Highest Mileage Steps E8000 Motor

[Gary]

Ah... We have that kind of thing too...

We call it XC/hike-a-bike (for obvious reasons)

 

[R120]

Having had 2 steps motors go now, IMO they are perfectly capable of doing very high miles, if looked after well they will deal with most conditions, but what they dont like (and I think this applies to pretty much all EMTB motors) is being ridden aggressively. Both my motor failures had nothing to do with the conditions the bikes where rides in (snow, streams, sand all dealt with), both bone dry inside. They failed because internal components had gone due to the amount of force/stress being put through the motor bearings/structure when ridden hard, e.g lateral force through the cranks and into the bearings/spindle.

This is just my opinion, but when ridden hard there is a hell of a lot of force, combined with the weight of the frame, going through the motor, which is effectively a structural/stressed member of the frame due to the design.

Imagine on a normal bike, the forces going though the bb are directly transmitted into the BB Shell, and look how beefed up those areas and components are on a modern enduro bike for example. Now on an EMTB those forces are being transferred directly into the motor.

So on any EBIKE the motor is taking a lot of the forces that a on a normal bike the frame would take.

 

[RCDallas]

Well said and really the point I was trying to make! I think they will get better with each new motor design...which seems to be the case with Bosch and Brose/Mahle in the Specialized, but only time will tell! I think the key now is for manufacturers to support these existing systems with spare parts availability to end users and service centers or provide low cost replacements, either new or refurbished. Until that happens I guess it's either; take it easy to get more life out of it or; Ride it like you stole it and replace when necessary.......

 

[R120]

Whilst EMTB's are a relatively new thing, EBikes are not, and most of the emtb systems are developments of, or even mainly used in regular Ebikes too - EMTB's are only a small section of the total Ebike market, so to date parts and back up for systems has been pretty good.

If you take a company like Shimano, what was once top tier, tend not to be replaced and bumped down the line up instead. I dont know, but would speculate that the current motors remain in production, but beome replaced with the new models at the top of the line up.

 

[squeegee]

In regards to motors, now have 2500 miles on my Decoy and am starting to feel play in drive side crank, thought it was pedal spindle but unfortunately is motor. For those of you that have replaced an E8000, at what point (i.e. how much lateral play) do you think a bike shop/shimano service center will need to warranty? In other words how bad does it have to get to be a no-brainer replacement?

What I'm seeing is minor, maybe 3ish mm of play but I'm sure it's going to get worse fast I'm sure.

Has anyone purchased a reserve E8000 motor to have on hand? So often with my riding a spare of something is necessary to eliminate down time....like rear shocks.

 

[RickBullotta]

In regards to motors, now have 2500 miles on my Decoy and am starting to feel play in drive side crank, thought it was pedal spindle but unfortunately is motor. For those of you that have replaced an E8000, at what point (i.e. how much lateral play) do you think a bike shop/shimano service center will need to warranty? In other words how bad does it have to get to be a no-brainer replacement?

What I'm seeing is minor, maybe 3ish mm of play but I'm sure it's going to get worse fast I'm sure.

Has anyone purchased a reserve E8000 motor to have on hand? So often with my riding a spare of something is necessary to eliminate down time....like rear shocks.

Good luck finding one in stock anywhere...if you find some, and after you snag yours, let us know!

 

[Armeniandave]

In regards to motors, now have 2500 miles on my Decoy and am starting to feel play in drive side crank, thought it was pedal spindle but unfortunately is motor. For those of you that have replaced an E8000, at what point (i.e. how much lateral play) do you think a bike shop/shimano service center will need to warranty? In other words how bad does it have to get to be a no-brainer replacement?

What I'm seeing is minor, maybe 3ish mm of play but I'm sure it's going to get worse fast I'm sure.

Has anyone purchased a reserve E8000 motor to have on hand? So often with my riding a spare of something is necessary to eliminate down time....like rear shocks.

My Decoy is starting to have motor issues also. I have around 1500 miles on it. Started the warranty process with YT so we'll see how it goes. I think an extra e8000 motor is gonna cost a pretty penny! I was hoping by the time the motor needed to be replaced I'd be replacing the bike!

UPDATE: YT called Shimano and they’re sending me a new motor. They said up to 2mm play is normal but more is not.

 

[RickBullotta]

Not seeing any online, where are you located? Any idea what the issue is? I see E7000's available on open market but nothing available in E8000.

