Rocky Mountain Dyname 3.0 consumption

[thbo]

I recently got my long awaited RM Instinct Powerplay BC Edition Carbon 90 (See

Rocky Mountain Instinct Powerplay 2021 - EMTB Forums

I am wondering about ditching my Specialized Levo Comp 2020 after a lot of funny business. And playing with the thought of ordering the Instinct Powerplay I originally wanted. Can’t decide if I should get the 2021 Instinct PP C70 or the 2021 Instinct BC Edt PP A70? The former is carbon but the...

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).

I have yet to charge it, and have only tested it in total of 5km because of snow (and skiing), but was wondering if any Powerplay riders could shed some light on the following?

Does it seem normal that the bike consumes 16% battery on a 2.2km or 7 minute test ride? Of course some of that was in ludicrous mode but still.

I don’t get how the app (and website) reports spikes and even short periods of 1800 Watts consumption ? Even 1200 Watts in “orange” mode. It should be 250 Watts continuous of course but what is the actual rated peak of this motor? My soon to be former Levo Comp peaks at about 560 Watts I think. I thought the Dyname was in the 800s.

Both of these questions leads me to think there’s some calibration to be done on the battery/control system/app as well? If the battery hasn’t got damaged cells that is..... Any tip other than plugging it in?


Side note: Silly how the Ebikemotion app reports bike consumption to Strava as rider power. This is done correctly by the Levo, Bosch etc. It would be great if more of you nag Mahle Ebikemotion about this change request.

Side note 2: Why does Rocky Mountain *still* not have it’s own manufacturer specific sub forum here, with it’s history and most importantly it’s own unique Dyname motor and all, while there are dozens of sub forums for brands that all use the same off-the-shelf Bosch components (or Shimano) with the same problems across subforums ? Rocky won 1st and 2nd on the uphill stages at the two stops on the first ever EWS-E last year! I know they dont lend out bikes for months to youtubers, but they have a lot of loyal riders.

 

[thbo]

Did a similar if only a bit shorter round around the neighbourhood and got 0Wh and 0% consumption after having charged the battery for the first time, to 100%....

 

[jka]

Something definitely sounds off with the calibration or reporting of battery use. I'd get some more riding in and monitor the battery status.
Lykke til.

 

[thbo]

Something definitely sounds off with the calibration or reporting of battery use. I'd get some more riding in and monitor the battery status.
Lykke til.

My dealer totally agreed with you. Told me to recalibrate it (button presses) and drive a fair bit longer to see what it reports then. Will do that this weekend.

(You are in Nevada and seem to speak Norwegian...?)

 

[jka]

My dealer totally agreed with you. Told me to recalibrate it (button presses) and drive a fair bit longer to see what it reports then. Will do that this weekend.

(You are in Nevada and seem to speak Norwegian...?)

Ja, jeg bodde i Norge i to år, men det var for mange år siden. Jeg snakker fortsatt norsk, men ikke fullt så flytende. Sist jeg var tilbake på besøk, trengte jeg nesten ikke engang å snakke norsk. Dere snakker alle sammen engelsk veldig bra.

 

[thbo]

Ja, jeg bodde i Norge i to år, men det var for mange år siden. Jeg snakker fortsatt norsk, men ikke fullt så flytende. Sist jeg var tilbake på besøk, trengte jeg nesten ikke engang å snakke norsk. Dere snakker alle sammen engelsk veldig bra.

Utrolig bra skriftlig språk! Imponerende på to år. Ja, vi er et lite utadrettet land som fort slår over på engelsk for utlendinger. Jeg bor og sykler mest sør i Vestfold fylke btw.

Had another emergency ride today (kids’ forgotten gym wear to school) and took the longer way back though the woods. 5,5km and 10% consumption. Switched a bit through modes, but would say 90% in green mode. Didn’t have time to do the recalibration first though. Will ride longer this weekend.

 

[Flatslide]

I seem to remember reading someplace that the Dyname peaks about 770W or so. The consumption sounds odd. I assume your battery is 632Wh or larger? My 500 Wh is 8000km in and still a lot better than that. I can manage around 45km with 700m of altitude on my Altitude...
For the first year I could do 50km and 900m. I only use the app for checking the charge% or the odometer and for fault codes. I occasionally used to record rides but it seems the company charge for the map annually, so they can get fucked

 

[thbo]

Yes the battery is the almost 700Wh one.

