Just wondering how the velostar is on very steep hills. I have tried the Panasonic XU1 from my friend and it can go uphills easily even on eco-mode. Any recommendations? I’m on a tight budget but if there is a big performance difference between velostar and slighty more expensive ones, then I’ll be willing to spend more.
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Japanese bikes legally have a torque limit and cannot provide more than 2 times as much torque as you put in, which is usually less than most motors can output, so unfortunately (or fortunately, if you are happy with it) the maximum assistance you get when going uphill is very similar or pretty much identical between all the different bikes.
The only exception I know of is the VanMoof, which can temporarily provide higher torque when pressing the boost button. If anyone has heard of other bikes that have a clever way of circumventing the annoying torque limitation I would be very happy to hear about it. I see the point in speed limits so I don’t want to get a bike from a maker that ignores those, but I really don’t get why makers are also forced to make the assist function less useful.
Find a bike shop allows test rides.
A friend too me to happy cycle (?) and they allowed test rides on used bikes only, but even that was eye-opening.
Yamaha was more kind to my skinny shins, even on high (mechanical) gear, medium and high assist settings. It’s considered a better brand and it costs more.