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Budget is dictating what I can get..
I can either get a 2019 Merida E160 Shimano E7000 steps motor (60nm) for 1k
or
a Lapierre Overvolt 2022 TR 130mm travel Yamaha motor (70nm) for 1.2k
I usually go for longer travel bikes but it’s not essential for the riding I do and plan to do.
I'd do some digging and buy the one with the best rep for reliability /repairability tbh.
On a 7/8yr old bike it'll ALL be about condition and function and potential repairability...
These things are designed to last about 5yrs tops... They're generally only warranted for 2... A 7-8yr old bike really is outside of its design parameters, so caveat emptor what might happen if anything goes wrong... I got a quote for a replacement Shimano EP8 motor for a customer earlier this week... £970 just for the motor, then my time to fit it etc... And that's just the motor, the battery is severely depleted at over 5yrs old too... He'd have been in for a bill of pushing £2k to get it all sorted on a bike that, working properly, is barely worth £1500 now...
Be VERY careful!!!
Great advice
I'd pass on both to be honest, for the same reasons @mboy mentioned.
Save up more cash and get something like a Raymon Trailray.
Save up more cash and get something like a Raymon Trailray.
I have a 2019 Levo I bought in 2023 and it has been no hassle at all. However, my BiL bought a brand new Raymon Trailray for £2k with an 85nm yamaha motor, 720wh battery, eagle gears and domain forks.
Add in the warranty and 0% finance possibilities it's the sensible way to do it.
Back to the "which type of bike" idea, you've got a motor so don't get too hung up on travel. You'll be faster almost everywhere so more comfort/control/absorption will be useful!
I have sold 2 e bikes with Shimano ep8 motors and 630wh battery’s and decent kit.
both struggled to sell until they got down to 1300. There are some superb bikes out there, with better specs for only a smidge more.
i ended up selling to an ebike re seller, however if people had actually turned up to the viewings I’m sure I could have sold in person.
The ebike seller used a courier company to collect the bike as e-bikes are a pain. They were superb so if you see the right one you can get it collected and transported for a reasonable price.
Thanks for that - do you know what company was used to collect and deliver please?
On a 7/8yr old bike it'll ALL be about condition and function and potential repairability...
These things are designed to last about 5yrs tops... They're generally only warranted for 2... A 7-8yr old bike really is outside of its design parameters, so caveat emptor what might happen if anything goes wrong... I got a quote for a replacement Shimano EP8 motor for a customer earlier this week... £970 just for the motor, then my time to fit it etc... And that's just the motor, the battery is severely depleted at over 5yrs old too... He'd have been in for a bill of pushing £2k to get it all sorted on a bike that, working properly, is barely worth £1500 now...
Be VERY careful!!!
A sad state of affairs from the bike industry really. You'd expect a decent washing machine that costs £500 to last better than that and probably has a similar hours per week use in many households.
(On that note OP, maybe buy a Bosch motor...)
"These things are designed to last about 5yrs tops..."
Are they really though? My Levo's coming round to 8 years old and almost 9000 miles - yes it's been through a lot of drivetrain parts and it had the motor replaced due to a slipping belt just after 3 years (warrantied though) - frame, battery, cranks, dropper, brakes and saddle (!!!) are still original. It certainly doesn't feel like it's falling apart... I've just treated it to a new shock and it's riding better than ever!
If i buy a levo, which is entirely possible, Spec’ should pay you commission
"These things are designed to last about 5yrs tops..."
Are they really though? My Levo's coming round to 8 years old and almost 9000 miles - yes it's been through a lot of drivetrain parts and it had the motor replaced due to a slipping belt just after 3 years (warrantied though) - frame, battery, cranks, dropper, brakes and saddle (!!!) are still original. It certainly doesn't feel like it's falling apart... I've just treated it to a new shock and it's riding better than ever!
So apart from the battery it's the normal bike bits have lasted 😁
On a 7/8yr old bike it'll ALL be about condition and function and potential repairability...
These things are designed to last about 5yrs tops... They're generally only warranted for 2... A 7-8yr old bike really is outside of its design parameters, so caveat emptor what might happen if anything goes wrong... I got a quote for a replacement Shimano EP8 motor for a customer earlier this week... £970 just for the motor, then my time to fit it etc... And that's just the motor, the battery is severely depleted at over 5yrs old too... He'd have been in for a bill of pushing £2k to get it all sorted on a bike that, working properly, is barely worth £1500 now...
Be VERY careful!!!
I'm always wary of measuring bike/component life in time units - I'm the accidental owner of a 2017 Levo and it's mostly pretty solid tbh. The battery had sealing issues, which I solved by opening it up, drying it out and then resealing. And I had the motor rebuilt and upgraded to be more weather resistant, by the guys at eBike Moto Centre for around £230, I think.
