My review of the eLation eBike

The review on this blog are the author's opinions based on user experience and technical aspects of the electric bike kit produced by eLation eBikes.

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Negative - Battery support component is a weak point

The battery support (which attaches to the bottom of the battery) is an off the shelf component or a part from another kit.

The first problem
is how it is attached to the frame mount. Because the support has been adapted, the original screw holes aren't used. eLation have placed 4 small metal screws directly into plastic.

This is a ridiculous idea as the weight of the battery and the force caused from bumps on the road will cause a lot of strain on this area.

Screwing metal into plastic means the thread will not last. In fact, when I received my bike, all of the metal screws had already fallen out during delivery and could not be screwed in again (no thread) as they kept falling out. eLation did not believe me, but at least he did send me a replacement immediately.

2 screws in the replacement could not be fully tightened as the plastic thread is so weak, and glue had to be used (as advised by eLation) to help it last. The screws have not fallen out since, but I am not confident on the longevity of this.

The second problem
is the metal arms the battery support is attached to. They are thin and weak metal parts (not hardened steel) which bend very easily against the weight of the battery.

The battery came quite loose on one ride to work and not long after the battery failed (the problem ended up being a loose wire, but I'm sure the jolting of the battery when it got loose played a big part in this).

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