I'm going to try and call Shimano, not sure if I'll have any luck. Called a couple dealers in my area (DC), no one seems to know about stock of motors unless they call someone.

I'm on the east coast of the US.

 

[urastus]

Just general info, I was curious about warranty on shimano motors - it looks like two years; that's shimano Australia. For me that means ride as much as possible - it will probably take me two years to get 5,000km - each ride is around 20-28km all steep.

 

[R120]

Yes its two years - where there is some ambiguity is the warranty on replacement motors - when mine was replaced they told me I had a new 2 year warranty on the new motor, but others have been told the warranty on the replacement is linked to the bike warranty - mine was replaced direct with Shimano UK though.

 

[Nifty 56]

UPDATE: YT called Shimano and they’re sending me a new motor. They said up to 2mm play is normal but more is not.

2mm of play is not what I would call 'normal'! If you can feel any play that shows it's due for replacement soon. I am an ex. precision engineer/engine tuner so used to tight tolerances, but even so, 2mm it is way OTT.

 

[iXi]

I had mine replaced at 1700ks, the replacement is currently at 4400ks and I've got about 10 months warranty left if you go on the two years from original purchase date.

 

[Armeniandave]

2mm of play is not what I would call 'normal'! If you can feel any play that shows it's due for replacement soon. I am an ex. precision engineer/engine tuner so used to tight tolerances, but even so, 2mm it is way OTT.

I agree that 2mm is not normal so I made sure to tell them it was more than 2mm!
At least it wasn't too much of a hassle getting the motor approved. Hopefully the
new one will last much longer!

 

[Nifty 56]

I agree that 2mm is not normal so I made sure to tell them it was more than 2mm!
At least it wasn't too much of a hassle getting the motor approved. Hopefully the
new one will last much longer!

Bearings are manufactured with tolerances in microns (1000th of 1mm) so to have 2mm of play means it's been scrap for ages. I just cannot believe that a Japanese company would say that. 0.2mm would be OK but the more play there is, promotes even more wear.

This is putting me off getting another emtb with a Shimano E8000 motor. Will it's successor be better?

 

[Armeniandave]

Bearings are manufactured with tolerances in microns (1000th of 1mm) so to have 2mm of play means it's been scrap for ages. I just cannot believe that a Japanese company would say that. 0.2mm would be OK but the more play there is, promotes even more wear.

This is putting me off getting another emtb with a Shimano E8000 motor. Will it's successor be better?

As a Turbine Engineer myself I would agree however the design looks like the
cranks are held by the two bearings so some play would be acceptable. To
there credit they are replacing my motor with no hassle so obviously they do
not think it's normal either. When I get the new motor I will check what the play
is and see if there is any right from the start.

 

[Nifty 56]

As a Turbine Engineer myself I would agree however the design looks like the
cranks are held by the two bearings so some play would be acceptable. To
there credit they are replacing my motor with no hassle so obviously they do
not think it's normal either. When I get the new motor I will check what the play
is and see if there is any right from the start.

If you work on turbines (which are very large?), the tolerances will be greater as they need to be on bigger diameters. So 2mm of play on a 4m turbine is hardly noticeable. But 2mm on a 50mm bearing (if that's the Shimano main bearing size?) is shocking.

As you're going to be getting a new motor there shouldn't be ANY play whatsoever. If I got a new motor and there was any play in the main shaft, I would just send it back.

I am still considering getting another emtb with an E8000 motor as I had no problems with mine although I only used it for about 950 miles/1529km.

I would have liked the Shimano app to have more features like the Specialized Mission Control app but it was OK although I did have to buy an iPhone to use it as it wouldn't work with my Android mobile.

 

[Armeniandave]

If you work on turbines (which are very large?), the tolerances will be greater as they need to be on bigger diameters. So 2mm of play on a 4m turbine is hardly noticeable. But 2mm on a 50mm bearing (if that's the Shimano main bearing size?) is shocking.

As you're going to be getting a new motor there shouldn't be ANY play whatsoever. If I got a new motor and there was any play in the main shaft, I would just send it back.

I am still considering getting another emtb with an E8000 motor as I had no problems with mine although I only used it for about 950 miles/1529km.

I would have liked the Shimano app to have more features like the Specialized Mission Control app but it was OK although I did have to buy an iPhone to use it as it wouldn't work with my Android mobile.

Actually the tolerance can go down to .0127mm on a large turbine in relation to the bearings. Vibration is the killer for rotating engines and the more play in the bearings the more vibration.

