I love BionX electric bike kits, and I was really happy to discover that their after sales service is almost as good as their products.
Click here for an in-depth totally updated BionX Electric Bike Kit review.
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Rear Axle Blues
As I was riding my brown BionX Pl-350 electric bike a couple of months ago, the rear axle snapped clean in half. This is the axle that is supplied by BionX, as part of the motorized back wheel.
This was not a fun incident.
I was pretty well flummoxed. I have been commuting on BionX bikes for six years now, and this was the first time I had a major problem. I knew I had a major problem because my electric bike suddenly became wobbly, and the BionX pretty much stopped working. It was time to get off my bike and call for help.
Which I did. My wife Maggie quickly rescued me, and I was soon in the bike shop that sold me my BionX – the Bike Doctor. They quickly diagnosed a snapped-in-half rear axle. Not the kind of thing you fix with a band aid.
Long story short: the Bike Doctor organized for BionX to replace the back wheel – free of charge, even though the BionX kit was already two years’ old, and I could not find my receipt. Given that the rear wheel houses the entire engine, I now had a completely new engine. I was really impressed by this excellent service, from both the Bike Doctor and BionX.
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Problems with my BionX Battery Mount
It is apparently my season for BionX problems, because a short time later, my down-tube mounted battery became so wobbly that it was clearly unsafe to ride. Back to Bike Doctor I went.
After removing the battery mount, it became clear I had a serious problem. There were gaping, ragged holes in the frame, apparently caused by wobbling battery mount screws. It was so bad that the frame was compromised.
I was pretty distraught. My bike is a Devinci Copenhagen, and it was not cheap. I have it fully outfitted for commuting to work, so all in all it is a pretty sweet bike. That I happen to love. Even though it is brown (I chose the bike on its merits, but I was not bowled over by its paint job).
Pol at the Bike Doctor stepped up to bat for me. He called Devinci and BionX, and between the two of them he managed to broker a very acceptable deal for me.
Devinci didn’t want to replace the frame outright, because they said it was never meant to hold a BionX battery. However, they were prepared to offer me a replacement frame at a cut-rate price.
BionX wasn’t really interested in helping me, because it was the Devinci frame that died, not their product. However, BionX’s new Canadian distributor, Cycles Lambert, apparently took pity on me, and agreed to pay for the cut-rate frame offered by Devinci. And I was also able to buy a matching fork for a cut-rate price. Finally, the Bike Doctor rebuilt the bike and re-fitted the battery (and all my accessories) for a really good price.
All in all, I now have an almost entirely new bike for relatively very little financial outlay.
But here’s the sweetest part – the new frame is RED! I’ve always wanted a red bike, and now I finally have one. Maggie picked the bike up from the shop for me, and when she came home bearing a red bike, it was like Christmas in October!
All in all, pretty good after-sales from both Devinci and BionX, plus skillful, customer-focused negotiation from Pol at the Bike Doctor, means that I am now a happy electric bike commuter again! Seems like my 12 years of being a loyal customer at the Bike Doctor have really paid off.
If you enjoyed this post, you might also enjoy my post “What it Feels Like to Commute to Work on a BionX PL 350” or my review of the BionX PL 350 electric bike kit.
Or Click here for an in-depth totally updated BionX Electric Bike Kit review.
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Good for you Joe for publicising such good service from your vendors. I’ll remember Bike Doctor, DaVinci and Bion-x when looking for my next bike.
What was done to solve the root cause problem with the battery mounting arrangement?
In your photo I see a top heavy, wobbly battery mount that is only supported by what, two screws into a frame piece that is designed to support a water bottle? Seems to me the battery should be supported elsewhere as well, like maybe stabilizing bars from the frame crossbar and seat tube. Or, if that is impractical, maybe wander across the street from the Bike Doctor and see if MEC has any of those triangle-shaped cordura bags that velcro to the crossbar and the seat tube. Also available from Renaissance Bikes, another very helpful e-bike retailer in Vancouver.
Both of my e-bikes are on their second batteries; both batteries, unfortunately, wrong sized for the original rigid, vertical battery mounts behind the seat tubes. Both are now fitted with longish bricks in cordura bags slung from the rat trap carrier. The freighter battery is in a purpose-built cordura bag that came with the battery. The Sunday-go-meeting bike is now powered from an eight pound lump dumped inside the pannier. Neither bag is expected to last; both set-ups introduce an interesting oscillation when traversing bumps; but the aluminum frames remain uncompromised.
Hi C. I always believe in saying nice things whenever I possibly can – it’s so easy to just complain and criticize when things go wrong; then forget to say thanks when thanks are due.
The original mount is now reinforced with a metal strip around the tube to stabilize it. I will be watching it like a hawk – at the first sign of a wobble, I will get help. I now know that the wobbling does an awful lot of damage.
I agree that it seems strange to mount the battery to something intended to hold a water bottle. However, it seems that this method is endorsed by BionX, and the Bike Doctor assured me that the terrible situation that developed on my frame was freakish. Also, that position is the best for balance, as Jenna commented on my previous post about this problem (https://averagejoecyclist.com/?p=537). So here’s hoping … as I’ve said before, I’m no technical genius … but I sure as hell will not turn a blind and hopeful eye to wobbly batteries in the future!
Hi 😀 Is it okay if I go a bit off topic? I am trying to view your website on my iPad but it doesn’t display properly, any suggestions? Thanks! Tena x 🙂
I’m glad you had a good experience with Bike Doctor and both customer service departments. Looking at the design for the BionX you’ll definately need to check the mounting bolts for the battery regularly. If they start to back off, the water bottle mounts will damage the thin walls of the frame pretty quickly. Maybe monthly, a quick touch with a wrench to ensure they’re tight. Better yet, add a little thread locking compound before assembly.
Thanks Rob for good advice – I will follow it. Don’t want a repeat …
My experience is that battery-in-bag is not viable – balance issues. I think it will not be perfect til they make lighter batteries 🙂 Until then, we just have to be creative with this. For the perfect riding experience, I will go with down tube mount any time
Funny, I thought the same thing about battery weight, Simon. They are such huge clunkers! I also heard from a couple of people that batteries in panniers and so forth throws the balance off, which is why I am going to try hard to make the down tube work this time round.
Glad you got your red bike Joe!! yay for Christmas in October-and hey catchy title to your blog. 🙂
Go forth and ride!!
Well thank you Lucy. Actually, a very good buddy of mine suggested it – I think she’s an editor or something … and I actually managed to REMEMBER her genius suggestion!
I use a Crystalite kit for winter months 5304 on a 72 volt start immediate controller
with 36 volts worth of 20 amp hour led acids.
This has served me well for 7 years and many hundred thousand Kilometers.
But I will Challenge your Kit with my Nine continent 2305 700 cc rear 26 inch front motor.
same battery city circling range speed that helps keep you in front of danger and just enough hill climbing power to give you the workout we all want.
My challenge is the little mountain Marpole too Main circle route both sides of False creek and back too Marpole via Little mountain any time your up to the test 😉
Hey Mike sounds cool. THanks for the challenge … but most of the time, I’m just happy to just keep moving 🙂