out if you max the speed?

Ridefreemc

I rode to work for years on two different e-bikes (both cargo bikes) and loved it. An adventure to remember each day vs. hopping in the car and forgetting the whole trip. I put over 10,000 miles on those. Retired a few years ago, but still ride a lot and am considering adding a system to my Bike Friday Haul A Day.

BTW if anyone scoffs at you charging at work you can tell them it costs less than $0.10 a day!

Pop N Wood

You could put a mid drive kit on one of your existing bikes for well under $2k. That is what I did for the same reason you are, commuting. The mid drive kits are typically much more powerful than factory built ebikes, but fully configurable with free software, so you can dial them back in both speed and watts if that is what you want. The Bafang units are getting to be mainstream, unlike factory built ebikes that seem to all be one off designs.

The US says anything under 750 watts is an ebike and not a motor vehicle. Most European countries have much lower limits. Enjoy the advantages of this country and get something with more power. It will make a difference.

jgjulio

You haven't mentioned your situation at work regarding a place to park your bike. If you have limited space you might want to think of a folding bike. This type of bike has several "types" in that some are quite small and are easy to store away but not built for longer rides. Some are bigger and give you the ride of a regular bike but yet are able to fold and reduce the space needed for storage.
I am waiting for my new e-bike to arrive. It is back-ordered as most bikes seem to be. You may want to look at these:

https://ridescoozy.com/Electric-Bicycles

Katysax

I have a Ride Scoozy Veego Semi Fat. Put 3300 miles on it Had a lot of fun. The brakes are terrible. The shifter is cheap and flimsy. The crankset is pot metal and fell off the bike. The wheels cannot be fully true. I still had a lot of fun. After 3300 miles I bought a Specialized Como. Ride Scoozy has been great with support and repair parts. I would not recommend Ride Scoozy or similar bikes for commute more than a few miles. Bafang conversions (I had one for a while) can be pretty great if your donor bike has good brakes; they are quite powerful and would be good for commuting. Personally I would not choose to commute on a rear hub bike - too hard to change a tire on the road.

2old

Good reason to procure Schwalbe Marathon tires; no flats in five years.

edwong3

I have no personal experience but Rad Power just introduced a new commuter type bike with a base price of just under $1,000.

https://www.radpowerbikes.com/produc...ric-metro-bike

And with your budget, you would have plenty of money to accessorize it for your commute. Just a thought if you haven't made a purchase yet.

Katysax

The new Rad looks interesting for a flat commute, although I don’t like fixing flats on a hub motor bike. It’s a bike you could put on the rack on a bus. And not so super expensive if stolen.

alloo

Not bad a bike either: https://www.aventon.com/

Archinutt

That aventon looks nice.

After doing a bunch research and advice on here I started thinking about how long I keep a bike and leaning toward a known brand so proprietary parts aren't as big a deal.....which means upping my price point...suprise suprise

I have settled around a specialized vado turbo 4.0 after riding it and a Vado SL. Super fun. Likely not in the cards this year. but will be next year. With what is left of the riding season once we do start going back to work I will ride my regular road bikes to make sure I really do want to commute before dropping $3,500. My size is mostly out of stock anway

That aventon looks really close to what I liked about teh Vado though and less than 1/2 the price. I need to look at the specs.

Pkayser

A couple of months ago I rode one of my coworkers Stromer around the neighborhood at our job site. Immediately decided I needed one for myself. Hadn’t had that much fun on a bike in decades. Then he told me how much he had paid for it. I started browsing the Internet and reading ebike reviews and articles. I finally decided to go to an ebike only shop near my house. They sell mostly mid to high end bikes, Stromer, R&M, Gazelle and Specialized. I really thought I was going to buy a Gazelle, but after riding all of them I ended up buying a Specialized Vado 4.0. It sounds silly but it really has been lifestyle changing. I’ve been riding everyday to and from work, about 8 miles each way, riding to the local markets. I even find reasons during the day to ride and pick up lunch for my coworkers. Where I live traffic and parking are always difficult, I now can’t imagine a scenario that would have me driving my car within the city again.

2old

Maybe heavy rain (JK)? How do you secure the bike in the city?

Pkayser

We rarely get rain and it’s almost never heavy. I’m lucky enough to be able to bring my bike into my office. When I run errands I just throw a simple u-lock through the frame and rear tire and lock it to a post or rack, but it’s generally not out of sight, or out of sight for long.

Riveting

Yup, this past weekend I just installed the Hilltopper Sprinter kit onto my hybrid commuter, it comes with a mounted 35mm tire and could probably be installed in 10 minutes. It's so nice to be able to turn on that 350 watt motor when I need it (long uphills or headwind), and turn it off when I don't.