Clattering coming from new CX2020 motor

[Blinkie]

just out of curiosity I've booked a demo on the orbea wild. will see how noisy it is compared to the SL

 

[p3eps]

just out of curiosity I've booked a demo on the orbea wild. will see how noisy it is compared to the SL

Different type of noise. The SL has a high pitched electrical whine. The Bosch has a similar whine when giving power. Maybe a bit higher pitches on the SL if you step up to Turbo mode.

If you take a Bosch motor down the rocky bit of the Green Hill at Pitfichie, or round Corrennie you’ll hear the clattering noise a lot. Only happens when going down rocky or rooty parts fast and not pedalling.
My Bosch felt like it got louder and worse with each ride.

 

[Blinkie]

yup was gonna go back to fikie to give it a good beasting

 

[b45her]

If it’s present on a demo bike it might only make noise after X amount of miles.

they feel totally different, on the 2 later bikes there doesn't seem to be any (or very little) backlash, on the older motor there is much more. from what i've seen it's a dt swiss style star ratchet system in there it wouldn't be difficult for them to change it to a part with more teeth. you may be right though, if it does start to make noise i'll update things however as of now both bosch gen 4 bikes i have access too regularly are very quiet.

 

[Paul Mac]

they feel totally different, on the 2 later bikes there doesn't seem to be any (or very little) backlash, on the older motor there is much more. from what i've seen it's a dt swiss style star ratchet system in there it wouldn't be difficult for them to change it to a part with more teeth. you may be right though, if it does start to make noise i'll update things however as of now both bosch gen 4 bikes i have access too regularly are very quiet.

Same here, just did a mellow 15 mile ride today, the Bosch motor is extremely quiet, I'd say quieter than my levo when riding without steep climbing.
There is some clattering noise when descending down rocky or very rooty sections, but I'm not finding it a problem at all.

 

[Tribey]

 

[Paul Mac]

I pretty much agree with the reviewer

 

[Tribey]

BearingMan, you have the MudStop for the Bosch Gen2, does the Gen4 need anything?

 

[WilkyWay]

This is from yesterday at my local trails. You can hear the clattering when you go over the rough stuff, as well as my brakes howling!

 

[Tribey]

Apart from the brakes, that sounds sweet.

I could live with that.

 

[kntr]

Apart from the brakes, that sounds sweet.

I could live with that.

Except that trail is smooth

 

[WilkyWay]

Apart from the brakes, that sounds sweet.

I could live with that.

Yeah they don't like being wet!

 

[WilkyWay]

Except that trails is smooth

This was the only trail I managed to get any speed on. The other more technical trails were 6" deep in mud so I was going fairly steady.

Will try harder next time out.

 

[Bearing Man]

BearingMan, you have the MudStop for the Bosch Gen2, does the Gen4 need anything?

Looking at the seals on the Gen 4 they are better than nothing and well sealed around the outer edges but sadly nothing on the inner surface
I have also looked closer into the "clacking" noise and although the ratchet mechanism in this motor is very fine, buy the time the small bit of play generated by the ratchet equates to quite a bit of play at the end of the crank and this would create a "clack" over rough ground as it does if you wind your pedals backwards on a standard bike and slam them forward until the freewheel hub in the back wheel catches. It would be good to try a ratchet with courser teeth.

 

[Wernher]

Yep, I don't think I'll worry out the Orbea now. Just seems to be too many negatives at the moment. I want to support my LBS so my choices are only Orbea, Merida or Rocky Mountain. Sounds like the Rocky Mountain motor is way noisier than the rest by all reports. I was pretty keen to try the new Bosch motor... looks like it's not going to happen.

I think you should go and ride the bike and make your own decision. Certainly I would also not like the clattering noise if it was bad but a lot of manufacturers went for the motor and there must be a good reason. That said I would certainly consider the Merida. If so the bikes I rode it's in my humble opinion the most impressive. The Shimano motor is very good and very tunable. The fact that it has a small internal 500Wh battery is also not an issue because you can easily carry a spare in the backpack and on the 10K model you get the backpack and battery as part of the deal. Take both out for a proper test. Do more than just a couple of pavement hops. If the caller don't give you a demo for s proper test move in to another brand because a rattle could drive you mad if it's too bad and you should have the opportunity to make sure you want to live with it or not.

 

[Tribey]

Looking at the seals on the Gen 4 they are better than nothing and well sealed around the outer edges but sadly nothing on the inner surface
I have also looked closer into the "clacking" noise and although the ratchet mechanism in this motor is very fine, buy the time the small bit of play generated by the ratchet equates to quite a bit of play at the end of the crank and this would create a "clack" over rough ground as it does if you wind your pedals backwards on a standard bike and slam them forward until the freewheel hub in the back wheel catches. It would be good to try a ratchet with courser teeth.

Thanks Bearing Man.

