This came up as an advert and it looks bonkers. Bonkers for the amount of effort put into it, cash behind it, design and just about everything else.
It looks like a April fools joke.
illegal in the UK unless registered as a motorcycle
illegal in the UK unless registered as a motorcycle
There's a 250W EU version and a 750W US version.. so the former, should be a legal pedalec over here.
It's trading on looks and the bells and whistles. The design is pretty basic - single-speed, hub motor, boxy frame parts.
illegal in the UK unless registered as a motorcycle
Perhaps, but isn’t the question whether they should be illegal? Clean, reliable, cheap personal transport is something we (as a country) should be promoting, not dismissing.
What’s interesting to me is these things seem to be made with MTB-grade components rather than motorbike grade. It’s almost creating a tier of motorised vehicles between eBikes and ‘proper’ motorbikes/scooters. Perhaps that is indeed a sweetspot for around-city travel.
Light, cheap, efficient, but capable of keeping up with cars on clearer sections of road at 30mph? Seems like it might get a few people out of cars.
But, er, yeah it’s pretty gopping!
We already have a vehicle category for 30 mph bikes - called a moped.
Perhaps, but isn’t the question whether they should be illegal? Clean, reliable, cheap personal transport is something we (as a country) should be promoting, not dismissing.
There's another thread on that topic already.
Mixing a 30 mph vehicle with regular bikes in a bike lane won't work, they need to be treated as motor vehicles. If they're going to be ridden in traffic and going as fast as cars, they need brake lights, indicators, headlights, etc. and the riders need to be licensed to ensure they understand the road rules. It's called a moped, as TJ had pointed out.
Mopeds are much cheaper to run than cars but most people much prefer cars - they're much safer and more comfortable, and you can haul kids to school and bags of groceries home. Making electric bicycles faster by itself won't persuade many people to switch from using cars.
Pointlessly over engineered. No rack. Supported by the Uk government plastered over the web site. Huge team. I am thinking who gave them the money for this or it is a scam.
An advertised speed of 31 mph means it's not legal as an ebike. Does the the legal definition of a moped allow for an electric motor?
An advertised speed of 31 mph means it’s not legal as an ebike.
As above, the EU / UK version is limited to 15mph / 250W.
There’s another thread on that topic already.
Well yes, so why bring up the legality of it in this thread? I’m arguing that this particular bike is not without merit simply because it’s ‘illegal’.
Isn’t the more relevant issue that it’s horrific?
Looking at it objectively, a 30mph ebike with a 100mile range is exactly the sort of thing we should be encouraging to get folk out of cars in our cities. It would be a great boon for our societies and would likely be able to replace most second cars.
A simple CBT type (ie ~£100/half day) training course would be easy enough to roll out.
We should be making these sort of innovations easier to implement, not harder. See also electric scooters.
We should be making these sort of innovations easier to implement, not harder.
They are easy to implement - they just need to meet the legal requirements of a moped.
Most people aren't going to get out of their cars to ride a moped without making cars much less attractive. Mopeds already exist but most people prefer a car if they have a choice.
Isn’t the more relevant issue that it’s horrific?
Its appearance is nothing like as bad as the advertising blurb:
The refined is knowing you'll be riding down the High Street on this sleek and elegant cruising machine, and everyone will see you coming in style.
Holy shit guys, really?
Mopeds already exist but most people prefer a car if they have a choice.
Not mopeds that you can wheel into a flat though or (if you're feeling strong) carry upstairs. There's definitely a niche for the higher power pedalecs, where they're legal they are pretty popular.
As above, the EU / UK version is limited to 15mph / 250W.
250kW I saw. 15 mph for the Euro version would make sense, but I can't see it stated anywhere.
250kW I saw. 15 mph for the Euro version would make sense, but I can’t see it stated anywhere.
Near the bottom.
Not mopeds that you can wheel into a flat though
Sure you can wheel a moped into a flat, it's exactly the same as wheeling an e-bike into a flat.
apart from the 50kg weight difference
apart from the 50kg weight difference
I had a quick google and the Niu electric moped
seems to be broadly comparable the original posted bike at 30mph and 75mile range and that comes in at 112kg compared the 25kg for the crown cruiser.
You won't be carrying the electric moped into your house any time soon whereas 25kg would be perfectly manageable (not that you'd want to carry it to top floor flat mind).
I kind of agree with scruff9252, but the UK needs to do a lot more than just make the new technology available to increase uptake, but I also foresee problems. I live in Germany and the uptake of ebikes has been much higher, I think a lot of that is down to infrastructure ie cycle paths and workplace facilities. However the speed limit on cycle paths is 25kmh if you go faster than that you should be on the road, that then brings (probably) inexperienced cyclists into contact with drivers who are not used to that type of vehicle, and so far I don't see any planning on how that is managed.
And of course selfishly I think that it will cause access problems for mountain bikers and even standard ebikers as we are all lumped together as the enemy. It's not as it should be but it is what will happen.
Near the bottom.
Thanks. So in the UK it will be a legal ebike.
apart from the 50kg weight difference
The Crown Cruiser spec weight is 55lb, so less than 25kg.
I think you'd get far fewer complaints from your housemates with a bike in the hall than with a moped.
Not mopeds that you can wheel into a flat though
You won’t be carrying the electric moped into your house any time soon whereas 25kg would be perfectly manageable (not that you’d want to carry it to top floor flat mind).