I use the app regardless as it can auto-post to Strava and I see the tracks on maps there. I also use the companion Apple Watch app to get a quick reading of battery, expected range and time, etc, as well as to include heart rate data. Also there’s a web version of all your data (and more than in the app) at Ebikemotion.com/app

The peak should be about 770W from documentation, which may not be up to date. But the consumption is so high that I assume it’s not only the consumption of the motor and battery, but the rider as well? Even though it’s still high combined compared to how slack these first short rides have been.

 

[Flatslide]

The app has more (or in my case less), functions depending on how old your mobile phone is. On my J5 Prime, the app is very basic, but when I was last in the store, the shop manager's late model Android had way more options and a completely different gui. He wasn't using the shop app either, just the regular owner app. My app only started counting battery cycles after a new motor was fitted.
I found an easy way to see if the torque sensor is out of calibration is to look down at the front chain ring whilst riding in Eco @ 40%, if it appears to spin more than a revolution once pedalling has ceased, then it's usually out of whack. You'll see the 'ring spin more turns after you stop pedalling as the assistance level is raised. It appears to be kinetic energy built up inside the motor (it has a decent size rotor), but unlike unit-construction motors (Bosch, Shimano etc etc), there's no actual drive supplied momentarily. You stop pedalling and it stops delivering.
Maybe just take your bike for a run and drain the battery down to 5% or until the bike switches off. Then charge it until the charger switches off. I do this a couple of times per year and it seems to help with the reported accuracy of the state of charge.
You're gonna have some great times on that machine, they look cool asf. I'm trying to talk a mate into purchasing one but they $13k here.

 

[thbo]

It’s still so darn cold up here so don’t think I will be able to run it down on one trip yet. But will ride this Thursday.

It was expensive but not as expensive as in your market. I hope there’s not anything wrong with the battery or motor.

 

[thbo]

Another RM dealer recommended me to empty and charge it completely 2-3 times before evaluating the consumption. Apparently sometimes the new batteries “sleep”. (EDIT: Obviously much the same as you said, [mention]Flatslide [/mention] ).

It seems to get slightly better range now the second time I have completely charged it and totally drained it 2 times (if I’m not just getting in better shape ). I can now get about 52km (about 1200m climbing) on a full battery. Still much less than my Levo though, even though I’m on 20% eco most of the time (no ludicrous, middle level at 60% when needed) in my RM. I’m weighing about 95kg.

The diagrams still show over 800W peaks when in middle level set to 60%, 200-300W when in eco level set to 20%, and still over 1400W in ludicrous mode (which indeed seems ludicrous). Also smaller negative consumption spikes all the way but I don’t think it should regenerate at all?

RM in Canada don’t really answer any of my questions. They seem to deeply care about mountainbiking and bike geometry, but any info about their electric components is inaccurate, outdated and it seems very much outsourced and not their concern. If they keep it that half-assed they won’t be a player in the future. A shame when the motor design was smart.

 

[thbo]

Apparently the third party Ebikemotion app from Mahle is not to be trusted. Both RM Canada and Norway came through with lots of info. New and improved system for 2022 though.

 

[eia]

Hello,
a friend of mine has also a strange behavior with his bike. There is almost no assist on the first power mode. We have the same fitness level but I can go with my non ebike uphill next to him. This means when I run my ebike he has to go at least in power mode 2 and I am on eco. Also the battery consumption is very high at his bike. I remember some rides last year were he did not have this problem and we both were on ECO mode. There was one ride were we did 2000m uphill with one battery. So this was the proof that the bike is really capable. But now it is kind of frustrating. But the last month actually this problem appears almost every time. A dealer said everything okay with the bike. It is hard to believe because much faster uphills and more altitude was possible.
Any idea what this could be? Any possibility to check a something with an App? I am not familiar with the Rocky Mountain bikes. But I told to him I will try to help him by using the forum.

