How long before you change your bike?

[GOSBTS]

Hello,

I have a META POWER RACE 2019 , which is a great bike, perfectly capable etc. Shimano E8000 / 504wh is fine and if I was unaware of other motor / battery developments, I'd happily stick with it. Is E8000 toast compared to newer motors?

My question is how long before you change bike?

Other observation, I'd buy from a shop next time, you buy the bike and not much else from Commencal. They play a straight bat (slightly undersized) with customer service, so I have to say I'm disappointed with them. FYI my charger failed and they advised I pay to send it to Shimano (France) for analysis. If I hadn't bought another charger I'd be without bike for 8 weeks now. Still nothing back from Shimano.

 

[steve_sordy]

I don't believe that e8000 is toast. It is a good motor and I sincerely hope that I can still get one when mine eventually fails. I've got about 6 weeks left of my warranty and it feels as good as the day I bought it, so I expect I will be replacing it at my own expense eventually. The same goes for the battery.

I love my bike and if it was stolen tomorrow, right now I genuinely have no idea what I would buy to replace it with. My default position would be another one exactly the same.

 

[routrax]

A new model does not make the old one obsolete.
It's up to you if you want to get the latest-greatest machine. If you have the money to spare, go for it.
I would expect Shimano would still supply parts for a few years after they discontinue a model.

 

[jimbob]

I think a lot of it is 'man logic. Its always possible to justify to yourself the next next exciting thing...

I aim to keep pine for a few years yet at least. They're an expensive purchase, and I'm no where near good enough to appreciate the minor differences in the latest model. Probably.

That said, I do fancy upgrading from a hardtail

 

[KeithO]

My question is how long before you change bike?

Everytime the current one needs a new chain ?

Takes out all the unnecessary guess work when choosing the new chain on line ?

 

[Husky430]

I'm in the same boat with a 2019 Merida E160 900e, still a far better bike than I am a rider and with nothing wrong with it.
What is there to buy anyway even if you decided to update your bike, local bike shops have nothing really on the floors and most bike pre-sold before even arriving in the country.
Very happy with the motor and battery combination (battery still at 95% after 2 years of use) and would probably update to another Shimano if and when I go down that rabbit hole.
Personally I rather like the look and idea with the new Kellys Theos F90 though not even sure if they have started production yet with the hold up on the new EP8 motor, let alone when or if many of them make it down to Australia.
Just love what you've got for now and ride it as much as possible. ?‍

 

[routrax]

I think a lot of it is 'man logic. Its always possible to justify to yourself the next next exciting thing...

I aim to keep pine for a few years yet at least. They're an expensive purchase, and I'm no where near good enough to appreciate the minor differences in the latest model. Probably.

That said, I do fancy upgrading from a hardtail

That's definitely a real excuse. I'd argue that it's a safety issue. Stop what you are doing and go buy a FS emtb immediately!

 

[maynard]

I think the older e 160 looks better than the new version. Especially in black and gold . I saw one at my bike park. Looks sic . And I told the guy too .

 

[maynard]

That's definitely a real excuse. I'd argue that it's a safety issue. Stop what you are doing and go buy a FS emtb immediately!

I used this logic with my wife when I upgraded to FS from hardtail. Its dangerous riding a hardtail when ur an inexperienced mtn biker . I need to go blow thousands of dollars on a new bike.

 

[steve_sordy]

yours responds to logic? What year make and model do you have?

She must be an engineer.

 

[cozzy]

Probably in 3 years. I am 100% happy with my current kenevo 2020. It has over 3 years warranty on the motor, a 700w battery which I dont see being outdated any time soon, geometry that surely cant get any better?! & decent components.
No, i WILL NOT buy a new bike next year !

 

[Jimbo Vills]

Seems about right.....

 

[Waynemarlow]

I used this logic with my wife when I upgraded to FS from hardtail a new wife. Its dangerous riding a hard new tail when ur an inexperienced mtn biker . I need to go bloew thousands of dollars on a new bike wife.

