I’ve been thinking about buying a bike and am likely interested in buying an electric one. I’m not looking for a pro/super-fast road bike (like the pricey new Gogoro eeyo) nor am I looking for one of those low-framed models I see around. In the US, I sometimes enjoyed riding the electric pedal-assisted “Jump” bikes. Essentially, I’m looking for a practical commuter electric pedal-assist bike. Think U Bike but with pedal assist. Two-seaters welcome as well!
Does anyone know where I could shop around to find this sort of thing or have any models to recommend? My budget is around 25k NTD, hope that isn’t too low for this sort of thing.
I have a second-hand Giant electric assist commuter bike I got off Facebook Marketplace for 18k - new, they go for maybe 29k. Giant are a highly reliable local and international brand, and you can’t go wrong - if you buy them on websites like PCHome, I think there are sometimes government support schemes that allow you to get a little money back on the purchase.
I’ve found the Giant to be highly reliable and easy to ride - good for shopping, or taking my dog to the riverside. If you browse that same FB Marketplace for electric bikes, you can see there are quite a few locally-made brands that are close to or cheaper than your budget, though I can’t speak to either their reliability or quality.
Most Giant shops have several varieties of electric bike, ranging from low-end like mine to really expensive.
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If you’re in the Taipei area, you can check out the Hsintien Carrefour. They usually stock a nice mix of Giant ebikes including racing bikes and fat tires. Those aren’t cheap though (around 70k+) I also remember them carrying “normal” hybrid touring bikes that might be around 25k. I do a walk by whenever I go there (about every two weeks) because I’m somewhat interested as well. They must be moving them pretty quickly because they almost always have a “sorry sold out” sign on them. Good luck.
There’s some company doing this in Dan Shui, with plans to expand to Taipei. If you wait a few months, you won’t even need to buy a bike.
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I hadn’t considered Facebook marketplace! I’m going to check it out. Your Giant sounds much like what I’m looking for.
did you by buy one in the end? any good advice to share?
I did buy a bike, but not an electric one. I’m glad I didn’t because I really fell in love with regular ol’ road biking in Taiwan. I was originally thinking I would get the electric bike for commuting, but now I bike just for pleasure and have an electric scooter that I use for commuting and running errands!
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Do electric bikes make sense if you dont have space in your apartment? Like, can you use store them safely and easily on the street and charge them quickly and infrequently? In central Taipei if that makes a difference.
Thanks!