Hi Every One
I have just joined the V is for Voltage forum.
I have been thinking about getting a bike for work for a while as fuel prices in the UK are getting really silly, and I did not want to get a second car as the car I have cost me between £35 & £50 a week in fuel, depending on my shifts
I was looking at petrol 125cc bikes that do give good MPG but with the Road Tax, Insurance, Fuel, Oil & Filters, and other parts that can go wrong like when the exhaust need replacing it was starting to add up.
I was just surfing one evening and I put in Google Electric Bikes and I found the Vectrix.
I was luck enough to have a dealer only 15 miles away from me so I phoned them to go and have a look at the bike.
I must say I was very very impressed, it was a nice big bike and being 6ft 4inc I needed something that I would not look stupid on.
I was not in a position to purchase a new bike but I was told that the have a second hand bike that an old gentleman had purchased but came off it and never went on it again it has only got 300 miles on the clock and they want £3,500 half price.
The bike is a 2008 on an 08 plate, the dealers are going to replace the two panels that had the scratches on which are not the bad to be honest, they are going to MOT it and give it a full service with all the latest updates, the bike will now go 70 MPH, I will also be getting 6 months warranty, they are also changing one of the censers something to do with the fans for the batteries, they were not happy with it so they are changing it.
The only thing my wife and I are worried about are the batteries, if the bike is an 2008 with 300 miles on the clock in must have been standing for a fare while, I was told the old gentleman used to take it up and down his drive to keep the bike moving but never took it out on the road after he came of it.
Vectrix say the batteries last 50,000 miles or ten years but they don't back this up with a warranty which worries me, I have been told that a new set of batteries cost around £2,000 if this is the case and the batteries did go wrong, the bike would just sit there as I would not be able to afford the new batteries.
I did mail Vectrix in the US to get some answers or reassurance but I have got nothing back which is not good customer service.
I do like the bike I want to get it but I am worried.
What are your thoughts and advice please.
Cheers
Big John
If they give you a six month warranty, you will know if the batteries are good or on with in three good months of summer driving. I would personally buy one of the new Lithium models, just for the added range. But if it is out side of your price range. I would see if you could have them not replace the panels and talk them down another 1000.
Hi Big John, welcome to the Forum.
I´ve some questions to maybe help if it is a good decision to purchase the V:
- Will you use it for the daily way to work or hop around for shopping?
- how far is the greatest distance driven between two plugs.
- can you use a Plug at work and at home. Even if not needet now (enough range)but it might be needet
at cold weather or after long standing periods.
- is the battery covered by the 6 month warranty (mentioned in sales-contract!)
- ask them to make the battery capacity measurement routine mentioned here (post 15)
they should give you a look at the diagnostic software after this routine,there you would see
how much capacity is left.
- Have you a garage ore something else where you can charge the Bike periodically during winter hibernation?
Greetings Mike
Edit: ask to have a look at the bikes lable its above the front wheel on the batterycase (aluminium box) take a look here: there you see
the production year (mine was produced mid 2007 and purchased late summer 2008. It might help during "talking about the price" ;-)
I agree with yamez4u,
Ask them not replace the panels and talk them down another 500-1000.
The bike is a real piece of engineering, 2500-3000 with 6 month warranty would be a very nice price. The only weak point is the NIMH battery.
To be honest, the batteries in this condition will last between 5.000-10.000 miles (around 1-2 years). Then you'll be able to ride another 3.000-6.000 miles perceiving battery problems. Buy it as a "transtion" ebike. It will serve good for a 20 mile trip per charge.
If you love it (like us), you will be able to upgrade your bike to lithium (soon there will be upgrading kits, with or without vectrix)... ;-)
Hi Mike
Thank you for your responce.
Here are the answers to your questions;
Will you use it for the daily way to work or hop around for shopping?
I will be using the bike for work on a daily basis 6 days a week.
How far is the greatest distance driven between two plugs.
The greatese distance between two plug points is approx 20 miles.
Can you use a Plug at work and at home.
They are putting a plug point in at work for me and I have a plug pint hat home in the garage, the bike at work will be kept in a locked unit but will be open to all weathers, when it is kept at home it will be in the garage which warm and dry as this is were we keep our boiler.
I will be using the bike most of the year apart from when it snows.
