How practical is an Electric motorbike?

[tonray]

18 hours ago, dj230 said:

What restrictions? 

The condos I looked at seem pretty laid back, only real restrictions are no smoking in the room/no pets and obvious ones like you can't blast music at 3am

 

I prefer condos because it's a bit safer, has a gym/pool and the ones I've seen are pretty nice for the price, anything breaks and the landlord fixes 

Exactly...I live in a MooBaan north of Bangkok in a townhouse now...it's great..but the pool is small as is the Gym. Mainly it's boring...staying previously in a condo in Bangkok...the living space was smaller but you had an Olympic size pool that virtually nobody used except for me...a great huge Gym and 300 meters from the MRT which opened up all of Bangkok..so the small living space was not an issue. Now I have a garden to maintain, grass to cut, and need a car to survive...but life goes thru cycles and we evolve  to adapt to our new situations. But I certainly wouldn;t mind having a "Pied De Terre" in Bangkok someday as a getaway.

[Denim]

Making nice retros in China these days if you don't mind buying Chinese.

 

 

[canthai55]

That engine looks like a toaster on top of a toilet

[MrJ2U]

Unless you're just driving around town and not long trips it should be fine.

 

I'd assume that Thailands duty taxes would make buying a good PCX Honda gas model more appealing.

 

Don't buy anything made in Thailand in regards to electric bikes.  Wouldn't last long and warranties in Thailand are useless most of the time.

 

Check out Ali baba.  I bought to electric mi 365 scooters there, 300 baht cheaper than here.

 

Still running after 3 years.

 

[brianthainess]

20 hours ago, dj230 said:

i think it's part of maintenance fees but will ask, I'm new to thailand, not sure if there is readily available electric charges around 

 

 

Most come with their own charger and only need a normal outlet.

[brianthainess]

I recently got an electric 'bike' for 8,000 baht, ideal for nipping down to the village flat road, pros; no licence/tax needed.  Cons; wouldn't recommend for overweight ones, barely makes it up a small incline, no indicators or brake light or mirrors, no side stand, and suspension is rock solid if you hit a pot hole etc.  other than that ideal. I have fitted mirrors now. 

 

 

[Pinot]

21 hours ago, VocalNeal said:

I think a regular gasoline powered bike would be more practical given the number here and the infrastructure. Electric would be OK for local shopping and riding around town. But venturing further afield is doable as most "resorts" have a power socket available for an extension cord, which you would have to carry.

If you are the sort who worries about carbon footprint I think the effect of you having a convention motorbike would be the square root of sod all. 

I think the word that applies here is "efficacy". Until now the efficacy of electric bikes wasn't there because gasoline was is so cheap. Until now. 

 

Will the remarkable Ola S1 be the most important motorcycle of the 21st century?

 

This Indian manufacturer is ramping up to produce an incredible electric bike at about the cost of a Honda Click. I think this will be a game changer for the electric bike. Fast, great range, fast charge in 18 minutes, I think this bike might change the "efficacy" of electric bikes!

 

The one thing that we're all going to have to deal with when they do start showing up in large numbers is the complete silence of an electric bike. You don't hear them coming. But wouldn't it be fantastic not to have to hear Thai boys zoom zooming without the head rattling sound? 

 

 

[VocalNeal]

12 minutes ago, Pinot said:

But wouldn't it be fantastic not to have to hear Thai boys zoom zooming without the head rattling sound? 

Human find it difficult to form an emotional attachment to things that make no noise.

[canthai55]

44 minutes ago, brianthainess said:

I recently got an electric 'bike' for 8,000 baht, ideal for nipping down to the village flat road, pros; no licence/tax needed.  Cons; wouldn't recommend for overweight ones, barely makes it up a small incline, no indicators or brake light or mirrors, no side stand, and suspension is rock solid if you hit a pot hole etc.  other than that ideal. I have fitted mirrors now.

For that price you could have bought a Wave.

Able to license, has brakes, climbs hills, absorb bumps.

Fat people friendly.

And if/when you have an accident you can be covered.

[Orinoco]

1 minute ago, canthai55 said:

Fat people friendly.

 

[Kinnock]

17 hours ago, papa al said:

All really cheap here.

Last service on my Supercub was 120 THB ????   Tires etc cheap too.  Only need to refuel it every 2 weeks or so, plus a range of 200 Km and cheaper new than the Niu electric scooter.

 

A new Wave or Supercub should need no work for years, and by then hydrogen bikes may be the thing.

[dj230]

4 minutes ago, Kinnock said:

Last service on my Supercub was 120 THB ????   Tires etc cheap too.  Only need to refuel it every 2 weeks or so, plus a range of 200 Km and cheaper new than the Niu electric scooter.

 

A new Wave or Supercub should need no work for years, and by then hydrogen bikes may be the thing.

wait what haha $3 for a service?

 

in canada the cheapest thing you could get is a $50 oil change, but then they ask you to change 5 more things worth $1000 and you have to convince them you don't want to do anything else even though they insist the car will fall apart if you don't 

[VocalNeal]

Could pass for Electric to a casual observer?