 

[thbo]

The only two (simple) things I can think of is that he hasn’t recalibrated his torque sensor for a long time. Especially important from new until worn a bit in I guess. Or going from one (muddy) weather type/environment to a whole other. The other thing is less likely, but whether he has accidentally tuned his ECO mode down in the app (or middle mode to the top). In lack of an auto mode I tend to be pretty active on the mode selector on a Powerplay.

Torque sensor calibration is putting the gear on biggest cog in the rear, stepping off, standing with the bike on flat ground, and pressing the upper/“up” button until it flashes green and blue. Then clicking the small middle button slightly longer than a short click but not as long as you would when turning it off, until it flashes just green on and off 8 times. Then turn bike off and on again.

If it’s not flashing just green on and off in that step above, there might be an error in the system. He should then (or anyway) check the Ebikemotion.com/app web site where you see the bike’s error history as well as odometer and all other electrical component data. Same login as mobile app.

Check to see that the speed sensor isn’t loose or full of shit too. Both the rear triangle part and the part on the rear disc brakes. If the bike is stuttering or laggy it may be a faulty speed sensor which happens and is very easy to replace.

 

[Rip7]

Just been reading through this thread I'm have similar issues with my 21 instinct 90 bc
Went for first ride yesterday managed 45km battery was almost dead also didn't feel like it was giving much assistance at times to the point that I went from eco 25% to off and it felt no different
Tried a recalibration of torque sensor now when I did it and it says should flash 8 times should it stop flashing mine just kept flashing green and blue till I switched it off
Really not sure what's wrong.

 

[thbo]

As I wrote….

Torque sensor calibration is putting the gear on biggest cog in the rear, stepping off, standing with the bike on flat ground, and pressing the upper/“up” button until it flashes green and blue. Then clicking the small middle button slightly longer than a short click but not as long as you would when turning it off, until it flashes just green on and off 8 times. Then turn bike off and on again.

If it’s not flashing just green on and off in that step above, there might be an error in the system. He should then (or anyway) check the Ebikemotion.com/app web site where you see the bike’s error history as well as odometer and all other electrical component data. Same login as mobile app.

So, no, the green and blue flashing should not be just 8 times because it’s waiting for you to “interrupt” it with the middle button, but do not hold the middle button so long that you turn it off (yet). Then there should be 8 green flashes and then you turn the bike off and on again.

 

[Rip7]

Just did calibration again did as u said just and seemed to do it OK just need to try the bike as I used to have a 2019 altitude c70 and when I rode the instinct yesterday felt under powered compared to that.

 

[eia]

I am coming back to the thread. I already wrote couple of month about the problem of my friend. Still

Hello,
a friend of mine has also a strange behavior with his bike. There is almost no assist on the first power mode. We have the same fitness level but I can go with my non ebike uphill next to him. This means when I run my ebike he has to go at least in power mode 2 and I am on eco. Also the battery consumption is very high at his bike. I remember some rides last year were he did not have this problem and we both were on ECO mode. There was one ride were we did 2000m uphill with one battery. So this was the proof that the bike is really capable. But now it is kind of frustrating. But the last month actually this problem appears almost every time. A dealer said everything okay with the bike. It is hard to believe because much faster uphills and more altitude was possible.
Any idea what this could be? Any possibility to check a something with an App? I am not familiar with the Rocky Mountain bikes. But I told to him I will try to help him by using the forum.

I am coming back to my own post some month ago. My friend still has the same problem. He even had the bike at a dealer but they say all is okay. But I can not believe this. His battery consumption is very high and there is almost no motor assist in the ECO mode. And there is a hugh resistance when pedalling with assist mode switched off. Is this normal at the Powerplay? It is like you pulling the break very hardly. Far, very far away from a NON-Ebike and much worse than the old BOSCH Gen 3 Motor.

Maybe this big resistance is causing this high battery consumption? But then the question where it comes from if this is not normal? Could you please share with me how your big feels when it is switched off?

Thank you very much in advance!

 

[nineT]

Switched off there is very little more drag than on my non electric mtb. The motor is freewheeling. And unlike most other brands there aren't lots of gearings and bearings there to be turned when switched off or exceeding legal speed. Anyone who DIY changed the primary chain could have noticed.