E-Bike with kids trailer

thos

Hi all,
I'm looking at getting an e-bike to help tow my kids along in their Thule Chariot trailer. Leisure use, not major mileage, not commuting.
I rang one of the major brands yesterday, who were pretty blunt that towing a trailer like this would burn out the motor, void the warranty and weren't really interested in selling me a bike.

Obviously a trailer and more weight is going to add additional load on the bike, but I was surprised they were that blunt. Load capacity of the bike I was looking at was 120kg, I'm 80kg and the trailer+kids is a total of 37kg (even though trailer is rolling, not dead weight on the frame)

I thought this was a pretty good use case for an e-bike.

Anyone got any experience here?

Tom

Chips Lovell

Maybe I'm missing something, but I'm not sure what their issue with towing a trailer was. Electric bikes are designed to cut out at 250w or 25kph, whichever is reached first. Adding additional weight just means you'll be somewhat slower. You can't "burn out" the motor because it'll still cut out at 250w.

I'd imagine you'll get less from a single battery charge, because the extra weight would mean engaging the electrical assistance more often, but you probably know that already.

magicbastarder

thos wrote: »

void the warranty

i'd be curious to read what the warranty says so.
if they are selling an assisted bike, and are claiming it cannot be used in a very common cycling use case, i suspect they will soon run afoul of consumer law.

thos

magicbastarder wrote: »

i'd be curious to read what the warranty says so.
if they are selling an assisted bike, and are claiming it cannot be used in a very common cycling use case, i suspect they will soon run afoul of consumer law.

Usually warranty vague points

EXCLUSIONS

The above warranty, or implied warranty, does not cover:

Normal wear and tear on parts such as tyres, chains, brakes, cables and gearwheels in situations where there are no assembly or material defects.
Bicycles serviced by other than an Authorised Giant Retailer.
Modifications from the original condition.
Use of the bicycle for abnormal, competition, and/or commercial activities or for purposes other than those for which the bicycle was designed.
Damage caused by failing to follow the owner's manual.
Paint finish and decal damage resulting from taking part in competitions, jumping, downhill and/or training for such activities or events as a result of exposing the bike to, or riding the bike in, severe conditions or climates.
Labour charges for part replacement or changeover.

I'm sure they could say towing is 'abnormal' or not following the 'owners manual'

magicbastarder

i'd tweet them to ask, just to see the reaction. they might be more inclined to react if you ask in a public forum.

Ferris

What major brand? What motor type? Front or rear hub or mid drive.

I tow a two seat trailer with my mid drive ebike. Its a cube eMTB with a high torque (CX) bosch motor (- recommended!). It will tow the trailer with 3 & 6yr old up a steep hill with a good bit of effort form me. The strain will be taken mostly by the drivetrain in a mid motor setup so I reckon it'll be okay.

On the warranty front, how would they know you were towing a trailer?

thos

Giant, mid-motor, it's a Yamaha motor but Giant branding and firmware.
I rang them, half trying to convince myself to buy the higher torque motor anyway (Core vs Sport), so chatting to them about what I was going to use it for, so that's where it came up. In terms of warranty, once the little tow point is unbolted, I don't see how they could tell. Data on strain on the motor, but even that would be debatable.

How do you find the mid-motor with trailer? Have you had it long?

Ferris

Ah i've about 20k+ klm on it now, had the motor rebuilt at 18k. Its my commuter and I give it dogs abuse. The motor rebuild was pure wear and tear so I'm happy with the bike.

It tows the trailer okay, when the two kids are in the trailer you can definately feel it pushing the bike sometimes. Stops much more slowly. Once, on a really steep hill, the motor faulted out but it still climbed the hill at reduced power. I have a slightly larger chain ring than standard so I would have thought it would have been fine with the standard one. My motor is a gen 2 CX bosch. They are onto gen 4 now so mine is old hat but it still runs very well. I would severly doubt that they would be able to tell motor strain in case of a warranty claim. Anecdotally, the only things that wear out mid drive motors is prolonged wear and tear or water ingress (or both).

I like mid drives as they feel more natural to pedal. Also better for towing heavy loads / going up steep hills as the motor benefits from the reduction gearing so motor load should be mitigated. Issue with that is that they wear the chain and rear mech much faster than a hub powered bike. I swap the drivetrain out myself so its not an issue for me.

thos

20k kms, wow, fair play. Not a hope I'd get near that. I don't think I've anything to worry about!

Pigeon Reaper

I tow a trailer with a mid motor ebike. I've never had problems but you need to keep an eye on the speed as it's easy to get a lot of momentum going. I do find the chain tends to wear a little quicker than a normal bike and the battery range reduces if there's a large load. The warranty issue is nonsense. I wouldn't buy from the dealer if they're making out that it will burn out a motor. Lots of motors are used on large cargo bikes without problems.

obi604

I did one of the greenways and wanted to rent an e bike and tow a trailer. Answer was a flat no, not alllowed.

Ferris

obi604 wrote: »

I did one of the greenways and wanted to rent an e bike and tow a trailer. Answer was a flat no, not alllowed.

On the Shannon blueway you can rent ebikes with trailers. All mid drive but, I wonder if that’s a factor?
https://www.electricbiketrails.ie/family-bike-hire/