How Fast is your ebike?

[dogman dan]

Going to work, downhill much of it, I tend to go about 26 mph and brake enough to stay below 30 on the big hill. Coming back, it's slower. 48v would be nice going up the big hill where I get slowed down to 15 mph, and cruising the last 6 miles of mild hill slows to 20 mph. 25 mph or so both ways would be nice, and shave 15 minuites off the ride home.

But faster than 30 mph, the wind noise is real annoying, I'd want a motorcycle hemet to cut that down. Also Snowcrow is very right about drivers expectations.

Years ago my only transport was a moped that did 35 mph. Nobody thought I'd be going that fast and cars darted in my path constantly. Too fast to ride bike style and too slow to ride motorcycle style. It was absoloutely the most dangerous vehicle I've ever owned. Riding it, I hit three cars that turned in front of me in one year. I learned to throw it into a sideways skid, and kick the car to absorb the impact with my foot and leg. Dented the crap out of some cars. Nearly had to dent some pissed off drivers too.

 

[317537]

What is the top speed of your ebike?

Do you normally ride at the top speed, or do you go slower?

Would you like it to be faster? (e.g. bigger battery pack, more voltage)?

You show me yours and I'll show you mine.

Do you even own an Ebike? If so how fast does it go? ~~~~~~8)

 

[AussieJester]

You show me yours and I'll show you mine.

8==========>



KiM

 

[Doctorbass]

.
.......94.3987 km/h....... with a front wind of 24 kmh and limited controller throttle to 75%

(measured with GPS on 17 june 2009 on the draqg lane of Pont Rouge drag racing.)

(Cycle analyst indicated 95.1km/h)

Now i the 60mph club

Doc

 

[johnrobholmes]

42mph tops on my last build. It would cruize at 37mph on the flats no sweat. 9c rear on 18s lipo.

 

[Lessss]

"How Fast is your ebike?"
Why officer my bikes top speed is limited to 32 kph.

 

[dozentrio]

~35 mph. 55kph on a flat with no wind. Although it is hard to judge the wind, and I've gone anywhere from 50-60 kph depending on the temperature/humidity and varying slight head/tail winds. Apparently I went 65kph somewhere, according to my bike computer.

Setup is a 450w currie (unite my1018) at 44.4V cheap lipos and ecrazyman.

I also don't want to go any faster. My V-brakes provide sufficient braking as I can easily come to a stop balancing on the front wheel only... but the pads wear out quickly. I'd love to go much, much farther though. Sadly, my useful range (before horrible voltage sag sets in) is about 10km. This is with a supposed 10Ah pack. Not sure if I want to keep adding 5Ah of these cheap lipolys, because each 5Ah costs about $120 CAD.

 

[sparky]

About 23mph on the flats, no pedaling or strange atmospheric aberrations.... With light pedaling, about 25-26mph (I changed gearing on my front ring so that I could "contribute" with my Nexus-7 hub at those speeds). Running 48V 16Ah Ping V2, 72V analog 20A Clyte controller with the 30amp mod (yes, the solder blob). 400W WE front hub.

Faster? Yes, on those occasional glass-smooth long straights -- absolutely. I'd like to be able to go about 35mph tops. Beyond that it gets scary ...

 

[www.recumbents.com]

30MPH +- 4MPH depending on hills/wind
Ping 2.0 48V/20A + Crystalite 40A controller + BMC 600

I like that it goes over 25MPH up the steep hills.

-Warren.

 

[nicobie]

30MPH +- 4MPH depending on hills/wind
Ping 2.0 48V/20A + Crystalite 40A controller + BMC 600

I like that it goes over 25MPH up the steep hills.

-Warren.

Ditto, same set-up, same speeds. When I switch on my 22.2 boost pack I add around 6-7 mph. This is on a heavy Townie 21 and riding in a up right position. I've got road bike gearing (52/11) and if I spin like crazy I can add a couple more mph.

 

[patrickza]

40mph with a 5305 in a 26in wheel, using 24s headways. I usually only go 20mph so I can pedal too, but I have a couple of stretches where i open it up. Mostly I like the acceleration when I pull away from cars.

 

[mwkeefer]

Depends on mode

1.) Street Legal - 22mph max on flats with me (Im about 150lb), relaxed limits on hill climbs
2.) Off road - 49 mph on a slight downhill - truly 41 mph on flats

26" Specialized
500w e-bikekit front hub motor
15S2P LiPo @ 4.15v for 62.25v
38A Main Current Limit
75A Phase Current
Speed %3 @ 110%

 

[johnrobholmes]

I only got 37mph on 18s lipo in a 26" wheel 9c. Maybe my meaty tires limiting me big time, or the stock shenzen settings?

 

[mwkeefer]

I only got 37mph on 18s lipo in a 26" wheel 9c. Maybe my meaty tires limiting me big time, or the stock shenzen settings?

Stock settings 22a, what's your tire inflation and contact type?

Mine pushes 36A, 65psi on the tires and 110% speed %3 which gives the little WOT boost... on 18s you should be able to hit 42-43 mph top end with the right settings.

