Electric Bike Conversion Kits

Ranked #1,516 in Sports & Recreation, #44,548 overall

Turn an ordinary bicycle into a power assisted motored bike

Electric bicycle conversion kits allow you take an ordinary bike and convert it into an electric bike. What a great way to make use of an old bike that you don't use because you just can't huff and puff up those hills anymore. A power assisted bike gets you out and riding again. You can choose to pedal on your own or allow the electric bike to give you a little extra boost when you need it. A conversion kit is a lot cheaper than purchasing an pre-built electric bike. Plus with the conversion kit you have a lot more choice in the type of bike you put it on. I have a bike that was converted to an assisted bike and I love it. I live in the mountains where it seems there are more hills going up, than hills going down. I had almost stopped riding my bike because the terrain was so challenging, but now that I have some assistance getting up those hills I look forward to getting out on my bike.
image: © Ragne Kabanova | Dreamstime.com

Should I buy a pre-built bike or do a conversion?

Pre-built electric bikes start at around $500. For a better quality one you can expect to pay $700 - $900. A top of the line electric bike costs around $3,000. On the other hand a conversion kit for a bike you already own will cost a fraction of that. Most conversion kits costs $250-$330. The benefit of a conversion is that you can pick the bike you want to put the conversion on.

How far can you go?

Once a bike is converted to an electric bike using a conversion kit you can expect to be able to travel about 20 miles on one charge. The average bicycle speed for most electric bikes is 16-18 mph. Most bikes can be fully recharged in about 6 hours. Note these numbers are very general and vary between manufacturers and battery capacities.

Legal issues

In most countries an electric bike is considered a motorized vehicle so you will have to ride the bike on the road. The bike won't be allowed on pathways or sidewalks. Check your local licensing agency as to whether the bike will have to have a licence. Some jurisdictions will require licence plates for anything that goes over a pre-determined speed.

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24V front wheel conversion kits

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24V rear wheel conversion kits

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Do you like electric bikes?

Or just leave a note saying you stopped by

  • RandomChuck Feb 15, 2012 @ 3:28 pm | delete
    This is great! My bike'll have no idea what hit him! Thanks for sharing.
  • WriterJanis Jan 23, 2012 @ 3:09 am | delete
    Glad you added the legal info. I would love to try one of these.
  • JoshK47 Jan 22, 2012 @ 11:13 pm | delete
    Great info! :)

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survivorsrock

I am an information junkie and love learning new things. The world is full of interesting things and there's something new to learn every day. I am also... more »

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