 

[papa al]

25 minutes ago, dj230 said:

wait what haha $3 for a service?

$4US

[cjinchiangrai]

I had one living in China for seven years. It was great and at 15k baht was really cheap. The biggest problem is range. Mine would do about 60kmh but it could only go about 40km before charging.

 

They would be great doing errands in a small space like Pattaya or Hua Hin but not Bangkok, They also do not climb hills at all so Phuket night be rough.

 

Edited August 18, 2021 by cjinchiangrai
Add photo

[cjinchiangrai]

1 hour ago, canthai55 said:

For that price you could have bought a Wave.

Able to license, has brakes, climbs hills, absorb bumps.

Fat people friendly.

And if/when you have an accident you can be covered.

8k is a little light but at 15k you could certainly get something servicable.

[Stevemercer]

Electric motorbikes aren't quite there yet in terms of price, range and endurance. A decent bike/battery will be a minimum 40,000 Baht. The battery would weigh about 10 kg and would be a pain to remove and carry around. Most of the cheaper e-bikes don't have quality batteries and their ranges will half before the year is out. You must look after the battery if you want it to last. That means never running into the red and keeping it topped up when the bike is not in use for more than a few hours.

 

You can get a decent cheaper (and portable) stand-up scooter for under 10,000 Baht that will be good for anything within 5 km of your home. You can easily take it in your elevator and leave it in your apartment.

 

As others have suggested, look at a petrol scooter fir greater convenience at a cheaper cost.

[natway09]

In Thailand maybe not worth the time & effort.

Chances are 99% of  the energy that you use to charge it is fossil based production anyway

[Kwasaki]

47 minutes ago, cjinchiangrai said:

8k is a little light but at 15k you could certainly get something servicable.

8000 or 3000 is not light if you knew about waves there so cheap to fix.

I look after my Oz mates ones it's 27 years old hadn't run for 3 years gave it to my Thai mechanic to service to help him out he knows them like inside out.

380 baht. 

[KarenBravo]

17 hours ago, dj230 said:

I'll check that out, once I get a 1 year visa and commit to being in thailand, i'll definitely get a motorbike

motorbikes seem kind of pricey though for what you get (a 250cc motorcycle is about the same price in canada as a 125cc motorbike), especially brand new, is there a honda dealership that sells "pre-owned", I'd rather buy from a dealership than some bike shop 

Wait until you see new car prices...........

[papa al]

1 hour ago, VocalNeal said:

Could pass for Electric to a casual observer?

Sure if drunk and/or poor eyesight.

[scubascuba3]

16 hours ago, Airalee said:

How often do you see people driving down the opposite side of the road in Canada like you would here?  I would posit that riding a motorbike on the shoulder of a road in Canada is far safer than here and don’t really need to see a government statistic to tell me what I see with my own eyes here in Thailand.

once you get used to them riding down the opposite side hard shoulder it's no big deal.

 

Back in the UK I reckon more dangerous in some ways, as far fewer bikes, cars wouldn't look out for motorbikes and may miss you coming, here they are everywhere so you always look out

[EricTh]

There are almost no or very few electrical outlets (petrol station, condo) to charge motorbike or cars in Thailand.

 

It's not practical at all.

 

 

[Denim]

3 hours ago, brianthainess said:

I recently got an electric 'bike' for 8,000 baht, ideal for nipping down to the village flat road, pros; no licence/tax needed.  Cons; wouldn't recommend for overweight ones, barely makes it up a small incline, no indicators or brake light or mirrors, no side stand, and suspension is rock solid if you hit a pot hole etc.  other than that ideal. I have fitted mirrors now. 

 

 

I got a smaller one for the wife. Only 5000 baht and blinged it up a little for her. Perfect for someone to go 500 meters to end of soi for stores and back again. Idiot proof , and slow enough ( 20kph) that she won't kill herself. Important as she has the spatial awareness of the average native.

 

 

[VocalNeal]

47 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

once you get used to them riding down the opposite side hard shoulder it's no big deal.

It might be me!

[Kwasaki]

Electric bikes are not practical at all IMHO you can't join the Hell's Angels. ????

[papa al]

4 hours ago, canthai55 said:

That engine looks like a toaster on top of a toilet

Yes, papa's toilet looks just like that.

[NoshowJones]

On 8/17/2021 at 1:35 PM, Doctor Tom said:

God, how I would hate condo living, its restrictions and rules, all intended to fxxk up your life . I own one, but hardly ever use it, even for short breaks, its like being in an open prison that you have to pay for. 

If you think the restrictions and rules are unfair or unnecessary, then just don't obey them. Failing that, get a membership of the "scared of your own shadow" brigade.

[Nanaplaza666]

If you love your live buy a normal gas powered bike . Even that's quit dangerous but doable . I think with an electric bike they will not see and hear you at all , as we all know Thai don't use mirrors, indicator lights and are on their phone half the day while driving . 

[Pinot]

10 hours ago, VocalNeal said:

Human find it difficult to form an emotional attachment to things that make no noise.

I love my pillow