Buying an e-bike online? Read this first!!!

No matter where you are, the cost of living in Canada is through the roof.

Everything is more expensive these days.  Food. Phones. Gas. Clothes. Coffee. Prices have continued to climb in all areas and there is little retreat in the future.

As a professional bike mechanic, I see all makes and models of bikes coming through the shop.  I don't discriminate.  The bikes I service range from 40 year old road bikes to brand new carbon machines and everything in-between.  I believe that all bikes need love to keep them (and their owners) rolling safely.

A recent trend that I have been seeing lately are families (or individuals) purchasing e-bikes from large on-line retailers.  These bikes are readily available, they ship fast and the price is usually a fraction of the cost of a comparable bike at a brick-and-mortar shop. So when I am asked by customers if they should buy one of these bikes, I have to answer carefully.

If my only goal was to get more people on bikes, then my answer would be yes.  But there is so much more to it than that. 

Some things to consider before you spend your hard-earned cash:

Bike Quality

A lot of bikes sold on-line are mass produced in large factories and there is little quality-control that takes place.  These e-bikes are heavy and they move fast.  You want to be sure that the frame and other components are going to be able to keep you safe. 

I have one young customer that saved his cash to buy one of these on-line e-bikes. The bike arrived at his doorstep pretty quick after purchase and he began the build process. He got everything together except for the front wheel. For some reason, he couldn't get it on. So he called me. When I showed up, a quick inspection determined that the fork dropouts (where the wheel axle goes) were offset by half an inch. There's no way a wheel could be installed on this bike! How disappointing......

Customer Service

When you buy a bike on-line, who is going to help you when things go wrong and what are you going to have to do to get rolling again?

Components

Brakes, shifters, drivetrain, handlebars, pedals, cranks, etc. All these components make riding the bike possible. Because these bikes are mass-produced and the goal is to keep the price low, component quality can be questionable and they may not be as long-lasting or effective as you would think.  I recently had to replace a crank-arm on a customers web-purchased bike because the threads for the pedal literally disintegrated and the pedal came off.  Brakes are one of the biggest things.  It is almost unheard of to see one of these bikes with brakes from one of the reputable manufacturers like Shimano, SRAM, TRP, Tektro, etc. When it comes to stopping an 80lb bike (without rider) that is capable of 50+ Km/h, do you really want a no-name brake bringing you to a stop?

Weight

Many of these bikes range between 60-100+ pounds.  Who is going to lift it? I am a pretty strong guy and I am telling you, loading one of these babies into the back of a pickup truck is not as easy as I make it look!

Service and Repairs

When it comes to the mechanical components, a bike is a bike is a bike. Am I right Not really....

First off, if the bike frame wasn't manufactured properly, components might not fit or function properly.  Second, components that came on the bike may be of questionable quality. Both of these factors can make your life, and your mechanics, miserable and disappointing. 

Many shops have chosen to not service these types of bikes because of these and other issues.  These bikes are seen as more of a headache than they are worth.  

So who is going to service it when things go wrong? 

Bottom Line

Should you buy an e-bike from one of these huge on-line retailers whose main business isn't manufacturing and servicing bikes? My honest answer is no. You work hard for your money and you want to be smart with your money. Spending $1500-$2500 on one of these bikes might sound reasonable, but in the long-run, you might end up spending a lot more. From a safety standpoint, I would want to have a lot more confidence in the manufacturer or retailer before hopping on one of these. 

Are there good on-line sellers that produce safe, reliable and quality e-bikes? Yes! But you need to do your research.  Your local bike shop would also be a good place to do some fact finding.