What E-bike Manufacturers Don't Want You To Know. Watch before buying an electric bike!

This happens with millions of products, not just e bikes

When they say "We 'oversee' the manufacturing process", the spelling that immediately came to mind was more like, "We OVERSEA our manufacturing process."

You’ve literally explained commerce. This happens with everything from flower pots to restaurant food, not just e-bikes.

I literally discovered this three days ago. Been seeing similar bike ads popping up while I was looking for one. However there is no way I will ever pay 4K for a bike. That's the price for a used car or fancy moped. So I checked out AliBaba found a certified dealer. Got myself a fully customized bike made to my specs for 1.2k door to door. Sent from an EU warehouse so I skipped all the import hassle. These so called brands in Germany here want an arm and a leg for a bike and I won't let them. :D

I bought a £200 front wheel motor and controller from China years ago (200W Bafang 8FUN), added 4 mobility scooter lead acid batteries and a £50 second hand bike. It's still going strong 7 years later (OK it's had new batteries but they cost peanuts compared to light weight batteries). Easy 25 mile range and once its moving, just like a motorbike, the weight makes it feel more solid and stable to ride. It was a time when some modern batteries were catching fire and I figured for battery pack charging under my desk at work the old proven lead acid battery was safer. DIY - save a fortune - Mine is still 100% reliable. One word of warning - at e-bike speeds you need bloody good lights.

Most bike brands have been middle men since the early 90s. A Raleigh rep told me in 92 that they were getting bike frames from China for $7 a piece. $7 ! At that time a Trek 930 frame out of Wisconsin cost wholesale $130. Specialized was never a manufacturer. And if you worked in different shops you would find Taiwanese manufacturers who would build you anything you wanted and put your own name on it. Brands, unfortunately, have not meant anything for some time. The public now takes the place of quality control and you just hope for the best.

Thanks for the heads up! I lucked out. I decided to be conservative with the cash laid out. It was worth it. I learned a lot: pros and cons. A lot of the decision lies in how much the bike will be used and if the perfection is going to be a passive user (relying on the throttle) or active (pedaling and using the assist).

This happened to me. Paid 3K for an electric bike 8 years ago before the craze. Anyway, fast forward to now, I had problems with my controller and the place where I purchased my bike can’t fix it. I contacted the manufacturer and heard nothing back. I ended up buying two Döst bicycles. I really like their customer service.

What you say in this video applies to e-scooters as well. That’s why you see e-scooters that look exactly alike but have different brand names on them. Customer service/support is always promised before you make that purchase. But as soon as you discover a factory defect or something breaks, you’ll be given a hard time from the seller.

I think you will be okay we all know were getting screwed with most things we buy.

Dude this video keeps paying forward. You helped me know what I needed to know about who I am deling with. I just bought a bike from Aventon, I got the Ramblas Mid mount. They helped create that system. Thanks man!

Got a hub motor for 8 years and still going strong! What mid drive do you have like that? Hub motors rock!

Bought a £350 FIIDO D1 off aliexpress fourteen months ago , best thing I ever bought , done hundreds of miles on it , sure it’s not perfect but I needed a folder and I’m on a budget and I’m more than happy with it , it’s been places where fourteen inch wheels have no right to go including over the Pennine hills with a trailer .

Good for people to know. Of course, this is the case with virtually every consumer good, including, of course, non-electric bikes. The one caveat I'd add here is that, for people who don't like to tinker, a relationship with a reputable bike shop is what you're paying (that much extra) for. Like when you buy a car from a dealership. If you don't need that relationship, great! Save some $$$. But most normal customers do.

This is so true. I saw a folding 20" fat tire e-bike on the street with no brand. Went online and worked out it must be RDK. But RDK don''t ship to Australia. Then worked out RDK just orders these to various specs from China and badges them. There are many, many differerent brands selling this bike all around the world. The gears spces, battery specs are the same, only the max speed and if it has a hand throttle or not is what is different. Motor brand - OEM!

This going on with most products to be honest I use to work for a well known tools manufacturer and all they did was buy Chinese made stuff cheap slap some logos on them and a slightly different casing and charge the customers a hell of alot more for the product.

I’m surprised that some of you were not aware of it… I live in China and everything you guys think is made by some reputable brands is made just around the corner here in China. And no… nobody is over looking any manufacturers here. It’s not like American guy walks into massive manufacturing plant and demands something. These factories here produce millions of bikes and China is by far the biggest market. For American clients we just slap some cool looking logo on it and make it look “strong” because of those masculinity issues there. Anyways… You guys don’t make ebikes and even if you put those parts together, you’re using Chinese parts. Batteries, controllers, frames, motors etc… So, does combining Chinese products by American company or person make it more of a American or Chinese made bike? I leave it for you to judge. Btw, Bosch has some great motor designs and things… but please don’t assume those motors to be manufactured in Germany. China is the place where the stuff is made these days🤫

You just saved me $3000 the ebike I wanted comes from China. A friend of mine did an estimate on what I can build it would cost me $1500 thank you for this video

Great information. I had my 14 year old bike converted nearly 2 years ago - Bafang mid section motor and lithium-ion battery for less than one third cost of a new e-bike. And it's wonderful. I liv e in Wellington New Zealand where everything is super - expensive.

You are so right Johnny! I just found out the hard way by buying 2 Jasion e-bikes. Total crap! One motor failed. They don’t answer the phone, they don’t respond to emails, they have no spare parts, etc. My 5 week old Jasion X-Hunter is now a 1000 $ paperweight. I just posted a video on YouTube to warn people. Also, Al the people who get these bike for free and tell everyone how fabulous they are, are guilty as well. They only test the bike when it’s brand new. The don’t tell you there is zero service. Keep up your work. I am sure you will be fine. We need to tell the people the truth!