My Thai Buddy's electric bike.

[Kwasaki]

He says it's 2000watt maybe rode is and it's very quick whacking the throttle or whatever they call open, good fun. ????????????

 

[eisfeld]

A nice collection of nonsensical technical design ???? I guess it's the modern eastern version of a <deleted>ty chopper ????

 

Wouldn't buy one of these just because of that. Plus it's not road legal.

 

BTW never seen such a weird kickstand. What's the red thing that sticks into the air?

[Kwasaki]

12 minutes ago, eisfeld said:

A nice collection of nonsensical technical design ???? I guess it's the modern eastern version of a <deleted>ty chopper ????

 

Wouldn't buy one of these just because of that. Plus it's not road legal.

 

BTW never seen such a weird kickstand. What's the red thing that sticks into the air?

So sad opinion OK so you don't like it and never rode one and the kick stand is aftermarket.

 

They are not illegal to ride on the road and he has CTPL.

[OneMoreFarang]

I also never rode one and looking at that tiny fork I wouldn't want to try it.

 

[Kwasaki]

8 minutes ago, OneMoreFarang said:

I also never rode one and looking at that tiny fork I wouldn't want to try it.

 

Hardly any weight there, the forks are adequate from an engineering point of view. 

[eisfeld]

9 minutes ago, Kwasaki said:

So sad opinion OK so you don't like it and never rode one and the kick stand is aftermarket.

 

They are not illegal to ride on the road and he has CTPL.

Why sad? And while I didn't ride that specific model I rode about half a dozen similar electric bikes so I have a pretty good idea how that one would fare imho. And that specific one has just so many things that seem wrong to me that I don't know where to start. Well I guess I would start with the puny suspension.

 

Kick stand being aftermarket is fine but what is that red thing? That's what I was curious about.

 

Of course they are illegal. It doesn't even have a registration (unless I'm missing some number plate that's not visible from this angle) and with that 2000W electric motor and two wheels it clearly falls under the definition of a Motorcycle. The first sentence of Chapter 1 of the Vehicle Act says: "No person shall use an unregistered vehicle.". What makes you think it's legal?

[KhunLA]

Legality - tolerating depends where you live.   They are not citing any 2 or 3 wheeled EVs where I live,  As more than few on the roads now.  Stand up scooters, 500w/1000w/2000w scooters of various  designs.  ebikes, as they've noticed mine, and haven't batted any eye.

 

Acknowledged with a head nod, and that's about it.  I had a stand up w/seat scooter, and they didn't care.  Returned it though, as it died on 1st day, good thing, as I really didn't care for it.  I also don't bother with a helmet, and again, they don't care.  Locally, they rarely enforce that on MBs.  They are extremely lenient, but no major accidents off of hwy #4.

Everyone does the speed limit, and rarely see any vehicle over 50 kph around town.

 

Don't know what it is, but everyone seems to behave here, and in 5 years, have yet to see a scooter accident.  When in Udon Thani, it was an almost daily occurrence if out for a couple hours.

[eisfeld]

1 hour ago, Kwasaki said:

Hardly any weight there, the forks are adequate from an engineering point of view. 

Maybe the bike is light but there's also the weight of the rider. I don't worry that the suspension will break but that it will be harsh. But maybe those fat tires have really fat rubber walls and can be inflated with relatively low pressure so there's some dampening there?

 

@KhunLAyea enforcement differs heavily depending on the area. I know of a few places where they strictly would fine you for riding something like that on the roads. In many areas they might not care. But that can change any day and there might be some crackdown. Who knows. Wouldn't buy something like that unless it's throw-away money for a toy and not a replacement for a regular scooter.

 

Range on that thing must be abysmal too as there's hardly room for the battery.

[Kwasaki]

1 hour ago, eisfeld said:

Why sad? And while I didn't ride that specific model I rode about half a dozen similar electric bikes so I have a pretty good idea how that one would fare imho. And that specific one has just so many things that seem wrong to me that I don't know where to start. Well I guess I would start with the puny suspension.

 

Kick stand being aftermarket is fine but what is that red thing? That's what I was curious about.

 

Of course they are illegal. It doesn't even have a registration (unless I'm missing some number plate that's not visible from this angle) and with that 2000W electric motor and two wheels it clearly falls under the definition of a Motorcycle. The first sentence of Chapter 1 of the Vehicle Act says: "No person shall use an unregistered vehicle.". What makes you think it's legal?

