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Gazelle Innergy X2

Posted: Fri Sep 06, 2013 1:46 am
by tlpham
G'day folks,

Long time anonymous stalker, first time poster and would like to share my experience thus far...

So after a failed attempt at utilizing a flat-bar road bike to commute to work (12 km... :roll: :oops:) I decided to purchase a electric bike after reading some blog out there where they promised that it will vanquish my many, many excuses of not commuting to work as often as I should. (Too lazy to tackle the hills, cold showers at work because the stupid hot water system keeps blowing up, bringing spare clothes... )

After months of trawling through the Tubes of the Internet and scouring bicycle shops around Western Australia, I bit the bullet and purchased the Gazelle Orange Plus Innergy XT! ... except for it was during model transitioning time and was delivered the 2014 Gazelle Orange Plus Innergy X2 instead (Thanks Nick & team (AT) Garland Cycleworks!)

And I got the Step-Through model (as I'm clumsy and I always "pole" it when dismounting to stop at the lights)

One thing to note, I didn't notice the difference between the 2013 XT motor and the 2014 X2 motor. This is because I only tested them on flat surfaces without a chance to tackle a hill. Apparently the X2 motor provides a lot more torque then the previous model.

Amateurish punditry from a lazy 30 year old:

Pros:
- Best (urban-class) bicycle I've ever ridden. (Caveat: Urban Bicycle experience consists of riding a frozen Hangzhou hire-bike, a stepthrough that survived the Cultural Revolution, some bike that survived the Vietnam War and a Boris)
- Sturdy, very solid and stable ride.
- Smooth ride on roads and the shared paths.
- It eats those hated hills for breakfast and makes me feel like superman climbing up those hills with minimal effort.
- Comes with everything that I've already got in the garage! A built in lock, kickstand, bicycle pump, lights, crank case, mudguards...
- I can ride it to work wearing business clothes without stinking like a durian (we'll see how that goes in Perth's summer.)
- Its a personal thing, but I reckon its beautiful.

Cons:
- This thing is heavy. Its fine while riding and you don't feel the weight (Contributes to the stability?), but when your trying to man-handle the bike inside the garage or lift it up to the bike racks at work (wall mounted bike racks) or stack it while trying to press the pedestrian button on the traffic light, that 21.4 KG excluding battery does get annoying...
- Although they quote "virtually silent", you can still hear the motor whirring away when its in use <-- nitpicking
- Another nitpicking thing, there's this exposed thick (power?) cable that comes out of the crank case and snakes into the rack. It ruins the look and it seems quite dodgy.

Image


Things I would change?
- The saddle. I'm not a fan of the Selle Royal Coast saddle that comes with it. Although I didn't feel it at the time while riding the bike, I definitely got the saddle bony-cramps afterwards (The point where you can feel the bottom of the pelvic bone meets the seat). I plan to swap it for the Brooks B67. Lounge on Wheels apparently.
- Finding a way to get rid or minimize all those wires that hang at the front of the bike (tie them along the stem with zipties?)
- My habits, thus far I've left it on Boost all the way. Quite a shock when you kick start the bike on 1st gear.

I've clocked a healthy 20km on it so far (only one day, cut me some slack) - but in the tradition of the other threads, I'll post some updates once a while.

Cheers,
-Lan

Pic of the beast:

Image

Stats (copy and pasted)

Frame - Aluminium
Gears - 7
Brake system - Shimano V-Brake Front & Rollerbrakes Rear
Gear system - Shimano Nexus 7
E-Bike Sensor - Motion & TMM Sensor (With X2 Motor)
Front fork - Suspended
Saddle - Selle Royal Coast RVL Special
Seat post - Suspended
Rims - Rodi Vision
Tyres - Schwalbe CityLite
Spoke pattern - Conventional (Extra Strong)
Front light - Fendervision (Light Integrated in Mudguard)
Dynamo - Battery
Rear light - E-Bike
Stem - Switch
Lock - AXA Defender RL with Microchip and Cable Lock Insert.

Re: Gazelle Innergy X2

Posted: Fri Sep 06, 2013 9:45 pm
by tlpham
Day 2.

The honeymoon period with the Gazelle Orange Plus Innergy X2 continues.

Found out this morning that the handlebar has a quick release so I am able to adjust the angle of the handlebars to allow a more comfortable upfront seating position. Fantastic design. Although I wish they would have a quick release for the seat post as well....

Rode 12km to work and 18km (got lost) on the way back home, on 'Boost' mode and the inbuilt front/rear lights on with 2 bars of battery to spare. By default the Innergy X2 comes with the Silver battery and it seems to be within range of the estimated battery range that Gazelle have estimated.

