With the e-bike culture becoming increasingly prominent in the past few years, many individuals have begun, and continue to draw towards this eco-friendly means of transportation. An e-bike is seen as a relatively compact and cost-effective mode of travel. The fact that the rider leaves no carbon footprint behind, makes it an appealing pick. However, choosing your e-bike is a huge and costly decision to make; therefore, you must be prompt in considering all aspects that will affect your choice.
Without a doubt, a new distinct purchase needs assistance to make the best decision, because everyone wants to buy the right and best e-bike. Even what you consider to be the best e-bike for you might need a little more tweaking to become the right one for you. What is right for you accounts for the practical constraints and hence what you are likely to buy will usually be different from what is best for you.
Your choice is not limited to your tastes. Many factors beyond your control will set in when confirming your choice of which e-bike is right to buy. Here we will go over the crucial aspects to consider, inclusive of other restraints—budget, suitable retailer— and considerations that will forge a better choice.
Trail
What electric bike do you need, is answered by looking at the kind of terrain and ride you want. You must choose your e-bike and the appropriate features that serve your interest, by asking the right questions.
The playground that you prefer to subject your e-bike to must be your first question because it is designed for a range of users with diverging expectations. Mountain biking, urban commuting, beach rides, downhill, road biking, or name any other. You need to remember that every terrain has a suitable e-bike in the showroom. All it takes is to know your favored trail.
Level of Assistance
E-bikes come with the proclamation of effortless riding. Your next consideration of yours must be the level of assistance you require. Pedal-assist bikes monitor the rider’s pedaling and add an appropriate level of motorized intervention. Depending on how much assistance you want, you can also amend the setting to give you various levels of pedal assist from level zero through five; some e-bikes can offer up to nine level of support.
Another class of e-bike has a throttle fitted to the handlebar. Your twisting will stimulate the motors to power your ride without the need to pedal. E-bikes can be a combination of both as well. This choice will depend on your preference for a fitness ride or just a commute or both.
Motor
Motors and their position can affect the balance and efficiency of the ride. A need for hilly tracks and serious cyclists are e-bikes with crank motors. Placed in the central region to exert power in the pedaling region, gives the rider a more natural riding experience. Such a motor is designed to ease the maintenance work and distribute weight evenly.
Although crank motors or mid-drive motors are ideal, they can be an expensive option. Hub motors are cheaper and are a common alternative. However, the hub motor sits at the rear or front wheel, making simple maintenance a tedious affair.
Battery
What e-bike buying guide can be complete without attending to the heart of the entire story? The battery of the e-bike ignites a normal bicycle to life and transforms it into an electric bicycle. It determines the performance–the range, the life, and productivity. Varying in capacity (measured in Wh), expensive e-bikes attach to themselves good batteries with state-of-the-art technology packed in.
The battery life oozes away over time, but the quality tells how soon. A warranty that lasts for at least two years can be a sign of quality, but do not restrict to this criterion. Also, take note of the weight of the battery, because it can signal capacity and burden. Choose the capacity of the battery pack to match your demand for performance and range.
Range
How much distance you can traverse on a full charge is the range of your e-bike. This specification is significant because you will never be able to make it to your destination without making sure that your e-bike can offer you the range you expect.
The capacity of your battery, your average speed, your weight, terrain, and level of assistance used–all of these get to decide the range of your e-bike. You must give these elements a thought beforehand so that you will have computed an approximate range of your liking. Make certain that your e-bike, counting the battery capacity, guarantees a little above the range you approximated, as what the seller says is not always a reality.
Budget
You cannot forgo the thought of the budget when making a purchase decision. Electric bikes are worth the amount you will have to pay for, even so, the budget you are willing to allocate to it is a matter of your priority.
Low-budget e-bikes start at about the range of Rs 27,000. GoZero e-bikes fall under this category. By spending about Rs 35,000, a more than decent e-bike can be procured. For instance, LightSpeed e-bikes come with a good level of improved components that are suitable for urban rides.
You might want to spend more when you demand higher performance. For such a level of performance, you will have to spend at least about Rs 45,000 and beyond. As your want for caliber increases Rs 60,000 or more will be easily spent on brands such as Svitch. Foldable and apt for multi-terrain rides, it comes with high-end features.
If an e-bike is something on which you wish to manifest your affluence and you are willing to treat yourself with all the luxury it offers, then there are brands for that too which will cost you a pretty penny. With 1.3lakh rupees, you can grab posh e-bikes such as Copernicus, a grand e-bike with beyond-wonder characteristics.
You must be prepared to pay more when you expect more from it. Nonetheless, there is always going to be an e-bike that can fit within your budget.
Where to buy from?
Further, the choice of retailer needs to be wise enough because certainly, a bad seller will not be able to give you anything good. Every brand has its outlet where you can explore various features and test-ride different models before coming to a decision and purchasing one.
However, certain brands have a very narrow range of models. You might want to encounter varied collections, especially when it is going to be your first e-bike. Online platforms like BLive EV Store do offer many brands.
Catering to the need for an authentic platform, BLive is India’s first exclusive online platform which brings together leading e-bike manufacturers from around the country (It is also India’s first e-bike tourism). In other words, BLive is a hub for the best electric bicycle, simplifying your inquiry into where to buy an e-bike. BLive assures us to present to you the choicest collection of quality brands from which you can take your right pick.
Test Ride
Once you know what you want and where to access it from, you have one big last step to take. The last note is just a reminder. This needs no retelling, nevertheless, remember to test drive several e-bikes before buying an e-bike.
The process of researching is at the zenith when test driving. For it is when you will know if what you ride on is the right and best option for you. You must put into the test all your high expectations and make an appropriate judgment; it is the moment to validate the quality that the e-bike promises on its brochures. After having made sure every other factor fits in, this step confirms your selection.
The e-bike that is right for you will be a compilation of qualities that is congruent to your need and wants. No guide can serve as an ultimate methodology in laying out the things you need to consider. It is a matter of you understanding your position thoroughly and then taking the aid of other guides to make the right decision.
Your e-bike and what it has to offer are worth all the effort you put into acquiring it. So audaciously begin the search.
