E-bike range

[Manc33]

When the usage is at 5 Wh per mile it's almost pointless carrying the weight of a motor around.

[bikercolin]

I have a Fazua powered bike.
Weight 95kg bike 15kg
With two 250wh battary' s I have covered 100 miles three times around 1500 meters of climbing.
Touring with bags in hilly country this drops to around 70 miles.
I allways ride on the lowest green setting, and find the bike and system a joy to use.

[PH]

When the usage is at 5 Wh per mile it's almost pointless carrying the weight of a motor around.

It's very unlikely the average reflects the reality.

[peterb]

When the usage is at 5 Wh per mile it's almost pointless carrying the weight of a motor around.

It's very unlikely the average reflects the reality.

Exactly! I'm over the 15.5mph cut off for a good deal of the time, so the Wh per mile would be much higher than 5. It's a relatively light e-road bike at around 16kg, but my leg muscles are severely compromised, so I find the assistance very helpful. I'm not looking for a free ride, but still want a bit of a workout. (I have an unassisted 8 Kg carbon bike and can only ride it for around 10 flat miles before leg pain stops me - I doubt I'd be riding an ebike if it weren't for muscle problems).

[Gangzoom]

I can get a range of 80 miles+ to sub 15 miles on my eBike depending on how I choose to use the assistance, wind, cold etc.

[Waterboy]

A significant factor is where you live. A rough rule of thumb is that range increases as you go east. Here in Plymouth with a 625 battery, on a Coratec using a Bosch CD motor, I reckon on 50 miles.
If I were fitter, and using eco as my default power setting I would reckon on 60+, but suffering as I do from COPD and dodgy knees I have to use the Tour setting, and eat extra power on steep hills (we have a lot of them).
I carry a spare 625 battery in it's cardboard box and a dry bag strapped to the top of the carrier. Happily, being the sort of bloke who just gets on a bike and goes, I can report that it has no deleterious effect on handling, even when I'm trail riding - the extra 5kg of battery is still lower than my 80kg centre of weight (Sometimes the cycling technocrats get carried away with marginal effects).
What I do know is that an ebike can have a considerable effect on an occasional cyclist. The year before I went electric I cycled 10 miles, the years after have averaged 1,000 miles a year.
I think you're absolutely right to want 100 mile range. You may never use it all, but the freedom to be profligate with power towards the end of a ride, rather than having to practice extreme power conservation, adds so much to the pleasure of the ride that it's well worth the expense.

[peterb]

I think you're absolutely right to want 100 mile range. You may never use it all, but the freedom to be profligate with power towards the end of a ride, rather than having to practice extreme power conservation, adds so much to the pleasure of the ride that it's well worth the expense.

This is so true for me. A good number of times I've been near the end of a club ride and tried to conserve power so as to have assistance all the way back, sometimes unsuccessfully, resulting in a very painful last few miles. The experience can become extremely stressful, and puts me off riding any longer or more challenging routes.

[Manc33]

Another reason to have a bigger range is, a battery pack with say 75% to 100% charge left has a higher voltage than one with say 10% to 30% charge, thus a freshly charged battery powers the motor with more speed (and I suspect more raw power). It gets slower the more it gets drained. When I am on a fresh battery it's certainly noticeable.

[jb]

Its rather like a compressed air tank at 100 psi supplying an air motor at 10 psi via a regulator. So long as the pressure is above about 20 psi the motor runs at full speed but as the the pressure approaches 20 psi the energy required to push the air through the regulator is more than the remaining pressure can give so even though there is still more pressure than is required the motor slows down.

[hemo]

The best e-bike range is one that has a motor that freely pedals with no power then one simply can simply carry a light weight smaller battery purely for inclines, albeit some will say it defeats going electric but if the both the motor and battery is light enough one can pedal as per an analogue bike. Ideal for those who want to add more of there effort with just the occasional need for power.

[PH]

I was out yesterday, delivering by E-bike, the first chilly day since I've had it, not bitterly cold, not even frosty. I was a bit taken aback by the difference in battery consumption, I didn't accurately record it, but I'd estimate it increased by 15 - 20%, got caught out and had a bit of an unassisted ride for a battery swap. No big deal, I'm rarely more than five miles from base, but I wouldn't like to do it too often!

[PH]

The best e-bike range is one that has a motor that freely pedals with no power then one simply can simply carry a light weight smaller battery purely for inclines, albeit some will say it defeats going electric but if the both the motor and battery is light enough one can pedal as per an analogue bike. Ideal for those who want to add more of there effort with just the occasional need for power.

Yes, if that's what you want, it's what some of the bikes mentioned above offer.
Doesn't so much defeat the objective of going electric, it more illustrates how different those objectives can be.

[bikes4two]

In brief:

• Fitted a 250w TSDZ2 with a 10Ah bottle battery to my Dawes Super Galaxy

• The aim was to use the ebike to recover from a total cyling downtime of 4 months after drastic heart arrythmias and within that to keep HR max 140bpm or less

• Recovery plan has gone well and now mostly using ECO (lowest level of assist) and getting 50+ miles out of the battery irrespective of which route I take around the South Downs area.

• There's a post above suggesting that at low levels of assist, is an ebike worth the bother - for me it most certainly is as the HRmax criteria needs to be observed in perpetuity and with a motor I am able to take on hilly routes that either I've not done for a long while or would not consider at this point in time

• After the prescribed recovery period of 3 months, I am seriously wondering if I'll want to get back to my unassisted bikes as the ebike is a revelation for me in terms of re-visiting routes I'd previously avoided for years and I get home without instantly dozing off on the sofa .

[hemo]

Comparing mileage from a motor/battery combo is like asking someone how long a bit of string is.
Weight, tyre psi, wind, terrain and assist level selected are just a few variables to put in the mix. Assist level and wind are among the two most to affect range generally.

[bikes4two]

Comparing mileage from a motor/battery combo is like asking someone how long a bit of string is.
Weight, tyre psi, wind, terrain and assist level selected are just a few variables to put in the mix. Assist level and wind are among the two most to affect range generally.

• Absolutely correct Hemo and this point is not realised by so many new to the ebike world.

• However, when they ask the question and see the range of different answers, this is more likely to cement the issue into their minds than anything else, to say nothing about setting a realistic expectation.