I agree that the Shimano app should have more info like the specialized app. I had much more info on my Levo than my Decoy. I used a third party app to see my battery charges but I don’t think it’s accurate since I know the charge cycles are way more.

 

[Theterrorwheel]

Mine did 4.7k miles before failing

 

[Armeniandave]

Just FYI at 1200 miles now and motor is starting to get excessive play!
Really don't think these motors are built for aggressive riders. Maybe they
think we're all old and slow cause we ride eBikes!

edit: Also gears are now slipping inside the motor. This motor is definitely
toast! Really questioning the longevity of this motor under heavier use.

 

[sdcoffeeroaster]

I'm at 3850 miles, all mtn biking, no mud or water to speak of. Lots of climbing and rocks. Light rider too, 150 lbs. A clacking, clattery noise has just suddenly developed under no or light loads. No noise under normal loads. I've mostly used ECO and Trail modes set to medium and only occasional boost mode (medium as well). I don't know what the noise is ( I've looked at the usual suspects) and I don't have much in the way of motor bearing play at all, maybe 0.1mm if that and feels smooth. I'm going to ride it like this to see if it gets worse before my warranty is up in April and seek out a dealer that sells bikes using Shimano motors. This is a Focus jam2 and no dealers in the US anymore.

 

[themoon]

Would be really cool if EP8 could be used as a replacement for the E8000... As for E8000 - did anyone see it sold separately?

 

[RickBullotta]

Would be really cool if EP8 could be used as a replacement for the E8000... As for E8000 - did anyone see it sold separately?

Requires wiring harness changes and other subtle fitment changes. Plus unlikely there will be EP8's available outside of OEM for a long while, if ever, due to demand.

 

[RickBullotta]

I'm at 3400km/2100 miles on my original E8000, and it's going strong. Batteries, not so much...

 

[sdcoffeeroaster]

I'm at 3400km/2100 miles on my original E8000, and it's going strong. Batteries, not so much...

My battery still says 40 miles on ECO (medium) and it's a 2018 with almost 4000 miles now and 400,000+ feet of climbing. But because I wanted it to last as long as possible I made a 250 wH DIY range extender that I use for the first 12-15 miles of every ride.

 

[iXi]

I had mine replaced at 1700ks, the replacement is currently at 4400ks and I've got about 10 months warranty left if you go on the two years from original purchase date.

6650ks now. 5.5 months warranty left

 

[routrax]

View attachment 23964

That's beautiful. I have a thing for ridge climbs and that looks like an amazing line.
Where is it?

 

[Rusty]

That's beautiful. I have a thing for ridge climbs and that looks like an amazing line.
Where is it?

No idea sorry - was picture commenting on @Gary about 'All Mountain'. I too have no idea what it means, but would expect to be able to climb K2 or Everest if it says All Mountain.
Come to think of it - probably Mt Cook after the big landslide.

 

[Zachy]

I have 3869 miles on the original e8000 motor in my 2019 Decoy Pro and well over 500,000 feet of climbing. I expect it to go 20k or more miles without issue.

 

[jimbob]

My battery still says 40 miles on ECO (medium) and it's a 2018 with almost 4000 miles now and 400,000+ feet of climbing. But because I wanted it to last as long as possible I made a 250 wH DIY range extender that I use for the first 12-15 miles of every ride.

Do you have any more details on how you made the range extender?

 

[sdcoffeeroaster]

Do you have any more details on how you made the range extender?

There is a thread in the Focus section and I'm still working on the final version. It's just a 20 cell hoverboard battery that gets plugged into a Rosenberger cable/connector. The Focus Jam2 senses the battery when plugged in and uses it until it's unplugged or depleted. All the other work is about packaging. My latest will be a 3.6" diameter "bottle" in an oversize waterbottle cage with a charge level meter. Waiting on a friend to make the final version of the bottle. The hoverboard batteries are inexpensive but the one I've settled on uses 3500mah Sanyo/Panasonic cells and cost a bit more than the cheap Chinese batteries. It's also just a bit slimmer so I can keep the already large bottle size down to a minimum. The one I'm currently using was built in the US and cost $129. I think there are similar ones on aliexpress for around $31. I just don't know if these are very good but this one look to be a very compact build size. US $23.68 36% OFF|36V 7ah 6Ah 4.4Ah 5.2Ah high drain 2 wheel electric scooter self balancing lithium battery pack for Self balancing Fits 6.5