Electric bikes: what is the battery life?

From 20 to more than 100 kilometres, the range of an electric bicycle can fluctuate enormously depending on the type of batteries on board, but also on elements as varied as the type of route taken, the level of assistance mode used and the quality and pressure of the tyres.

The first thing to know when talking about the autonomy of electric bikes is that there is no "standard" method of calculation. For cars and scooters, everything is based on a standard that allows models to be compared on an equal footing. For electric bicycles, the situation is completely unclear. Each manufacturer makes its own calculation and it is not unusual for the announced autonomies to be much more generous than those observed in reality.

Battery capacity

The battery is the tank of your electric bicycle. The higher its capacity, expressed in Wh, the better the range. As a general rule, batteries are around 300-400 Wh, which is enough to cover 20 to 80 km depending on the conditions. But it is impossible to give a precise figure! The range is very wide due to the factors we list below...

The weight of the user

This is the first element to be taken into account. On a 15kg bike, a 90kg person will increase the "global" mass by 40 % compared to a 60kg person. This will inevitably have consequences on the autonomy: with two people pedalling in exactly the same way, the 60kg person will have 30% more electrical capacity than the 90kg person!

With Teebike Count up to 80km at electric speed 1 for someone weighing 60kg on a flat course and 60km on the same course for a person weighing 90kg.

The type of assistance chosen

25, 50, or 100 %... The level of electric assistance chosen will have a direct impact on the consumption and therefore the autonomy of your electric wheel bike. This is the reason why manufacturers tend to display autonomies with significant differences.

If you want to optimise the autonomy of your Teebike wheel, you will have to adapt your riding. For example by using the lowest level of assistance on flat terrain and reserving the use of the highest levels of assistance for the most marked reliefs.

Many of you use the boost function to get started and then pedal without assistance. As your bike is designed to be ridden by pedalling (unlike many electric bikes which, given the weight and technology, have to run all the time with assistance), once you have started there is no need to use assistance all the time. This is how some of you tell us that you only have to recharge the wheel once a week after having ridden a hundred kilometres, alternating between pedalling and assistance depending on the conditions and profile of the route.

Like a car, starting and braking consume energy! Try to keep a constant speed and anticipate stops at red lights or junctions. Use your bike as you are used to doing, giving priority to gears and adapting the gears and pedalling speeds to the route or the wind.

The type of course

Downhill, flat terrain or steep uphill... The autonomy of your Teebike wheel will not be the same depending on the route taken: a steep incline combined with a high level of assistance will use a lot of electrical energy! We are in the logic of all vehicles: you consume more energy going up or accelerating and braking constantly compared to flat terrain at constant speed.

Climatic conditions

Weather conditions can affect the performance of the battery, as the chemical elements can react differently depending on the outside temperature. In sub-zero temperatures, the capacity of the Teebike battery will be lower compared to warmer temperatures. Similarly, riding with a headwind will require more effort and will tend to reduce the range as if you were climbing!

Tyre pressure

An under-inflated tyre will increase the level of resistance on the asphalt and therefore reduce the range. Also, always remember to check your tyre pressure, which should be around 4 bar.

If you have to do this check without an accurate measuring tool, make sure the tyre is very hard and does not deform by squeezing it with your hand. If you have a little bit of flexibility, you can re-inflate until you have no more deformation.

This is of course even more important for safety reasons than for autonomy.

Good to know: our Teebike wheel is delivered with a "smooth" city tyre. If you replace it with a mountain bike tyre with studs, you will lose about 10% of range due to the ground resistance.

Some information

Factors reducing life span

Full discharge at 0%
Storage in very hot places (> 30°)
Using another charger

Life-saving factors

Keep batteries in charge levels above 30%
Regular loads
Unplug when the wheel is loaded

In conclusion, a full charge of the Teebike wheel will cost you less than 10 cents (based on a calculation with a higher kWh rate). Assuming that one charge gives you the possibility to ride about 50 km, 5000km will cost you 10€ with a CO2 equivalent practically equal to 0.

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