I have been looking at a number of sights and it comes across that most of the Vectrix bikes have batterie poblems, is this correct
I have got to get this right.
Cheers
Big John
It's nice to be important but it's more important to be nice.
There was a similar thread recently entitled 'buying a Vectrix am I mad'.
I was the only person who said on there that NiMh Vectrixs can be v problematic, but I think people should be aware of the complexity of that bike - not for the feint hearted
Look at that thread ... and In that one it was selling for under $2000
Note. Im still pro electric bikes, for #1500 you could get a brand new 60v lithium one which will do a solid 45mph and be easier to fix should anything go wrong
Hi John, welcome to the site. I am on my second Vectrix(the first written off in an accident(tart on a mobile phone!) I am now up to 6000 miles with no major problems on the second. I have the centre stand, winter windscreen and a givi top box with some after market rear view mirrors. I had the software upgraded to the 68mph version last year by Steve Scott.He is the guru of all guru's in the UK for the Vectrix being the Service manager when they launched. I stored mine over winter, topping the charge up on a timer, whilst I was having knee surgery but had been riding it daily on a 30 mile round trip commute. No charging facility at work and the office is on the 3rd floor(long extension lead). If the bike has been kept on charge at least once a week whilst it has been up and down the drive then what you need to do is a run on a circular route until you get the red bat light. Use the kill switch to stop the bike then pull the left brake lever. That should show you 124 volts and the battery temperature of around 30deg C depending on how you wellied it! Any deviation needs looking at. I regularly get between 30 and 50 miles per charge depending on hills and headwind etc. Most important, keep the tyres well inflated and check regularly. I use a timer all the time when charging so that it is isolated after 4 hours.(it will draw about 100 watts keeping the charger warm otherwise!)
Give Steve a call if you have any doubts :-stevescott [at] gmx.co.uk 0792 0053407
Above all enjoy the delight of a totally smooth, quiet ride. It saves me about £7.00 a day in fuel and park and ride costs. Oxford is a nightmare for parking and is as expensive as central london for parking charges..£24.00 daily!
Best regards
Ray
Ray
Hi Ray
Thank you for you reply to my question.
I don't live to far from you I live in a town called Bourne south Linc's about 12 miles from Stamford on the A1.
What batteries do you have in your new bike and what year is your bike, did you manage to keep the old bike or buy it off the insurance company after the meeting with the nice young lady on her phone, it might have been handy for spare parts batteries etc etc. did they give you a good market value on the damaged bike.
You say you have had no major problems with you bike, what problems have you had if any no matter how small.
The bike that I am interested in has the winter windscreen and they are going to put a Givi top box, what after market rear view mirrors did you use and were did you get them from, that is one thing I don't like about the Vectrix.
I am going to send an email to Steve Scott to see if I can get any reassurance about the batteries.
What do you mean by using a timer all the time when charging so that it is isolated after 4 hours what kind of timer are you on about and were do you get them???
I really want to get the Vectrix but I am so worried about batteries and on this forum I have seen a lot of people that have had problems, if I get the bike I will be getting a six months warranty but I would like longer than that.
Once again thank you for you message.
Kind Regards
Big John
It's nice to be important but it's more important to be nice.
Hi Big John, 20 Miles between two plugs sounds great. Maybe you have a possibility to park it under some shadow/ not under the direct sun, or you use a Cape as I do.
Many V´s had battery-problems. During the time mine was on repair twice I had a "spare"Vectrix. both had no problems with their battery. Mine had only one time a problem unfortunately it was not fixed during the two repair vacations. Make some testrides if possible, then you should be able to check if the battery is in a healthy condition. Check voltage and temp during your rides (Killswitch on + left brake should show you the two values on the left screen) voltage should not drop too fast and temp should not rise very much during your ride. For exmple temp at start 18°C outside temp 15°C temp should not rise above 23/24°C as log as you don´t ride it to fast or with hard accelerations...
Greetings Mike
Hey Big John,
I have an '07 with 10,000 miles on it. I didn't have any problems with my battery pack until it had about 9,000 miles on it. At that point some of the cells died. As I'm not an electrician (or engineer) I haven't attempted to take it apart. The range dropped from about 35 miles to about 23 miles/per charge, but it hasn't dropped any more since then. I'm still commuting to work, which is 18 miles from my home. Luckily I can plug-in at work.
