Replacing e8000 motor (not in a specialized service center)

[themoon]

I own a jam 2 2018 with e8000 motor and everything works flawlessly; just wondering - how hard it would be to replace the motor without going to official service, assuming I got a hold on a new motor. The thing is, shimano ebikes are not serviced it my country at all and transporting a bike to the nearest dealer/repair shop who work with e-bikes would be prohibitively expensive. So thinking about buying a new motor just in case, while supplies last and they are not discontinued. Quite happy with bike performance as it (so not thinking about migration to bosch or ep8), but would it be possible for me just to swap the whole motor on own later on, when the need arises - maybe with the help of a bike mechanic, but who is not really an expert in ebikes? Or is the procedure a very complicated one?

 

[themoon]

Getting ready to pull a trigger on a new e8000 motor for EUR 700... if only somebody can answer the question above

 

[Cisco]

Hi there,

It is a 30 minute job to remove the E8000 motor from most frames. Only one £10 special tool required to remove the chain ring when reinstalling on the new motor.

Good luck with it,

Frank

 

[themoon]

Thanks, Frank. Which tool might that be?
Also, after installing - is there any initialization required? Or just plug and play

 

[R120]

I believe that you may need to set some of the software of the motor to the particular bike - there are some parameters in the software that can be adjusted to the bike the motor is in, e.g angle of installation within frame.

@Gary may know the answer

 

[themoon]

That's interesting. Guess there is no way I can access this software myself then.

 

[R120]

You may be able to via the PC interface - I would have though you can just hook up the motor and go ride, but there may be some quirks that setting up the motor via the software irons out, or there may be no issue at all.

 

[themoon]

From the system manual though it says you'll need a linkage device, SM-PCE1 and SM-JC40 (not sure why the need for the latter though). But this is put in the context of connecting to E-TUBE via PC, and this is something I can already do via Bluetooth. These two components are not exactly cheap either, at 150+ EUR.

Would be interesting to know what other settings are available / required for a new motor and which software will I have to use.

 

[Cisco]

Pretty sure the e8000 is plug and play. There was no mention of motor angle (software) setting until the EP8 arrived. If you did need to change this I believe it can be done via STunlocker but I would need to check.

This is the tool for the chainring. Remember it's reverse thread 40Nm and use a torque wrench. I'm sure I paid £10-15 for it!

https://www.google.com/search?q=icetools+e8000+chainring+tool&oq=icetools+e8000+chainring+tool&aqs=chrome..69i57j33i10i160.18572j1j15&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

 

[Gary]

Yes. A new motor does nerd configuring.
I have the PC interface and software but haven't actually ever had to use it on a motor (just Di2) Any replacement motors have been warranty replacement and as such set up using data from the knackered motor by tech at Madison before being sent out.

 

[themoon]

Oh, I have just made the purchase, which I guess cannot be cancelled... So suppose I even buy the interface, is copying data from old motor and restoring it to the new one a procedure which I can do myself then?

 

[themoon]

Yes. A new motor does nerd configuring.
I have the PC interface and software

Btw, which interface do you own? Guess for backing up settings of old motor you'll need PCE1/2? As I currently do not own either, would be great to know if there is an option in etube windows app to just copy settings from e8000 and save them somewhere -> to restore later on new unit.

 

[Gary]

PCE1

 

[themoon]

Thanks. The only remaining question is then (or maybe should I ask it in a thread dedicated to E-tube? Could not find one): can I backup/restore motor settings with this software - or anything else is needed?

 

[>moto<]

I just restored software on my bike when it crashed trying to upload a newer version. The eTube app has the functionality and I don't think there are any bike specific paramters, as far as I can tell, there aren't a bunch of different software files for different bikes and different motor angles. On this basis I would imagine that you can do what you need to do in eTube or ST Unlocker.

One thing to note, using eTube on my Samsung Galaxy Note 20 ultra was painful and I had several crashes, though it worked perfectly on my Mrs' iPhone 12 Pro.

I think the software works better with iOS. Not sure if the same is true for ST Unlocker.

 

[themoon]

Hey moto, thanks for chiming in. I actually made a few firmware updates via eTube app on my old android device (ios app was not available in my country's app store, lol). Also played a bit with different power settings for the motor, all was fine.

Procedure or restoring after fw failure on the _same_ motor is pretty straightforward and can be googled up easily, so that's not an issue. What really got me interested is what Gary mentioned about configuring of the new motor. Dunno, maybe some settings specific to manufacturer... like battery size or the ability to use external battery pack (TEC in case of Focus shimano builds; or even DIY battery I've made and use now with absolutely no issues).

So what I'm trying to find out before pulling the trigger on SM-PCE1/2 is whether I will be able to use that to copy settings from the old motor (if that's really required) and restore them to the new one. Ofc, if I had the device myself, I could check whether such an option exists in eTube app... but since I do not own it (yet?), just trying to google anything related to transferring settings between motors, with little success as of now.

I also emailed Focus support with this question, just in case

 

[>moto<]

Yes, good points. I'm not 100% familiar with the eTube app but it looks pretty basic, I'd be impressed if you manage to use it copy software files from one bike/motor to install on another.

I see you said that Shimano eBikes aren't serviced in your country, does that mean that Shimno motor based bikes aren't sold there? I ask as I was wondering if a bike an enterprising bike shop may have an SM-PCE1/2 tool to work on Shimano stuff in lieu of the fcat there is no official Shimano support.

What country are in?

I'd like to learn more about the software side myself, I like the idea of having a bit a play with stuff like this.

 

[themoon]

@>moto< I'm in Ukraine, and shimano e-bikes are not sold/serviced here. It was bought in Germany and transported here... There is a specialized shimano service center, but they refused to take a look at anything e-bike specific. As for other shops and the availability of SM-PCE1/2 - I highly doubt anyone has it; maybe just private individuals tinkering with their bikes. Still not quite a lot of e-bikes here now.

Anyhow, got a reply from Focus, saying that apart from upgrading firmware to the latest version (as is usually suggested, I guess), no special actions are needed when installing a new motor

 

[>moto<]

@>moto< I'm in Ukraine, and shimano e-bikes are not sold/serviced here. It was bought in Germany and transported here... There is a specialized shimano service center, but they refused to take a look at anything e-bike specific. As for other shops and the availability of SM-PCE1/2 - I highly doubt anyone has it; maybe just private individuals tinkering with their bikes. Still not quite a lot of e-bikes here now.

Anyhow, got a reply from Focus, saying that apart from upgrading firmware to the latest version (as is usually suggested, I guess), no special actions are needed when installing a new motor

Sounds like a good excuse to buy and SM-PCE tool It's a shame it's such a hassle for you though, I suppose if you take plunge, your existing motor fails and you can't fix it, you could tie up getting it fixed with a holiday or road trip. In Aus we'd knock out a 1500Km comfortably over a weekend. I've done 1100Km in a day many times.

Would be a pain but if it's the difference between having a bike and not....

 

[Andy.M]

Is the E8000 motor still in production or is there only a few left to purchase?

 

[themoon]

@>moto< actually right now I'm not so sure I want to buy SM-PCE. If all the changes required to the new motor is updating the firmware, I still can use bluetooth connection via phone, as I've done a lot of times now in E-Tube app; also I've updated firmware a couple of time already for different components.

I actually took a bike to mountains in our country, it was a 900km trip... but just for repairing I'd probably prefer to do it locally

@Andy.M I read somewhere that they might be discontinued... just bought one in case they may be hard to get later