Bike for my wife

[Mikerb]

Any feedback welcome on the ladies Cube Access Hybrid Pro 500 2019 v 2020. My wife had a road test on the 2019 bike in size 16 today and liked it. The 2020 version has gone from 27.5 to 29 and has the 4th gen motor but I can see no other changes apart from sizes which are now 15,17, 19....so no 16 size. Price difference is about £250. So go with the 2019 or 2020 and if 2020, 15 inch? Finally what about the choice? Any better alternatives out there? Riding will be mostly off road but fireroad and intermediate/blue level single track.

 

[GrandPaBrogan]

Not sure if Giant eBikes are available and well supported where you live. Giant make women specific eMTBs under the LIV range. I gather you're after a hardtail? So that would be the LIV Vall E+ below.

Screenshot below by the way is in NZ$ and the sizes aren't in inches but rather XS, S, and M
Might be worth checking...

But LIV has womens full suspension bikes too:
The Embolden E+ which is the equivalent of the Stance E+ (Trail)
The Intrigue E+ which is the equivalent of the Trance E+ (Enduro)

I only mentioned the above because I was surprised that the full suspension Embolden is 100 bucks cheaper than the hardtail Vall - here in New Zealand anyways. Have no idea why that is...

 

[HGmtb]

In Australia ALDI have started selling Ebikes - and this one looks really good value:

ELECTRIC MOUNTAIN BIKE | CELL BIKES

 

[Benson]

Bike for my wife

It seems like a fair swap but I’d need to see a photo of her before committing ?

 

[Mikerb]

haha...but I doubt you could afford the running costs!!

 

[Akiwi]

I just got this one for my wife

18" frame, I hope it is not too big. The 16" was not available, and she was right on the border between 16 & 18.
The 2020 motors are noticeably easier to pedal over 25 or with th emotor off.

 

[Mikerb]

I just got this one for my wife

18" frame, I hope it is not too big. The 16" was not available, and she was right on the border between 16 & 18.
The 2020 motors are noticeably easier to pedal over 25 or with th emotor off.

Thanks. I did some you tube research and saw a similar comment. Overall I think it is worth going for the 4th gen motor which seems an improvement on several fronts. The feedback I read was that it is 25% smaller, 1kg lighter, has a max 340% assist as opposed to 300% on the gen 3 and the control software is smoother. The smaller size has enabled frame re design , probably most significantly shorter chain stay lengths. So I will definitely be going for the 2020 model.
I also found out that the Pro model is available in 27.5 for the smaller sizes and 29 for the bigger sizes.

 

[ggx]

I just got this one for my wife

18" frame, I hope it is not too big. The 16" was not available, and she was right on the border between 16 & 18.
The 2020 motors are noticeably easier to pedal over 25 or with th emotor off.

Main dif. btw sizes S and M is reach. Should be fine with M frame . Standover is a bit high in this frames and not short inseam friendly but the same on S and M .

 

[Mikerb]

Yep you are right. One of the issues is the bend in the seat tube which prevents the seat post being lowered a great deal. Easilly fixed on a solid post by cutting it down. Dont know how it works out with a dropper post. Im waiting currently for the lbs to order in a 15 inch 29 er model for her to try.

 

[Mikerb]

Interesting to read also that the 4th gen has an anti tampering sensor. If it detects hacking it goes into limp mode! Sign of things to come with all the brands.

 

[Akiwi]

Yep you are right. One of the issues is the bend in the seat tube which prevents the seat post being lowered a great deal. Easilly fixed on a solid post by cutting it down. Dont know how it works out with a dropper post. Im waiting currently for the lbs to order in a 15 inch 29 er model for her to try.

I have been able to push the dropper post all the way down into the seat tube. so it gets the seat pretty low.
Big dissapointment was that it came with black handlebar grips rather than the red ones shown on the internet page. I'm sure that will make a few KM/h top speed difference. ;-)
I have managed to counter that by buying some nice red pedals.
One of the big advantages of the 2020 models is you can get it with the 625 wh battery!!
A cost cutting disadvantage is that it comes with only a 2 watt charger. We will keep the old 4w charger from her existing bike and sell it with the new shiny 2 watt charger.