Despite the limitations I'm still happy with my bike. I knew, as an "early adopter" of new technology, that I was taking a risk, but after three years and 10,000 miles I feel like I already got my money's worth. (I paid a little more than $7K after California tax incentives - in 2008).
I am seriously interested in updating the battery pack. A member of this forum ("antiscab") has mentioned that he is preparing to sell a kit with all of the necessary parts and instructions to upgrade to the Li-ion battery pack. If I can do that I will, otherwise I'll just keep riding my VX-1 as is - as long as I can.
My next bike will have Li-ion batteries.
Good luck with whatever you decide.
Just sent you a message via the forum and forgot to mention the timer. Its a standard plug in one. The only thing you must be sure is it will take the full 13amps. SOme of the cheap timers are solid state and are limited in current handling. Mine uses little pegs to trip the switch mechanically. They are available through most electrical retailers, about £12.50 or so.
Regards
Ray
Ray
Hi Folks
I have decided to go for the Vectix, I took my CBT to day which was a bit of a laugh as I was on a silly little 50cc moped, I am 6ft 4inc and weigh about 17.5/18 stone so you can image what it looked like.
I am taking the Vectrix for a test ride tomorrow, which I am looking forward to.
I would like to thank all that left a reply on this matter.
I should take delivery of the bike on Monday.
Once again thank you to all.
Cheers
Big John
It's nice to be important but it's more important to be nice.
Congratulations! You'll love it :-)
Congrats!
welcome to the community, and I wish you may have all the luck and fun I had with mine till now..
"doing nothin = doing nothing wrong" is invalid when the subject is environment
Big John, congrats!! Wellcome to the 21th century.
Hello John!--Welcome to the "Vectrix Club"! I live in the state of Maryland, USA, and find that the Vectrix is one of the few electric 2-wheeled vehicles that is capable of decent UPHILL performance with a heavy rider. At your weight of approximately 250/260 pounds, this will be an important asset. I only weigh about 200 pounds, but I have ridden my Vectrix uphill with a 230 pound buddy on the back, for a total passenger load of 430 pounds! RANGE will suffer under heavily loaded conditions in hilly terrain, or "Stop and Go" traffic conditions, but if your average distance before charging is 20 miles or less, you should not have much problem, unless you attempt to travel at high speeds.(Range at speeds exceeding 45 mph drops noticably, when heavily loaded)-On a good day, I get about 25 miles at 50 mph speed, on the highway. At 35-40 mph I can go 45 miles. (This is over HILLY terrain.)-Most of my Vectrix trips are 15 miles or less each way, unless I plan on charging enroute.--Good luck, and ENJOY the ride!--Bob Curry
Robert M. Curry
Big John...well I'm 6'4" and weight about 225lbs and the V handles my size perfectly. Even when my wife hops on the back the V has no trouble going up hills...even though a take it easy so I don't blow the fuse :)
Enjoy your new ride. I also upgraded from a 50cc scoot. Everyone may fun of me for riding that little bike but I loved it...just wanted something electric and the ability to ride 2-up!
Big AC
Adam - Denver, CO
2007 Vectrix VX-1 charged with the power of the sun = zero carbon footprint
Hi All
Thanks for all you comments
I had the test ride on the V and when I got back I had the Vectrix grin, it will take a bit of a time to get use to the weight of the V and taking turns but it will all come in time, it's been 15 years since I have ridden a motorbike or moped.
Just the thought of going to work and it's not going to cost me anything for fuel, and I can plug it in at work and that should be enough charge to get home and back to work on one charge, so work will be paying for the electric, how good is that, :-) no road tax to pay, all I've got to get is free insurance free servicing and free tyres and I have it made, and get ride of that silly CBT that for 16 year old kids that go out on there mums hair dryer.
Cheers
Big John
It's nice to be important but it's more important to be nice.
Deep discharges shorten the life of the battery. I sugest you recharge at home at least 30 min per day. You can use a timer....
I agree. try to avoid using the bottom 4-6 bars. It will help to get the longest life out of your batteries.
Remember those bottom bars disappear a lot quicker than the top 10!
It is a lot cheaper to top it off at home than to have to replace the batteries...
