Strange “creak” from pedal when starting at high gear
11-21-23, 05:08 PM
#1
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Strange “creak” from pedal when starting at high gear
Hey folks,
I have a Trek Allant+ 9S which is about 9 months old. It’s an e-bike with Bosh gen4 motor, internal hub by Enviolo and Gates belt drive. It generally runs well but I’ve noticed that when I start pedalling from still at a high gear, sometimes the pedal area gives a gentle *crak*. Any idea what it might be?
I have a Trek Allant+ 9S which is about 9 months old. It’s an e-bike with Bosh gen4 motor, internal hub by Enviolo and Gates belt drive. It generally runs well but I’ve noticed that when I start pedalling from still at a high gear, sometimes the pedal area gives a gentle *crak*. Any idea what it might be?
11-21-23, 05:14 PM
#2
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Pedal bearings, pedal threads, chainring bolts, bottom bracket, bottom bracket shell, chainstay, seatstay. I'm not going to get into the e-bike components, since I don't have any experience with them, but the areas I mentioned are the usual suspects for noise.
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11-21-23, 08:51 PM
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quit starting out in high gear.
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11-21-23, 09:56 PM
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Reminds me of the old joke that starts....
"Doctor, my elbow hurts whenever I do this......"
But while the advice makes sense at a certain level, the OP might be getting an early warning of something that might be more serious.
Sadly, the list of possibilities is long, and a real diagnosis with such limited info is impossible. That said, one possibility is easy enough to rule out or fix.
Check that the affected pedal is tight. Then just to be safe, tighten the other one.
"Doctor, my elbow hurts whenever I do this......"
But while the advice makes sense at a certain level, the OP might be getting an early warning of something that might be more serious.
Sadly, the list of possibilities is long, and a real diagnosis with such limited info is impossible. That said, one possibility is easy enough to rule out or fix.
Check that the affected pedal is tight. Then just to be safe, tighten the other one.
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An ounce of diagnosis is worth a pound of cure.
Just because I'm tired of arguing, doesn't mean you're right.
“One accurate measurement is worth a thousand expert opinions” - Adm Grace Murray Hopper - USN
WARNING, I'm from New York. Thin skinned people should maintain safe distance.
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11-21-23, 10:04 PM
#5
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Obviously a few possiblities here, but relaying my experience, when my friend's Colnago C60 ( I think ) had a creak everytime he pushed down on the right pedal. we found one loose chainwheel bolt ( of 5 ). Tightening that one bolt eliminated the noise.
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11-22-23, 01:11 AM
#7
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with or without e-power flowing?
are you standing on the pedal waiting for gravity to make the bike move, or JUMPING downward onto the pedal like a ninja doing a death stomp to the chest?
i creak just standing up after way too many years and crashes... has the bike ever been crashed?
the motor is in front of the pedals/crank.. is there a CLUNK that you feel through the frame too? or an actual creaking hinge sound?
and how much power are you pouring to the motor when this happens? A high loading of the motor/crank interface gear COULD be jumping a Cog... this could be very expensive to repair if it loses a tooth, spline, or key...
heck.. the BELT might need adjusted... see your manual or Trek Dealer for that
what are you FEELING when you hear the dreaded noise? do the pedals drop suddenly? do you feel it in the handlebars too?
oop.. one more big possibility... are you fully seated on the seat when the crack is felt/heard, or standing up? SEATS and POSTS are famous for odd noises under pedaling conditions....
and the handlebar stem can do something very similar......
how does the rear wheel position get changed to Tension the Drive Belt? that could also move during braking, then move again more suddenly, during acceleration................
are you standing on the pedal waiting for gravity to make the bike move, or JUMPING downward onto the pedal like a ninja doing a death stomp to the chest?
i creak just standing up after way too many years and crashes... has the bike ever been crashed?
the motor is in front of the pedals/crank.. is there a CLUNK that you feel through the frame too? or an actual creaking hinge sound?
and how much power are you pouring to the motor when this happens? A high loading of the motor/crank interface gear COULD be jumping a Cog... this could be very expensive to repair if it loses a tooth, spline, or key...
heck.. the BELT might need adjusted... see your manual or Trek Dealer for that
what are you FEELING when you hear the dreaded noise? do the pedals drop suddenly? do you feel it in the handlebars too?
oop.. one more big possibility... are you fully seated on the seat when the crack is felt/heard, or standing up? SEATS and POSTS are famous for odd noises under pedaling conditions....
and the handlebar stem can do something very similar......how does the rear wheel position get changed to Tension the Drive Belt? that could also move during braking, then move again more suddenly, during acceleration................
Last edited by maddog34; 11-22-23 at 01:36 AM.
11-22-23, 01:23 AM
#8
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for the greater good... https://www.trekbikes.com/us/en_US/b...-9-9s/p/30258/
(and Yes.. i know the pic is of a Chain driven bike, but the other design elements are relevant...)
I'd be seriously looking at the Motor/ Bottom bracket mounting bolts....have they been re-torqued yet?
also.. IGH Hubs can and do need adjusted every now and then.. they CRAK when the gears slip out of engage a bit....and the pedals drop suddenly......
in the case of the CVT AUTOMATIC SHIFTING... ummm... it might be that you're hearing the Hub SHIFT to compensate for your error in Ratio selection..........???
