Are there any good sources for reviews on e-bikes? I’ve seen the occasional reviews here or on N-1, but I am looking at recommendations for a quality e-bike for my wife good for short trips to the grocery store and other local errands. Don’t need long range, definitely looking for Class 1 (no throttle or high speeds), and need some space for cargo rack/panniers.
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I don’t know about a good source for reviews, but my wife has a Benno eJoy for commuting and errands it has been great. She rides it all 4 seasons and after 5+ years it is still going strong.
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A lot of ebike reviews are kind of mediocre because a lot of them don’t do long term reviews of these bikes to test long term durability or they are seeing the bike as cyclists whom really dont have a lot of experience with MTB drivetrains (which most are equipped). There is no equivalent to Escape or N-1 in the deidicated ebike space.
I would look on reddit, the electric bike review forums, and model specific Facebook groups to get a user’s insight; and then reach out to a local mechanic whom works on that specific electrical system or chassis (A LOT). This will give you the most rounded out perspective on a given motor/chassis combo.
Lets take the Haul ST for an example. Great bike, but the early build ones really like to sling all sorts of exciting (ride stopping) electrical at you. Or a certain Big 4 Bosch ebike - which was great on paper, but was equipped with most horrible hydraulic brakes, horrible drivetrain limitations set by the frame oem (bad tubing choices causing bad internally routed shifting) and weird amounts of lateral frame flex. Or the last gen Orbea e-MTB wild being great - except for an Orbea made battery connector that broke on a regular basis (and was heavily backordered with no change to prevent such breakage).
Don’t ever be a early adopter to a new ebike system/chassis system unless you’re willing to potentially suffer from early build warranty issues.
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