Once you go EV, Gas is history!
I'm sorry but I disagree to some extent. Yes the bottom 4 bars disappear quicker than the top 10, however I was always recommended by both Steve Scott and our other ex-vectrix engineer to regularly run it down to the red battery warning light. This also resets the software and ensures you always have the correct indications on the battery meter. It should come on around 124 volts. This has worked for me and I am up to 6000 miles and still get between 30 (50km) and 45(75km) miles per charge. I need this as there is nowhere to charge at work and its a 30 mile round trip. I usually get home with about 3 miles to go when the light comes on (depending on whether I used the full power of the latest software.Commute speed is between 30 and 60mph depending on traffic, occasional burst to 68mph,just because I can!!
Enjoy the bike John, you'll find out for yourself how good the batteries are soon enough.
Best Regards
Ray
Ray
Well, every time my brother did a deep discharge he lost 2-3 km of range... Only good, balanced batteries can do deep discharges without damage.
This is going to be interesting. You are approaching to the life expectancy of the NIMH battery, 6-10.000 miles. And you are doing daily deep discharges! Please keep us posted about any changes in the performance of your battery.
Not wanting to go against the general consensus on the forum, but I agree with Ray. I discharge to the red at least once, sometimes twice a week. I'm currently on 11,200 miles on my first battery pack. I have the 68mph software and ride a reasonably easy 15 mile round trip to and from work so only have to charge every other day unless I go out in the evening so top up. I generally let the software do it's thing and don't interrupt. I get the same distance I always have - 35 - 42 miles on a charge depending on riding style.
One thing I would suggest to Big John to consider when charging at home is to put the bike OUTSIDE the garage to keep the temperature down. I wouldn't recommend charging the V in an enclosed space, especially one with a boiler in it! Keep it outside where it can be cool and keep an eye on the temperature. Charging at work is fine but it will be during the day (I assume), so ambient temp will be at it's hottest - use the pre-cool delay, which is detailed elsewhere on this forum. I charge overnight to keep the battery as cool as poss.
I've ridden my V for 2.5 years every day to work, apart from when we had snow and the only time it's let me down was a puncture. It is one of the most reliable rides I've had and does all I expected of it. Welcome to the club!
The trouble I have with riding to the red light is working out exactly when that's going to happen! how do the rest of you do that without risking being caught out?
When my bike's voltage is at 123V, I know I'm getting close ;-)
However, I drive that low very rarely (once or twice per year) and I never do a deep discharge - only down to red battery telltale + 1-2kms (to reach a plug).
I usually drive down to 126-128V. My usual drive(23km) is to work and back with exactly 50 minutes recharge (5 bars) on the plug timer and my SOC varies between 8 (bottom discharge)-15 (top charge) bars of charge. Only when I need long distances I charge to full and when the equalizing is required.
I have had the bike for a couple of days now and it's great, I have used it for work for the first time today and I finnished at 12.30 and rode back home in the sun it was great. don't you get some strange looks.
So that is my first £5 I have saved because did not use the car.
Thank for every one that left a comment on here for me.
Cheers every one.
Big John
It's nice to be important but it's more important to be nice.
I told you you'd love it :-)
I'm enjoying mine a lot. We've had 2 weeks plenty of sunshine and warm weather, 8°C in the morning and 21-25°C in the afternoon, I keep my bike parked in the shade (you should too) and I enjoy every km driving to and from work.
We are having a really nice warm spring over here. Leaves on the trees grew out this week (we've had a nice night rain Monday night) and everything went from brown to green :-)
Hi,
For longest life with NiMH cells Prius's get extremely long NiMH Cell life by never charging to more than 80% and never discharging past 30% (or maybe 20%, not sure which). Cells tend to stay in balance if they are used that way and they definitely last longer.
The problem is that the only provision the Vectrix BMS has for balancing the cells is to attempt to drain them (which is destructive if they are not in balance to start with). So if you always maintain your pack in the 30%-80% range that might work best. But keeping your in the 30%-80% range as much as possible, combined with occasional deep discharges might also work best.
NOTE: In addition to the lame BMS the Vectrix also has lame thermal management and inconsistent cell temperatures will also cause cell imbalance and eventual destruction.
Best Wishes!
Mitch