Kevin the Giant

Dear all,

Thank you all for the suggestions. It looks like I'll have to run the bike flat. But not today, because it is snowing quite heavily here. I've emailed Veloteq asking when their new battery is coming out.

Kevin

Kevin the Giant

Dear all,

Today was cold and clear in Toronto. So a great day for the Great Ebike Experiment. Just what is my ebike's maximum range in the worst case conditions? How do I interpret the wild swings down on the battery gauge under load when the battery is getting depleted?

I know that I have been going 20 km with the battery gauge bottoming out (ie pegging down at the bottom) as I was getting to the 20 km mark. And I had to make a 20 km trip. So I decided to go the 20 km and if there was any power left in the battery to ride around the block until the bike wouldn't move any more.

The first step was to verify that I really was at "worst case" conditions. So I took a look at the Veloteq website at the conditions upon which they claim an 80 km range.


Their optimum conditions:
1. Temperature: 20 degrees ambient temperature.
2. Load: 80 kg rider.
3. Terrain: Flat track.
4. Speed: 18 km/hr

My actual conditions:
1. Temperature: -13 degrees ambient temperature.
2. Load: 112 kg rider (I'm 105 cm tall - see my username here)
3. Terrain: Up hilly Yonge street.
4. Speed: 32 km/hr.


Result of experiment. When the gauge bottoms out under heavy load, that really is a sign that it is time to start heading home. This first happened at 12 km. There was a significant drop in speed starting at 15 km. A steep hill at 16 km had me pedalling to help the motor. However, at 20 km the battery was still supplying enough power to keep me moving at 10 km/hr on level ground.

Conclusions:
1. Temperature really has an impact. At above-zero temperatures, the bike will go 20 km with no reduction in speed and only starts bottoming out on the gauge at the end of the ride.

2. It has excellent limp-home capabilities. None of this suddenly going to zero nonsense. For the last third of the trip it was showing power-source weakness, but still kept putting out enough power to keep moving.

Golectric

Great report Kevin! -13C, you are crazy It's great to know that the bike will run in this kind of weather although with very much reduced range and power.

Abneycat

I just bought my new 37v/10.5ah Li-Mn pack, and it works exceptionally well in the cold. Last year I did winter on a 48/10, so I know how SLA can be a pain.

Have any of you guys tried making your own battery packs?
I would think that unless Veloteq has pulled some tricks like BionX has, it shouldn't be too hard.

Golectric

Right now I'm testing an A123 pack I hobbled together. I can't wait for prices to come down!!

Digikid

How would you go about making your own battery pack for a Veloteq?

Golectric

Hi Digikid, It's very simple to make your own pack but it will void the manufacturers warrenty. Your options are starting to come to market but it is expensive to get the latest cell tech.

Kevin the Giant

Dear all,

I heard back from the president of Veloteq about the new battery. Looks like its not coming any time soon. So I ordered another of the SLA batteries through the local Veloteq dealer.

Kevin

Kevin the Giant

I talked with the local Veloteq mechanic about storage options when I ordered the new battery. It comes as four different cells, and he thinks that it may be possible to fit them into the underseat storage area. If so, this would be a very convenient way of doubling the ebike range.

Has anyone done this, or heard about it?

karma

yup it works. i just drilled a small hole for the wires. there are others heres one on youtube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JRxouiKnAw

motorino xpe

Digikid

That would actually add MORE weight....thus making the bike SLOWER. Would it not?

karma

only time i found it heavy was when i had to carry it to the second floor in the building.
didnt really notice the weigh on the road. it was faster.

Digikid

Do you have some photos of this two baterry mod?

electrogreen

I hear you!

Digikid

Dude...Veloteq is TOP NOTCH. Bar none.

dewdad

I ride a Veloteq Commuter. I love it. I have never ridden any thing else so I cannot comment on competition.
I do know that with 1200km on my bike with no serious issues, it gets me from point A to point B (12km) with a nice ride. Why a fellow biker, electric or otherwise would want to knock another style bike is a puzzle. My only option of getting to work is my car or a bus....I cannot ride a bicycle because of bad knees. My neighbour, who first showed me her scooter style e-bike is 65, with pins in her knees and has never had a licence. She always relied on a regular bicycle to get to her destinations. Her scooter style e-bike (also a Veloteq) has been a godsend for her. I think the purpose of the ministries program is to try and get as many people out of the cars and onto another form of transportation especially for short commutes. In my travels to Europe, these scooter style e-bikes are common. For some reason some people want to make it dirty...They are highly visible on the road, have horns and headlights as well as tail lights....do not pollute the air and are cheap to use and maintain. If you ride a regular bike good for you. You are obviously blessed with good health or youth, or perhaps both. I have seen fellow scooter style e-bikers out on the road, and most of them are in the 50 and up category like myself...Just off to the store or just out for some air or commuting to work like myself. To all those wishing them off the road...Be careful what you wish for...You may want one some day yourself.

