I’ve been riding the Elecscoot 2 for couple of days now and on the whole I am pretty impressed. It seems that for less than a petrol bike, you really can buy a green alternative.
I have had a few worries, but have been reassured by the Elecscoot boys that they are not a long term issue. Firstly I am finding the advertised top speed of 40mph elusive (which is academic in London traffic anyway) and secondly, the range I have been achieving has given me cause for concern. Nevertheless, I have been told that both these issues are part of a “conditioning” period for the E2‘s batteries. So no more can be said until I’ve put a few more charges in it.
I was a bit worried that I was going to suffer the same problems as Andy who commented on this post and is having a bit of a hard time loving his E2. Andy please get back in touch and let us know how you are getting on with your Elecscoot 2.
My worries stemmed from the fact that I have been finding my test E2 likes sitting at about 36 on the speedo. The problem with this is that I have a non-standard speedo fitted to the test bike (i.e not the speedo that comes on your new E2) and it is known to over-read a little. By my rough workings out, I’m seeing a real world 32ish, not quite the advertised 40mph.
Now the doom and gloom is over with lets focus on the sunny side of the E2.
The bike is very good looking and doesn’t feel slow to ride. Whatever “real world” speed I am getting, this is adequate for my commute and the range gets me from home to work and back (approx 18miles) with a tiny bit left over (This should improve with time). The wide bars are not tiring to ride, and save you from the embarrassment of bad filtering where riders commit to a gap (using bad judgment) and find themselves sandwiched between vehicles.
Today I came across one of the bread and butter bikes of London, everyone’s favourite, the Vespa. The particular one I met was of the 50cc flavour and the 2 stroke “speedy” variety (see video below) The E2 didn’t out-pace this super nippy commuter, but costing over £300 less and putting out no nasty emissions. I can’t say I would choose the Vespa if it was my own money. I can also guarantee, the Vespa rider got to work just as fast as I did on the E2. As you will see below, the way to blur out numberplates is to upload to youtube, the quality does the rest:
To conclude today’s EV based ramble, I will be in search of the magical 40mph after a few charges, but otherwise all is well and the little E2 is proving itself to be a far better commuter than the 48v E1.
Interesting views there Stephen, I will reserve my judgement on the E3 until I get one myself, but will definitly bear your comments in mind when testing (just as I have with Andy and his E2 experiences). Please let me know if Elecscoot are able to resolve your problems. Also, is this the “old” or the “new” E3? I think I will be testing the “new” model.
*** ORIGINAL COMMENT REMOVED – ONLY COMMENTS REGARDING VEHICLES I HAVE TESTED ALREADY ARE ALLOWED – I WISH TO DRAW MY OWN CONCLUSIONS AND NOT GET DRAWN INTO CUSTOMER SERVICE ISSUES. IF ANYBODY HAS ISSUES WITH BIKES NOT ON TEST, PLEASE CONTACT THE MANUFACTURER DIRECTLY ***
I bought an Ego electric scooter (which is visibly identical to the E1), back in November, and in discussions with other owners we have found the range and speed claims to be wildly exaggerated. The Ego is advertised as being able to travel 40 miles on a charge, at a maximum speed of 30mph. Yes, you can see 30mph on the clock, but a number of us have measured this using various methods (GPS, roadside speed indicators, following cars) and found that this can be up to 20% inaccurate, giving a true top speed of just 24mph. Add to this the range tests that have been done, and not many have managed more than about 25-30 miles before the scooter dies. The most I have ever done is 17 miles between charges, and it was already extremely sluggish (in fact I noticed the performance starting to wane at about 10-12 miles).
Thanks for the comment Ian, It seems that just like the MPG claims on cars, the range claims of electric scooters are based on a test which is far removed from real world conditions. The speedometer readings also seem to be a common cause for complaint. Did you have any luck resolving these issues with the manufacturer directly, or through consumer legislation?
Your point about the performance staring to worsen at about half range is interesting. The E2 I am testing looses a few mph after about 10 miles, as did the E1. It seems that while manufacurers are trying to give everbody the best performance for their money, the claims being made at the point of sale can be misleading, especially for city commuters.
