Noticed this story yesterday in the New York Times about a fellow who changed from an SUV to an electric bicycle called the Optibike for his daily commute. Since the drive is only 10 miles it’s well within the range of this bike but the part that caught my eye was the price, $7000. The article talks about saving gas, the bike is cheaper, quieter and cleaner than his prior ride, but $7000?
Somehow the article never mentions motorcycles and if he wanted to save money on gas, have more fun than driving the SUV and also have the ability to take far longer drives when he might have extra errands to run, a far less costly used motorcycle or even a wide range of small displacement new motorcycles and scooters would fill the bill. A clean used motorcycle and even a few new ones cost half that much, money which could be used to buy a lot of gas. If the performance of the electric bike is acceptable, many small motorcycles would sip gas and go faster and farther.
Everyone is certainly free to buy and drive or ride the vehicle of their choice but this article focuses on the advantages of an electric bicycle without even asking the obvious question of why he didn’t choose a motorcycle or if he even considered one. The owner in this article even said he has bad knees and wasn’t looking to pedal but he wanted to be able to go on bike paths. Sometimes, I think people are more inclined to make a point than make sense but if he’s happy, he made the right choice.
Link: New York Times
Photo: NY Times
Link: Optibike
Trey says
I’ve always liked the idea of electric bicycles, or probably a bicycle with a small motor. Seriously, you don’t need much (a human can only produce about 2/3 of 1 BHP…). And while I agree you don’t use gas, the elctricity has to come from somewhere…
A couple of my buddies and I are trying to design a small diesel powered sport(y) car. Mercedes turbo charged engine (mid mounted, rear wheel drive), tube chassis, less than 2000 lbs., 2 seats running on bio-diesel…
Another alternative would be a small diesel engine (and I mean SMALL) mounted to a bicycle. You don’t need much (a human being can produce approximately 2/3 of 1 BHP), maybe one that makes less than 5 BHP?
Trey
Bryce says
Many 50cc scooters and mopeds can easily get to 30mph with 3hp. Closer to 5 and you can break 40mph, assuming you’ve removed restrictors from the CVT. It wouldn’t take much power to run a bicycle.
todd says
Let’s see: $7k loan (or loss of investment capital) = $150/month.
gas savings from no longer driving SUV = $36.85.
additional utility bill = $5/month
Total new cost per month = $138.15
scenario 2:
Sells SUV to pay for bicycle = $0 – $35,000 depending on age or status of loan
no longer has car insurance = -$100/month
weekly cab or city-share car for groceries, dates, etc. = $35/month plus $330 membership fee
scoring a cool hippy-chick girlfriend because you’re so green = priceless
-todd
Sean says
My mate mounted an aging 50cc motor with CVT to a kids bike, and that thing takes him up near 60-65kph. It’s loud as hell, and because it’s a 2 stroke you’ve got all their obvious issues, but it works. An electric bicycle? All for the snob factor, I think.
Bo Nielsen says
Buy instead an electrical Velo solex designed by Pinanfarina. Price should be around 1000 $.
Matt says
Stories like this strike me as kind of silly. $7K for an electric cycle is a bit much for people to handle, when there are all kinds of other options (scooters, motorcycles, compact automobiles) that are much cheaper and less of a lifestyle change.
Most SUV drivers would see an guy like this and say, “neat . . . but I’ve got groceries to haul, so I’m keeping my SUV.”
chris says
well if your trying to be all green, why not just buy a used VW and fill it up with filtered frying oil. that’d be awfully cheap. usually you can get the “diesel” for free. not to mention, what’s the price of a used VW? and yeah, that scores cool hippie chicks too. . .
sfan says
Nice looking design. Lame name. Great logo. Niche price. On the other hand, we live in the era of mass-marketed $3000 electric treadmills and $5000 BBQs. With these as benchmarks, the Optibike looks almost rational.
I am interested in the concept of electric bicycles, in part because I think it can open up the market to people who wouldn’t otherwise cycle. Most of what I have seen before look completely ugly but this sure doesn’t. Now what can be done for closer to $2K…
GenWaylaid says
The most likely reason why an Optibike costs $7k is the low production volume. Any sort of quality engineering is going to cost a bundle if only dozens or hundreds are built. Mass produced, the price might come down under $2k. They could sell well at that price, but there’s a chicken-or-egg problem involved.
There are three good reasons why electric bicycles are likely to have limited performance. The first is because, as has been noted here, the human component of the powertrain doesn’t contribute much. If the motor is anything over 3hp or so, it hardly makes sense to add the human contribution.
The second reason is weight. The quantity of battery that can be carried is limited by the rider’s willingness to pedal it around, especially if a human-only mode is provided. The frame, tires, brakes, and suspension also have to be a higher–and typically heavier–spec than on a pedal-only bike. The pedals on gas-powered mopeds are largely useless for the same reason.