Where we live they are not illegal and electric bikes 2 wheels and 3 wheels and 4 wheels ride around the village and also go into Sukhothai New town some 14 kilos away and in our village and new Sukhothai the police don't do nothing.

 

The fact he has got CTPL on the bike is sensible I have no interest in what the likes of you post about it, you are obviously bias and jealous about what people can do where we live and what you know ain't worth nowt. 

[eisfeld]

11 hours ago, Kwasaki said:

Where we live they are not illegal and electric bikes 2 wheels and 3 wheels and 4 wheels ride around the village and also go into Sukhothai New town some 14 kilos away and in our village and new Sukhothai the police don't do nothing.

 

The fact he has got CTPL on the bike is sensible I have no interest in what the likes of you post about it, you are obviously bias and jealous about what people can do where we live and what you know ain't worth nowt. 

Sorry but that's pathetic. I think you have a wrong understanding of the word illegal. If the police are not doing anything against it then it's not legal. It means noone cares. That's fine and if people enjoy these bikes then that's cool. But one has to be realistic with the facts.

 

Jealous of what exactly? I can buy something like that and ride it around here if I wanted to. But I have no interest in these bikes at this point in time. A few years down the line maybe yea if they got much better batteries because I love the torque of electric motors - have one in my car. And how does it make me biased? Because I have a bunch of gasoline powered bikes? That would make you biased too! I really can't follow your reasoning.

 

BTW serious question: how can one get CTPL for a vehicle that is not registered? Do they go by VIN and do these have a VIN?

[Kwasaki]

3 hours ago, eisfeld said:

Sorry but that's pathetic. I think you have a wrong understanding of the word illegal. If the police are not doing anything against it then it's not legal. It means noone cares. That's fine and if people enjoy these bikes then that's cool. But one has to be realistic with the facts.

 

Jealous of what exactly? I can buy something like that and ride it around here if I wanted to. But I have no interest in these bikes at this point in time. A few years down the line maybe yea if they got much better batteries because I love the torque of electric motors - have one in my car. And how does it make me biased? Because I have a bunch of gasoline powered bikes? That would make you biased too! I really can't follow your reasoning.

 

BTW serious question: how can one get CTPL for a vehicle that is not registered? Do they go by VIN and do these have a VIN?

I not interested in educating you about Thailand why don't you ask the insurance companies that issue CTPL. 

[SAFETY FIRST]

On 7/12/2022 at 7:16 PM, Kwasaki said:

He says it's 2000watt

Yesterday, I found this for sale here in Pattaya on 3rd Rd, also 2000 watt.

Sadly, your mates bike and this model do not have green books.

 

It's a shame, both bikes look good. 

 

Sticker price was 29k baht 

 

 

[KhunLA]

25 minutes ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

Yesterday, I found this for sale here in Pattaya on 3rd Rd, also 2000 watt.

Sadly, your mates bike and this model do not have green books.

 

It's a shame, both bikes look good. 

 

Sticker price was 29k baht 

 

 

Lack of registration kept me from buying one.  Though not sure I really need to worry where I am, but one less thing to worry about is a good thing.

 

That one looks to be an older model, with small front tire.

[SAFETY FIRST]

1 hour ago, KhunLA said:

Lack of registration kept me from buying one.  Though not sure I really need to worry where I am, but one less thing to worry about is a good thing.

 

That one looks to be an older model, with small front tire.

OK thanks. 

 

I'll keep an eye out for the different models, I'd hate to buy a bike to find out it's been superceded. ????

[Kwasaki]

3 hours ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

Yesterday, I found this for sale here in Pattaya on 3rd Rd, also 2000 watt.

Sadly, your mates bike and this model do not have green books.

 

It's a shame, both bikes look good. 

 

Sticker price was 29k baht 

 

 

Don't know what laws are about regarding EV vehicles it don't seem to matter

where we live or is it a police problem it doesn't matter about green books either because there aren't any. 

 

New Sukhothai and Old Sukhothai ( Muang Kao )  are tourist area there are electric vehicles 4,3,2 wheel and stand on scooters of all shapes and sizes everywhere the thing is a lot of them except the taxi ones don't bother with CTPL because they do not have to.

