My experience: Bodhi Bikes arranged for me to borrow a model of their new electric bike from Alien Scooter for a long weekend of testing. I was able to get in a short test ride on the Step Through model and a longer set of rides on the Sport.
Build Quality: 5/5
Function: 4/5
Style: 4/5
Overall: 4/5
Availability: Bodhi is a new brand based out of Ft. Worth with bikes make in China. The e-bike is currently available at a retail price of $2500 in a Step Through and Sport version from Alien Scooter.
Editor Disclosure Note: At the time the Bodhi test bicycles were provided for review, Bodhi Bikes was a site sponsor of Austin on Two Wheels.
Overview
Electric bikes have been touted as the killer app to get those who are not already cyclists or physically fit out of their cars and on to bikes. Unfortunately, most of the e-bike products to date have not lived up to the ease and reliability of regular bikes. Most are standard low budget mountain bikes or hybrids with motor hub and rack mounted battery. They look ugly and clunky, something more like parts thrown together from Radio Shack than a thought out complete product.
This may look like a graphic design on the down tube, but the black box is actually the battery.
The Bodhi Electric Bikes are part of a second generation of e-bikes that aim to create a product built from the ground up to be an electric bike. The Bodhi’s frame is designed to be an e-bike and includes quality components and accessories to make their bike a legitimate car replacement. Those that have a hilly commute or professionals who need to ride to work in business attire will appreciate the Bodhi.
Build Quality and Function
The Bodhi was designed to be an electric bike from the start, and it shows. The slickest feature of the bike is the battery placement. It is encased in the down tube and from a distance just looks like a graphic on the frame. A key turns the battery on and off for power savings and locks it out so it does not go missing while you are parked. The bike’s motor, which the Bodhi team designed themselves correction: which the Bodhi team selected for its smoothness, low running noise, and power, is built into a beefy looking front hub and is completely enclosed for low maintenance. For the rear hub, Bodhi opted for the large gear range and smooth continuous gear shifting of the NuVinci 360 internal hub. Incidentally, the large hub of the front motor and the NuVinci rear are almost the same size providing a nice symmetry and downplaying the largess of these hubs.
Close up of the battery and the down tube dock for the battery. A key activates the battery or locks out the unit so it cannot be removed.
As I will mention later, this bike has real potential as a car replacement, and it is here where Bodhi did a good job of spec’ing the bike to the task. Fenders and lights are standard, with the extremely bright front light running off the bike’s battery. While it does not come with racks standard, there are braze-ons for rack attachments. The one big short coming is the lack of a full or partial chain guard, instead opting for a guard built into the chain ring. This is unfortunate since the oversized, squarish seat tube will probably not allow you to add a chain guard mount there and a bottom bracket mounted chain guard will likely interfere with the pedaling sensors for the motor. In my experience, the chain ring mounted guards are sufficient for general recreational use, but if you are wearing business attire or just don’t want your pants to get grease on them, pant clips or rolling your pants are going to be your options.
The continuous gear NuVinci hub made by Austin based Fallbrook Technologies is standard equipment.
On a more minor note, the Bodhi designers opted for forward facing rear dropouts with no hub/chain tensioner. This was probably done as an economy measure, but this sort of set up with an internal hub or single speed is a pet peeve of mine. This hub install makes it very difficult for proper chain tension to be set and can more easily cause problems for the bike’s owner after changing a flat. In this instance, chain tension is hand set by pulling back on the wheel, and unless the rear hub bolts are tightened down very hard, the pull of the chain drive can force the hub out of alignment and cause the wheel to rub and possibly the axle to pop out of the drop out on one side. At minimum, the inclusion of a chain tensioner bolt would address this issue and switching to rear facing drop outs would be even better.
The Bodhi drive train includes sensors on the bottom bracket that turn the motor on when you begin pedaling and off when you stop pedaling or brake.
The two model designs, Step Through and Sport, are distinct models with more differences than the frame style and paint color. Step Through will fit more people with the ability to drop the seat lower and adjust the handlebars more. The Step Through comes equipped with a more adjustable quill stem and swept back North Road style roadster handlebar. The result is a more upright seating position common on most city bikes. Meanwhile the Sport reflects its more sporty nature with a threadless headset stem without any spacers and a mountain bike handlebars yielding a little more forward leaning, fitness position. This is important to know when you are selecting the right model for you. I personally hate the ergonomics of mountain bike handle bars, enjoy an upright seated position, and like the easy on and off of a step through.
Other differences are more cosmetic with the Step Through getting more natural look with bamboo fenders and brown leather colored saddle and grips. The Sport keeps everything a silver and black mix with matching silver plastic fenders and black saddle and grips. While I like the look of wooden and bamboo fenders, their ability to channel water down and away from the sides is inferior to concave metal and plastic fenders so the Sport has that advantage on utility. Both bikes use reasonably good components and have a nice unified look about them so you do not need to feel embarrassed by the look when meeting friends.