The third, and most vexing, reason why electric bicycle performance is limited is purely legal. For instance, in California an electric bike falls out of its priveledged category and has to be registered and taxed and insured and et cetera if the motor provides any assistance above 20 miles an hour. On flat ground a fit bicyclist can reach and sustain 20 mph on his or her own, thank you very much. That kind of legal limit also vitually guarantees that any trip ends where the bike lane ends because car traffic will not tolerate anything that slow in its path.
Taking a step beyond what the law allows for assisted bicycles and designing a full-fledged electric motorcycle runs into problems with “requirements escalation.” A range of 20 miles and a speed of 30 mph may be perfectly acceptable when you’re thinking of the vehicle as a bicycle, but once it’s a motorcycle demands go up. How much speed is enough? Fifty miles an hour? Eighty? A hundred twenty? How much range is enough? Fifty miles? A hundred? Two hundred? Battery size, weight, and particularly cost quickly become problems, even with today’s best technologies.
I’ve recently seen a pricey but practical prototype by a start-up called Lightning Motors. They took a sport bike, gutted it, and stuffed it full of lithium cells. There’s 52 kW (71 hp) available and 8 kWh of battery capacity, which probably gives a range in the neighborhood of 70 miles. They claim the weight is about the same as the original bike (350 to 400 lbs), though 180 lbs of it is battery. I believe other bikes in the 8 kWh to 10 kWh niche will be built in the coming years as it’s currently a practical weight/range trade-off. I would expect prices to be twice the cost of a comparable gas bike at best (just a guesstimate), but a combination of “green cred” and wicked torque should sell some bikes.
Still, there’s reason to believe a gap will persist between the short-range, low-speed electric bicycles and the essentially full-size 8 kWh machines until battery technology improves further. It’s hard to justify the performance of a 4 kWh machine (240 lbs, ~20 hp, 30-40 mi range), given a cost of $10k or $7k at best.
From my vantage point on the back of an envelope I expect to see the electric bicycle/scooter market remain split between cheap, essentially disposable Chinese imports at $2k and expensive, quality, low production machines like the Optibike over $5k. Even if performance-punitive state laws are lifted, the mid-size market would probably only share the same fate. In the more likely situation that the laws remain unchanged, the mid-size market will remain essentially empty (except perhaps for off-road applications). The full-size market will probably see one or more 8 kWh+ bikes appearing in limited numbers at high prices, basically two-wheeled equivalents of the Tesla roadster. Beyond that, the possibility of heavier bikes with blistering acceleration like the KillaCycle is tantalizing.
I wish I could take part in these interesting developments, but I’m hardly in a financial position to buy, let alone build or sell an electric motorcycle.
P.T. Anderson says
I think the real question to be answered is why no mention of the motorcycle/scooter option. In my opinion it may be due to the reluctance of the mainstream media, large newspapers and network TV, to portray the motorcycle as a positive thing in general. Or… it could be that the guy simply didn’t even consider a motorcycle/scooter electric or not.
One thing that I do know for certain is that I’m getting a whole lot of questions from random people when I’m out and about regarding what kind of mileage my motorcycle gets. It’s almost getting like the question I get when that same type of people see that tattoo on my leg, “did it hurt?”….. Well for the record I’m spreading the good word for motorcycledom about all the benefits and such. Also I try to tell every one of them about the Motorcycle Safety Foundation beginner classes where they can learn to ride on a loaner bike from the MSF and that it satisfies the riding portion of the DMV motorcycle endorsement test, at least in Washington State…
Prester John says
One of the largest, if not the largest, bicycle companies in the world is Giant of Taiwan. For many years they have built and refined some very, very good electric assist bicycles ($1000-$1300). They recently quit building them and abandoned the electric bicycle market because their electric bicycle division was losing money.
Tom
falconEV says
Silly restrictive laws on e-bikes aside; The main reason this guy bought this bike
is because he lives near Boulder, where its made and wanted to support a local business. Otherwise it makes no sense. You can have an E-bike w better performance and lithium Batteries ( your choice of type and Ah ) for much less and mount this kit on your own bike that you choose. Stick with Taiwan components / suppliers for better quality.
michael says
a lot of interesting comments here! I guess that, at the end of the day, price doesn’t mean much if you like something. I’m seriously thinking about getting an optibike because you can put it into sports mode and get an extra kick out of it but I wonder if the cops would really “pull you over” and ticket you for going too fast?
based on what I read above, I think that people are giving the optibike an unfair shake because, while it might be more expensive on paper, early adopters might help nudge people towards electric vehicles. the movie “who killed the electric car” talks about how few parts an electric car needs, when compared to a non-electric car and I think that’s good. the southern states need electric powered cars since they can produce solar electricity locally, but not ethanol, and, even here in minnesota, where we can make it, the ethanol industry is sucking up water and causing crop soil erosion.
with regards to cost, I have a lifefitness 95xi ellipitical trainer at home and it cost me $4000+ (now $5000+) and I love every inch of it for the most part. I lost about 70 lbs and, thus, I’m in the best shape ever. oddly, I don’t use it as much now because I also added a conceptII rower, a traditional bicycle (had that before the elliptical), a nice pair of rollerblades, a total trainer and a bunch of other things like a BOSU trainer and weigted bars!
