Compare the componentry, brand popularity and the quality of each bike. Good e-bikes aren’t cheap, cheap e-bike aren’t good!

Ask the question where the bikes are made such as Taiwan, China, Asia etc.

Do not get fooled by marketing spiel – designed in NZ or assembled in NZ is purely to take the attention away from where they are manufactured.

Some e bikes state they are Shimano equipped, this could mean 1-2 parts most commonly the shifter, derailleur or cassette. These words are purely to take the attention away from the specifications, for example the Discovery e bike has Shimano motor, battery, dash, shifter, Canbus wiring, hydraulic brakes, disc’s, hub, cassette and derailleur.

Mid drive is the best option as it creates a better weight distribution.

You can repair a puncture yourself with mid drive as it’s like a standard bike with quick release wheels, it’s not so easy on a motor driven wheel, it would likely require a bicycle technician to do the repair for you and the extra time for them to do this would reflect in the labour charges.

Do they offer a full workshop service with qualified bicycle mechanics to carry out the repair, do they sell spare parts for the specific bike, how long has the company been trading for, what reviews do they have? If they don’t have any of the above, they have no after sales service.

If its not a known brand and the seller tells you, “you can take it to any bicycle repair shop” call at least three to check, do not simply take their word for it. You want the confidence knowing that no matter where you are in NZ and you need a repairer you can go to any bike workshop versus back to the supplier if they are the only service provider.

Quicker workshop diagnosis on component check for fault finding. When a bike comes with software updates, this will keep the bike running at its optimum efficiency with test modes, adjustments, settings, customising, no diagnostics means you can’t improve on what you have, it takes a lot longer time for a bike mechanic to trace faults, and would reflect in the labour charges.

Consider the riding distance before having to recharge the battery. The more assist needed the quicker the battery is used, for example a bike with wheel drive would have a range from 40 to 60klms and a mid-drive would have 100 to 185klms distance available.