The UK is actually trailing behind other European countries in its adoption of electric bikes. Only 5% of bikes sold in the UK are electric bikes compared with Germany, the European leader so it’s not surprising that most of us don’t know a lot about them.
We’ve covered all of the key similarities and differences between electric and non-electric bikes as well as touching on the advantages and disadvantages of electric bikes.
Most electric bikes nowadays look very similar to regular bikes; in fact with technological advancements such as in-tube batteries and smaller motors you might even find it hard to tell the difference with some models. There’s a common misconception that electric bikes are more similar to motorcycles than to bicycles but this simply isn’t the case.
You’ll still have to pedal with an electric bike just like any other bike, the only difference is that the motor will add a bit of extra power to your natural rider power making things seem a little easier when you need it most. But ultimately, electric bicycles are very similar to traditional bicycles with the only real difference being the added electrical components. There are five key additional elements that differentiate an electric bike from a regular non-electric bike; these are the Motor, Sensor, Battery, Controls and Display.
The electric bike motor is the part of the bike that delivers the extra power to your pedalling. But you’ll always be able to control the assistance that the motor provides using the controls to switch between the different modes available. Motors can be either; front mounted, centre mounted (also known as crank driven) or rear mounted.
There are two types of sensor that can be used on an electric bike; Cadence sensors and Torque sensors. The sensor is the part of the bike which tells the motor that you’re pedalling and that it needs to start adding assistance. If your electric bike has a cadence sensor then it will identify that the pedals are revolving as you pedal and apply a predetermined assistance level determined by your controls. If your bike has a torque sensor the sensor will measure the amount of force applied by your pedalling and apply corresponding power to reach the determined assistance level resulting in a more natural feeling ride.
Electric bike batteries have different capacity levels which, combined with a number of other factors will determine the range of your electric bike on a single charge. Charging your battery is easy, just unlock it using the keys provided, unclip it from your bike and charge using a mains plug socket. Dependant on your battery size and charger this will take between 3 and 6 hours however most batteries charge to around 50% in 1.5-2.5 hours. For more information on batteries, read our electric bike battery guide.
Electric bike controls may sometimes be integrated with your display but generally these are small buttons located on the left hand side of your handlebars which allow you to move between the assistance levels available on your bike.
Your display will show a range of information which could include battery level, range, speed, trip distance and your selected assistance mode. The information that your display shows will be dependent on the type of electric bike system that you choose as each system usually has an associated display type.