504wh / EP8

[Andyrp2001]

Got a fairly good price on an e-mtb with 504wh battery and Shimano EP8 motor. I would appreciate any thoughts on this, particularly battery size, and real world performance. The bike is rolling on 2.4 Maxxis Minions.

I weigh 75kg and I’m relatively fit so planning on dialling down the assistance a little bit and turbo would be reserved for special occasions!

Just curious what I can expect from this set up. Thanks!!!

 

[Zimmerframe]

Welcome and congratulations on the new bike !

There isn't really a set expectation. There are so many factors.

Your cadence, how fast you go, how hard you pedal.

The surface you're riding on, the altitude gain (going up uses more battery), how the terrain undulates.

As a rough basic, you should get 40km's and 1000m climbing using mixed modes. Other than that, it will depending on how you have it configured, which modes you use, where you ride and how you ride.

 

[Peaky Rider]

If you ride on your own or with other 500wh battery users you will be fine and should easily manage Zim's suggested range, I used to.
If you ride with 625+wh battery users, you will get range anxiety.

 

[Tonybro]

Agree with comments, I have a 504wh Merida with E8000 (not EP8) and get about 25 miles and up to 3000ft. My lower capacity Rise matches or betters it usually (albeit more slowly on the climbs).

 

[Andyrp2001]

Thanks for the comments so far, really useful. My last ride was 4000ft climbs and 25 miles so think I’ll hold out for something with a bigger battery. Seeing plenty of stock at the moment so hopefully I might see some discounts soon, if not I’ll just ask for one!

 

[Tonybro]

Check on whether an extender battery is available for the particular bike. My Rise can add a 252wh extender that provides a total of 612wh, giving me 40 mile range...

 

[Zimmerframe]

Thanks for the comments so far, really useful. My last ride was 4000ft climbs and 25 miles so think I’ll hold out for something with a bigger battery. Seeing plenty of stock at the moment so hopefully I might see some discounts soon, if not I’ll just ask for one!

There's no reason you couldn't do the same. As said, there are many factors. You can wind the assistance down to get more autonomy.

Someone like @Pivot averages about 100km's per charge cycle on a Shimano and there's plenty of others who get good range/altitude, plus the Orbea Rise bikes still achieve good performance with the reduced power motor. But if you want to do the same ride but faster and/or go further, then yes, you'll need more capacity.

Generally, a Bosch Gen4 will give you more range than a Shimano - how much of that is down to system efficiencies or just the way the assistance is provided - it's hard to say for sure.

 

[RustyIron]

Got a fairly good price on an e-mtb with 504wh battery and Shimano EP8 motor. I would appreciate any thoughts on this, particularly battery size, and real world performance.

Like Zimmer said, it's not really a quantifiable value.

I've been riding an eMTB for a little over a year, and when I started, I would stress out about the exact same thing. It took a few months until I got used to the whole process and started riding without giving the battery much thought. If it's a familiar trail, I know how to ride it. If it's a new trail, I figure out ahead of time how many miles and how much elevation, then ride accordingly. The more unknown variables, the more conservatively I ride.

But to answer your question the best I can, I have one particular route that can leave me with only a few percentage points of battery. I also have an EP8 with 504 wh battery. If I ride it in my usual manner, I'll have a few percent remaining when I get back to the truck. If I ride conservatively, I can end up with a comfortable amount of battery left. The route is about 24 miles and 4000 feet, with some chunk and some punchy climbs.

When in doubt, dial back your assistance. The most significant factor in conserving the battery, I've found, is speed. Slow it down to the speed you'd be riding on your Amish bike, and the battery will last a loooooong time.

 

[Stormy 107]

Easy solution, buy a second battery pack and a emtb specific backpack that has a good battery stowing system and then no more range anxiety!

 

[theremotejuggernaut]

I have a Rise with 540w battery so only slightly larger than what you're looking at. Last 2 rides have been 32 miles/ 3000' climbing and 27 miles with 4700' of climbing. Both in the Peak District.

32 miles/ 3000' I finished with 41% left.
27 miles/ 4700' I finished with 15% left.

Generally, I try to ride in eco as much as possible on the ups (eco set to 24nm). Going up to trail (42nm) when I run out of gears. Boost is a last resort but I'll tend to use it when I know I'm headed back to the car and I'm certain I've got enough range.

Finishing with 41%, I did the first couple of miles unassisted and used trail predominantly. Where I finished with 15%, I rode the final ~4 miles in boost which dropped the battery from 25% down to 15%. The last mile was descending so really, that was 3 miles(ish) of boost.

I've stopped considering the distance (to a point) and focus on the elevation of a ride. How far you can go will depend on the terrain and your fitness as much as it will the capacity of the battery. I reckon I'd get 40 Peak District miles/5000' without being too careful. If I rode purely in boost, probably half that? Never tried!

If you're fit and enjoy pedalling, you can tune the power settings to give you less assistance which will increase the range massively.

 

[Mr CRUD]

My solution... 2 x 504 batteries (a spare in the backpack) and loads of flat out boost riding. Lots of fun, no battery angst!

 

[Pivot]

There's no reason you couldn't do the same. As said, there are many factors. You can wind the assistance down to get more autonomy.

Someone like @Pivot averages about 100km's per charge cycle on a Shimano and there's plenty of others who get good range/altitude, plus the Orbea Rise bikes still achieve good performance with the reduced power motor. But if you want to do the same ride but faster and/or go further, then yes, you'll need more capacity.

Generally, a Bosch Gen4 will give you more range than a Shimano - how much of that is down to system efficiencies or just the way the assistance is provided - it's hard to say for sure.

To @Zimmerframe point, I did recently L2B off road 2022 ride on my Ducati/THOK with EP8 motor and 640Wh battery. 96km ride, 3636 ft up and 3638 ft down. At the end of the ride I had 29% battery left with theoretical range shown on my bike as 45km.

I rode mostly in Eco (Lv4/10, 34Nm), some easy sections with the motor off, and then ripping up-hill (80km into the ride) in Trail (Lv6/10, 63Nm) overtaking Manual bikers. It was awesome, highly recommended.