Electric Assist E-Bike System Overview for City Commuters

Bike Friday Offers Electric Assist (E-Bike) Upgrades to make daily transportation easier and more enjoyable

Off-grid solar powered living in Eugene, Oregon

We believe e-assist is meant to help you feel powerful and capable of riding your bike. Helping to assist you when the hill is steep, your load is heavy or the kids had an extra snack that day. It will keep you pedaling through the variations in your life that might otherwise take you off the bike. A win-win with an assist E-Bike along for the ride.

We designed electric assist bikes for city cyclists with these values:

  • We believe that pedaling is an essential part of cycling and keeping control of the bike.
  • Each kit can be added or subtracted from your bike whenever you wish. It does not detract from your bike, it only adds value.
  • It must be able to complete serious life tasks and built for everyday use.
  • We want our products to deliver the best value when considering weight, function, and cost. A high-quality investment, often used by generations.

Each of the Electric Assist Systems:

  • Are 36 Volt Systems
  • The Controllers maximum Amp draw is 15 Amps, capping the motor at 500W maximum
  • All systems are Pedal Assist only so there is no electric assist without pedaling (this is key in some laws)
  • The Controller can be programmed for your local laws
  • From the Factory, we program the motor to support a maximum speed of 20mph.

Overview of the Full E-Bike Friday Suite

Electric Pedal Assist Systems



Mid-drive:

Specially designed motor replaces cranks and bottom bracket and tuned for the Bike Friday wheel size. This is the PERFECT go everywhere, do everything family mini-van replacement.

Mid-drive Electric Assist is standard on the Ever-E-Day e-bike

– Available on non-folding Bike Fridays: Ever-E-Day, Haul-a-Day, Family Tandem, and OSATA

This is a very popular system in Europe where millions of electric-assist bikes are sold yearly. It is little known in North America and we have been thrilled to discover it. Many of us on the Bike Friday team have put this kit on our Haul-a-Days and love it! The Mid-Drive is the perfect set-up for the challenges of parenthood because the loads never get lighter as the kids keep growing and the loads that come with having them don’t get any smaller.

Marry this system with either of our cargo bikes, the Ever-E-Day and Haul-a-Day, and you have the perfect family vehicle.

Strengths:

  • The most efficient system in terms of battery use
  • Best hill-climbing capabilities. The battery lasts longer despite hills and distance
  • LiGo travel battery upgrade option available
  • Bottom bracket integrated pedal-assist for smooth acceleration
  • This motor runs nearly silently so you can ride like the wind!

Considerations:

  • Limited crank options (170mm length)
  • A limited number of front chainrings (only 1)
  • Assisted speed is limited by adjustable setting that tops out at 90 RPM’s
  • Limited to non-folding Bike Fridays only

Front Hub Drive:

Motor replaces front hub in the front wheel with a specially designed Bafang motor which is optimized for our wheel size, is the quietest you can buy and works effortlessly.  With this option, you are able to remove it when you want to lighten the overall bike weight depending on its use.

Front Wheel Electric Assist System with Ligo Travel Batteries on a Bike Friday New World Tourist Silk

– This system is compatible with all Bike Friday models –

Strengths:

  • No motor resistance when coasting or without power and very quiet!
  • Very light! Adds only ~ 10 lbs to your bike
  • Fits both 20-inch wheel and 16-inch wheel Bike Fridays
  • Comes standard with pedal assist
  • Disc brake compatible
  • Balances weight of bike over both wheels.

Tandem with a Mid-Drive System

We also make an E-Assist tandem bike.  It’s incredibly nice to ride and it’s like adding a third set of legs and a dream if only for climbing the hills.

Pictured here is a Family Tandem with Mid-Drive and Bottle Battery


Battery Options:

Two different battery options that work better in certain situations

“Blue” Lithium-Ion Batteries

  • Best for bikes that don’t need to fly
  • Lower cost per Watt-hour(Wh) capacity
  • Mount securely to frame using frame bag option
  • Wide range of capacities available (185Wh to 460Wh batteries)
  • We see usages of 5-9 Wh per mile so ranges vary from 20 to 90 miles depending on assist level, terrain, and battery size

LiGo (the only travel-approved E-bike battery in the world)*

*Not available until 2023 due to chip shortage*

  • Made in Canada for extra safety and reliability
  • Each 100Wh battery is easy to fly with and connect together for added range
  • We recommend 3-4 LiGo batteries for most riders
  • We see usages of 5-9 Wh per mile so ranges vary from 35 to 80 miles depending on assist level, terrain, and battery size

Contact us and a bike design expert will help you with your questions and find the best electric system for your situation.

For retrofitting older Bike Fridays into E-Bikes with an electric assist there are additional steps. Contact us for details.


Here is what a Bike Friday customer had to say when she added an electric assist to her Bike Friday:

Just wanted to let you know how much I’m enjoying my upgraded Bike Friday. It’s actually making me cycle more, and work harder, and sweat more. I spend more time in the saddle and more time spinning because the psychological hurdle of wondering if I’ll conk before I make it all the way back home is gone. Also, I’m freed to explore the hilly areas around me that I was nervous to do much of before a bit of power. Because I have a built-in habit of going for a certain amount of pedal resistance when I ride, my worry that I’d just become lazy with an e-assist is fading. I now get how this technology can be great for true cyclists….” -Abby

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