I'm thinking about getting an ebike to replace some of my around-town car trips. Can anyone point me to a good resource for learning what's out there and what brands/kinds of bikes I should be looking at? MMM's articles on the subject are from 2014/2015 and I suspect the landscape has changed quite a bit since then.
I've had a handful of ebikes the past few years, some random thoughts:
- You need to specify a budget for the bike. A new $800 ebike is radically different than a $4k ebike, obviously.
- How is your fitness? and do you have fitness goals?
- Replacing around-town car trips - be more specific. Are you talking about doing a week's worth of grocery shopping? riding down to the bottle shop? commuting for work?
- Do you have knowledge, tools, skills to maintain your ebike? or do you intend to have a shop address any issues?
- Are you an experienced rider? There are drop-bar road and gravel ebikes, and flat-bar upright ebikes. The upright bikes may make more sense if you're generally new to bicycling or have any issues with your back, neck, arms; whereas the drop-bar bikes are great for the experienced rider and those looking to really improve fitness.
- What kind of surfaces will you be riding? Smooth suburban streets, pot-holes city streets, dirt, multi-use trails?
This should get you started. Once those questions are answered, you can then look into bikes and brands that fit your needs.
I started out on a 70lb ebike with fat tires (26x4") and a cadence-based hub motor. It was "fun," but became a huge PITA - due to weight and the hub motor/cadence sensor combo (there's no way to get pedaling cadence up on a sudden hill). I am grateful for the experience, but would never go that route again.
I have been riding a mid-motor torque-sensor flat-bar bike for +18 months now. This is most analogous to a regular bike in ride feel: the power you put in is amplified by the motor, whereas cadence sensor adds assist based on how fast you're pedaling (which sometimes requires flailing, and that is not good for your hips, legs, etc.). Those sudden hills I mentioned - I have several that require a 90* turn to enter, so having speed and cadence as you enter is nigh impossible - are now trivial with the torque-sensor bike. It's still heavy at 55lbs, but with more standard tires (27.5x2.1") the handling is so much better.
I use a collapsible fabric box on the rear rack and can easily get 2 grocery bags in it, and that weight hardly impacts the ride at all. I'm considering upping my game and going with panniers so I can do bigger shopping trips.
If you have health concerns such as heart, strength, etc. then a bike with throttle may make sense. These are typically cadence/hub-based, and they allow you to move without pedaling.
Full disclosure: I am using my regular human-powered (flat-bar hybrid bike) bike more and more, including the shopping trips. This was intentional: I started with an ebike to regain some fitness in my mid-50's, lost 35 lbs, and feel incredibly satisfied that I can, again, go wherever I want on my own power. I still ride my ebike, which is a hoot to ride even at low assist (10% assist and the motor is only 55nm); and is a blessing when I have heavy stuff to transport.