Fixed it for you

 

[cole_inman]

I’ve always said my next eeb will be something totally different than my current one. (Sight VLT 29) It’s so damn good that I’ll hold onto it until killer features like full stealth (ala Levo SL but with big motor and battery), gearbox shifting, ability to charge other ebikes/run accessories, Strava/GPS/heart rate sensor integration. There’s just so many ways ebikes can go (because of the onboard huge battery) that I’m going to let the tech go crazy for a few years, see what sticks and what doesn’t.
I love my Sight VLT 29 except for the long chainsays. Next bike will be 435-440mm, mixed wheel or not. (preferably not, like the new Kona Remote)

 

[Winger]

My wife and I dipped our toes in the EMB pond so to speak just as Covid was starting...as my doom and gloom forcast for anything to do with motorcycles was going to be be put on hold.


From all the home work I read the Shimano has been overtaken by Bosch and Brose, cutting a very long story short wifey went Whyte 150s and I went Turbo Levo, cutting an even longer story down of buying a couple Magic Mary’s ....wife sees a Cube 160 Action Team and did a PX she is very happy, and currently where we are.

But....topic of conversation has been how long before we change, and that will depend on the next tech steps what ever they maybe, battery size/motor/suspension, will be interested to look at the Focus Sam2 because su wise I believe shocks with springs in a vertical position ( like most motorcycles) will be the way to go.

 

[Janc]

Hello,

I have a META POWER RACE 2019 , which is a great bike, perfectly capable etc. Shimano E8000 / 504wh is fine and if I was unaware of other motor / battery developments, I'd happily stick with it. Is E8000 toast compared to newer motors?

My question is how long before you change bike?

Other observation, I'd buy from a shop next time, you buy the bike and not much else from Commencal. They play a straight bat (slightly undersized) with customer service, so I have to say I'm disappointed with them. FYI my charger failed and they advised I pay to send it to Shimano (France) for analysis. If I hadn't bought another charger I'd be without bike for 8 weeks now. Still nothing back from Shimano.

Commencal sent me the postage label for shipping my Brake to Shimano France. I di ask them for it. All back in less than 3 weeks ( I bought another anyway but that's another story!)

 

[TPEHAK]

Maybe 10 years if the battery won't die earlier. There is not too much new in 3 years younger eMTBs, but in 10 years things can changes significantly

 

[Janc]

When there is a significant advantage in changing ie - no more derailleur, cassette and chain. So either gear box in motor or variable power setting on motor (what about a rheostat?). Double the range of my 500w battery with no weight penalty. The whole bike being nearer 15kg for easier transportation (it's getting harder to lift! Built in anti theft and tracking. These are my wish list to make an excellent machine better.

Most of this list is possible or nearly so now, so with trickle through, maybe 3-5 years? That would make my bike 5-7 years old which is not a bad duration for technology.

PCs and laptops used to be more or less obsolete in 2 years now its not hard to get 7 years out of them if your specify correctly so I think the precedent is there. Cars are the same - remember when a 10 year old vehicle was just a collection of iron oxide, now we can easily get 15 to 20 years out of them.

 

[GrandPaBrogan]

I used this logic with my wife when I upgraded to FS from hardtail...

yours responds to logic? What year make and model do you have?

She must be an engineer.

Dude, no!!
Does your wife bear any resemblance to this? Rumour has it that it's still roaming around since it escaped...

If she looks like that, I'd get rid of all the knives in your house if I was you...

 

[urastus]

I normally wouldn't. My two mtb bikes that I was riding up to a year ago are both 2012. I think I will with the e bike though. I bought a merida e140 thinking it was more of a trail bike than the e160. I find now though that I'm starting to get more into black tracks, drops and jumps. I still really like the climbing and consider this to be 50% of my riding satisfaction - I can always just run a bigger tyre on the rear (2.8). All of a sudden I'm wanting more from my suspension. So, when warranty is out, and if there is a good deal going, I may upgrade. I wouldn't pay normal price though - I never have for motorcycles, cars, bikes, cameras etc. For example, I wouldn't buy now.

