Our Electric Bikes get the equivalent of 1000 MPG!
== At 5-10 cents for 20 miles -- 100 miles costs less than 50 cents!
== A car at 20 MPG costs $20 for 100 miles just for gas. That’s 50 times as much. Now…
== AAA says the REAL cost of driving is over $1 a mile (maintenance, insurance, registration, repairs, financing, depreciation, etc.) That would be $100 for each 100 miles.
== A Car getting 20 MPG dumps 22 Pounds of Carbon Dioxide into the atmosphere! That’s over 1 pound per mile -- more than 13,000 pounds a year or every 12,000 miles! Yikes.
Battery Chemistry Basics
Lithion Ion Batteries
Advantages
-Longer Range - typically twice that of SLA
-Get more charge cycles -- typically up to 1000
-Lower Weight -- 1/3 - 1/2 the weight
Disadvantages
-Makes the bike considerably more expensive to purchase.
-More expensive to replace
-More tempermental to temperature changes
Sealed Lead Acid
Advantages
-Inexpensive at purchase.
-Inexpensive to replace
-Easy to find
-Durable
Disadvantages
- Weight -- double
- Weight distribution. Very few bikes (particularly conversion kits) distribute the battery weight properly and thus destroy the handling characteristics of the bike. Battery really must sit in the triangle (like the Rayos).
What about the Weight of an Ebike?
It is very difficult for a lot of bicycle enthusiasts to understand that electric bicycles don't need to be flyweights. Since you are using the power to accelerate up to cruising speed, this removes one of the major reasons for light weight bikes. At a certain speed and up to a certain weight, the additional heft of an ebike actually increases the rolling speed due to inertia. It has a "flywheel effect" at certain speeds. Now if it is too heavy, it does become cumbersome to pedal in many circumstances. As well as to lift on a bike rack.
My first impressions of the 2009 New Generation Bikes:
•A2B UltraMotor - strong motor but handles weird. Long chain and pulley system for the gears with cheap derailleur. Small wheels and unconventional frame make for poor handling.
•Schwinn Tailwind – Underpowered and too expensive ($3295)
•Ohm – The top model is a nice bike, but the price tag ($3450) disqualifies it for most people.
•Ecobike – Weak on the hills, uses cheap bike parts, battery misrepresented to be made by Lenovo, actually of low quality.
Wheels of Fire
The Bike is the Best
Bicycles are simply the best way to get around!
For most commuting and recreational needs, the bicycle remains the ultimate vehicle from personal health, economic, environmental, and energy saving perspectives. Riding a human/electric powered vehicle helps prevent heart disease, obesity, diabetes, and strokes while building strength and endurance. Bikes put a smile on your face and bring out the freedom of the inner child. By replacing short car trips, cycling saves the air from noxious pollutants, saves the commuter the cost of gasoline and requires less asphalt than auto traffic and parking. As they say, Burn fat, not fuel!
Fossil fuel powered cars simply... stink!
And car crashes are the top killers of children in the America. Carbon monoxide, VOC's, nitrous oxide, and other emissions all contribute to cancer, asthma, and lung diseases. Carbon dioxide has been implicated in global warming, sulfur dioxide causes acid rain, and oil spills have polluted our oceans, rivers, and lakes. By discouraging physical exercise, cars contribute to obesity, heart disease, diabetes, cancer and other cardiovascular problems. Cars add to noise, stress, congestion, and are responsible for urban sprawl -- besides costing a lot to operate (original investment, maintenance, insurance, dmv, etc -- $1 a mile!). Bicycles create the opposite experience — silence, stress release, health and fitness, adventure — and they are practically FREE! So by getting on your bike whenever possible, you are doing something wonderful for both yourself and the world.
Two of humankind’s greatest inventions were fire and the wheel, and both are incorporated in the hybrid electric bicycle. Have you ever spun a tuned bicycle wheel from the hub and played with its incredible gyroscopic balance from any angle? Try it and you will gain new respect for the bicycle. Today’s bicycle is truly one hi-tech machine: they are built of many space age alloys to achieve critical mass — maximum strength to minimum weight. Add precision bearings and frame angles which optimize ergonomic output — and you have a machine which promotes maximum forward motion from minimum human input. Now add the Promethean fire — electricity -- and you enhance and expand this experience into an entire new dimension. The practical application of human brilliance manifests fully in the hybrid electric bike. And they are so much FUN!
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