What bike from Halfords - £1250 to £1750

[OttoMattik]

I have £1250 in credit to spend with Halfords. It’s a replacement for an eBike that couldn’t be fixed so ideally they want to swap it for another eBike though I may look at convincing them to swap for a non eBike as well. Can’t spread it over multiple things unfortunately as it’s a one off though a little flexible about topping up to buy a more expensive bike if I want to.

Issue is that the eBike I want is the Boardman ADV 8.9E – but that sells at £2800 and I’m not sure I want to add that much money on top. I could probably look at adding another £500 or so on top but not really much more than that – unless there is excellent value to be had.

eBike options: Raleigh Felix+ (£1500) or Boardman HYB 8.9E (£1200). The ranges on both of these are quite limited as I'd like something with a real world range of about 60m for weekend rides.

Normal bike options: Boardman SLR 8.9 105 (£1200) or Boardman SLR 8.9 Disc (£1700). The main difference between these 2 looks like the hydraulic brakes and not sure if that merits £500?

What would you choose?

EDIT: I already have a Boardman ADV 8.9 2020 through them that I bought using the C2W scheme and use it as a commuter infrequently. Not sure whether the SLR versions of that bike are going to be a massive difference compared to what I have already.

Edited by OttoMattik on Monday 22 April 09:56

[OttoMattik]

And in a complete departure from all the options listed above - I think I may be settling on a Brompton C Line Explore - https://www.halfords.com/bikes/folding-bikes/bromp...

Different enough from what I have currently though doesn't scratch the eBike itch...

[Siao]

I would have gone with a gravel one, since you have a road bike.

Brompton, I'll be honest, I didn't see it coming!

[CHARLESBERG]

Can you still get discount with British Cycling? Not sure if it is worth signing up to get a little more discount?

[OttoMattik]

Siao said:

I would have gone with a gravel one, since you have a road bike.

Brompton, I'll be honest, I didn't see it coming!

It's the other way round. Already have a gravel (ADV 8.9) so would have likely gone for the road bike (SLR)

What I really want is an electric bike with a long range as I like to do long runs over the weekend with 95% road and about 5% gravel path. The advice I got from the guy in the store (which matches my own research) is that anything in the £1k-£1.5k is basically a manual bike with a motor/battery added, rather than something designed from the ground up to be an electric bike. To get the performance and range I want, I'd be looking at £3k+ and also most of the brands aren't sold by Halfords (Specialized, Merida etc).

This meant I would have gone for the non electric road bike as at least I get a good bike that was designed for a specific purpose - but it seems too similar to the gravel bike I have already, albeit newer, carbon frame and 105 groupset.

The Brompton is a left field choice as it gives me something to use for the daily commute (9m each way) and something I can chuck in the back of the car for when we go on holiday (where taking a normal bike is always a bit of a faff).

Have until the weekend to decide...

[WPA]

OttoMattik said:

And in a complete departure from all the options listed above - I think I may be settling on a Brompton C Line Explore - https://www.halfords.com/bikes/folding-bikes/bromp...

Different enough from what I have currently though doesn't scratch the eBike itch...

No issue with a Brompton, love them to ride however if buying a Brompton from Halfords, once you have it, pop to your local Brompton dealer and ask them to carry out a safety check (cost around £25), Halfords simply do not have a clue with Brompton's as they are different to a normal bike to set up, they are not perfect from the factory so do need a safety check or PDI.

[defblade]

I suspect the Brompton would also be the bike to hold its value best if you felt like turning that credit back in to cash as any point...

[Siao]

OttoMattik said:

It's the other way round. Already have a gravel (ADV 8.9) so would have likely gone for the road bike (SLR)

What I really want is an electric bike with a long range as I like to do long runs over the weekend with 95% road and about 5% gravel path. The advice I got from the guy in the store (which matches my own research) is that anything in the £1k-£1.5k is basically a manual bike with a motor/battery added, rather than something designed from the ground up to be an electric bike. To get the performance and range I want, I'd be looking at £3k+ and also most of the brands aren't sold by Halfords (Specialized, Merida etc).

This meant I would have gone for the non electric road bike as at least I get a good bike that was designed for a specific purpose - but it seems too similar to the gravel bike I have already, albeit newer, carbon frame and 105 groupset.

The Brompton is a left field choice as it gives me something to use for the daily commute (9m each way) and something I can chuck in the back of the car for when we go on holiday (where taking a normal bike is always a bit of a faff).

Have until the weekend to decide...

Ah, ok, this makes sense. I have tried a Brompton before and it wasn't for me. But I see your logic, good luck!

[gangzoom]

OttoMattik said:

Issue is that the eBike I want is the Boardman ADV 8.9E – but that sells at £2800..........or Boardman HYB 8.9E (£1200). The ranges on both of these are quite limited as I'd like something with a real world range of about 60m for weekend rides.

The Boardman ADV versus the HYB is essentially the same bike with same motor, but the ADV is drop bars, I'm not sure even how much difference there is in the frame.

The HYB is a reasonably OK bike, the frame is nicely finished, comfy, but it does flex as you expect from an alu frame made for Halfords.

For range, 60 miles would be no issues, providing you treat it like a pedal bike versus eMoped. I recon I could get 100 miles range out of the Boardman if purely focused on riding/range, using aero bars, free flowing roads with little start/stopping, and putting in a decent amount of effort.







However my Boardman is now firmly a commuter bike, so heavy tires, rack, pannier, work cloth. Last week, I did barely 15 miles, commuting across various work sites, and used nearly 50% of the battery. That was because I sat back letting the motor do quite a lot of the work, it was cold (it's an EV after all), and into wind for quite bit of the routes.

So range really is dependent on usage.

Oh I paid nearly £2k for my Boardman, so if you can get it for £1200 you are getting a great deal .

Edited by gangzoom on Tuesday 23 April 18:41

[OttoMattik]

You're right - the HYB 8.9E is £1800. I may have been looking at the non electric version of the bike and got the prices mixed up.

[OttoMattik]

Deal is done - I'm now the proud owner of a C Line Explore in Black Lacquer

Took the display model and managed to get a few hundred pounds knocked off compared to buying new (pretty mint condition).

Sods law that its just started raining outside so will have to delay the initial ride till tomorrow but loving it so far - the lacquer finish in person looks fantastic!