 

[Mikerb]

Its a new battery so you may want check it can be charged above 2w without causing damage. The newer battery designs are in general faster to charge.

 

[Mikerb]

Its a new battery so you may want check it can be charged above 2w without causing damage. The newer battery designs are in general faster to charge.

...errrr.....2amps not watts!

 

[Beekeeper]

Wife bought 2019 cube access hybrid pro. 17 inch seems to have the 29inch wheels. I was worried about the Suntour front coils and the fact that there is no lockout on the 2019 model but lockout on all other years. In reality we have found it not to be a problem because the 34inch forks seem very robust for what she uses it for (fire tracks and roads)
She really does miss not having a bottle cage but there are no holes for it on sizes below 19inch frame.
She loves a bargain and it was reduced from £2200 to £1700. Too good to resist so she decided to get it and not waste any more time waiting for the 2020 version with Gen 4 motor.
The 2019 version uses all Shimano gears and brakes. I think the 2020 uses SRAM for a lot of stuff.
The Shimano 11 speed Deore gears look very solid and the chain is very thick and robust. She loves the bike. Range is excellent. No problems with anything so far.

 

[Beekeeper]

2019 access hybrid pro 500

 

[Akiwi]

...errrr.....2amps not watts!

Sorry, my mistake. I no speak electro language!!.
Normally that wouldn't be a problem, but as I intend to try not to store the batteries full, it is important to be able to charge relatively quickly if you decide.. today I want to go on a ride.
I am almost tempted to get the 6A charger for the times when you need to quickly load. When I did the transalp and we loaded the batteries for an hour or so during our lunch breaks, the 6A would have been a nice luxury to have.. OTOH it wasn't a problem with good healthy battery management.

 

[Beekeeper]

Evans are selling an ex-demo 16 inch

 

[Akiwi]

3 years ago I got my wife a hardtail Treck Powerfly. As she loved it so much we did heaps of tours together. But she was always jealous of my Fully. I lent it to her often.
We have just upgraded. Just thought I would point that out.

 

[Mikerb]

Evans are selling an ex-demo 16 inch

View attachment 22826

Yep I have same option...same price at my lbs. But I can get 10% off a 2020 so price difference is not great and the 4th gen seems worth it.

 

[Beekeeper]

Yep I have same option...same price at my lbs. But I can get 10% off a 2020 so price difference is not great and the 4th gen seems worth it.

Yep as the Gen 4 is actually out now it makes sense to go for that one. Still amazes me that some new 2020 Trek Powerflies still use the Gen 2 motor. A bit odd that. They either have huge stocks of the old one or could it be that Bosch are still making a few?

 

[Mikerb]

Thanks for all your comments and suggestions. I ended buying a 2020 Cube Access 29 EX 500 in Black/Aqua in size 15". My wife loves it!! Not a bad spec
Alex rims Shwalbe 2.6 Smart Sam tyres. Suntour 35mm coil fork 120mm travel 15mm boost. Rear axle 12mm through axle 148 boost. SRAM Eagle 12 speed Shimano MT420/400 hydraulic disc brakes. Fully integrated 500 w/h battery Bosch 4th Gen CX motor 75nm.
Just need a few bits of frame protector for the rear of the seat post and crank arms plus some mudguards. Checked it over thoroughly and found nothing wrong......cut 50mm off the seat post since her ideal position is with the entire post inside the seat tube. She even found the stock saddle comfortable!!
Now a search for some good mudguards. The front one needs to provide a little more downtube protection than my usual Enduro type guard since the front of the downtube is the plastic battery cover. Any recommendations??