Ride Quality
The small touch pad controller allows you to easily shift between power levels. The throttle trigger below and to the left allows you to add power on demand.
On the flats, I found each level corresponded to a speed range as I pedaled lightly. Level 2 gave me a range of 11-12 MPH, Level 3 yields 13-14 MPH, Level 4 yields 14-16 MPH, and Level 5 yields 17-19 MPH (Level 1 is throttle only.) For safety and in order to avoid motor burnout, the motor cuts off on Levels 2-5 any time you stop pedaling or brake.
As a bike without using the motor, the Bodhi is a bear to ride. Not only do you feel the extra weight of the motor and battery, the drag of the motor hub is quite noticeable as you pedal. You can take comfort in knowing if the battery runs down that you will not be stranded, but do not expect the ride to be a joy without the pedal assist. This is unfortunate, if unavoidable, as it means you will mostly want to ride with the system on, rather than just using it when you need that extra bit of power.
The display tells you your speed, distance, wattage used, battery drain, and motor power level.
If you have an especially long, hilly commute, the Bodhi may not be for you. I spent most of my time in the Level 2 and 3 auto mode (economy and standard modes.) While I could have gone faster at the higher levels, I ride Dutch bikes a lot so the 12-15 MPH range felt comfortable and right for urban cycling. I found these two levels were also sufficient for a slow but easy climb up gradual to moderate hills, however for a short stinger hill we have (about 10% grade) the level 5 was struggling even in the easiest setting on the NuVinci hub. During my testing, I had ridden about 15 miles in mixed flat and moderately hilly terrain when the battery indicated it was near empty. For most urban riders who are looking at one way rides in the 3-5 mile range, this will be totally sufficient, but if you are commuting across town, you will need to re-charge at work if you do not want to risk losing the pedal assist.
Summary
When it comes to quality and style, the Bodhi is a huge leap forward from first generation e-bikes. While $2500 for a bike is nothing to sneeze at, it is a bargain compared to the average $10,000/year cost of owning an automobile. The Bodhi would be a great match for commuters who want to get to work sweat free. It gives you the easy free parking, bike lane and trail access, and transit take along options of a regular bike with the ability to travel without getting wiped out. In addition, those who are not already cyclists or are not very physically fit and looking to find a less expensive urban transport than a car would do well with the Bodhi.
The person for whom this bicycle will probably not appeal is the current cyclists. If you are happy cycling, prefer the simplicity of a regular bike, or enjoy the physical feeling and fitness benefits of pedaling, look elsewhere. The auto engage feature is seductive, providing you with a far superior experience and speed to just pedaling alone on this particular bike. If given the option, you will engage it whenever possible. For some, that is ideal, but others may miss the feel of a bike built to pedal enjoyably under your own power.
on Sep 1st, 2011 at 4:55 pm
Elliott’s wife here. I got to try this bike out, too, and I have to admit I LOVED it! The motor kicked in very smoothly, and the eco & standard setting where all I needed for my steady-climb commute. Yes, this bike would be great for folks who want to get out of their cars but who are not quite fit enough to make it to work on their own power, but there is another market here, too. If you are a very enthusiastic urban cyclist, with a spouse who is maybe not quite as enthusiastic… or you have a spouse who very much wants to ride with you but just can’t quite keep up… a bike like this could just be the thing to get you both out on two wheels, happily cycling all over town together.
on Sep 1st, 2011 at 6:00 pm
I’m thinking of taking my dog to work on a daily basis — and pulling him in his trailer up the hills in my route gets tiring on the knees after a while.
The last electric bike I owned had its motor in the bottom bracket, so it was able to take advantage of the bike’s gearing (and thus had plenty of torque for pulling the trailer or climbing hills). The hub motor here doesn’t get that advantage — given your experience, would it still be useful for me, or should I be looking for another mid-drive bike?
on Sep 2nd, 2011 at 7:11 am
Charles,
The rear hub is a NuVinci continuous gear hub which has one of the largest gearing range of any internal hub. When I use the term “gearless”, that means there are not distinct gears… rather the hub moves continuously through without distinct gears you click in (think turning the knob of a radio.) There are several pedicab drivers in town who use the NuVinci, so I don’t think it would be a problem to towing a trailer.
on Dec 15th, 2011 at 3:53 pm
Elliott –
I understand the meaning of “gearless” in this context. Given that the Bodhi uses a hub drive, the NuVinci only helps with human effort, not with the motor’s efficiency under load (ie. when climbing), which is where my concerns rest.
If the Bodhi had a bottom-bracket motor, and power were going through the chain, the N360 would be relevant to the motor’s efficiency when climbing, but my understanding is that it’s only involved at all in the human side of the drivetrain… so the question of this bike’s utility in that scenario rests on how much torque the motor can put out, which is largely dependent on its fixed internal gearing (fixed, again, because the N360 isn’t part of its drivetrain but only used for pedal input).
The folks at Alien Scooters are trying to push me towards something beefier, but I suspect I’m just going to need to do a test ride up a hill with the trailer to be sure.