 

[jbrown15]

I just bought my first ebike this year but I ride allot of motocross and usually get a new bike every year or at least every other year. I feel like my eBikes will probably be the same. Mostly because I don't plan on getting out of it as I really enjoy it. So I've always gotten new bikes while my old bike still has good resale value. If you wait to long you lose more money selling the used bike.

I'd rather do that knowing that I had a great bike to ride with a current motor or battery. Much like how I prefer to buy new rather than used knowing that I might be getting someone else's old problems.

 

[Kernow]

Hello,

I have a META POWER RACE 2019 , which is a great bike, perfectly capable etc. Shimano E8000 / 504wh is fine and if I was unaware of other motor / battery developments, I'd happily stick with it. Is E8000 toast compared to newer motors?

My question is how long before you change bike?

Other observation, I'd buy from a shop next time, you buy the bike and not much else from Commencal. They play a straight bat (slightly undersized) with customer service, so I have to say I'm disappointed with them. FYI my charger failed and they advised I pay to send it to Shimano (France) for analysis. If I hadn't bought another charger I'd be without bike for 8 weeks now. Still nothing back from Shimano.

Well Ive recently sold my 2018 meta power race and bought a trek rail 9
I had no intention of selling the bike until I went looking about to see how stuff has moved on , i was quite happy with the meta I almost went for one of the 2019 29er meta race that were on offer because the main thing I missed was the big wheels which weren’t available when I had my meta . However I thought a bit extra and I would update to all the latest stuff and get with a local dealer
Like you dealing with mail order wasn’t perfect I wished I had bought local and with current import taxes etc I felt uncertain what I would really end up paying . The new generation of commencal seems pretty expensive , and wasn’t available with no date expected so that was ruled out pretty quick

motorwise the e8000 isn’t toast by any means , I really liked that motor once they gave me a new one after the faulty original .
yes the bosch has moved on and Its extra modes and features etc are nice, I get more enjoyment doing challenging climbs on it
And it’s a quieter not that I ever thought the shimano was noisy .
Best thing is the extra battery life and the predictable distance it does . I used to get battery anxiety with the shimano due to its short life especially in the cold and tendency to run out very fast after that 3rd bar dropped .
the bike itself , I always thought my meta was very good , although I was never a fan of the way the rear linkages were engineered .
the trek feels a whole lot better , livelier better handling , better clearance , etc but how much of that is bigger wheels and a beefy zeb fork I don’t know , but I think bikes have probably just improved as well .
I think the money side probably worked for me . I felt a 3 year old ebike could be costly if it went wrong , and looking at how well bikes are fetching second hand adding approx 2700 to what my meta sold for and jumping on a new rail 9 Iam a very happy fellow and happy that I changed .
i guess there’s other questions to answer like do you do your own maintenance or are you likely to be spending a hefty bit with a Lbs as your bike approaches a major maintenance / rebuild point .

 

[The EMF]

Hello,

I have a META POWER RACE 2019 , which is a great bike, perfectly capable etc. Shimano E8000 / 504wh is fine and if I was unaware of other motor / battery developments, I'd happily stick with it. Is E8000 toast compared to newer motors?

My question is how long before you change bike?

Other observation, I'd buy from a shop next time, you buy the bike and not much else from Commencal. They play a straight bat (slightly undersized) with customer service, so I have to say I'm disappointed with them. FYI my charger failed and they advised I pay to send it to Shimano (France) for analysis. If I hadn't bought another charger I'd be without bike for 8 weeks now. Still nothing back from Shimano.