Regards,
Mike

 

[colby]

20 mph on my first build. 2nd build is geared from 18-36mph (3-speed).

however, i tend to cruise at 20mph...i think i might lower the gearing for 30mph tops. fast enough in the city.

 

[John in CR]

The fastest I've gone on the highway is 94kph (58mph). That was before I went from 63v nominal to 74v nominal, but I haven't tried a speed run since the increase because it's uncomfortably fast to me with a bike tire in front. I reset my speedometer with every charge and my typical max speed in daily errand use is in the 80-85kph range.

I could never get used to cars passing me all the time, so a fast ebike is an absolute requirement for me. Now I'm fast enough to very rarely get passed, and it's always at a time and place of my choosing. I own my lane, and move to the side and slow to allow a pass when it's safe. I'm very considerate to drivers and have enough speed to not inconvenience them as evidenced by the fact that I haven't been honked at in over a year of daily use.

This kind of speed requires a custom bike IMO. You need a longer than typical wheelbase with a geometry that is stable at speed. A lower center of gravity is a big help.

Here are two of my bikes that will exceed 50mph. They have almost the same wheelbase, but there's something about the red one's geometry that makes it a bit twitchy{/i] at speed. The blue one is so solid and stable at speed that I even feel fine with one handed riding on good roads.

 

[dogman dan]

Frame flex on the red one. and mabye the rake angle of the fork.

 

[John in CR]

Frame flex on the red one. and mabye the rake angle of the fork.

Thanks dogman. By frame flex do you mean normal movement being dual suspension, or is there likely a slight bit of lateral flex in that pivot point? On the rake, I've been tempted many times to cut that head tube off and rake it back some more. That's what I did on the blue one, and just got lucky I guess on the resulting geometry. My welding skills were really weak at the time, so the welding rods to re-attach that head tube can probably be measured in pounds.

John

 

[TMaster]

My bike setup, specialized hardrock, 60 lb's total weight.
Shenzhen 48V, 22-30 amp controller modified for 60-65V.
9C Golden motor
3 - 6S3P A123 packs (18S3P)(6900mAh)
Top speed 35mph on the strait

May go to a 20S3P setup later on.

 

[dozentrio]

John in CR, the pivot point on the red bike is likely the cause of the instability. The frame isn't intended for the use you are putting it to because of the weight of the motor and battery pack on the back half of the bike (to the rear of pivot point) there is increased strain on it. Adding to that, it is probably not that strong to begin with. If you are willing to sacrifice having rear suspension, you could weld the back half of the bike together with the front...

 

[John in CR]

John in CR, the pivot point on the red bike is likely the cause of the instability. The frame isn't intended for the use you are putting it to because of the weight of the motor and battery pack on the back half of the bike (to the rear of pivot point) there is increased strain on it. Adding to that, it is probably not that strong to begin with. If you are willing to sacrifice having rear suspension, you could weld the back half of the bike together with the front...

I appreciate the input, but no way I'd turn it into a hardtail. No suspension is killing me on the blue one. At these speeds dual suspension is really needed unless you have perfect roads. It's helped me make up my mind to rob the drastically wider pivot from one of the motorcycle frames I have for the build using the 100V100A Methods controllers I have. Good thing the laws here are geared to gassers, so I can throw pedals on and it's legally a bicycle without restrictions other than the speed limit. I'm unbelievably lucky here compared to you guys...no rules plus cars pay attention instead of being oblivious or angry at our 2 wheel transports.

John

 

[Mark_A_W]

IMO it is the Rake angle of the forks.

Triple clamp forks may help, they are longer.

 

[chrisvw]

My 5303 with 26" wheels, 48V LiPO and 85psi slicks is ~36mph top speed. I almost never run it at/near this speed. I'm typically at low 20s for longer rides or ~25 when I'm in a hurry. I tend to use the extra power for windy days (e.g. headwinds). I also pedal 99.9% of the time and can't sustain 36mph more than a minute or to with my gearing.

 

[Little-Acorn]

Trek 7500 with 48V 1000W rear hubmotor from YXM Corp. ion China, 48V 20Ah LiFePO4 battery from EP-Battery in China.

Topped out at 29mph on a flat, level street near where I work, in both directions, only wind was a light crosswind. I weigh 265, so I was impressed.

Schwinn Cimarron 26" comfort bike (aluminum frame and rear dropouts, steel front suspension and dropouts) with 48V 1000W front hubmotor (three silver bands around it) from YescomUSA near Los Angeles (two day delivery, nice), and four 12V 12Ah SLA batteries from a local resident here, no BMS. Topped out at 31mph on the same street as the Trek.

I don't see much point in hot-rodding an ebike, going to 72V etc. Why spend half your time fixing it, tracing burned components etc.? If you want to go faster, buy a Harley. Max allowable speed on an Ebike in California is 30mph, I don't need hassles with cops, and 48V 1000W gets me to that speed nicely. Also climbs hills decently. If it works don't "fix" it. I'm having too much fun as is!

 

[rubyan]

my cargobike does a nice 27 kph (17 mph). It has a GM 500W 20inch frontwheel, a 36V15Ah ping and it's faster than any bicycle on the bikelane here in the Netherlands.

I admit it is fun waiting at the red light with an bicycle that looks slow but as soon as the light turns green things change quickly