The Lemon Fool

Mike4 wrote:

servodude wrote:
That sounds right expensive - but if it were including parts not unreasonable.
Where did you get it from?

The Van Moof website, here: https://www.vanmoof.com/en-GB/peace-of-mind

Scroll down a bit to Our Peace of Mind services/Maintenance

Ah that's 3 years "coverage"
I'm not sure I would have taken it; but I've got a big bag of spanners and know about using a cheat bar to take out a seized bottom bracket
For a "normal" using their bike to commute? It's probably up there with AppleCare - except for the fact you expect a good degree of wear and tear on an E-bike; I'm thinking a chain every 6 months/1500miles (WFH has cut the travel a bit)

Mike4 wrote:

servodude wrote:
That sounds right expensive - but if it were including parts not unreasonable.
Where did you get it from?

The Van Moof website, here: https://www.vanmoof.com/en-GB/peace-of-mind

Scroll down a bit to Our Peace of Mind services/Maintenance

That's for three years.

redsturgeon wrote:

Mike4 wrote:
The Van Moof website, here: https://www.vanmoof.com/en-GB/peace-of-mind

Scroll down a bit to Our Peace of Mind services/Maintenance

That's for three years.

Yep, reading it more carefully I think it's routine check-ups whenever you like, plus a full service at three years.

redsturgeon wrote:

Mike4 wrote:
The Van Moof website, here: https://www.vanmoof.com/en-GB/peace-of-mind

Scroll down a bit to Our Peace of Mind services/Maintenance

That's for three years.

You don't want to know what my e-bike is costing to service (£1700 over 3years/12651miles).

It eats chains (at £36-£50 quid each). I've been getting about 1000-1200miles out of the £36 chains, hoping for more out of the £50 chain. It also eats cassettes at £114 each, though now I've got better at changing the chain at a wear of 0.5 I'm getting more mileage out of the cassette. Reckon if I change the chain at 0.5 I should get 3 - 4 chains per cassette so should get a cassette to last at least 4000miles. Should have got the bike shop to change the cassette at the last service as its not shifting well and is a bit noisy under load so I think its a bit worn (cassette has done 4500 miles) but bike shop said it was OK.

daveh wrote:

redsturgeon wrote:
That's for three years.

You don't want to know what my e-bike is costing to service (£1700 over 3years/12651miles).

It eats chains (at £36-£50 quid each). I've been getting about 1000-1200miles out of the £36 chains, hoping for more out of the £50 chain. It also eats cassettes at £114 each, though now I've got better at changing the chain at a wear of 0.5 I'm getting more mileage out of the cassette. Reckon if I change the chain at 0.5 I should get 3 - 4 chains per cassette so should get a cassette to last at least 4000miles. Should have got the bike shop to change the cassette at the last service as its not shifting well and is a bit noisy under load so I think its a bit worn (cassette has done 4500 miles) but bike shop said it was OK.

These parts have a shockingly short life!

Especially now we're all used to cars doing starship mileages, often with little more than routine maintenance.

If our modern car needed a new engine or gearbox before 100,000 miles, we would feel very hard done by - it's now the norm that a car is good for 150,000 miles, more for the premium brands. Our own Mike4 posted earlier about doing 300,000 miles in a Mercedes.

So, why should e-bikes be different?

Watis

I seem to remember that Dave's bike is a sporty number with a 10 or 11 speed cassette that runs a narrow chain which by definition will be less robust than say an 8 speed. Also he has the crankshaft drive which puts its power down through the drive chain and will therefore eat up the components putting much more stress through them than the average human.

For longer life, a hub motor will be much kinder on components but the ride quality will not be quite as good as a crank driven bike.

The answer for longevity and ride quality would be a belt drive with an internal gear rear hub or an internal gear mid drive motor. This would not work with a dual suspension bike but would be ideal for a commuter or touring bike.

Blimey. In my younger years I owned a Yamaha TY175 as a bit off of road fun. I never changed the chain or the sprockets once. They did get a good clean up and a lube after every run though.

...but (obviously) the gearbox was internal and I remember the drive chain looking like it could anchor the Queen Mary.

12speed, and top end Shimano so fairly light weight. It's a nice ride with crank drive which gives a very nice ride. I almost always use it on the lowest assist level and try to be careful with the gears to minimise the torque going through the drive.

I'd go for less gears or a hub gear as I reckon that would give you more miles between replacing bits and for a 10 speed the bits are a lot cheaper.

daveh wrote:12speed, and top end Shimano so fairly light weight. It's a nice ride with crank drive which gives a very nice ride. I almost always use it on the lowest assist level and try to be careful with the gears to minimise the torque going through the drive.

I'd go for less gears or a hub gear as I reckon that would give you more miles between replacing bits and for a 10 speed the bits are a lot cheaper.

I've seen fatter chains than that around a rappers neck!

John

Watis wrote:why should e-bikes be different?

Cos no one has really yet managed to get a cheap viable drive shaft on an E-bike so the torque is delivered in a way that wears the chain bushings, and then the sprockets (same on a normal bike but the engine is generally weaker - even then I would budget for a cassette and two chains a year of riding every day)
Belts are an improvement but require a different approach to the stays (as you can't join them on the bike).

For the E-bike I went with a hub geared 7-spd bike with a crank motor in the hope that because it didn't need to derail to change it could have heavier harder parts and a thicker chain.

redsturgeon wrote:I've seen fatter chains than that around a rappers neck!

John

A wrapper for a rapper?

Well here's a hardtail with a honking great hub motor and no chain.

Except you can't actually buy it yet. Oh well...

V8