Q. Are the bikes street legal?

A. All the bikes and kits are road legal for all individuals over 14 years of age.  Our "off road" only bikes are, of course, not!

 

Q. Can I use them on a cycle path?

A. Most definitely as they are classed as bicycles.

 

Q. Does the motor cut out at 15mph (or higher setting)?

A. The motor will cut out on a road legal bike at the UK speed limit of 15mph but, of course, you can pedal faster or you may, on the other hand, consider one of our "off road" versions!  

 

Q. Can the charger be carried in a backpack as I want to charge the battery at work?

A. The charger is very light and easily carried in a pannier or backpack.

 

Q. Is the charger included with the bike/kit?

A. The bike or kit includes the battery charger.

 

Q. Does the charger cut out when the battery is fully charged?

 A. Yes, it's fully automatic so will stop charging once it senses that the battery is full.

 

Q. Does the charger indicate when the battery is full?

A. Yes, the light goes from red to green.

 

Q. Is there any indication on the bike or kit how much charge I have left?

A. Each bike or kit comes with a handlebar mounted charge display which show, for instance, three lights going from green (fully charged) to amber (partial charge) and then to red.

 

Q. Does the extra weight of the electrics etc. cause the bike to handle differently?

A. No. It handles just like a bit heavier bike.

 

Q. Can I come and try out a bike?

A. Our complete range of bikes is now on display at the Scottish eBike Centre. See www.ebikescotland.com for opening hours and directions. 

Q. How quick a delivery can I expect if I order a bike or kit?

A. If you order before 12.00 Mon-Thur we can usually get the bike out that day and there's a good chance it will arrive the next day.  Orders placed on Fridays will arrive Monday. 

 

Q. Can I order special delivery times?

A. These are a real problem to be honest because I have to call two or three times to get a cost and then later on to arrange it. This will only be done in exceptional circumstances.

 

Q. How water proof is the whole system?

A. The controller, which is the brains of the entire system, is what's termed "silicone potted". In other words, all the electronics are encased in a solid sealant and water cannot get in at all.

 

Q. How can you supply the bikes and kits so cheaply?

A. We are the UK's largest supplier by some margin and have the bike and kits manufactured in "bulk" hence we can get lower prices for components.  This is despite the fact that most of the bikes are designed specifically by ourselves.  However, the fundamental reason is that we have no "middle men" such as dealers.  Traditionally these will add some 40-60% onto the bike's price so a bike we would sell at £999 suddenly becomes £1,600.

 

Q. Do you offer any warranty?  

A. Yes indeed - please see the "Contact & Policies" page on the web site.

 

Q. How much are spares?

A. The price of spares can vary so please check the current price in the "Components Shop" section of the web site.
 
 
Q. Can I buy spare parts without being a bike or kit customer?
 
A. A certain number of spares are reserved at all times for customer support.  However, there are usually parts available for purchase via the Shop.  Please note that you cannot normally buy a battery pack unless you are an existing customer.
  
 
Q: Do you take the battery out of the bike for charging or not?
 
A. On the bikes or the kits, the battery unlocks, slides out of the holder or rear rack and you can either charge it on the bike or remove it for charging. There are two keys supplied.
 
 
Q. If you run out of battery power is it more difficult to ride by pedal power than an ordinary bike?
 
A. The bikes are heavier than non-electric bikes but the motors I use have a free wheel facility which means that there's very little motor drag when you're pedalling without power.
 
 
Q. Do the bikes have pedal assist (pedelec)?
 
A. Yes - the motor is activated by pedalling or you can simply use the throttle for an easy life!   The pedelec function is required by UK law but, to answer all the questions, it can easily be disabled by simply unplugging the connector from the controller.  Personally, I must admit that I always disable the pedelec function on my own bike as it means that I can pedal without assistance and use the throttle on hills when I want to.
 
 
Q. Do the kits have the pedelec components?
 
A. Yes the kits are supplied with the necessary sensors to provide pedelec functionality. 
 
 
Q.  Pardon my ignorance, but if the power is 250w under both voltages how is 36v more powerful than the 24v?   I have tried one of your competitors bikes before (heavy with no gears) and it just didn´t have it when it most mattered, up steep hills, as it seemed like there is little power when going slowly.
 

A. The 250w figure refers to the continuous power output, whereas what you are after is peak power. Most motors can give maximum output for a short while (e.g. if you're climbing a hill) so that's what you need to look at: 24v x 15Ah = 360w or 36v x 15Ah = 540w. The bigger battery and more powerful controller gives a good bit more power and that's what you need.

 

Another main difference is the type of motor used.  For instance, our Aurora model is designed specifically to make hill climbing easy and uses a particular set of components; motor, controller and throttle for that purpose.  Other bikes use motors and controllers for speed or distance.

 

Q. I know all the kits use brushless motors but what are the motors?

 

A. For all the technically minded forum types out there, all of our more expensive bikes use brushless motors and controllers from Suzhou Bafang as I've found through experience that they provide high performance and are extremely reliable. Other bikes use readily available motors such as those used by our competitors including companies such as Giant. 

 

Q. Why have you increased prices?

A. One factor is that I have to order and buy all the components for the bikes and kits four months in advance. This in done in dollars so if the exchange rate goes down against the dollar (as it horribly has) the parts cost me more and, in fact, the new components are costing roughly 25% more than the previous ones.   

 

However, it is also vital that we make a profit because we have to ensure that we can provide a superb backup service to our customers and they need us to be here in years to come.   There's no point in saving £600 on a bike if after a few months you can't get anyone on the phone or to answer an email! 

 

 

There are literally hundreds of people out there who see selling an electric bike as a quick way of making a buck - they're all over eBay!   We get phone calls all the time asking us to support bikes where the original supplier has simply disappeared.  We have proven over the years that we're not one of those and we intend to keep it that way!  

 

Q. Why are the bikes and kits sometimes cheaper on the website than on eBay?

 

A. It's all down to the high fees.....

 
Q. Why don't you list 24v and 36v batteries in your shop?
 
A. Too many people were buying cheap kits from China without batteries then expecting me to supply and support them with Li-Ion units.  I've decided that all my battery stocks will now be solely for customer support. 
 
 
Q. What are the advantages of Lithium Ion batteries?
 

Li-ion batteries are lighter than other equivalent batteries such as Lead Acid batteries. They do not suffer from memory effect and also have a low self-discharge rate of approximately 5% per month. However, to preserve your lithium-ion battery it should be charged early and often so when you come back from a ride, you simply plug the bike into the charger regardless of how much power you've used.  The Battery Management System, integrated into the charger and the controller, then takes care of how much charge the battery needs. The disadvantage is that if you're going to leave your bike for a long time then you have to charge up the battery every now and then to ensure that the battery charge doesn't fall to too low a level.

 

Q. Can I fit a kit to my Tandem?

A. Indeed you can and there are quite a few tandems out there with Alien kits on them already!  The only change you have to make is to the cable to the battery in that it has to be a bit longer than normal!  However, twin core mains flex is the best to use and the controller etc. just sits at the front of the bike.

 

Q. Do you offer regenerative controllers?

Personally I'm yet to be convinced that this is worth it on a bike but our latest range of Golden Motor products provide just that and the controller manufacturer tells us that, dependent upon the terrain, you can get up to 10% return!  www.goldenmotor.co.uk