In fact, after owning and riding one for two months...I got involved with the company and the mission....
Whether it is Veloteq or another brand....As long as it is well made and there is service at the other end....
I support you....

electrogreen

I'm glad to like your scooter, I'm also glad that you pointed that you sell them.

The way I see it some people say they arent bicycles, that they should have there own regulations and be allowed to be powerful enough to keep up with traffic. Is that dirty? To a car driver they look like a scooter, so for your customers safety, you should want them to be more like one.

Just a thought.

dewdad

I am happy with the speed they attain considering there is no licence required. The low speed and low cost is the trade-off. When horse and buggy ruled the roads...automobiles were not welcome. They scared the horses, they were noisy and considered unsafe. Having traveled to Europe and watching how they integrated into traffic in Amsterdam, France and Switzerland, I see absolutely no reason why they would not safely integrate into our society. Any one who has driven on the 401 or Don Valley knows that it is only going to get worse in the future. If there are more e-bikes on the road, then and only then will the roads be improved to accept them with perhaps there own path. However they cannot put the path before the cart...In the winter I drive my Clubwagon to work and I spend at least $60.00 per week to travel....In the summer I love my bike...not only for the savings of money but there is a fun aspect that cannot be overlooked. One of my customers was riding her scooter on a very chilly dry day and she noticed a kitten in the bushes shivering....
She would have never noticed this cat if she was driving....She ended up naming the kitten "scooter".
My point is, I believe anyway, these alternative style e-bikes have a place in our planets future. Yes I am biased because I now sell them, but the reason I got involved is because I love them...In answer to your question I think it is the low speed that makes them safe. They have to be off to the side of the road like a bicycle, so they are not required to keep up with traffic.

electrogreen

Dude, I wouldnt be so ready to put your grannies against an SUV. This aint amsterdam man, take a deep breath!
The same a**holes who drive the dvp drive on your grannies street. They don't give a s*** about you, me or granny. It's nice she saved the kitten

I look like a bike, so SUV thinks I'm a bike not a vespa. You dig?

stokell

Stop it, you'll make me cry!

dewdad

I have heard that line "this ain't Amsterdam and this ain't BC so many times and that is probably one of the poorest arguments I have ever heard. They probably said that in Amsterdam when they first started...'this ain't China. What's next? Are you going to use the line "Because I said so?" There has to be a period of transition.....From Horse and Buggy ( you're scaring the horses) to now. I would not want to put up my regular bicycle up against a SUV either...Where did that come from?
I wouldn't want to be at a bus shelter and hit by a car either....Not everyone can pedal. There are people with issues and e-bikes, open frame or scooter style offer an alternative to cars and buses...Why is that so bad. The government has done something good (3 year pilot) and there are those knocking it without any facts. just emotion..At least the government is considering it.... Guys, lighten up on the whole thing...You don't have to want one yourself to see that there is a percentage of the population that may find it to be a godsend as an option of transportation.
The reason the pilot began in BC was to try a province out for size and see how it played out...Well, after three years of test marketing, it played out well enough to try it elsewhere. I Know I know....this isn't BC. LOL
I have witnessed many bicycle accidents in my lifetime, and it would never cross my mind to say they should be off the road.
Scooter Style have presence on the road, because of their size, headlights and tail lights, horn.....you cannot take away how visible they are especially the bright yellow and red ones....I am not knocking bicycles but they do not exactly have a lot of safety features installed on them, nor are they required to by law. As an X bicylclist I remember travelling full speed down a hill, to gain enough speed to make it up the other side...This move is dangerous, as one pothole could be disastrous. This move is not necessary on a scooter style as we have plenty of power to make it up the other side....Loved my bike, and now I love my E-Bike. It is nice to be open to new ideas isn't it?

Digikid

I agree Dewdad.

electrogreen

read this
and then well talk.

dewdad

https://www.ce.berkeley.edu/~cherry/P...ions/EVS22.pdf

Will do...Knowledge is Power! I also found this report to be interesting.
The interesting thing about statistics and focus groups...is that you can
guide it's outcome by the questions that are asked.

dewdad

Interesting report Electrogreen,a little outdated but never the less interesting....I do get your point though ....As I mentioned, there has to be a transition into the future..."experience comes from bad judgement"
We are of course on the same side of the road and have comparable interests...I am certainly not against automobiles any more than I am about bicycles. Each are a viable form of transportation. There is no doubt that there are areas that are condusive to E-Bikes and there are others that are not...But if you have a nice route, whether it is by a regular bike or an e-bike (all forms) it is a great way to travel. What I do find to be a problem and I agree with you, is when certain people with the scooter style or the open frame take advantage of the pilot program and put all e-bike future in jeapoardy...I am hoping threads like this will make those individuals aware of the consequences of their actions. I am also dead against companies that do not support with service and parts of their product...I find the major stores that are getting into e-bikes the worst offenders. There is some bad bikes out on the market (open frame and scooter style) and the customer has to do their homework, because there are also some very good, viable and well made products.