Crow Fazua questions.

[Mariner]

Finally thinking about getting mobile again after three years feeling rubbish so a couple of bike questions.
Does anyone ride a Crow Cycles gravel ebike? (Read the reviews seen the yt videos.)
Does anyone ride a Fazua powered ebike road or gravel and what is it like to live with?

[voodoo_simon]

My knowledge is a few years out of fate but when I used to work in bikes shops, Fazua had the smallest batteries but felt the most bike like, so good if you need a bit of a boost on the hills but not all ride if you like to go out for a few miles. I know someone who did a week in the alps on one riding the roads, took three batteries out each day!

The Yamaha motor would have been the one i would have bought, good balance of power/battery/feel like a non e-bike to pedal.

Bosch was the most spiny/higher cadence I thought, or least resistance to pedal. These were definitely favoured by most people, maybe the more popular brand or they preferred that setup. Hmmm

Even if you can’t ride the exact model (or even brand), I’d suggest trying to find an e-bike demo somewhere and try each motor. They all do the same thing but differently. Will sort of depend on your riding style and maybe your current fitness.

[Mariner]

I chose Fazua because it is an assist rather than a drive so the bike still functions as a bike with or without the battery. The large drive motor Bosch style versions look too heavy and not even sure if they function without power.
You can tell I am an expert as I have never ridden or owned one.
Riding down here in my part of Devon is severe climbs interspersed with long relatively flat bits. The problem is where those steep bits are. Right at the start and the end. The bit in between no extra power required.


That is the profile of my just for fun 80km there and back ride that I used to do once a week back when I was fit or fitter than now. It is Sidmouth to Starcross using National Cycle ways and Exe path.

[voodoo_simon]

Bosch does work without power but unless you run out of battery, I have no idea why you would buy one and not use the motor. Same with Yamaha and shimano, all pedal assist but I’d be running the motor on all the time.

Sounds like the Fazua would be the one but I’d certainly get a test ride of one before committing to see if it really does marry up with your expectations (my experience with it is very limited, it was just appearing on bikes when I was leaving the trade)

[Itchynuts]

Firstly to be legal in the UK and Europe they are all assist. If it can move without being pedalled it is not an ebike it is a moped and is subject to a different set of rules.
(I hope no one mentions rolling down hill. That would be a distraction)

Don't put too much faith in magazine or web based reviews. They all seem to be written by people who are fit and healthy who can do everything they want to do without any sort of assistance. Good for them. I wish I was one of them but I'm not. I'm probably older than most people who look at this site and decidedly unfit. I only started riding 4.5 years ago so whatever muscles you develop for cycling are sadly absent from my legs.

Don't forget most makes of motor have 4 or 5 levels of assistance including non at all. I generally use as little as possible and slowly but surely I am getting fitter.

So, after the above ramble I strongly recommend you ride a Fazua based bike for an afternoon and choose a route with a few steep hills and reasonable amount of flat.

Do the same again with a "normal" ebike. If at all possible try it on the same route. I'd recommend you try one with a modern Bosch Performance Line CX motor and a normal 500 Watt hour or bigger battery. I am biased towards Bosch because I have owned a bike with a Bosch motor and 500 watt hour battery for about 4.5 years now and am more than happy with it.

If you notice the extra weight or the extra power and range becomes a problem then don't buy it.

The Fazua might be just what you need but compare it with a Bosch or Shimano based bike to be sure. There is a reason they are the market leaders.

[Beesey]

I have a cairn gravel bike with the Fazua motor for my 40km each way commute. I also have fixed lights on it which are great. It will get me there and back on one charge but the route isnt that hilly. Sometime my partner borrows it and leaves me for dead on the hills so it will definitely help there. I have taken the motor and battery out and used the blank case when riding out with mates and it rides like a normal (but slightly heavy) bike. What I would say is having to remove the battery to charge is a pain, its quite stiff to get out and its not something you want to drop but due to its position in the frame its a pain! I did query why it was so stiff and they said I could adjust it but not enough to make it better. I do find that on the flat I can easily ride above the motor threshold but it is a nice boost on the hills but the motor is far more subtle than the bosch or shimano ones.
Happy to ride it off road, main factor is tyre choice but I can clean a lot more techy climbs on it than I can on my normal gravel bike.
Had mine nearly two years now and it's been great.

[Mariner]

Thanks hadn't seem that Cairn use Fazua.
I note your comment re stiffness of removing the battery/motor it always appears so easy in promo. Then they show the dummy tube packed with stuff just to keep the weight up.
Fazua also do a 'water bottle' extender battery or you have options on main battery size. I am hoping for 100km range by just using on big hills not the flat. Probably need to check that again.
Crow have a specific gravel design so it is already set up for gravel tyres.

[voodoo_simon]

Me again

Facebook adverts threw this at me, £1000 off too
https://www.cairncycles.com/products/ca ... er-edition