Do you know of a mechanic in London?

[agnes_N20Participant]

Hey Londoners,

I own a Model 30 and my bike’s performance has been dropping recently. I am not handy at all and have no clue about the inside of the bike… Therefore I need a repairman who will replace the batteries for me.

I had no luck with local garages and bike services so far, nobody wants to take on the bike.

Does anyone know of an electric-bike-friendly garage in London? Alternatively, does our little community have any handy E Rider owners who could help me…???

Please share your thoughts and tips, thank you!

agnes

[Paul IOMParticipant]

Hi Agnes, you could try those shops who sell and service golf buggies, or mobility scooters, those types of businesses will be familiar with the battery types, and fitting them would be no problem at all to them as they are used to working on other electric vehicles.

[Ken FergusonKeymaster]

Hi Agnes

Your bike is now 18 months old and it is possible that there has been some battery deterioration. The good news is that the batteries on the Model 30 are relatively cheap- another test ride should about cover it!!!

However I understand that London has been very cold in the last few weeks and I suspect this will have had a big impact on performance. This would happen without any battery deterioration. If you can wait out the freeze you might find you don’t need to change the batteries at all.

Ken

[JasonParticipant]

Hi Agnes

Out of interest, how many km have you done and what sort range are you getting?

[agnes_N20Participant]

Hi everyone,

I see this topic is of interest to a few people – very understandably. The main reason for the battery deterioration is my carelessness, I’m afraid. When I purchased the bike, I took about 5 months registering it, buying insurance etc, and during that time I barely ever charged it, very foolish…! It has been running very well for about a year afterwards, but recently it’s become noticeably slower, sluggish when climbing hills and so on. On average I ride it 5 days a week, approx 20-something miles a day. I don’t take much luggage and I’m not a heavy person either.

Problem is, not sure how many of you have experienced this, that mechanics just plainly refuse to touch the bike…!?! My neighbourhood has quite a few hills and I had huge difficulties finding a guy who would tighten my brakes (mind you, 2-minute job). Now, my technical skills are zero, I’m afraid, but I also don’t see why I should be able to clean or replace my batteries, after all I am very happy to pay a professional to do that – only if there were professionals around who are not afraid of a tiny electric bike *sigh*

Well, end of rant… I have managed to convince a local mechanic in High Barnet to take a look. He, again, refused to replace the batteries, because he couldn’t get matching ones from his suppliers, meaning he wouldn’t be able to give me a guarantee, meaning he won’t do it. However, he cleaned the whole bike, adjusted tyre pressure, brakes and so forth and now the bike runs noticeably quicker. Following Ken’s advice and waiting for the cold weather to be over, I think I can put up buying new batteries for another 3-5 months.

Ken, Tim, if you are reading this, is there any way to establish a professional relationship with a garage in London who would educate themselves on E-Riders and would carry out repair work? Maybe most of you guys are wizards with the screwdriver and can confidently take care of the inside of the bike, but I’m afraid I’m not…

Btw, Paul, thanks for the tip re mobility scooter service, I was contemplating that too, just wasn’t sure whether it’s an appropriate idea or complete craziness. I might have to go down that way in the future.

[Ken FergusonKeymaster]

Hi Agnes

Glad found someone to look at your bike.

Your suggestion that we try to find service stations around the country is a good one and we will take it up. Surely there are some mechanics that could do with the business!!!

Regards

Ken

[Paul IOMParticipant]

It would be worth emailing a few dealers to see if they are interested Ken, but I think with some of them it’s simply unknown territory.

Hence my suggestion of mobility scooter dealers, maybe the answer is to contact some of them with a view to setting up a service network rather than motorcycle dealers?

As crazy as it may sound, electric bike/scooter technology is far more closely related to mobility scooters than motorcycles, so a mobility scooter dealer is going to have plenty of existing knowledge in relation to batteries, controllers, and motors, will have seen most typical electric vehicle problems before, and will most likely also have the required diagnostic equipment to troubleshoot those problems and fix them right there in the workshop.

[Ken FergusonKeymaster]

Agreed Paul.

It is on my TO DO list!!!

[Tor flonParticipant]

Hi Ken,

Did you find a mechanic in London?

Thanks,
Tor

[goldnmunkParticipant]

Was this need addressed re mechanics in London? I’m surprised you haven’t affiliated yourself with garages for the reasons addressed in the original post.

I’ve had the original E30 for over 2 years now but various things like the brakes need looking at. Have we had any progress on this topic?

Thanks

[Paul IOMParticipant]

I’ll leave Ken to answer the network question, but things like the drum amd disc brakes on both the new and old models are standard motorcycle fitments, and any competent motorcycle/scooter mechanic should be able to strip and service them in half an hour.

[Ken FergusonKeymaster]

The problem is that the bikes are generally so reliable that there has been no real need to set up commercial arrangements to fix them and because customers want very local solutions it would not be worthwhile. As Paul says routine work can be carried out by any competent mechanic (and some competent customers!!). Of course we can supply any parts that are required.

[goldnmunkParticipant]

I agree that they’re reliable. Over 2 years and no major issues. However, I have called a number of garages early last year and none of them want to go near electric bikes which is why having E-rider form some relationship with various garages around the country (or from my perspective, London) would have been useful. Also I and others will have to get an MOT soon. I’m assuming that regular MOT garages will be prepared for MOTing electric bike?

[Ken FergusonKeymaster]

Yes all MOT centres should have the ability to test and resolve any issues. That is not to say they will always find it straightforward.

How to test an electric bike

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