Help needed, first emtb stuck between 2 bikes

Gareth82

Member
Feb 18, 2020
11
3
N. Ireland
Hi I am new to the emtb scene and wanting to make my First emtb purchase, my only experience of a emtb is the decathlon stilus which they kindly lent me for a 2hr demo. When I collected the bike it only had 2 bars of battery life which ran out 13 mile into the test ride, wasn't to bad riding 7 miles back to the shop without assistance but you could certainly feel the extra weight. Really enjoyed the bike before battery run out but I found little gains on flat over my analogue bike, the other bike on my list is the canyon spectral on al 7.0 which has the shimano e8000 motor which seams easy to tune using stunlocker.

The stilus is £800 cheaper and if I could destrict the bosch motor would be a no brainer, can anyone add any valuable advice over the two bikes/motors

Thanks
 

geehaw

Active member
Nov 17, 2019
107
86
Melbourne Australia
Hi I am new to the emtb scene and wanting to make my First emtb purchase, my only experience of a emtb is the decathlon stilus which they kindly lent me for a 2hr demo. When I collected the bike it only had 2 bars of battery life which ran out 13 mile into the test ride, wasn't to bad riding 7 miles back to the shop without assistance but you could certainly feel the extra weight. Really enjoyed the bike before battery run out but I found little gains on flat over my analogue bike, the other bike on my list is the canyon spectral on al 7.0 which has the shimano e8000 motor which seams easy to tune using stunlocker.

The stilus is £800 cheaper and if I could destrict the bosch motor would be a no brainer, can anyone add any valuable advice over the two bikes/motors

Thanks
My limited experience is with the Shimano motor. Only 500km over a couple of months but very satisfied and very easy to tune for the different modes. People say it's noisy, and yes you can hear some noise if you are doing a mindless ride or a slow straight uphill climb on a calm day. If your concentrating on your ride or if there is any wind you don't notice it.
 

andykent

Member
Mar 12, 2019
38
31
Oetz, Austria
Batteries arrive from the manufacturer in a sleep mode and when activated for the first time have around 2 bars or 20-40% charge. Not buying a battery from a shop because it wasn't full for a test ride is the most ridiculous reason ever!!

Perhaps the original poster walked into the shop and asked to try it so the shop activated the battery for him.

Going by the potential problems that e-bikes can have i would always buy from a local bike shop.....
 

GrahamPaul

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
Nov 6, 2019
1,127
1,088
Andalucía
You got a choice of two bikes. Toss a coin with one bike heads and the other tails. Before the coin lands you'll find yourself hoping for an outcome of one over the other. Go with that.

If your sole criteria is which is easier to derestrict, then forget the Bosch motor. Bosch are playing cat and mouse with all the derestriction systems. You'll find yourself doing an awful lot of 90 minute sessions with no assistance and you'll have a season ticket at your lbs begging them to reset your motor and not tell Bosch.
 

R120

Moderator
Subscriber
Apr 13, 2018
7,819
9,190
Surrey
I would actually say fair play to Decathlon for letting you go on s proper test ride - most shops restrict you to a pedal round a car park, if that!
 

Doomanic

🛠️Wrecker🛠️
Patreon
Founding Member
Jan 21, 2018
8,702
10,342
UK
You got a choice of two bikes. Toss a coin with one bike heads and the other tails. Before the coin lands you'll find yourself hoping for an outcome of one over the other. Go with that.

If your sole criteria is which is easier to derestrict, then forget the Bosch motor. Bosch are playing cat and mouse with all the derestriction systems. You'll find yourself doing an awful lot of 90 minute sessions with no assistance and you'll have a season ticket at your lbs begging them to reset your motor and not tell Bosch.

All Bosch have done is comply with the EU requirements on anti tampering. I’m looking forward to the new Shimano motor being released with similar anti tampering measures to the Bosch...

And then firmware updates to the current Shimano motor to replicate them...
 

nikpw

Member
Feb 10, 2020
18
5
London
Hi I am new to the emtb scene and wanting to make my First emtb purchase, my only experience of a emtb is the decathlon stilus which they kindly lent me for a 2hr demo. When I collected the bike it only had 2 bars of battery life which ran out 13 mile into the test ride, wasn't to bad riding 7 miles back to the shop without assistance but you could certainly feel the extra weight. Really enjoyed the bike before battery run out but I found little gains on flat over my analogue bike, the other bike on my list is the canyon spectral on al 7.0 which has the shimano e8000 motor which seams easy to tune using stunlocker.

The stilus is £800 cheaper and if I could destrict the bosch motor would be a no brainer, can anyone add any valuable advice over the two bikes/motors

Thanks

De-restricted my 2020 Bosch with a speedbox 3. Hasn’t missed a beat since.
 

R120

Moderator
Subscriber
Apr 13, 2018
7,819
9,190
Surrey
As an fyi this is what Bosch tell shops to look out for

Screenshot 2020-05-04 at 09.06.00.png
 

GrahamPaul

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
Nov 6, 2019
1,127
1,088
Andalucía
All Bosch have done is comply with the EU requirements on anti tampering. I’m looking forward to the new Shimano motor being released with similar anti tampering measures to the Bosch...

And then firmware updates to the current Shimano motor to replicate them...

I'm 100% with you there. So it goes a bit slower on the road? Well so does a non-E mountain bike. The clue is in the name. It's not a road bike.

As far as I'm concerned, if speed is the thing, then folks should buy a motorbike - they'll save a packet, too. Or get a fully legal S-pedelec. (But then you'll hear the complaints about needing licences, proper helmets, insurance, number plates, brake lights... yeah, but it's a soddin' motorbike FFS!)

Sorry @Doomanic I'm getting all het up agreeing with you... :rolleyes:
 

HinduKush

Member
Jun 7, 2020
22
2
Colorado, USA
Depends on the circumstances. If you just showed up to a dealer and they offered a demo ride with a bike that wasn't fully charged wouldn't be too critical. If you scheduled a demo ride and not fully charged, different story.
Agreed. The shops near me want $100+/day to rent an e mtb. They'll credit you the money if you buy the bike but if a shop will let you demo a bike for free then you do end up coming out ahead in the end. I'd go back to the shop and explain to them that you weren't given a charged battery and would like to try it one more time with a charged one before making a decision. If they want the sale they'll let you do it. If not then you have to wonder what kind of support they'll give you after the sale.
 

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