joco

hi all.

i was looking at the elect bikes at are local store canadian tire.

just put elec bike in the search sec and you will see the bikes.
https://www.canadiantire.ca/search/search_failure.jsp

frome 649 to 999$
schwin-ecotour....699$
schwin-invidia....649$
schwin-premise.....999$

this is a lot more $$$ then the wall mart...
https://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...uct_id=8467094

is twice as good for twice as $$$.**********????


joco

cerewa

Probably not. With a $300 e-bike you should be prepared for components to be low quality (brakes, shifters, etc) and require adjusting frequently until you replace them. Any bike you buy from C.T./WalMart is likely to be poorly adjusted when you first buy it.

rlim

You're comparing a Canadian retailer against US. The Cdn prices will always be higher than the American. Here is the price of an electric bike at Walmart Canada.. almost $C900

https://www.walmart.ca/wps-portal/sto...d=1454&tabId=7

joco

hi rlim

the one they have now here...look at the bike i am showing not the same bike .

so we have to compare both same bike

joco

toyfountain

If you can wait till mid-july, CT usually puts them on sale. You could expect 25% off by then. Last year's model which was $500 sold at its lowest price for $350. So the $649 could possibly sell for $450 to the $500 range.

For the US model, don't forget to add the exchange rate (about 25 % with bank fees) + state tax and GST and PST when you come across the border. That is unless you vacation there and it comes out under what you're allowed to import without taxes. If it's manufactured outside the US, there might be (or not) a special tariff. Free trade is for goods made in the US, not China.

SeizeTech

joco,

I will admit that I am biased because I own 2 bicycles, both of them are Schwinn Izips from Canadian Tire.

In my opinion, these bikes offer great value for someone that is looking for a starter bike.

If you can find an ebike at walmart or any other big box store, it might be worth splitting hairs and discussing the differences, but I suspect that they are about the same as the canadian tire bike, so you won't hear any criticisms from me.

If you are the kind of person that will not be able to leave the bike alone, and you expect to be tinkering with it alot, then you might want to start with your favorite bike and an ebike conversion kit. However, there are some guys on this forum that have done quite well tinkering with their department store bikes.

treknavigator

best to buy a Bion X kit and put it on a nice lite weight bike for best value

ecowheelz

The biggest disadvantage of buying from a "big box" retailer is that they won't provide support or service. You might save a few bucks, but if you have a problem, you're on your own...

KonaBuyer

Costco will replace the bike, no questions asked, with a new one.

SeizeTech

good point. I guess I should have pointed out that I generally look after all of my own problems regardless how new or old the bike is. I'm am sorry to have overlooked the importance of service for some owners.