Battery Anxiety

How long will an ebike battery last?  Will I get stuck in the middle of nowhere with no juice?  

You’re asking one of the top questions of current ebike shoppers, so you’re in good company.  From the ground up, we want you to feel confident in your ebike’s pedal assist capacity.  At BULLS, we only spec the biggest batteries available on our ebikes.  From the entry-level to the top-shelf edition of each BULLS model, the motor and battery combo are top notch, so you don’t need to spend more to get more power.  

Buuuuuuuut, how far can I ride??   

The simple answer is that battery life is not simple: it's determined by many ride characteristics, including ebike model and tire choice, rider/gear weight, type of terrain and hilliness, average speed, rider input, and the level of pedal assist chosen. 

While we can’t give you exact numbers, we can give you some baseline examples, with variations.   

City/Touring:  The BULLS Iconic EVO 1 Speed

• 180lbs of rider/gear weight cruising at 15mph in Eco mode on mostly flat ground can expect to get around 80 miles from the Iconic’s 625Wh battery
• That same rider, who is super late for work, averaging 28mph through city streets with lots of stops, will get around a 20 mile range.  Imagine a 20 mile work commute in under 45 minutes!  And you can charge your battery at work.
• Real life example: 200lbs. rider/work gear on a 17 mile urban commute with consistent traffic light stops averaged 22 mph over 48 minutes in Sport mode using 40% of battery.

Mountain Biking; The BULLS Copperhead EVO HD Wave

• 200lbs of rider/gear weight, averaging 15mph in Eco mode on flowy mountain trails can expect to get north of 50 miles on the Copperhead’s 625Wh battery.  When was the last time you did a 65 mile mountain bike ride and didn’t have to camp half way through?
• That same rider, using eMTB mode’s adaptive pedal-assist will get 35 miles on a single charge.   
• That same rider will need to do 20 miles of steep climbing at 15mph on Turbo to kill the battery.  Now that’s a fun climb!
• Real life example: 190lb. rider used 30% of the battery on eMTB mode over 22 miles of road, gravel and super steep (20%) trail climbing to an alpine summit for a total of 1,600” of elevation gain.

Road Riding:  The BULLS Desert Falcon EVO

• 170lb rider/water bottle weight, can do a 57 mile loop with consistently climbing at 22mph on ECO with its 500Wh battery.
• That same rider can do an imaginary criterium race, averaging 28mph in Turbo mode for 28 miles…Have you ever covered 28 miles in one hour on a bike before?  It’s FAST.
• That same rider can cruise a flat course at 18mph in ECO and go for over 100 miles.
• Real life example: 210lb. rider with a back injury used 95% of the battery in ECO & Touring modes to climb 6,700” up Mt. Baldy over 28 miles. 

In general, you should expect between 40-90 miles of mellow-to-moderate riding.

And finally, your ebike is still, at its core, a bicycle that can be pedaled whether or not your battery has any juice left.  In fact, it will feel quite similar to a traditional bike on flat roads and descents without any assist. 

These examples come from BOSCH’s Range Finder tool and align with our real-world testing.  

*Bonus: incoming BULLS models with the Bosch Smart System will come with a 750Wh battery, offering over 15% longer life.   

If  you still have questions, please email us at contact@bullsbikesusa.com