 

[Akiwi]

Thanks for all your comments and suggestions. I ended buying a 2020 Cube Access 29 EX 500 in Black/Aqua in size 15". My wife loves it!! Not a bad spec
Alex rims Shwalbe 2.6 Smart Sam tyres. Suntour 35mm coil fork 120mm travel 15mm boost. Rear axle 12mm through axle 148 boost. SRAM Eagle 12 speed Shimano MT420/400 hydraulic disc brakes. Fully integrated 500 w/h battery Bosch 4th Gen CX motor 75nm.
Just need a few bits of frame protector for the rear of the seat post and crank arms plus some mudguards. Checked it over thoroughly and found nothing wrong......cut 50mm off the seat post since her ideal position is with the entire post inside the seat tube. She even found the stock saddle comfortable!!
Now a search for some good mudguards. The front one needs to provide a little more downtube protection than my usual Enduro type guard since the front of the downtube is the plastic battery cover. Any recommendations??

Yes, This one,
CUBE CUBEGUARD PERFORMANCE 29" FRONT

. I have it and it is removeable, so I only put it on when I need it.

 

[Zimmerframe]

Yes, This one,
CUBE CUBEGUARD PERFORMANCE 29" FRONT

. I have it and it is removeable, so I only put it on when I need it.

I had the cube guard, it's nice, and quick/easy to remove ..

On mine, you can see it was slightly too close to the downtube, so I stuck some foam pads on to stop it rattling .. It gives you an idea how far it comes down though. That's the "race", which is slightly shorter and skinnier than the "performance" (and weaker).

I chopped it down in the end as it would still flap and rattle due to the frame proximity - it wasn't so effective at guarding the down tube then though ..

 

[Beekeeper]

Yep we both have that mud guard for our cubes. Really easy to take on and off. Ordered it through the Tredz bike shop online.

 

[Mikerb]

Thanks......I was wondering whether a crud catcher would be better at both protecting the down tube and rider plus an enduro type front mudguard for stancion protection.I like the mudhugger rear mudguard.

 

[ryturn]

Not sure if Giant eBikes are available and well supported where you live. Giant make women specific eMTBs under the LIV range. I gather you're after a hardtail? So that would be the LIV Vall E+ below.

Screenshot below by the way is in NZ$ and the sizes aren't in inches but rather XS, S, and M
Might be worth checking...

View attachment 22771

But LIV has womens full suspension bikes too:
The Embolden E+ which is the equivalent of the Stance E+ (Trail)
The Intrigue E+ which is the equivalent of the Trance E+ (Enduro)

I only mentioned the above because I was surprised that the full suspension Embolden is 100 bucks cheaper than the hardtail Vall - here in New Zealand anyways. Have no idea why that is...


View attachment 22772

my partners been riding Liv's for years Hail /Intrigue SX we tested lots of ee's Giant included , her pick Specialized comp and she loves it perfect fit .

 

[Jamy]

the pro guard bolt on looks ok although I havent used them
Protecting my Levo '19 - EMTB Forums

 

[Rusty]

In Australia ALDI have started selling Ebikes - and this one looks really good value:

ELECTRIC MOUNTAIN BIKE | CELL BIKES

Not a fan of hub motors for an eMTB - makes them sketchy.

 

[Akiwi]

I had the cube guard, it's nice, and quick/easy to remove ..

View attachment 23045

On mine, you can see it was slightly too close to the downtube, so I stuck some foam pads on to stop it rattling .. It gives you an idea how far it comes down though. That's the "race", which is slightly shorter and skinnier than the "performance" (and weaker).

I chopped it down in the end as it would still flap and rattle due to the frame proximity - it wasn't so effective at guarding the down tube then though ..

View attachment 23046

I Will admit that We had the same problem that it sometimes hit the downtube. However a little application of heat in the right areas added more curve, and it wasn't a problem any longer.
Another small problem I have is that my front brake cable catches on the mudguard and sometimes pushes it slightly crooked. And I HATE that as much as a crooked painting on the wall!
But easy to fix. I still find them to be ideal for the occasional times that I need a mudguard.

 

[Zimmerframe]

Another small problem I have is that my front brake cable catches on the mudguard and sometimes pushes it slightly crooked. And I HATE that as much as a crooked painting on the wall!

Mine would also do that occasionally. I ended up filing the large "spacer" ring to roughen it up so the mechanism gripped more tightly, that seemed to do it - and setting tighter in combination.