Brand new Rambo Savage motor getting very hot

[DEERGUNNER]

Hi everyone. I just bought a new Rambo Savage although I’m not a new Rambo owner. I also have a Pursuit.
On Friday, my son and I went for a 6.5 mile ride stopping at a friend’s house a mile from ours for 30 minutes. After riding the mile home which includes a small but fairly steep hill leading to our house, I smelled something hot. Upon inspection, my motor was so hot, I couldn’t touch it! Is this normal or is something wrong with my new bike? My Pursuit has never gotten hot like this (that I know of) although it has the shroud around the motor so it’s difficult to tell.
I have an email into Rambo as well as a message on messenger awaiting a response but I thought I would check with folks that could give me an immediate answer. Thank you in advance!

 

[Hoggdoc]

Hi everyone. I just bought a new Rambo Savage although I’m not a new Rambo owner. I also have a Pursuit.
On Friday, my son and I went for a 6.5 mile ride stopping at a friend’s house a mile from ours for 30 minutes. After riding the mile home which includes a small but fairly steep hill leading to our house, I smelled something hot. Upon inspection, my motor was so hot, I couldn’t touch it! Is this normal or is something wrong with my new bike? My Pursuit has never gotten hot like this (that I know of) although it has the shroud around the motor so it’s difficult to tell.
I have an email into Rambo as well as a message on messenger awaiting a response but I thought I would check with folks that could give me an immediate answer. Thank you in advance!

I have to ask because your bike is a mid drive motor system what gear were you trying to pull that hill in? One of the main advantages of a mid drive motor is the ability to use the gear ratios in the derailer to help the motor operate more efficiently. Use electric motors like to spin faster RPMs not be lugged which cause them to pull more current (amps) and heat up.

I suggest to you go to the bottom of the hill again and try it again but make sure to use a lower gear like 1 or two and see what happens. If you are getting a hot motor after that test it would be time to reach out to the MFG.

 

[DEERGUNNER]

My bike has the Sturmey Archer 3 speed and I was in 1st gear. I heard back from Rambo today and their customer service lady told me it definitely wasn’t normal for the motor to get hot like that. An hour later, someone else responded to my email and said that it was fine. ‍
He went on to say that the motor has a temperature sensor in it and will shut down if it gets too hot thus preventing damage. He also said exactly what you said… use lower gears when climbing hills. Although my model doesn’t have a derailer and multiple gears and I already was in the lowest gear.

 

[Kingofgreens]

My bike has the Sturmey Archer 3 speed and I was in 1st gear. I heard back from Rambo today and their customer service lady told me it definitely wasn’t normal for the motor to get hot like that. An hour later, someone else responded to my email and said that it was fine. ‍
He went on to say that the motor has a temperature sensor in it and will shut down if it gets too hot thus preventing damage. He also said exactly what you said… use lower gears when climbing hills. Although my model doesn’t have a derailer and multiple gears and I already was in the lowest gear.

I've been looking at the Rambo bikes and I love the idea of an internally geared hub to eliminate a derailer.

I noticed that they have a couple different options for multiple gears on the higher end bikes while the lower models like the savage only have a 3 speed.

I'm wondering how that 3 speed is treating you? Are you wishing you'd spent more and got a model with more gears?

Trying to decide if the extra cost is worth it.

 

[DEERGUNNER]

I was in fact in 3rd gear (not 1st like I originally thought) when climbing the hill, hence the reason the motor got hot. Since realizing my error, I have had no issues.
I’m happy that I got the 3 speed. It’s exactly like my Rambo Pursuit which also has the 3 speed. I did not want a derailer hanging down and potentially getting snagged on corn stubble and brush. Hope this helps you.

 

[Kingofgreens]

Thanks for the reply.

I've. Been looking at the bushwacker which has an 8speed hub. It also has a better frame, motor and battery but it costs double the price if the savage.
Again, is it worth all that extra loot?


How would you rate Rambo bikes overall?

 

[DEERGUNNER]

The Bushwacker looks like a great bike. Honestly, owning both the Pursuit and the Savage, other than a few bells and whistles and a simple front fork upgrade that I did in minutes, the Savage is every bit as good as my Pursuit. It has the same power and torque. Just, like I said, doesn’t have the motor shroud, larger lcd screen, hydraulic brakes or the adjustable front fork. But aside from the fork, I could get along without those others.
With that said, if you could snag a Bushwacker on sale or get an open box model, then it’s a no brainer. I love both of my Rambo’s and can’t tell a difference in the way they ride.
As far as the quality of the brand, I think for a hunting/recreation ebike you can’t get any better for the money. I also have a Rad Power bike and although a very nice bike and faster than my Rambo’s on level ground, it simply lacks power and torque compared to the Rambo. I can get most everywhere I want to go on my Rambo’s without even needing to touch the pedals.

 

[Trophyduck]

The Bushwacker looks like a great bike. Honestly, owning both the Pursuit and the Savage, other than a few bells and whistles and a simple front fork upgrade that I did in minutes, the Savage is every bit as good as my Pursuit. It has the same power and torque. Just, like I said, doesn’t have the motor shroud, larger lcd screen, hydraulic brakes or the adjustable front fork. But aside from the fork, I could get along without those others.
With that said, if you could snag a Bushwacker on sale or get an open box model, then it’s a no brainer. I love both of my Rambo’s and can’t tell a difference in the way they ride.
As far as the quality of the brand, I think for a hunting/recreation ebike you can’t get any better for the money. I also have a Rad Power bike and although a very nice bike and faster than my Rambo’s on level ground, it simply lacks power and torque compared to the Rambo. I can get most everywhere I want to go on my Rambo’s without even needing to touch the pedals.

So I am considering a Rambo Savage......you love yours? My concern is that I also would like to just pedal the bike without assist. Is just having 3 gears enough or will that be too hard? Or do I even have a choice? One non-assist gear if you just want to pedal?

 

[Kingofgreens]

I know bicycles in general so I think I can offer some advice here.

First thing you need to think about is where you ride.


Will you be doing with hills or is it pretty flat?

I live in Florida and I rarely use more than 3 gears for my conventional bikes because there's few hills and I'm never in a big hurry to get anyplace.

Im thinking a 3 speed should be fine for a cruiser type of bike. A low gear for hill climbing , a high gear for top speed when desired and a midrange to tie the two together.

As I previously stated I'm leaning towards a Bushwacker with an 8 speed hub. But that mainly because if I spend over 4 grand for a bike I'm going to put it l through some trials fishing , camping and just exploring as well as commuting.

To summarize I'd say get what you can afford that'll do the job you need of it.

 

[DEERGUNNER]

So I am considering a Rambo Savage......you love yours? My concern is that I also would like to just pedal the bike without assist. Is just having 3 gears enough or will that be too hard? Or do I even have a choice? One non-assist gear if you just want to pedal?

3 gears is enough to just pedal if you want to, imo. However, that point is moot as I believe Rambo no longer offers the Savage in a 3 speed version, just 8.

 

[Hoggdoc]

Thanks for the reply.

I've. Been looking at the bushwacker which has an 8speed hub. It also has a better frame, motor and battery but it costs double the price if the savage.
Again, is it worth all that extra loot?


How would you rate Rambo bikes overall?

I would say it depends on how much weight you're planning to haul around and what kind of territory you're gonna be covering. The more speeds the better the bigger the tires the better and the bigger the battery the better.