So, I think I could see myself on an ebike full time in maybe 10 or 15 years or so (55 to 60)... maybe. I think things will probably make some huge strides by then (weight, cost, range battery life)... but I have questions around current battery durability, resale, parts etc..
If I spend 10k on this now... how much does the replacement battery cost when it craps out after 2 to 5 years of hard use or only has 50-60% of it's capacity left? Are replacement batteries available? And what's the cost? Is anyone willing to buy a 3 to 5 year old ebike that has been well used with a battery that has an unknown state? Would you have to replace it to get any kind of resale value? How's the long term durability of the motor? Does the software tell you the battery health? Is there anyway to objectively test the battery health? If I buy a used one and the battery dies in two months, what's my recourse? I see the battery warranty (for Rocky) is just two years... that kind of scares me... there's also a note that says "If stored for 3+ months, charge battery every 3 months. Failure to may cause damage." Off season for a lot of skiers/snowboarders is generally longer than 3 months... hope they're remembering to charge those batteries in January/February!
Anyone with some long term experience with e-bikes and their batteries? How long to they last? How much range is lost year to year? How many cycles are the batteries good for? Replacement costs? Willingness of buyers to buy in the used marketplace?
That's my main question right now... it's an awful lot of cash to outlay for something that may either be worthless in 5 years or require significant maintenance/upgrade expenses. I guess I'd just have to stay on the yearly or every second year flip cycle and make it someone else's problem... as long as they're willing to take on that liability? And does re-sale value drop because of that liability?
Oct. 29, 2021, 9:34 a.m. - IslandLife
So, I think I could see myself on an ebike full time in maybe 10 or 15 years or so (55 to 60)... maybe. I think things will probably make some huge strides by then (weight, cost, range battery life)... but I have questions around current battery durability, resale, parts etc.. If I spend 10k on this now... how much does the replacement battery cost when it craps out after 2 to 5 years of hard use or only has 50-60% of it's capacity left? Are replacement batteries available? And what's the cost? Is anyone willing to buy a 3 to 5 year old ebike that has been well used with a battery that has an unknown state? Would you have to replace it to get any kind of resale value? How's the long term durability of the motor? Does the software tell you the battery health? Is there anyway to objectively test the battery health? If I buy a used one and the battery dies in two months, what's my recourse? I see the battery warranty (for Rocky) is just two years... that kind of scares me... there's also a note that says "If stored for 3+ months, charge battery every 3 months. Failure to may cause damage." Off season for a lot of skiers/snowboarders is generally longer than 3 months... hope they're remembering to charge those batteries in January/February! Anyone with some long term experience with e-bikes and their batteries? How long to they last? How much range is lost year to year? How many cycles are the batteries good for? Replacement costs? Willingness of buyers to buy in the used marketplace? That's my main question right now... it's an awful lot of cash to outlay for something that may either be worthless in 5 years or require significant maintenance/upgrade expenses. I guess I'd just have to stay on the yearly or every second year flip cycle and make it someone else's problem... as long as they're willing to take on that liability? And does re-sale value drop because of that liability?