Fuel EXe Is motor drag normal?

[malc101]

Maybe. He did say he heard some grinding. I fins that I feel like I am dragging a boat anchor if I go up and back down in assist. Why I have adjusted my riding to not do that. I will go up for a steep climb, but it is hard to go from mid to eco after being on mid for a bit.

On my first ebike (Haibike-Yamaha) I insisted they swap out the motor for same. At times the sudden disengagement of motors can be loud. I still get the boat anchor effect five bikes later, most prevalent on eMTB , due to tire drag, but to a smaller extent on eGravel bikes.

 

[DBSwiss]

Hi all,

I just bought my first e-bike last weekend, It is a second hand Fuel EX-e 9.7 '22 model with 2500km's on it and I'm not sure if it's functioning correctly and hoping for some clarity.

Is there supposed to be some sort of "engine" braking when you stop pedalling? What i mean by that is, sometimes, not always, when i stop pedalling the bike drags and slows down like there is engine braking like a 4 stroke motorbike when you let off the accelerator.
When it happens, if you don't start pedalling again it feels like it will bring you to a stop. It's like it doesn't disengage.

This can happen at any speed, even when switching modes and changing gears. It really throws my momentum off.
It happens even when I hold the "down" button on the lever to disengage the motor, when i pedal it feels like I'm being held back, even rolling down a hill.

The thing is, I don't think it does it all the time, sometimes it doesn't do it.

I thought it was a battery power thing and was only doing it once the battery was a like 30% depleted but it done it yesterday at 100% for the entire ride.

I went to a local trek sub-dealer and rode one of their exact same demo bikes and my bike back to back in the carpark but they felt the same but i think it was when the issue wasn't occuring.

Thanks

That doesn’t sound like a normal thing to me. I have a 9.8XT Fuel exe from 2022 and it never had that behavior. There is the famous grinding noise at low motor output from the clutch not fully disengaging but that is not creating a drag, just makes that noise. Good luck!

 

[Canyon Shawn]

I think what you’re feeling is the motor assist easing up, based on your pedal rpm. It does mess with your mind when you go from pedaling to not pedaling. Both if you stop pedaling quickly or slowly stop pedaling. Compared to a non-Ebike, there is a feeling of de-acceleration. The motor provides more power at higher rpm. Try to pedal at 100 rpm or higher. Unless your wheel bearings are completely shot, or your brakes are horribly rubbing, it would impossible for there to be drag once you stop pedaling.

 

[Ark]

try pedalling with the motor on, then turn the motor off, note how hard pedalling in that gear really is.
the wind resistance you feel is likely the wind and being in a gear you wouldn't be in on a normal bike

on my bike cx4 I can coast down a hill and it gathers speed very quickly.

take the chain off and see if the pedals and rear wheel spins smooth or feel notchy/rubbing

there's going to be some resistance on the pedals but it should be barely anything.
I can do 20mph on my bike on a flat even though it cuts out at 16.

sure it's harder than a normal bike but only because it's heavier, on a normal bike I'd probably be going about 24mph

 

[irie]

And tyres which give really good off road grip are horribly draggy on road. When on the road lycra warriors pass us all the time.

 

[Pean]

Grinding noises in WALK mode indicate engine damage. I had the same problem. Engine needs to be replaced.

 

[Casting_Shadows]

I took the bike to my local Trek dealer and they called me today to tell me that they test rode the bike and instantly noticed the drag stating that its not functioning like normal and agreed that the motor is 100% faulty, even a little bit "grindy" and they are submitting a warranty(which might prove tricky as i bought the bike second and after reaching out to the guy i bought it off, he is saying he doesn't know where the bike was purchased as he is just a reseller so i can't get a receipt or even a place of purchase as the bike was never registered).

My fingers are crossed but i'm not confident.

 

[irie]

I took the bike to my local Trek dealer and they called me today to tell me that they test rode the bike and instantly noticed the drag stating that its not functioning like normal and agreed that the motor is 100% faulty, even a little bit "grindy" and they are submitting a warranty(which might prove tricky as i bought the bike second and after reaching out to the guy i bought it off, he is saying he doesn't know where the bike was purchased as he is just a reseller so i can't get a receipt or even a place of purchase as the bike was never registered).

