Shimano range extenders

[Dave_B]

Do you think there is any possibility of Shimano making range extenders for existing bikes? Or is it dependent on the wiring in the bike and a third party should have to do it?

 

[ichauchtt]

I wouldn't count on Shimano for anything that customers actually want or have been asking for. They seem to develop product in a vacuum, take 3X longer than the competition to do it, then deliver buggy crap when they do.

I really wonder why you say so, what is then the buggy crap they deliver?

@db3266 - How should such a range extender work? You can only extend range by reducing power usage or increasing capacity, so in the worst case, you need to carry a 2nd battery. Or what did you think of?

 

[ichauchtt]

Yeah, this is just general bashing - SW runs perfectly for me, never had issues, what is not working for you? My battery works like on the 1st day (ok, got a YT Decoy), drive system and speed cut-out happens at (or maybe slightly below) 25 km/h (so never at 90%) for me and can be adapted by 3rd party software if desired. And how many miles did you make on the completely "crappy" new EP8 system?

 

[RickBullotta]

Yeah, this is just general bashing - SW runs perfectly for me, never had issues, what is not working for you? My battery works like on the 1st day (ok, got a YT Decoy), drive system and speed cut-out happens at (or maybe slightly below) 25 km/h (so never at 90%) for me and can be adapted by 3rd party software if desired. And how many miles did you make on the completely "crappy" new EP8 system?

LOL. The trail of tears from the eTube app (bricked drive systems, inability to connect, app shutting down) is well documented, and the launch of the latest version was a complete disaster - hugely buggy and wouldn't connect to the Shimano servers.

For US-spec bikes, speed cuts out at 18.2 MPH versus the rated 20.0 MPH. Again, thoroughly documented.

EP8's launch issues are well documented also: What’s The Holdup With Shimano’s New eMTB Motor?

Battery life issues are also well documented in this forum, with real world numbers showing rapid deterioration of effective capacity on a fairly sizeable number of E8010 batteries.

"Can be adapted by third party software" is also a great example of another Shimano fail. While many manufacturers provide high levels of customizability via their apps, Shimano requires dealer visits (or unauthorized 3rd party apps) to perform such trivial tasks as readjusting wheel circumference when swapping tires or wheel/tire combos (I switch between 29er and 27.5 plus for example).

As usual, discussions such as this tend to be primarily between fanbois and those who have had poor product experiences - the outliers. I'm a bit of both.

 

[ichauchtt]

In the end, you either like a system or you don't and then you make a decision for yourself what to buy. I am definitely not a fanboy - I could not care less, but for me, the Shimano system I have works fine and fulfills my requirements. I don't care when my motor cuts out as long as it does not bother me (I have no urge to measure the exact speed). I personally had no issues with the software. I am not affected by the E8010 battery issue. So, I am happy. I had a Bosch bike before and it also had its' pros and cons.

You can go to the Bosch, Brose, Yamaha, ..... forums and make a similar summary as you did above, maybe the headers are different but still.