So, for those who count their pennies, the optibike isn’t for you. for those with a few pennies to spare, it could be a great experience! next week, I’ll be calling and if I can really commute 20 miles each way– each day, I’ll be thrilled since my exercise will be, for the most part, integrated into my commute since I’ll be peddling!
I tried taking the bus but the bus was “bike unfriendly” since I had to put my bike under the bus and I couldn’t remove it at my stop since the bus operator was only allowed to remove it at “transportation centers” and not along the route. not only that but the “bus layovers” made the trip go from 25 minutes to over an hour… the optibike site claims that the bike ride will be 15 minutes faster than the bus!
I think that prices aren’t collapsing because, even though deflation should happen, corporations keep the prices high.
Dan says
I have an Optibike on order for Spring 08. I have read and talked about many options and I will bet that Optibike gives the best overall performance. The issue for a commuter is not only speed, but ride, handling, braking. Although the hub option gets a faster bike, it is difficult to dampen the un-sprung weight of the hub when it hits a bump. At high speeds, this can be dangerous. Optibike suspension can handle the bumps with the quality shocks and normal weight wheels.
I currently ride a Giant Lite, (geared up with a 16T cog and 7 speed SRAM hub). It will go 22mph on the flats with normal peddalling, and puts out 240W nominal. Seat suspension only. The optibike will see 600W nominal. I expect to ride at 28mph on the flats.
Value: I believe the Opti has good value for the price. I’ll let you know when I get it – Lord willing.
Dan says
Another note about Optibike(range and efficiency):
The optibike
52 mile range at full power (assuming 28mph ave.), and uses 1008 Watt-hours.
Efficiency about 82-83% under load.
The Crystalite Hub from EV rider
Goes 24 miles and uses 1200 Watt-hours at 36mph, full power. At 20mph, it goes 51 miles.
Efficiency about 79-80% under load typically.
Giant Lite
Goes 25-30 miles at full assist, uses 156W-hrs, but only averages 18-19mph.
Efficiency about 82-83% under load.
The Giant and Optibike are more efficient because the motor powers the wheels thru the gears, while the hub motor is gearless. The opti can run the motor at peak power and efficiency accross all loads/ at a constant speed using gears. The hub has peak efficiency within a given speed range, and drops off at upper and lower speeds.
Frank says
The optibike is interesting.
But, the company site does not include the cost of replacing batteries.
So, let me calculate it:
The batteries used are AA NiMH, according to optibike-battery.com. Total of batteries 9Ah, 36V.
Thus, I guess the bike uses 36/1.2*9=270 AA batteries. I may be wrong here since I have not seen an optibike. So correct me if you know it.
NiMH batteries can be charged 500 cycles or 2.5 years.
Each cycle gives you 20 miles.
So, these batteries give you 20*500=10,000 miles.
Current price for 270 AA NiMH is $330-675, depends on the brand. So, the battery fee is
$0.033 – $0.068 per mile.
In contrast, if a car can go 40mpg, then gas cost is $3.40=$0.075 per mile.
Dan says
Frank,
Opti sells a NiMH replacement for $299. The advertised range is 25mi per charge. For 500 complete cycles, the range is 25×500= 12500mi.
The cost is then $299/12500= about 2.4cents/mi.
To go 40miles : $0.96 of battery life, and very minimal energy costs : approx $0.12 @ 0.15/kwh.
total cost for 40 mi: $1.08
Econo car: 1 gallon ~ $3.00
SUV @ 15mpg ~ $8.00
Health benefit ++
Caveat: After peddling, you are more hungry and eat bio fuel at what cost per ride? Overwise, you drive the car and still snack and add pounds. Call it equal?
Dan says
PS. Once you add in costs for insurance and maintanence for the auto, the costs to up, up, up.
John says
Good article. The initial cost of buying an electric bike makes it totally unappealing. Once they begin to sell at a fair price I’ll get one for sure. Look at the price of the Optibike motor upgrade. You can buy a dinosaur motor for that price! What sense does that make? A simple single moving part assembly costing more than a complicated internal combustion one!
Hangdog98 says
Maybe it’s not about the money. Maybe he just wanted to stop pumping pollutants into our air and does that by riding an electric bike recharged with green electricity. Maybe he wanted to contribute to the development of this technology and paid a little extra. The real cost of foreign oil dependance is way higher than the price of gas at the pump. Make sure you factor in your high taxes and the cost of the war in Iraq when you’re doing your $ per mile calculations.