Personally I think it is in the interest of the industry, consumer and manufacturer that people like myself (and current owners) are testing these vehicles in real world conditions. I also believe it is important to track how these issues are being resolved with the manufacturers. Some of the speedo issues sound like they are bordering on unroadworthyness and I hope the manufacturers involved can address these issues and continue to refine their vehicles.
As stated earlier, I am interested in how owners are having these issues resolved by the manufacturer in question, so please let me know.
Unfortunately none of us have complained directly to the suppliers as yet, as far as I know. For me the range was purely academic as I only bought it to do a 1 mile-each-way commute, with the same at lunch time, so 4 miles a day total, with the occasional “nip into town”, all within 30mph speed limits. So I never do more than about 7 or 8 miles between charges anyway, and the top speed is not really an issue for me. Some of us have either upgraded our batteries or controllers, or both, to get more range or speed out of the scooters, so having invalidated warranties in this way, complaining to the suppliers at this stage would be futile.
I have considered whether it might be worth speaking to Trading Standards to get their view on the matter, not for my own sake but for those who may be considering buying a scooter but may be misled by the suppliers’ claims.
You may notice that I refer to them as suppliers and not manufacturers, because I am of the opinion that the people who set up businesses importing these scooters are not necessarily entirely guilty of deception, other than that they appear to blindly quote the manufacturers’ figures instead of performing their own tests and adjusting their claims accordingly.
I think definitely the first port of call is the manufacturer / importer. Then, as you say, the relevant authority. My next post wil be on the issue of dissapointed customers, and a buyers / owners guide will be added this weekend.
When you say “we’ are you part of an owners group or similar? It is good to hear that you are “green rodding” your bikes, tuning an electric bike for more speed or range is a sensible option and something I personally find very interesting.
We’re not an owner’s group as such, but we have a community forum where we discuss our experiences (good and bad), which can be found at http://electricmotoring.forumup.co.uk/ New members are always welcome!
(Apologies if this is a duplicate reply)
We are not an owners club as such, just members of a community forum where we discuss our experiences (good or bad). I would include the url for the forum, but I suspect that was possibly why my last reply didn’t appear? In case anyone’s interested, the address for the forum can be found through my own WordPress blog. New members are always welcome!
As you guessed (being a fellow wordpress blogger) the spam filters caught the URL in your last post. The site looks good and I’v approved your last post.
[...] 13 05 2009 Hi there all, and firstly apologies to Steve for deleting his comment (originally on this page) about his disappointment with his Elecscoot [...]
Its an “old” E3. The new one has 2kw motor instead of “3kw” and LiFePO4 batteries (allegedly) instead of LiCoO2 (“traditional Li Ion”) as on mine. Still 20Ah though (though 4Ah seems to be an option??).
No problems on deleting my mail – its your website, do as you see fit. I would like to remake the point though that its a great shame that the few of us who really want to be green are being taken for a ride, and not the kind we were expecting
). I could have bought a petrol scooter for 1000 Euros that is free of tax (at least in Belgium), and do 60kph and at least 100km on “a charge”. Not only is my bike restricted to 45kph, but also 20km full stop – and I pay twice the price for the priviledge. I’m willing to go the extra mile for the environment (pun intended) but it appears the importers are just out to make money. I noticed hohi_silver promoting the other blog I’m on so i will continue on there.. thanks for presenting your blog though – it all helps!!
Hi there, good to see you back in the comments. I would disagree with you to a certain extent, yes importers want to make money, but if they have bad customer service, they won’t make any. Let Elecscoot know of your issues and see if they can help. I have found them very helpful myself.
I have approved the link sent by hohi_silver, it got caught in the spam filters.
Well done for putting the environment first. You set a good example by not buying a petrol bike just so you can save money. Unfortunatly, at the moment most EV riders and drivers are pioneers of a technology that is ony just becoming competatively priced.
Hi, Ive sent you an email outlining my ongoing problems. Keep up the blog.. its very informative
Just by the way, I emailed Elecscoot over the weekend to see if they would reply this time – and so far they haven’t. I have an appointment next Wednesday with a professor at my local university who just happens to be a leading European Authority on Electric vehicles and I will publish anything I find out thats interesting and relevant.
good