Shimano or Enviolo hub

[Hoggdoc]

Thanks for the info Dan. I ended up buying the Priority Current with the Enviolo CVT about a month ago. Great bike. Rode it a lot the first two weeks, but now snow has set in in our area (eastern Washington), so probably won't get on it until next Spring. I posted a write-up on this forum about my experience HERE,

Ronnie, be sure to discharge your bikes battery to about 65-70% for winter storage and bring it from the cold. Glad you finally got your bike...

 

[ronniebellie]

Ronnie, be sure to discharge your bikes battery to about 65-70% for winter storage and bring it from the cold. Glad you finally got your bike...

Good advice Hoggdoc. I actually removed the battery and brought it inside about 2 weeks ago. I'm thinking it had about a 80-90% charge remaining on it at that time. Now it's super cold outside (about 30 degrees during the day and 15 degrees at night). With the icy roads, it wouldn't be wise to ride it to discharge the battery more. Not sure if I should just leave it as is or try somehow to discharge it more. I wish I had known this was a good practice beforehand.

 

[Doc]

I'm replying again to your post above which I find very helpful to me. I just emailed Priority customer service this message below in italics. Their response is under my message.

I was about to purchase the Priority Current via the Costco Next program, but came across this post below on ebikesforum.com. By the way, I’m a Costco Executive Member and have been since 1991. I almost always trust Costco’s vetting judgement, however, I am now questioning it.

Here’s the full post which I initiated.

Shimano or Enviolo hub

I'm about ready to purchase a Priority Current. I have a choice between a regular Shimano hub or an enviolo hub which is a kind of continuous variable transmission (CVT). Has anyone out there ever used an enviolo hub? What are your impressions? I've heard it adds about 2 lbs to the weight of...

ebikesforum.com

Here’s my response to ERidesOn2 who had serious issues with his Priority Current.

Shimano or Enviolo hub

I'm about ready to purchase a Priority Current. I have a choice between a regular Shimano hub or an enviolo hub which is a kind of continuous variable transmission (CVT). Has anyone out there ever used an enviolo hub? What are your impressions? I've heard it adds about 2 lbs to the weight of...

ebikesforum.com

Could you respond to this specific issue and explain why your company responded to the customer in such a manner?

Also, please provide insight into ERidesOn2’s comment "It just doesn't coast anything like a non-electric bike.”

I plan on posting your response on ebikesforum.com. If there is no response, I will post that as well.

Thank you.

Ron Belisle

Response from customer service below.

Hi Ron,

Thanks for following up, and for your thorough vetting. We always stand behind our bikes 100%, and do our best to help customers out in the rare instances in which there is an issue.

We ship our bikes to our customers, and every now and again a bike shows up with a small amount of shipping damage. While this is far from the norm, it is something that are happy to help deal with. We send the bikes with perfectly true/tensioned wheels and rotors. However, if FedEx ignores the THIS END UP and puts the box on its side, and piles weight on, the wheels can come out of tension and true. We do recommend a bike shop do the assembly or safety check, as this is included as part of their work, and common on bike shipping. Since the fix is generally quick, we suggest that customers simply bring the wheel into any local bike shop. Ask them to "true" or straighten the wheel, which should run about $10-$20 then snap a photo of the receipt so that we can refund the amount right away. If the wheel or rotor is irreparable, we are happy to replace them under warranty.
The Enviolo hub has more drag when pedaling compared to the Shimano hub, though with the power of the electric motor the difference is very hard to perceive. That being said, the Enviolo hub would not affect how the bike coasts. In instances like these we are happy to troubleshoot with our customers to make sure there isn't something else going on.
Reach out with any more questions!

Thanks,
Eddie

So, they didn't mention the battery issues and ignored the bent fork and rotor, as well as their refusal to fix it. Their entire response was a cookie-cutter "It never happened".

Sad. Takes them out of my running. If anyone has a Shimano hub bike and would be willing to talk about it, I'd love to hear. Thanks, all!

 

[bigoilbob]

We have one of each. My wife has the 2018 Evelo Aurora step thru cadence sensing 750 watt Enviolo automatic. I have a 2018 Biktrix Stunner Step Over with a cadence sensing 750 watt and the Shimano 5 speed e bike rated IGH. My bike came with the 5 speed Sturmey Archer and assurances from Biktrix that it would be strong enough. It started to crater right away and degraded this year to the point that I replaced it. Biktrix still sells my model. They refuse to acknowledge that the Sturmey Archer IGH on Stunners are not only inadequate, but that Sturmey Archer waves people off of it for mid drive apps. DON'T BUY A BIKTRIX.

All that being said, I'm slightly bent towards the Enviolo. Our mileages are almost identical, with her 672 watt*hour battery, and my 25% larger, 840 watt*hour battery. I don't think that my greater weight changes things that much. Put directly, even though we can feel drag on her bike when the power is off and no drag on mine while the power is off, I don't think that the Enviolo trans fluid costs her much power and range..

Also, she has more low end pull, since the ~2.6 spread of my 5 speed, while fine, is less than her ~3.8 - both with about the same top speed. We can both pull our Bob trailer full of groceries or adult bevs, up and down San Francisco hills.

My Shimano is new and I expect good service from it. But my wife's Enviolo is already proven. Thousands of miles.

The worst problem she had was only Enviolo "adjacent". She had a temporary (presumably) high temp motor shut down while climbing the long, steep hill on the Pebble Beach 17 mile drive. Her pedal cadence was set near minimum, and we suppose that the combination of low motor speed and heavy load got to it.. Since then she has learned to twist it up higher on hilly terrain (her setup has this on the handlebar, but newer installs might have jetted it), and her Enviolo has done well ever since.

Two last points.

1. Do the input torque arithmetic on whatever you buy. My Shimano e bike rated 5 speed IGH can handle 85 n*m, and I can supply 80 with my motor and my combination of pedal and wheel sprockets.* Close, but since I seldom use more than assist position 2 (of 5), and experimentation with the higher assist levels shows them to be much more torquey, I think I'll be ok.

2. If you want oil change capability for a Shimano e bike rated IGH, without pulling the hub apart, I think that is offered with more expensive, higher number of ratios, models. I will have to pull mine off when the time comes, but I think I can do so carefully and properly. Even though I have yet to find a youtube on how to do so with this specific hub....

*Yes, pedal power adds to this. I'm still confident.