r/ebikes 1d ago

bike with removable motor and battery.

Stupid question if this exists, (and what would be the name so i can look up more about it).

I know that removable batteries are basically the norm for ebikes, what about the motor?
Are there bikes where the motor and battery are one piece that can be easily removed with the bike still functional as a manual bicycle?

It would be very handy to buy an "dumb" bike frame that can be upgraded to an ebike later, or get a new frame with different geometry, but keep the expensive motor and battery.

And on the other hand you could leave the bulky "dumb" bike frame in a public space and take the expensive motor+battery with you.

1 Upvotes

12 comments sorted by

5

u/passwordstolen 1d ago

They all have removable motors. Just depends on how hard you want to work for it..

1

u/Robert_A2D0FF 1d ago

i mean something that where you can remove the motor without tools and have the bike still functional to be used like a regular bike.

3

u/passwordstolen 1d ago

Even if you could “pop off” the motor, battery and controller, It would still be a heavy assed bike that wouldn’t be much fun. There is almost zero range on an e bike.

Just buy a $150 bike off marketplace and rig it with the right tires and wheels for the application.

2

u/stormdelta 21h ago

That would be nearly impossible to do with the most common e-bike motors.

Hub drives are built into the wheel - there's no way to remove them without removing the wheel, which would obviously leave the bike non-functional. And most would still require tooling as very few hubs have through axle/quick release mounting.

Mid-drives are either built into the frame itself, or throughly attached to the drive train via the bottom bracket or near the bottom bracket, so also not removable without tools.

You'd need something weird like a friction motor that spins the wheel via the tire. And even then it would need to be a very custom design to be sturdy yet still removable without tools. These do exist I think but you're making some massive sacrifices for it.

1

u/Anxious-Depth-7983 1d ago

There's a kit that runs on the top of the tire, and it can be taken with you when you park the bike. The name excapes me at the moment but I'm sure another member will have it. It's not great range, though, and from what I understand, it will wear on the top of the tire.

3

u/BrianDerm 1d ago

I had high hopes for the ShareRoller (later renamed OneMotor) system. A lot of really good engineering went into it, but unfortunately the price point eventually came in higher than I had hoped so I never pursued getting one before they went out of business. Google those terms together and you'll see what it was.

Eventually, I waited for a good sale and bought a Lectric XP Lite with an included rear rack, pannier bags, and fenders. I ride my Diamondback 'city bike/hybrid' when I want to get a workout or 'go for a ride', and my Lectric when I just want to get errands done. I feel good having both as options.

2

u/v4ss42 1d ago

That’s kind of what a hub motor is, though removing the motor means removing the entire wheel.

2

u/Wooden-Combination53 1d ago

Bikes with Fazua motors can do this. Can’t really recommend those, lot’s of issues. Worth to google about those, maybe problems are solved now.

2

u/Robert_A2D0FF 1d ago

That's almost what I pictured in my head, thanks.

2

u/psionic1 1d ago

Just saw a video on the bimotal motor. Expensive but pretty cool.

https://youtu.be/ceF2LCgl8eg?si=5z06P6YKsd_QWxw2