Here's to many more KM's with the bike! The goal is to at least reach 1000km on the odo by the end of the year.... :|

-L

Re: Gazelle Innergy X2

Posted: Wed Sep 11, 2013 8:30 pm
by DanaM
Hi all, my first post here.

Tipham your post is well timed as I also have purchased the 2014 Gazelle Innergy X2, due to be picked up in a few days time. Your photos and post have only added to my crazy excitement about my new bike, thanks for your review.

Re: Gazelle Innergy X2

Posted: Tue Sep 17, 2013 11:13 pm
by tlpham
Day: One week (give or take a day or so)

Still pedaling away with the Gazelle in the oddball Perth wet spring weather, although 2 issues bug me.

1) To quote my Lycra clothed colleague;
"A hamster has grown in your bike"
So, a very annoying squeak has developed and presents itself on the downward stroke. Its not so pronounced on the 6-7 gear doing at a steady 27 km/h, but when on a lower gear - the squeak is very very loud & annoying. I've tried to lube up every single nook and cranny possible but its still squeaking like mad. Perhaps something is loose and since I lack the requisite tools to investigate further - I will take it back to the shop and get them to look into it further as part of the first service.

2) Did I mention it was heavy?

As a upper body strength-challenged male with no sense of shame, its quite a lot of effort to lift it up to the bike wall rack. Being a step-through as well, I don't have the luxury of a decent grip of a diamond frame and trying to squeeze the bike and myself into a spot between 2 expensive road bikes and lift it to a higher rack and not to mention that if you align the spokes incorrectly, you'll find that the 21.4 kg (excluding battery) is hang off by the spoke. - its quite a "Benny-Hillian" task to take and I usually give up... (the lower rack scrapes the luggage rack :| ). It will be interesting when the weather starts warming up and we all fight for a rack.

Couple of additional observations...

As you might find out when doing your research on e-bikes, this gazelle is a 'pedal-assist' so you'll still have to move your legs (otherwise, just get a motorbike...) however, from my false sense of entitlement from driving - i expected the gazelle to go up a hill gradient similar to Berwick Street in Vic Park at the usual 27 km/hr... unfortunately this isn't the case... I can't keep the cadence up to maintain the speed on a lower gear and its quite a struggle on a higher gear... thus I drop down to 18 km/h.... A non-issue... its just laziness and gravity working against me

Being completely illiterate when it comes to bicycle mechanics (i.e. I don't know the difference between gear hubs & derailleurs, I haven't got up to that chapter yet) - Once I've reached top speed of 27 km/hr and the assistance cuts out - I don't have the luxury of going up a higher gear like you would on a road bike and go faster - instead it all comes down to a point where you have to put in an insane amount of effort to go past 33 km/hr... I suppose the Orange Innergy isn't designed for racing purposes but when your tootling along down the Principal Shared Path and all the Commuter Cup cyclists cane past with that smug look when they look back at you... :roll:

However, I still love my Dutch-casual-comfortable-non sweaty-work clothed commuter machine and that's what matters in the end.

Here's to more KM's!

-L

Oh and one more thing. When installing the panniers on the bike... try not to drop the nut in the chain case *facepalm*

Re: Gazelle Innergy X2

Posted: Sat Oct 26, 2013 11:10 am
by VeloElectric
tlpham wrote: Things I would change?
- The saddle.
Different saddles suit different rears. It's certainly an easy thing to do, and something we'd encourage as it's a pretty important interface between you and the bike. ;) I don't think any of my bikes have their original saddles.
tlpham wrote: So, a very annoying squeak has developed and presents itself on the downward stroke.
Most likely the crank bolt. Let your LBS know when you take it back for its first service (or even sooner, if you're riding by) and they'll torque it up for you. Could also be a pedal (or a great many other things... but those two are the likely culprits).
tlpham wrote: As a upper body strength-challenged male with no sense of shame, its quite a lot of effort to lift it up to the bike wall rack. Being a step-through as well, I don't have the luxury of a decent grip of a diamond frame and trying to squeeze the bike and myself into a spot between 2 expensive road bikes and lift it to a higher rack and not to mention that if you align the spokes incorrectly, you'll find that the 21.4 kg (excluding battery) is hang off by the spoke. - its quite a "Benny-Hillian" task to take and I usually give up... (the lower rack scrapes the luggage rack :| ). It will be interesting when the weather starts warming up and we all fight for a rack.
I'm assuming they're the style where the bike hangs vertically from the front wheel? Try this...

Orient the bike so it is pointing straight at the wall.
Hold the rear brake and walk backwards. The bike will pivot on the wheel until it is vertical, on the rear wheel.
Roll the bike towards the rack.
Put your knee under the saddle, flex your foot to lift the bike enough to hook it on the bike rack. (and yeah... take care to avoid the valve-stem).

To take it off, do the reverse.