 

[Tribey]

I think you should go and ride the bike and make your own decision. Certainly I would also not like the clattering noise if it was bad but a lot of manufacturers went for the motor and there must be a good reason. That said I would certainly consider the Merida. If so the bikes I rode it's in my humble opinion the most impressive. The Shimano motor is very good and very tunable. The fact that it has a small internal 500Wh battery is also not an issue because you can easily carry a spare in the backpack and on the 10K model you get the backpack and battery as part of the deal. Take both out for a proper test. Do more than just a couple of pavement hops. If the caller don't give you a demo for s proper test move in to another brand because a rattle could drive you mad if it's too bad and you should have the opportunity to make sure you want to live with it or not.

Definitely have a good test ride.

I have Gen4 in my Whyte, and I haven't noticed this clattering at all. Maybe I need to ride more rock gardens, but that's not my usual terrain.

 

[Pylie1]

I think you should go and ride the bike and make your own decision. Certainly I would also not like the clattering noise if it was bad but a lot of manufacturers went for the motor and there must be a good reason. That said I would certainly consider the Merida. If so the bikes I rode it's in my humble opinion the most impressive. The Shimano motor is very good and very tunable. The fact that it has a small internal 500Wh battery is also not an issue because you can easily carry a spare in the backpack and on the 10K model you get the backpack and battery as part of the deal. Take both out for a proper test. Do more than just a couple of pavement hops. If the caller don't give you a demo for s proper test move in to another brand because a rattle could drive you mad if it's too bad and you should have the opportunity to make sure you want to live with it or not.

This is where the main problem lies. I can not get a test bike to ride, I only have reviews I find on the internet to guide me. I can certainly get other bikes to test with the Gen 4 motor driving them although, it isn't the Orbea. At this stage, I think it's going to be a miss for me. I'm now looking at a Rocky Mountain Altitude Powerplay option. I've manged to get a lower model for a few days to test and although the motor (drive train) is a little noisy whilst pedalling, it doesn't annoy me. I guess due to the noise being constant and that intermittent bang bang bang. The motor input feels very natural and the bike seems to ride fantastic. I actually can not believe how nimble it is!! At this stage, the C70 Altitude seems to be the go.

The Merida looks like a great bike, great spec and not too bad price wise although, the Powerplay motor seems more natural to me for some reason? I realise the drivetrain has that gear grind noise to whilst pedalling... it's something that I feel I can put up with though.

Orbea can blame the Gen 4 motor noise as a lost sale. I'm still a little surprised they haven't addressed it, at the same time being aware the current climate isn't great for any mountain biking issues.

 

[kntr]

Orbea has addressed it and they have contacted Bosch. Bosch's response was the chatter goes away after break in. Im not sure if this is true or not. Has anyone had a Gen 4 for awhile that has had the noise go away?

 

[Cinnamon]

Yes, it finally went away when I sold my bike and bought Merida. Much better now.

 

[GrahamPaul]

Orbea has addressed it and they have contacted Bosch. Bosch's response was the chatter goes away after break in. Im not sure if this is true or not. Has anyone had a Gen 4 for awhile that has had the noise go away?

Done 1500km on my Focus and haven't noticed the motor clattering for quite some time. Could be getting drowned out by the bloody awful row the loose cables running behind the battery are making, though

[Edit: Should point out that the cable slap is there when I'm pedalling. Whereas the motor noise went away when I pedalled. So I know it's not the motor.]

 

[Paul Mac]

Orbea has addressed it and they have contacted Bosch. Bosch's response was the chatter goes away after break in. Im not sure if this is true or not. Has anyone had a Gen 4 for awhile that has had the noise go away?

500 mile on my Rail, noise is still there.
I don't think it will go away

 

[Doomanic]

200 miles on my Rail and I still haven't noticed it.

 

[Pylie1]

Orbea has addressed it and they have contacted Bosch. Bosch's response was the chatter goes away after break in. Im not sure if this is true or not. Has anyone had a Gen 4 for awhile that has had the noise go away?

I would be surprised if it went away. It doesn't seem to be that type of noise.

 

[zaykay]

500km’s on my Rail and it’s now more louder than when new. Does not bother me but it’s there and if you know what to listen it’s very evident. It was also loud on the test bike what I had few days before buying my own.

 

[knut7]

Another video on the Bosch noise, comparing it to other motors.

 

[GrahamPaul]

Another video on the Bosch noise, comparing it to other motors.

Thanks for that. Very interesting and I certainly found it helpful.

I think we forget that our EMTBs are noisy and we have gotten used to it. This was brought home to me two weeks ago when I collected my road bike for the garage to use in the turbo trainer during the lockdown. The bike was so quiet on the road home that I thought I'd forgotten to turn on my hearing aid. Then I remembered that I don't need a hearing aid...

 

[Number29_NZ]

This was some good reading, I was on the verge of getting a Trek Rail 9.8, the noise would drive me nuts, sounds like a tool box being thrown down a staircase, surely Bosch can find a fix.
The larger battery in the Rail was appealing, bike is sadly gone from my short list now.

 

[Doomanic]

Without even riding it?

You lot must have ears like bats! I genuinely can’t hear the same noise from my bike.

 

[Bearing Man]

I would say the same, at least try it