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Stu Peters

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1 hour ago, Happier diner said:

I'm not sure I understand your thinking. He is only quoting the laws. An e bike goes from being a bicycle to being a motorcycle when it can go over 18mph using the motor. Seems sensible to me

Close. Currently an e-bike can have motor assistance to 15.5mph, and is currently limited to 250w.

The key words there are "to 15.5 mph", so no matter if the wattage was increased, the motor couldn't assist beyond 15.5 mph. You can still do 40mph downhill, just like any other bike, but the motor doesn't assist beyond 15.5mph. 

The DOI draft document that went to consultation redefined electric scooters that could do a maximum of 15.5mph as bicycles, and actually suggests a 1000watt limit for L1E-A pedal-assisted bicycles, with no restrictions on age (I thought it was 750w until I re-read it, my bad).

L1E-B pedal-assisted bikes could have up to 4000w, with a maximum assistance of 4x human power to 45kmh, but the proposal recommends a minimum age of 16 with an approved helmet.

We're still awaiting action on the completed consultation. No surprises there.  

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1 hour ago, HiVibes said:

Yep, I know quite a few people who have died as a result.

Don't we all, but the speed limit (or lack thereof) is not the culprit.

52 minutes ago, Cambon said:

regarding your e-cycle point, the U.K. law states that any powered vehicle capable of achieving or exceeding 25mph requires specialist training and a valid license, if used on public roads. Why should e-cycled be any different? 

Simon Cowell has broken himself twice on excessively powerful e-bikes.  I'd agree that the powerful ones do need to be treated more like actual motorbikes than bicycles. 

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1 minute ago, The Bastard said:

The key words there are "to 15.5 mph", so no matter if the wattage was increased, the motor couldn't assist beyond 15.5 mph. You can still do 40mph downhill, just like any other bike, but the motor doesn't assist beyond 15.5mph. 

You can pretty easily 'chip' them, remove the limiter or change the gear ratios and make them actually pretty quick. 

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24 minutes ago, The Phantom said:

Don't we all, but the speed limit (or lack thereof) is not the culprit.

Recently even Road Hog Peters lost his great mate and 'massive star' Clive McNeil due to excessive speed on the mountain, if only he had been riding a 30mph capped scooter....  Hey @Stu Petersin Clive's memory make these roads safe for us all.

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37 minutes ago, The Phantom said:

You can pretty easily 'chip' them, remove the limiter or change the gear ratios and make them actually pretty quick. 

There are conversion kits that can add a 100cc 2-stroke engine to a bicycle but fitting them would mean they're no longer a bicycle. Same if you bore out the cylinders on your road car - Caveat Emptor.

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2 minutes ago, Declan said:

@HiVibesI don't think using a poster's friend's suicide to score points in a Forum debate is going to win you many arguments.

Excessive speed was the cause, and it was on a public road. I would have linked other ones that were known to me but IOM newspapers deleted the old links. Personally having gone througfh the tradgedy of losing a close friend to excessive speed it changed my behaviour and cannot understand why this madness continues.. 

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46 minutes ago, The Phantom said:

Don't we all, but the speed limit (or lack thereof) is not the culprit.

Simon Cowell has broken himself twice on excessively powerful e-bikes.  I'd agree that the powerful ones do need to be treated more like actual motorbikes than bicycles. 

Cowell broke his back when he looped an electric motorcycle, a Swind EB-01 which has a throttle and 15,000 watts - not an e-bike !

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2 minutes ago, The Bastard said:

There are conversion kits that can add a 100cc 2-stroke engine to a bicycle but fitting them would mean they're no longer a bicycle. Same if you bore out the cylinders on your road car - Caveat Emptor.

It's not really the same though is it? 

Bore your car's cylinders out and it's still a motor car, just with a larger displacement. 

Add a motor to bicycle, then it becomes a motorbike.  Something entirely different.

Although I'll admit the pedal assist e-bikes is a bit of a grey area when it comes to pigeon-holing.  As I've said, I think the current output limit is fine for assisting pedalling.  More and then it definitely becomes more like a motorbike.  Chipping them etc is realistically pretty rare, but it does happen.  

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1 hour ago, HiVibes said:

Thats ridiculus that an old dodderer could be driving a car that fast on a public road isn't it, just lethal.

I try not to respond to The Vibrator, but as an old dodderer I can't resist.

My lovely gas-guzzling German V8 is limited to 155mph too. So I'm thinking of having it chipped to remove that...

BTW I didn't know Clive except to say hello to.

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9 minutes ago, HiVibes said:

Excessive speed was the cause, and it was on a public road. I would have linked other ones that were known to me but IOM newspapers deleted the old links. Personally having gone througfh the tradgedy of losing a close friend to excessive speed it changed my behaviour and cannot understand why this madness continues.. 

I think the cause was desire.

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3 minutes ago, The Bastard said:

Cowell broke his back when he looped an electric motorcycle, a Swind EB-01 which has a throttle and 15,000 watts - not an e-bike !

I think we're entering semantics here.  I bet Cowell and most people would describe it as an e-bike.  

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