Found this info... Read the Comments too... There Is an Adjustment needed to achieve full OD, and to make them happy under load...
https://forums.electricbikereview.co...verview.25650/
and quit starting out in high gear.
(and Yes.. i know the pic is of a Chain driven bike, but the other design elements are relevant...)
I'd be seriously looking at the Motor/ Bottom bracket mounting bolts....have they been re-torqued yet?
also.. IGH Hubs can and do need adjusted every now and then.. they CRAK when the gears slip out of engage a bit....and the pedals drop suddenly......
in the case of the CVT AUTOMATIC SHIFTING... ummm... it might be that you're hearing the Hub SHIFT to compensate for your error in Ratio selection..........???Found this info... Read the Comments too... There Is an Adjustment needed to achieve full OD, and to make them happy under load...
https://forums.electricbikereview.co...verview.25650/
and quit starting out in high gear.
Last edited by maddog34; 11-22-23 at 02:05 AM.
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11-22-23, 04:28 AM
#9
Senior Member
To add to the seemingly endless list of possibilities, I had a creak from my new bike that turned out to be the rear through-axle not quite tight enough, even though it sounded as if it was coming from the BB. Those sorts of creaks are really difficult to diagnose. I had one on my mountain bike that went away if I adjusted the seat position fractionally, but would gradually come back again. I took the seat post out and greased it and, eventually, it didn't come back anymore. It took several goes, though.
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11-22-23, 05:10 AM
#10
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Thread Starter
Thank you everyone! I don’t start out in high gear habitually, allow me to clarify:
The CVT hub has a minimum low gear you can set while at a standstill, which is around 40% I believe of the total range. That is what I call high gear; if I press down hard at the pedal starting at that point it makes a crack sound and then it continues without issue once I pick up speed. I will check if it happens on both pedals and if it happens without the motor engaged. I had a minor crash some time back and I’m wondering if it is related.
The CVT hub has a minimum low gear you can set while at a standstill, which is around 40% I believe of the total range. That is what I call high gear; if I press down hard at the pedal starting at that point it makes a crack sound and then it continues without issue once I pick up speed. I will check if it happens on both pedals and if it happens without the motor engaged. I had a minor crash some time back and I’m wondering if it is related.
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11-22-23, 09:03 AM
#11
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This sounds obvious, but I would take it back to the shop. If they can duplicate the sound, they should be able to fix it, or at least narrow it down.
I had a similar problem and was advised (here) to start with the most recent change. For me, it was new chainrings. Tightened those and have been silent for months.
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11-22-23, 09:46 AM
#12
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On regular bicycles if the cyclist doesn't shift to the lower gears to start out and accelerate rapidly from a start, the cyclist's knees start to wear out and give issues later in life. Similarly on e-bikes when the cyclist doesn't shift to lower gear to accelerate rapidly from a stop, the drivetrain gives out later in it's life.
At just nine months old, your bike is new enough that the dealer that sold it to you should be willing to take a look at it for little to no cost and assess what the issue might be.
Electric motors don't readily tell the operator when they are demanding too much power for the gear they are in. A gasoline engine would stutter or stall in conditions that a electric motor will seem to do fine with, but really is wearing out the weakest drive train components sooner.
At just nine months old, your bike is new enough that the dealer that sold it to you should be willing to take a look at it for little to no cost and assess what the issue might be.
Electric motors don't readily tell the operator when they are demanding too much power for the gear they are in. A gasoline engine would stutter or stall in conditions that a electric motor will seem to do fine with, but really is wearing out the weakest drive train components sooner.
Last edited by Iride01; 11-22-23 at 09:50 AM.
11-22-23, 04:52 PM
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On regular bicycles if the cyclist doesn't shift to the lower gears to start out and accelerate rapidly from a start, the cyclist's knees start to wear out and give issues later in life. Similarly on e-bikes when the cyclist doesn't shift to lower gear to accelerate rapidly from a stop, the drivetrain gives out later in it's life.
At just nine months old, your bike is new enough that the dealer that sold it to you should be willing to take a look at it for little to no cost and assess what the issue might be.
Electric motors don't readily tell the operator when they are demanding too much power for the gear they are in. A gasoline engine would stutter or stall in conditions that a electric motor will seem to do fine with, but really is wearing out the weakest drive train components sooner.
At just nine months old, your bike is new enough that the dealer that sold it to you should be willing to take a look at it for little to no cost and assess what the issue might be.
Electric motors don't readily tell the operator when they are demanding too much power for the gear they are in. A gasoline engine would stutter or stall in conditions that a electric motor will seem to do fine with, but really is wearing out the weakest drive train components sooner.
11-22-23, 05:14 PM
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I would check your QR or Thru-axle and make sure it is properly torqured along with any other bolts and such. Make sure your seatpost is properly greased and torqued down. Usually pedal noise is not pedal noise but I would recommend as others have stated checking to make sure the pedals are tight all over (including bearing preload and such) but usually I find it is elsewhere.
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11-22-23, 08:38 PM
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I once had a crazy time tracking down an annoying click coming from applying force with my left leg. I took everything apart, cleaned all the interfaces, repacked the bb, pedals, cleaned and greased the chainring bolts, got it all back together and I thought I had it fixed.
Then it started up again. The weather got nicer and I switched to my road bike and the same noise was occurring! Turns out it’s my left knee.
Then it started up again. The weather got nicer and I switched to my road bike and the same noise was occurring! Turns out it’s my left knee.
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