 

Just bought a scooter for the wife 1200 watt more than fast enough for her looks a bit like a wave. 

[Kwasaki]

2 hours ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

OK thanks. 

 

I'll keep an eye out for the different models, I'd hate to buy a bike to find out it's been superceded. ????

That one is not superceded it's another make. 

[KhunLA]

2 minutes ago, Kwasaki said:

Don't know what laws are about regarding EV vehicles it don't seem to matter

where we live or is it a police problem it doesn't matter about green books either because there aren't any. 

 

New Sukhothai and Old Sukhothai ( Muang Kao )  are tourist area there are electric vehicles 4,3,2 wheel and stand on scooters of all shapes and sizes everywhere the thing is a lot of them except the taxi ones don't bother with CTPL because they do not have to.

 

Just bought a scooter for the wife 1200 watt more than fast enough for her looks a bit like a wave. 

As I stated, same in Muang PKK, and enforcement almost non existent.  An occasional check point, less than once a month of late.

 

Don't think the same could be said for Hua Hin PKK.  Local forum mentions frequent check points all over the area.

[KhunLA]

2 minutes ago, Kwasaki said:

That one is not superceded it's another make. 

Most are 'city coco ' or version of.  'Made in China' listings have various models.  They even have a EU & US warehouse, supposedly.  They must all come out of same factory or cloned, being so similar.  When looking at the distributor business specs, you get anywhere from being in business from 2yrs to 6 or 7 yrs.  Prices and specs vary a bit on different models.

 

[Kwasaki]

2 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

Most are 'city coco ' or version of.  'Made in China' listings have various models.  They even have a EU & US warehouse, supposedly.  They must all come out of same factory or cloned, being so similar.  When looking at the distributor business specs, you get anywhere from being in business from 2yrs to 6 or 7 yrs.  Prices and specs vary a bit on different models.

 

Prices and spec differ from different suppliers my mate paid extra for some Thai type bling. ????

[Kwasaki]

28 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

As I stated, same in Muang PKK, and enforcement almost non existent.  An occasional check point, less than once a month of late.

 

Don't think the same could be said for Hua Hin PKK.  Local forum mentions frequent check points all over the area.

But what can the bent police in Hua-Hin charge anyone with if they are sold in Thailand and there is no registration for them other than to treat them as a bicycle. 

I would guess if you take the trouble to get CTPL on it you would be OK. 

[KhunLA]

12 minutes ago, Kwasaki said:

But what can the bent police in Hua-Hin charge anyone with if they are sold in Thailand and there is no registration for them other than to treat them as a bicycle. 

I would guess if you take the trouble to get CTPL on it you would be OK. 

No green book, no plate, no yearly tax ... they'll think of something.  Technically, whether insured or not, it's still not registered, which is required.

[Kwasaki]

3 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

No green book, no plate, no yearly tax ... they'll think of something.  Technically, whether insured or not, it's still not registered, which is required.

Where the law for electric bikes that says it has to be registered, none as far as I know and most of the people in our village that's got them can't register them apart from the taxi guys who only register themselves to use as a taxi and they get CTPL as I am told. 

 

[JonnyF]

I have a fat tyre e-mountainbike. Looks a lot like this one.

 

 

I use it for short journeys around BKK, mainly to and from the MRT station. It's OK, does about 35kph without pedalling but the range is only about 25 kms which is fine for me, but limiting if you wanted to use it for anything more than the short trips I use it for. I'm not sure it's 100% legal but it looks enough like a normal mountain bike to never get stopped, and there are no cops on the route I use to the MRT station anyway. If I saw a checkpoint I'd whip out the key and pedal past them.

 

As for electric motorbikes, I'm not convinced by them yet. Range is not great and neither is performance unless you want to spend serious money. Charging is a bit of a pain (the battery detatches on mine but it's still a lot of work remembering to do it, carrying it up to my condo etc. compared to filling up my Ninja 250 with petrol every 300 kms). Registering them is possible now on some models, but I am not convinced by the benefits over something like a Honda Super Cub for about 40k that will last decades and costs so little to run, easy to resell etc. 

[ThailandRyan]

4 hours ago, KhunLA said:

Lack of registration kept me from buying one.  Though not sure I really need to worry where I am, but one less thing to worry about is a good thing.

