E-Bike to commute

A gigantic catch-all for Randonneuring (Audax), Bike-packing (Touring), and Commuting with or without E-bikes!
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Cuypmeister
Posts: 43
Joined: Thu Oct 06, 2022 7:14 am
Location: Brussels, Belgium

by Cuypmeister

I am surprised to not see any e-bike related topic on this forum :D i might irritate people with my questions then, but let's go for it!

As all large cities have their big traffic jams, and I am totally done with that - at least when i don't have to go to customers with my car. Therefore, i want to commute at least 2 times per week with an e-bike. I did so several times with my gravel bike, but i dislike the time i am losing with changing, showering, etc.. So, with this "Black Friday" period, i was looking around for an e-bike to bridge the distance of 15 km to my office (and 15 km back).

3 options & different price classes i have in mind:

- Cowboy Cruiser or Cruiser ST https://cowboy.com/products/e-bike-cowboy-cruiser (the advantage is removable battery, my gf can also use the bike as she is 165cm and I am 185 cm, and the fact it is a straightforward bike, no gears and fun) - however, it has this "hipster" look & feel and i am afraid that an semi-experienced rider as me will get irritated how basic it is. Did a test drive, liked it - especially for urban areas, but ... 2.500 EUR approx

- Canyon Precede (now in big discount, also city bike, but with Bosch performance motor & Canyon is an established brand. Disadvantage : my gf can not use it and i have already 3 bikes (2 road, 1 gravel), but the main advantage is that i m pretty sure Canyon nor Bosch won't get bankrupt, so i can get my spare parts if needed) ..pricing 2.700 EUR approximately for a bike that normally costs 4.299 EUR.

- Specialized Creo 2 (would be a wet dream and maybe not the ideal commuter bike. Just mentioning my top 3 :-))

What would you go for? Any experiences? My commuting ride is approximately 15 km (as stated above) and for 75% flat and 2 hills in it (not Swiss percentages of 22%, but max 7-8%)

maxim809
Administrator
Posts: 877
Joined: Sat Feb 25, 2017 6:28 am

by maxim809

Thanks for starting this thread. Updated the board title to include E-bikes.

I'm a purist roadie, but I'm very pro e-bike because it gets people out of cars and exercising on 2 wheels. Love to see it.

by Weenie


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Cuypmeister
Posts: 43
Joined: Thu Oct 06, 2022 7:14 am
Location: Brussels, Belgium

by Cuypmeister

maxim809 wrote:
Mon Nov 13, 2023 7:37 am
Thanks for starting this thread. Updated the board title to include E-bikes.

I'm a purist roadie, but I'm very pro e-bike because it gets people out of cars and exercising on 2 wheels. Love to see it.
Cool! cheers

OtterSpace
Posts: 264
Joined: Sun Mar 08, 2020 6:28 am
Location: California Silicon Valley

by OtterSpace

The turbo creo 2 went more gravel focused so I would consider the money no object best road bike like ebike to be those with the TQ motor (Trek Domane+, Scott Solace, and BMC Roadmachine 01 AMP X). I own the Solace myself and have a thread on it already.
Solace.jpg
In the EU speed limits will heavily limit any of these high end road ebikes, their pricing is quite high, and the tech is constantly improving which is good but means depreciation will be high and long term service will likely be challenging.

For a mid level build I would avoid the hipster like bikes personally and just build up a bike yourself. This isn't a good forum for info so it's likely worth searching ebike specific forums if you are building yourself.

If you build yourself I recommend the bafang mid drive motors and a reputable battery. Most people who build up an ebike start with a hard tail mtb platform but you can add them to many types of bikes including road bikes.
bafang.png
There are other advantages of building it yourself but I wont get into it here as they invovle making the bike go past EU standards.

Exar
Posts: 352
Joined: Wed Mar 01, 2006 10:28 pm
Location: The Netherlands
Contact:

by Exar

I commute on an older Specialized Turbo S - mostly mountain bike components, easy to maintain, and a lot of fun to ride. Also important: it's a speed pedelec so quite fast.

I've also heard good stories about the Giant e-bikes, quite affordable but a reputable manufacturer and no weird proprietary parts.
Chains to the right!

by Weenie


Visit starbike.com Online Retailer for HighEnd cycling components
Great Prices ✓    Broad Selection ✓    Worldwide Delivery ✓

www.starbike.com



spdntrxi
Posts: 5839
Joined: Sat Jul 20, 2013 6:11 pm

by spdntrxi

Pivot E-Vault. Fazua 50 motor is enough for me, gets me ~60miles on low assist which is all I need 90% of the time. Also a blast on local trails.
2024 BMC TeamMachine R
2018 BMC TImeMachine Road
2002 Moots Compact-SL
2019 Parlee Z0XD - "classified"
2023 Pivot E-Vault

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