Electric bicycles continue to surge in popularity across the United States, bringing with them a host of benefits but also,…

  • Showroom7561
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    7 months ago

    If only cycling infrastructure was my worry about e-bikes. It’s not even close.

    I worry about, in no particular order:

    • Cost. A good ebike in Canadian dollars is north of $7000.
    • Repairability. Nearly all of my LBS won’t fix e-bikes that weren’t purchased from them. This not only locks me into models that might be out of someone’s price range, but it also makes it very difficult to move with your e-bike (or even travel with it).
    • Long-term parts and durability. Will an e-bike last 30+ years? Because my vintage steel MTB has, and will likely last another 30 with parts being available for that least that length of time. You have a lot more to worry about with e-bikes, including proprietary batteries, controllers, motors, etc.
    • Technology is changing so fast that an e-bike purchased this year may be very outdated in 5 years. New tech like belt drive, pinion gears, etc., are already gaining popularity. Even a change in battery tech would make current e-bikes look ancient.
    • Short warranties. E-bikes, at least none that I’ve seen, have lifetime warranties like many traditional bikes do (at least on the frames). It would destroy me to buy a $10,000 ebike that has to be trashed in five years because the aluminum frame cracked in half.