Bosch Anti-Theft Feature

[RustyIron]

Y'know that feature on the Bosch motors where the motor won't turn on unless you're nearby with your phone? It sure seems like a good idea. Right?

Yesterday I stopped by the bike store to BS with the owner. We went out back so he could show me some bikes he's working on. One was a new Pivot AM with the Bosch motor. It was a great looking bike--and it was dead in the water.

The bike's owner had enabled the security feature. It worked great. Then his wife bought him a new phone. The new phone was great. And then he went out for a ride. The new phone wasn't the one that was set up with the bike. The bike thought that it had been stolen and wouldn't run. The old phone was long gone.

Fixing this problem isn't as easy as one might imagine. Forms need to be filled out proving identity and ownership. Once Bosch is satisfied that the bike really isn't stolen, they'll turn off the security block. Your bike store can't do it alone.

It seems as if the Bosch Security Feature isn't unlike the shackles your girlfriend uses to tie you up. I'm not going to tell you not to do it, but I'll caution you to pay close attention to the location of the key. Whether you have to call the bike store or the fire department for assistance, it's going to be embarrassing.

 

[TommyC]

If your phone battery dies whilst you’re out the bike will go into a restricted mode. I’ve abandoned all the smart system features now. Was a pain not just being able to grab the bike and go.

 

[Mikerb]

I rejected the Connect module idea when it was first announced. I'm afraid the bike industry is prone to using technologies like mobile phone connectivity and blutooth neither of which would even be considered as part of a professional business network. The connect module could have been made switchable using a controller menu or even controller user chosen code rather than mobile phone connectivity .......which had fairly obvious potential pitfalls.

 

[JP-NZ]

Y'know that feature on the Bosch motors where the motor won't turn on unless you're nearby with your phone? It sure seems like a good idea. Right?

Yesterday I stopped by the bike store to BS with the owner. We went out back so he could show me some bikes he's working on. One was a new Pivot AM with the Bosch motor. It was a great looking bike--and it was dead in the water.

The bike's owner had enabled the security feature. It worked great. Then his wife bought him a new phone. The new phone was great. And then he went out for a ride. The new phone wasn't the one that was set up with the bike. The bike thought that it had been stolen and wouldn't run. The old phone was long gone.

Fixing this problem isn't as easy as one might imagine. Forms need to be filled out proving identity and ownership. Once Bosch is satisfied that the bike really isn't stolen, they'll turn off the security block. Your bike store can't do it alone.

It seems as if the Bosch Security Feature isn't unlike the shackles your girlfriend uses to tie you up. I'm not going to tell you not to do it, but I'll caution you to pay close attention to the location of the key. Whether you have to call the bike store or the fire department for assistance, it's going to be embarrassing.

Last october I got a new iPhone, I had a similar issue. I had to grab my old iPhone and delete the app and settings on there. Load up the flow app on my new phone and re-add the bike to the new phone. I also had to switch off the bike lock option.

Took about 8 minutes, has worked fine since. Moral of the story is you should always double check before selling your older phone. I believe if you don't use the bike lock option within the app then you shouldn't have any issues either.