Q. HOW FAST DOES AN EBIKE GO?
eBikes in Australia are limited to 250w and will assist you up to 25km/hr - going faster than this is up to the effort of the rider. Any motor providing more power will be classified as a motorbike and must be registered and ridden by a licenced rider.
Q. HOW FAR CAN I TRAVEL ON A FULL CHARGE?
The range you can expect depends on how hard the battery is working. This will be affected by factors like the weight of the rider, how much luggage you’re carrying, tyre pressure, hills/terrain, road condition, wind and the level of assistance or power setting you use.
You can expect the Shimano Steps system to last up to 100km on the highest assistance setting even with hills and extra weight (you can go up to 185km under ideal conditions as reported in Shimano testing). The Ananda system will travel up to 100km+, while the Bafang system will travel up to 60km (8.7Ah battery) or 70km (10.4/11Ah batteries) depending on conditions.
Q. HOW DO I CHARGE AN EBIKE AND HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE?
Simply plug the charger into a standard wall socket at work or when you get home. To charge the Shimano Steps battery from 0% to 80% will take 2 hours, 100% in 4 hours. Most of the time though you’ll just need to top up rather than completely refill. Charging times are similar for the Bafang and Ananda systems.
Q. HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO CHARGE?
The Shimano Steps system uses a 418Wh battery. At 30c/kWh x 0.418kWh = 12.5c for a full charge. Costs are similar with the Bafang and Ananda systems.
Q. CAN I RIDE IN THE RAIN?
Yes, all of these units are sealed and made for all-conditions riding.
Q. CAN I SWITCH OFF THE ENGINE AND RIDE IT LIKE NORMAL?
Yes. Remove the battery pack and it will feel very much like a normal bike.
Q. WHAT DOES ‘PEDELEC’ MEAN?
The most popular system in Australia is the pedelec (or pedal assist) system. You ride a pedelec by pedalling as normal, while the electric motor adds power to each pedal stroke - flattening out the hills and getting you up to speed with much less effort.
Q. HOW OFTEN SHOULD I SERVICE MY EBIKE?
We recommend your bike is serviced during the first 3 months of ownership as components bed in. Frequency of servicing after that depends on usage and what maintenance you choose to do yourself in terms of caring for the chain and other basic tasks. A regular rider who does not perform any maintenance may benefit from servicing every 6 months. Click here for more information on servicing.