The other day I ran into the guy that created this electric bike. HyBikes.com | Electric Bicycle | Hybrid Bike He was on his way to deliver a bike that was in the back of his truck, but I was able to ask him a few questions. Top speed is 20mph, and you can get 30 miles from a charge. His demo bike has 12,000 problem free miles, which I found impressive. They are pretty affordable, too. He said something like $399 down and $99 a month with no credit check. Anyone have any experience with this bike?
Pretty expensive at $100/month. I think Trek has some electric-assist bikes. They certainly could make some sense and extend commute range. In my case I've lost a shower at work, so when I bike to work I probably don't smell so great the rest of the day. If I could go at a very relaxed pace on the way here and minimize sweat production I could bust it on the way home and shower. Or simply extend range/speed. My fear if I got a bike like this is I'd use it so much it would become a defacto motorcycle and I may end up getting killed on the road due to spending so much time on it Trek Bikes | Bikes | Electric Bikes Even has regen braking but I rarely use the brakes on my bike, almost all energy is lost to fighting wind. $2600, though. Wicked pricey.
Both those look like nice options. If I lived in a place where biking plus public transport made sense, I'd definitely look at these as choices. They're expensive for bikes, but if just for transport, somewhat in place of a car (somewhat, because rainy days you'd still probably take the bus or metro!), it's a good deal. Since I unfortunately have to drive rather far for work, I'll keep the Prius for now.
Now if he made it as a recumbent, that would be neat. I've made the switch to recumbents and won't go back. My butt pain is gone, my wrist pain is gone, my eyes naturally look down the road instead of at the ground or my front wheel. But I only ride 3 miles to work, so it doesn't make sense for me. I have one hill to worry about, but it's not a long one, I think I can continue to make it.
Recumbents do have benefits but safety concerns would keep me from them. I'm sure I'd be less agile if I needed to be and lower down and less visible. I do fight with comfortable positions on my bike, though. If it's not butt it's back--generally my lower back has issues unless I position myself in a way that hurts my butt, so I can't win!
I found it very interesting to talk to this man. I was impressed that he was able to develop a product from scratch and create a business. I don't believe he has an actual store front, and gets his business from the internet. He says things are going very well, especially with the current prices and people wanting to save money.
Great idea. If someone can incorporate a kind of umbrella or canopy to one of these for rainy days, then it would be quite suitable for short to medium commutes to replace a car with green transportation.
Looking at it again I think purchase price must be well into the low thousands, it has headlights, keys, etc. Be very surprised if it's cheaper than the $2600 trek offering. This is more like an electric motorbike.
It is definitely less than $1,500.00. I think it is $399.00 down and $99.00 per month on the balance up to the $1,399.00 price. Or I guess you could just pay cash.
Great idea, bit pricey and it looks like something from Cambodia in the 1970's If it looked good it might be a seller.
I saw those guys at CES11. They just had the bike on display. I asked them regarding the top speed and was told 35mph. They didn't say what the price was. Before I bought my Prius I was going to build an electric bike. I bought a 2008 Giant Trance, crystalite 5303 rear drive motor, 1.5kw of headway batteries, 72v motor controller, BMS, and charger. I estimated the top speed to be around 45-50mph with a range of 20-25 miles. The charger is the same 900watt charger used in Enginer PHEV kit. After I got most of the parts, I scrapped the e-bike idea and bought a Prius instead. I know, shame on me. The Crystalite motor used in the UNO is one of the fastest motor, most powerful electric bicycle motor out on the market. The X5 motors are rated at 750-1000w but can handle easily 3000-5000w. Few people put as much as 20,000w to them. Doctorbass built an electric bike using Xlite to pull a bus.
Uno is interesting but $6.5k for it seems very hopeful. Also it has a tiny market, despite any ideas to the contrary by the owners of the company.
Skoorbmax, I also wondered why no price, so I called them the other day. I was told the reason they don't put price up is so they get people to call and inquire! Guess it worked...
Personally, I think the price is a good selling point and would put it in the ad. Probably the best selling point is the no credit check and payments. I may call him for a demo. Super nice guy and very interesting. He started this whole thing because he got a DUI. Turned a very bad situation into something positive.
I agree. I think this would have a huge market in Europe and probably a decent market in urban places in the U.S. if they really make it for under $10K. You mean something like this? Veltop Models