 

That one looks to be an older model, with small front tire.

Just make your own plate like the folks out in the US do who are nonconformist anti government Sovereign Citizens groups.  Create your own self government.

[KhunLA]

15 minutes ago, Kwasaki said:

Where the law for electric bikes that says it has to be registered, none as far as I know and most of the people in our village that's got them can't register them apart from the taxi guys who only register themselves to use as a taxi and they get CTPL as I am told. 

 

2 wheels & motor = motorcycle. 

 

Don't think anyone cares if it's electric or not.   I see a lot of folks & vendors state, if not more than 250w motor, it doesn't need to be registered, but yet to see that in print anywhere.

 

My e-bicycle (1000w) is technically a motorcycle.  250w motor rule or not, it's a motorized 2 wheel vehicle.

 

 

http://thailaws.com/law/t_laws/tlaw0140_5.pdf

[SAFETY FIRST]

1 hour ago, Kwasaki said:

Don't know what laws are about regarding EV vehicles it don't seem to matter

where we live or is it a police problem it doesn't matter about green books either because there aren't any. 

 

New Sukhothai and Old Sukhothai ( Muang Kao )  are tourist area there are electric vehicles 4,3,2 wheel and stand on scooters of all shapes and sizes everywhere the thing is a lot of them except the taxi ones don't bother with CTPL because they do not have to.

 

Just bought a scooter for the wife 1200 watt more than fast enough for her looks a bit like a wave. 

Cops are strict here in Pattaya on foreigners, it's a cash cow for them. 

 

The bike I saw yesterday is exactly what I'm looking for, I might buy it, just use it early mornings before checkpoints are set up. 

 

 

[KhunLA]

29 minutes ago, JonnyF said:

I have a fat tyre e-mountainbike. Looks a lot like this one.

 

 

I use it for short journeys around BKK, mainly to and from the MRT station. It's OK, does about 35kph without pedalling but the range is only about 25 kms which is fine for me, but limiting if you wanted to use it for anything more than the short trips I use it for. I'm not sure it's 100% legal but it looks enough like a normal mountain bike to never get stopped, and there are no cops on the route I use to the MRT station anyway. If I saw a checkpoint I'd whip out the key and pedal past them.

 

As for electric motorbikes, I'm not convinced by them yet. Range is not great and neither is performance unless you want to spend serious money. Charging is a bit of a pain (the battery detatches on mine but it's still a lot of work remembering to do it, carrying it up to my condo etc. compared to filling up my Ninja 250 with petrol every 300 kms). Registering them is possible now on some models, but I am not convinced by the benefits over something like a Honda Super Cub for about 40k that will last decades and costs so little to run, easy to resell etc. 

I modified mine, from ugly, old, moldy, dry rotting bags, to less ugly, plastic enclosure.  Still gets airflow though, and batteries now out of the sun.

 

Mine will do 40 kph, but I keep it around 25 kph, so not to draw attention to myself, though hard not to now ????  Plus brakes & suspension aren't made for higher speeds.

[Kwasaki]

35 minutes ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

Cops are strict here in Pattaya on foreigners, it's a cash cow for them. 

 

The bike I saw yesterday is exactly what I'm looking for, I might buy it, just use it early mornings before checkpoints are set up. 

 

 

I wouldn't bother what an awful way to live. 

[Kwasaki]

42 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

2 wheels & motor = motorcycle. 

 

Don't think anyone cares if it's electric or not.   I see a lot of folks & vendors state, if not more than 250w motor, it doesn't need to be registered, but yet to see that in print anywhere.

 

My e-bicycle (1000w) is technically a motorcycle.  250w motor rule or not, it's a motorized 2 wheel vehicle.

 

 

http://thailaws.com/law/t_laws/tlaw0140_5.pdf

Well all anyone can do is wait until the DLT come up with something I guess, that will be when a Thai company produces electric bicycles or electric motorbike 2, 3, or 4 or China sets up as Japan has done.  

[SAFETY FIRST]

11 minutes ago, Kwasaki said:

I wouldn't bother what an awful way to live. 

It doesn't bother me. 

 

I do everything legally, riding an electric bike early mornings without a Green Book is the biggest crime I'll commit.