No, you won't carry it, you'll wheel it in, like the original comment said. Your average office worker is not going to be carrying a 25 kg bike around either. They'll have to wheel it inside.
"CrownCruiser was already selected by the UK Research and Innovation Agency as the best solution to the new era of alternative transport.
With government funding we guarantee that each CrownCruiser will be hand crafted and delivered with the highest standards".
Really? Why the need for crowdfunding then?
"sleek and elegant"
Erm, no.
we guarantee that each CrownCruiser will be hand crafted
I'm actually happy to buy stuff made in factories that use machines. What are these guys going to do, hand forge them with a hammer and anvil?
What are these guys going to do, hand forge them with a hammer and anvil?
Out of sheets of tinplate, like the toy motorbike I had when I was 5. Front forks fell off that.
55lbs is a fiction looking at those tyres and rims. And I love the screw-on disc wheel covers. Just like I had on my Raleigh Even More Extreme in 1992.
Isn't carbon fibre layup usually done by hand?
Isn’t carbon fibre layup usually done by hand?
Yep. That's why it's outsourced to Vietnam or China.
Whenever you see "assembled" in the product description, that probably means that it was made in Asia and the handlebars, pedals, and wheels were bolted on locally.
Crafted by top british engineers from the highest end materials, and assembled by hand in Britain.
We are so confident in the quality of materials used and our manufacturing process, that we offer a lifetime guarantee on your CrownCruiser frame.
Weird.
It seems very long, and how far do those bars actually turn? It probably has the turning circle of a barge.
A weird looking futuristic styled carbon fibre bicycle is not going to be a government funded transport revolution in anyone's wildest dreams, surely. I can't see that it's any different to any other e-bike in essence, apart from the frame and looks obviously.
Though I do like the racing green version 🙂
Making electric bicycles faster by itself won’t persuade many people to switch from using cars.
Not sure who did the research but GCN were pointing to some last week that showed escooters main users being those who would have walked and bike being ridden by people who would have ridden their non bike. So not a lot of people getting out of their cars and more people just being a bit lazier and using more resources (motor, battery manufacture etc,.) rather then less.
Looking at it objectively, a 30mph ebike with a 100mile range is exactly the sort of thing we should be encouraging to get folk out of cars in our cities. It would be a great boon for our societies and would likely be able to replace most second cars.
I agree. Thing is if it comes under moped class it means licensing complications or needing a full CBT for many, needing an MOT (your local bike shop can't do that), the fact you can't take a speed pedelec on a bike path when the traffic risk is what keeps a lot of people in cars, etc.
Raising the standard pedelec limit to 20mph would be a good alternative.
One thing this bike is doing very well it trying to sell to people who aren't already into bikes. That's a good thing imo, preaching to the converted doesn't get people out of cars. Perhaps neither does a £3k+ bit of carbon vapourware but it gets people interested who wouldn't look twice at a standard bike.
GCN were pointing to some [research] last week that showed escooters main users being those who would have walked and bike being ridden by people who would have ridden their non bike.
This is an interesting point. I often think there are two 'types' of commute cyclist (with substantial overlap of course).
A) Bike as a walking substitute (travelling 'walkable' distances, but quicker)
B) Bike as a car substitute (where you otherwise wouldn't have considered walking, E.g. 3+ miles)
We can encourage both, but the latter has a much greater environmental benefit, but also take a lot more commitment (significant physical exertion, further from home if you have a mechanical, likely to need changing facilities etc). Or, to put it another way, there are many more barriers to participation. eBikes obviously reduce the exertion required, reducing the need for a change of clothes. But also they can be made more robust, reducing the chance of mechanicals.
An electric scooter is probably in the A) camp, but intuitively (I.e. without a shred of evidence) I reckon these bikes would be used as a car replacement - so I'm not sure the quoted research would apply.
Raising the standard pedelec limit to 20mph would be a good alternative.
Good for the skilled experienced riders but given over 55s on ebike are the lar4gest risk population in the netherlands with accident rates rising strongly I would be against this. too big a speed differential with pootling bike riders. to easy for the inexperienced to get into trouble - and I did adjust mine to 19.9 mph when committing across town to keep up with traffic but have reset it now to legal
seems to be broadly comparable the original posted bike at 30mph and 75mile range and that comes in at 112kg compared the 25kg for the crown cruiser.
I suspect that 100mile range is fictional. Or assumes the rider doesn't set the assist above "compensate for the weight of the battery".
It's certainly not going to do 2x the range of a normal e-bike at twice the speed on the same (ish) weight of motor and battery.
And even if it hypothetically was as fast as a moped, that just means you should need to be at least as licenced andcompetent as a moped rider to ride it, i.e. a CBT. If after doing a CBT you want a lightweight moped then you're covered.
I suspect that 100mile range is fictional.
The bike is basically fictional at the moment. At best they have some prototypes and some marketing materials, but it's basically vapourware. More likely to end up as Sick Bikes Episode 2 than changing the world.
An electric scooter is probably in the A) camp, but intuitively (I.e. without a shred of evidence) I reckon these bikes would be used as a car replacement – so I’m not sure the quoted research would apply.
That was the part of the research though where people were not using ebikes as car replacements - an ebike is still as dangerous as a pedal bike, you still get as wet and cold etc,.
If however you are already cycling then moving to an ebike makes it easier and that is who is using them.
People who believe that cycling can replace their car for commuting/other stuff are already doing it.