However, although it's now eight or nine years old, it's done relatively low mileage and mostly gets used for chilled-out recovery rides, not wild thrashes. One thing with Specialized is that the Specialized app can tell you how many miles a bike has actually covered, I think, which could be useful.
The motor's broadly repairable, the battery on the other hand, would be £600 or so to replace. Later versions seem to be over a grand.
What's the budget, OP?
"These things are designed to last about 5yrs tops..."
Are they really though? My Levo's coming round to 8 years old and almost 9000 miles - yes it's been through a lot of drivetrain parts and it had the motor replaced due to a slipping belt just after 3 years (warrantied though) - frame, battery, cranks, dropper, brakes and saddle (!!!) are still original. It certainly doesn't feel like it's falling apart... I've just treated it to a new shock and it's riding better than ever!
I was actually being generous... In reality, they're designed to last just long enough to keep the original owners' interest right up until they have replaced it with the next thing... Which to be fair, when it was just Shimano, Bosch and Spesh competing for your hard earned, new product cycles were averaging around the 4yr cycle... Since the Chinese behemoths have got involved, we're down below 2yrs now!
The other thing to consider is that whilst your average 100 miles per month for 8 years isn't inconsiderable, most people do a LOT less mileage on their eBikes... Of course, there's some that do a LOT more, I know people for whom 3k miles per year on an MTB is normal (I know people for whom 10k miles a year on a road bike is normal!), and these motors DEFINITELY aren't designed to last that kind of mileage... In fact, I'd argue that the manufacturers have for the one motor that does 3k per year and needs replacing under warranty inside 2yrs, there'll be 10 that do 1000 miles per year or less and so they just suck up the warranty cost of that one motor every so often, rather than designing the equipment to last that much longer when most people will have sold their bikes with only a few hundred miles tops on them... Most eBike motors will fail before the bike needs a suspension pivot bearing overhaul... COVID was a ridiculous boom for eBikes, and the low mileage 2nd hand market was prime for a while as a result. It's thinned out somewhat now, but in the last couple of months I've bought and sold 5yr old eBikes with less than 100 miles on the clock, but even now, your average year old eMTB on the market probably has 250-500 miles max...
The other thing to consider is the abuse they're subjected to... Simply put, using them in lower power modes, in better conditions, and being a smooth rider who looks after their stuff and doesn't jet wash the bike after every ride, can add a LOT of life to the motor too... Many people just use all of the power all of the time, so if you're not, then you can definitely expect your kit to last longer.
I'll echo what @mboy has said, I've been MTBing now for 30 years, I treat my bikes sympathetically re wear and tear . Even more important with an EBike , my Rise has a 12 speed drivetrain I use that in conjunction with the motor not the highest gear highest mode mashing through everything and I don't own a power washer. The bike cost me a chunk of money so I want it to last so if you are going down the 2nd hand route it would be good to know the history of said bike .
Power wise this arms race that Amflow has created I find pointless. There's a reason Orbea has detuned the motor on the new Wild .My bikes motor is detuned and I find the 500 odd W power is more than enough for what and where I ride I don't need any more. That's the other thing be honest with yourself the type of rider you are and where you ride .
@astura I've used The Cycle Courier they pick the bike up complete you don't need a box fully insured no chance of it getting lost in a huge warehouse, not cheap but well worth paying extra.
I’ve bought a few second hand e-bikes with the view that I put aside enough money for new motors and batteries. My daughter’s old Merida eOneSixty (Shimano EP800) had done a princely 120 miles in two years 😯 and it was to all intents and purposes a brand new bike. She has stuck 2000 plus miles on it over the last year and amazingly it still appears to be faultless, but there will be a point the motor needs replacing / servicing and possibly the battery, but all seems spot on!
My wife’s was a slightly different story, better spec eOneSixty, just had the EP800 motor replaced and judging by the quality of the servicing on the bike I would make a strong guess it’s because the previous owner didn’t have a clue how to look after it. It was lots of work, including new wiring, but fairly straightforward and overall cost was fine, all seems good now and the battery range is excellent for a 630 battery, so hopefully that will be healthy for a while. 🙂
I was debating getting the waterproofing kits for the EP800’s, but given I wash sympathetically with a brush, I’m tempted to just save the money for new motors.
I’ve got a much newer bike with the Bosch gen 5 and don’t really get the need for so much more power, especially when you consider longevity. I still jump on my wife’s bike and absolutely love it, the only slight downside is the smaller battery but I certainly wouldn’t complain if it was my only bike! 🙂