My fingers are crossed but i'm not confident.

With the serial nunber of your bike I think your "local Trek dealer" may (should?) at least be able find out where it was initially sold.

 

[Casting_Shadows]

Trek were able to trace the sale of the bike and I ended up getting a copy of the original receipt but unfortunately the bike is out of warranty according to Trek.
They are going to submit a request directly to TQ on my behalf in hope they will accept a warranty in good faith.
Fingers crossed but I'm not holding my breath.

 

[Casting_Shadows]

I went to the bike shop to get an update (it's xmas/new years period and i know how chaotic retail is this time of year so i haven't been pushing them) and a fresh new motor had been delivered just before i got there. Thankfully TQ replaced it even out of warranty.

 

[Renton_Yorkshire]

It will be interesting to hear your thoughts now with a new motor in, as to how you feel the bike performs with the perceived drag.

Like others have said, get above the speed limiter when the motor ceases to assist, and its like you just rode through treacle - due to tyres, wind resistance and a 40lb+ bike being propelled only by your legs and no assist

 

[whitymon]

To be fair on my TQ motor on mellow/flat section before a jump, if you are in turbo mode, pass the speed limit drag is so intense that I just cannot clear correctly the jump line on my 40-48lbs bike, especially if you reach the speed limit 6-10 meter before the first jump.

You are always better of on Eco mode or low assistance in that peculiar case as your legs will need to work much more and the cut out motor will be less perceptible.

Still it does not feel that good, sometimes in these peculiar case, I just cut off entirely the assistance to avoid the phenomena on such peculiar sections.

 

[Ark]

do your wheels actually spin freely if the bikes upside down and the chains off?
are the brakes rubbing?
unless your bike is turning into a fixed gear bike and the pedals won';t stop spinning then it's impossible the motor is causing drag.

it's not even engaged


on an EMTB your probably riding in a gear about +4 than you would normally too. turn off the assistance and see how hard it is to pedal in the gear you've been using.

 

[whitymon]

do your wheels actually spin freely if the bikes upside down and the chains off?
are the brakes rubbing?
unless your bike is turning into a fixed gear bike and the pedals won';t stop spinning then it's impossible the motor is causing drag.

it's not even engaged


on an EMTB your probably riding in a gear about +4 than you would normally too. turn off the assistance and see how hard it is to pedal in the gear you've been using.

Careful, let's not restart here, I am not talking about "motor" drag for my personal case but just drag from speedcut/weight/gears/legs (whatever) which is different than OP and will always exists. It is just that the bike is harder to pedal past the speed limit which is normal and to be expected, the bike is pretty harder to pedal from some assistance to nearly zero.

Yes being in a easier speed is helping (much more harder to feel it as eg though assistance you would not feel the need too as fast as on analog so preemptive shift is required), like I said above, lower to no assistance at all is better for me for some features where every pedal strike has a consistent feeling and expectation.

Again speed momentum on non steep section and nearly flat ground is very fast counter by bike weight, there is no real solution from what I see for me, for all other kind of situation it's ok.

 

[Casting_Shadows]

do your wheels actually spin freely if the bikes upside down and the chains off?
are the brakes rubbing?
unless your bike is turning into a fixed gear bike and the pedals won';t stop spinning then it's impossible the motor is causing drag.

it's not even engaged


on an EMTB your probably riding in a gear about +4 than you would normally too. turn off the assistance and see how hard it is to pedal in the gear you've been using.

Hahaha yeah it's 100% the motor, even the guy at the bike shop who is a big Trek dealer and has sold a boat load of these bikes couldn't understand how its physically doing it.
Yes, the wheels spin freely and no the brakes do not rub (i even took both front and rear brake pads out and rode it to test). I put a brand new cassette, freehub and chain on it even to eliminate those. The motor is cooked.

 

[Casting_Shadows]

It will be interesting to hear your thoughts now with a new motor in, as to how you feel the bike performs with the perceived drag.

Like others have said, get above the speed limiter when the motor ceases to assist, and its like you just rode through treacle - due to tyres, wind resistance and a 40lb+ bike being propelled only by your legs and no assist

Yeah, im interested too and will report back. Hopefully i get the bike back in a couple days.