# Kalkoff Electric Bikes anybody got one, any thoughts



## dipper17 (Jul 30, 2011)

Hi all

We are thinking of buying a couple of electric bikes. We are not so young anymore so want a bit help. Wondering if anyone has got this make of bike or can make any comments.

I have been told that with electric bikes you get what you pay for. The quality bikes are supposed to have better electrics and quality batteries. Wondering what you think.

Cheers

Michael


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## Mrplodd (Mar 4, 2008)

Cant comment on that make but I have a couple from pro-rider mobility that do everything we want at a sensible price (about £550) You can pay a LOT more but do you really need to for an occasional use leisure bike??

Be sure to get a bike with a 250 Watt motor (a lot have only 200) and a 36V battery (again many are only 24) also you should aim for a 10 amp Hour battery capacity.

Also be wary of "front wheel drive" very dodgy on loose or slippery surfaces (grass or gravel for example) as in the front wheel can lose traction when cornering (at very low speed) slide out to the side and have you off !! rear wheel drive is much better. 

Another thing to look for is the ability to switch the power assistance on and off whilst riding along as some you have to actually stop and get off to do so (very annoying) 

With a 250 watt motor you will be truely amazed at just how much assistance you will get, hills no longer exist when you have a leccy bike. You still have to pedal but only as hard as you do on the flat. They are a brilliant accessory to a motor home, wouldn't be without ours !!


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## Conal (Jul 28, 2011)

*Kalkoff and others*

dipper17

This site is worth a visit. IMO David Henshaw is a little too biased towards the cheaper market, but I he one of the most knowledgeable ebike enthusiasts.

http://www.atob.org.uk/electric-bike-reviews.html

I have already given advice on this forum, as have others.

The most important thing to do is test ride them

http://www.50cycles.com/

http://www.onbike.co.uk/

and others will be happy to let you try out bikes with no obligation.

Conal


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## randonneur (Jan 25, 2007)

We have a couple of PowaBykes that we bought secondhand 2 years ago and have never regretted buying them.


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## erneboy (Feb 8, 2007)

Another vote for ProRider but I haven't tried any others so have nothing to compare mine with, Alan


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## jud (Aug 15, 2009)

hi dipper17. like mrplodd & erneboy said pro-rider. i spent 8 months like at e-bikes talking to people on our travels asking about them in the end i made the right choice because the amount of people especially the Germans and you know how they like there own bikes and people coming up to us asking where we got the bikes from and that includes people who already have e-bikes so i made the right choice . in the photo one is a folder which is handy to go in the car boot .jud


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## lafree (Dec 31, 2007)

hi, We have 2004 Giant Lafree electic bikes which have have covered 17000 miles between them ,our daughter has a Kalkhoff bike which has a simular Panasonic motor and a better battery than the Lafree because it cover more miles on a charge and is lighter chank motor bikes are better for hill climbing than hub motors, Raleigh market electic bikes which are the same as Kalkhoff .
Regards Lafree


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## aldra (Jul 2, 2009)

Ours are Lynx Powacycle £650 

Like all things it depends what you need from them

Ours say they will do 20+ miles on a charge, in which case they would need to do it alone 8O 

Very useful for exercising the dog, he runs well with the bike and I really enjoy the assistance

easy to charge on electric hookup or on the inverter when travelling

How many miles do you want to do, how much peddle-ing will you contribute, what terrain, these are the things you need to consider

Happy biking

Aldra


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## dipper17 (Jul 30, 2011)

lafree said:


> hi, We have 2004 Giant Lafree electic bikes which have have covered 17000 miles between them ,our daughter has a Kalkhoff bike which has a simular Panasonic motor and a better battery than the Lafree because it cover more miles on a charge and is lighter chank motor bikes are better for hill climbing than hub motors, Raleigh market electic bikes which are the same as Kalkhoff .
> Regards Lafree


Thanks everyone for your replies  They are very helpful.

lafree - how many batteries have you need to cover the miles you have done, please. I did like the crank driven ones because I thought they were better at climbing hills. It is hill that we have some trouble with!

Cheers

Michael


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## lafree (Dec 31, 2007)

Hi Dipper, We are on our third two batteries which we purchased in April 2011 but one of the second batteries is still ok for local trips.
We always keep them in the house in the winter and don't leave them in a cold garage .
Regards Lafree.


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## pasturisedpete (Oct 5, 2008)

hi,we have two Kalkhof electric bikes,Sues is a pro-connect bought four and a half years ago for £1700,still going with the original battery and no faults at all.Mine was bought eighteen months ago after being impressed with the preformance and reliability of Sues.Mine is a Pro-c S which is the sports version and costs more but is a whole lot of fun.Mine cost £1800 three months old on e-bay,quite expensive but with e-bikes you get what you pay for so if you intend to use the bike a lot and for some time to come then get what you can afford and are comfortable with.Happy biking.


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## aguilas389 (May 18, 2008)

Well yes totally agree with Pasturisedpete, we have had our Kalkhoffs for a couple of years now after buying and discarding three other so called super electric bikes. They are the best we have come across, we almost bought them whilst in Stuttgart as that is where they are made but believe it or not they are cheaper from 50 cycles than direct from the factory in Germany! The batteries are excellent and very light weight, the spiel says something like 80 kilometres on a full charge if you are "average" weight, have blonde hair, don't bite your nails and read the Daily Mail but we regularly do 40 to 50 kilometres and have done over 60 once.......then we are usually down to one light but have never run out of power. Yes they are expensive but hey, you know the rules, you get what you pay for.
Marion & Mike


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