Hi there
I bought my Whyte E150 RS in July 2020 with the aim of keeping it until it’s totally goosed.
I do 95% of work on the bike myself, I’m sure there will be places where I’ll be able to get the motor o/hauled, serviced once the warranty period has expired. As for the battery can’t see it packing up for ages such as the lithium ion technology is. So what’s left is consumable items that wear out. All the suspension linkage bearings are the same size on the Whyte and are easily sourced from bearing suppliers. The frame is aluminium so can be recycled easily.
This bike is awesome to ride and the suspension and geometry for me is spot on.

 

[The Hodge]

Aren't you forgetting that there is a lifetime warranty on bearings ..so that shouldn't be a problem ..
Mines a keeper too ...

 

[The EMF]

Aren't you forgetting that there is a lifetime warranty on bearings ..so that shouldn't be a problem ..
Mines a keeper too ...

Hello Pal how’s things ?
I know the bearings are under lifetime warranty but you still have to pay the LBS to fit them, plus there’s the slaver of taking the bike too and from the shop and the time involved.
I would like to check my bike against yours to hopefully eliminate a perceived problem I may have....when restrictions ease.
take care and stay vertical ?

 

[The Hodge]

So..see you in the summer then ?
No problem ...anything that I can take a pic of in the meantime ?

 

[The EMF]

So..see you in the summer then ?
No problem ...anything that I can take a pic of in the meantime ?

Can’t take a pic as such. I want to compare the movement of crank when it takes up the backlash of the gears in the motor prior to the motor engaging under pedal pressure
Bet you wish you never asked ??

 

[StuckintheSpokes]

It’s a tough one. The general rule is to get a new one when the warranty runs out. If that’s a hardtail, you could sell the bike after that. Say the average decent mid drive motor hardtail new would be 2.5k. If the depreciation leads to it trending at about the same price or higher as a new motor (but recently changed), then sell. Means the buyer will get the life of one motor out of it, so it is a reasonable trade because most warranties are non-transferable. If you have an average priced Full Suspension Ebike, things get a little tougher. When that warranty runs out, the price will have depreciated by less of a percentage than the hardtail, and usually the value will be twice or even more times of a new motor and battery. It is tempting to ride it to death more so I think, at that point in the life of the bike. Now, if the warranty is transferable, it’s an even harder choice. The bike keeps even more of its value, so you can sell at any time, really. If you keep yourself in the know of what is the trending price of however old your bike is, you can make a more informed decision of how much money you want to lose.

Buying second hand means relying on others and yourself rather than dealers for parts, as the dealer is probably too expensive for your budget usually. When you replace components they will usually be of inferior quality, due to budget. Forums like this are excellent for trading tips and tricks.

At the end of the day it is how much are you willing to do. Are you happier to work harder on the bike, than splurge out? Then keep the thing until it’s Trigger’s broom, and then it won’t be the same bike anyway.

Personally, I bought new the first time because of little knowledge of how to maintain a bike in terms of fixing parts and have a knack at finding good deals on second hand parts along with that knowledge.

I’m no mechanic, but maybe tools should be the only thing you buy premium in an ideal world where you can spend the required time to fix, maintain and ride your bike as much as you want.

 

[InRustWeTrust]

You know New bike doest make you a better rider its how you ride it .

know some who always have to buy the latest and most expensive model of bicycle every year and then they assembled a lot of expensive components. they are totally useless at cycling and always blame their bikes even though they have the best bike you can have.

I personally do not change bikes often, but if I am happy with the bike I have, I feel no sense to change bike and I can ride the same bike for several years.

 

[Rapido]

For some of us, the answer depends on our age.
I used to ride my '19 Levo Expert 4-5 times a week, riding to work and back the long way up in the hills plus usually 1 day on the weekend.
I just retired Jan 1 and I actually ride less! I've got too many other hobbies at this point.
At 65, I may never upgrade. I still really enjoy being on the trail, but as I ride less, in the coming years I may end up getting something that has more of a multi use as I cruise around the country and coastal waters.