I've recently been looking into getting an e bike, and I know what kind of bike I want. I'm trying to not go overboard on price, and I found a bike that looks right for me but I'm not sure how legit the brand is. I'm new here, was hoping I could get some help. Thanks.

I can't link the URL to this post, but it's an AOSTIRMOTOR bike. Not sure if they are legit or not. M2S was my ideal brand of choice, but their shipping fees are expensive, and this looks like a much better option. Help is appreciated, thank you.

scam.

Get a quality bike with a quality Bosch, Brose, Shimano or at least Yamaha motor. Those cheap online brands are great if I am looking to purchase a very expensive disposable bike but for some of these companies trying to get service and support is so difficult to say the least. If you don't spend money on quality you will go overboard on price in repairs, replacement parts and something for your constant headaches.

Find a local shop that specializes in e-bikes and talk with them and test ride some bikes and find something that will work well for you. Make sure the place has a some different brands to try out and that they have some Bosch motors in the place that aren't all Active Line. It will be a mutually beneficial situation. They will have your back for service and warranty and you will have a bike you can better rely on. Looking just at specs online doesn't give you a sense of how the bike feels and how it will ride for what you are doing. Sure price will dazzle it usually does but when it comes to actual ride time you will be thankful you test rode some bikes and talked to an expert.

Unless you have the skills to do rewiring and deal with voltage and watts and such, buying a cheap e-bike is a pound-foolish decision. It WILL crap out on you and if you cannot fix it, you will be left with a big dead anchor. I've friends who purchased e bike kits and all-in-one systems from China, similar to the cheap e-bikes like this, and every single one of them was either tossing it out within a year (often just a few months) or having to tear them apart and rebuild them. Stick with a brand that has a reputation for customer service.

I would buy a kit and upgrade an existing bike. It will be less expensive when you need parts, as you don't need to stick to any brand.

I bought a brand name ebike at a local bike shop. My next bike was a Direct to Consumer ebike. Even name brand manufacturers use brand name mid drives, they still have no spare parts once the ebike is out of production. I'd look at mid tiered ebikes. Like Aventon, Blix, Rad Power they have good reputation and you get a great value ebike. Hub drives have been in production a lot longer than mid drives. People always complain about non top of the line derailer systems by Shimano. From my experience, you don't need top of the line shifting on an ebike where the electronics does most of the work, weight is not an issue and these derailer systems are proven. Whether you buy a 4-runner or a corolla its the same a Toyota. The same is true of Shimano. The fastest growing ebike market segment is Direct to Consumer. You can get your ebike serviced at a local bicycle shop or mobile bike repair business if you can't do your own service. Good luck

Bikes and batteries are mature in development and most are reliable. Your choice should depend on anticipated use and finance considerations. I have a direct drive DIY system that has operated perfectly as an errand bike for five years with the same 52V, 10 ah battery that has powered a BBS02 off road bike for the same interval. My daughter just told me of a fun ride she had yesterday with a six year old Dillenger system on her cruiser. Decide what you need and how much you can spend and we can help select the optimum system (look at today's post in the "battery" section" of an inexpensive kit in its sixth or whatever year).

Something like this one?
https://aostirmotor.com/collections/...ithium-battery

The caveat with the inexpensive imports will be lack of tech support. Often the importer is just one guy, and he (a) may have English as a second language, and (b) know less about ebikes than the buyer. If your knowledge of bicycle repair and electrics is minimal, better to buy a bike from a local shop and have them maintain it for you.

Nonetheless, I've seen a few inexpensive imports up close and feel they are good values as long as you realize no one is going to help you afterwards. Buy at your own risk.

IMO, individuals try to make ebikes a lot more esoteric than necessary. Just do your homework, find a good vendor and proceed. Look at the ratings on Amazon; some inexpensive bikes with verified purchasers and great ratings are a start. Those of us who have been doing this for years successfully weren't born with this knowledge. If you have specific questions, ask here or for more powerful systems, endless sphere. For DIY, there are YESCOM systems ($200 for the motor, controller etc - no battery) with 20,000+ miles on them. This is my five year old.

Do what veganbikes said. The other options are headaches. Well maybe you like headaches.

-SP

Not unexpectedly, the owners of retail shops (all very nice guys, by the way) tend to suggest OEM. I've been doing this for five years with DIY (and one OEM, a Haibike) and no headaches. For me, assembling a DIY system is part of the fun.

I have bought 3 ebikes from M2S and they are well built. I ride a Dual Sport Ultra with a Bafang Ultra Max mid-drive. 160 N.m of power and comes with a thumb-throttle. I would not want an ebike without one unless your doing some kind of racing. I use it about 1% of the time. But it is nice to know it is there and can give you a quick boost to get you out of trouble and helps get you safely through intersections.

Recently, my friend saved up for months to buy a Verve+ 2 from Trek. Says it's worth it. But that's really a high-end choice. I personally Wouldn't recommend spending so much on a bike. But people have their preferences I guess. Like my friend did.

I would look at the Aventon "Level" bike. I have the Aventon Pace 500 and love it. I would have gotten the Level but they came out a month after I purchased and had no idea they would be that nice. Suspension fork and 500 watt motor. Plus a throttle.

looks great! One question (sorry to hijack): are the saddlebags sued to cover up the wiring or do they have any ebike related purpose?

The saddlebag's purpose is not to cover up the wiring. I carry small air pump, metric hex nut wrenches (Allen wrenches), small flashlight etc. I got a great saddle bag in the bike department of Walmart.