Coming out of my 2nd winter of storing my Rad Expand in the basement (battery kept upstairs for ease of watching battery level over inactive months). The bike turns on, but both pedal assist and throttle are not functioning. Also, it won't roll backwards, like the back wheel or motor is locked up interally. The brakes aren't too tight and nothing externally seems to be wrong. I can't find much info at all about what could be wrong, and I have no good local options for ebike maintenance that I can find. Does anybody think this might be something I could fix myself? Any tips would be appreciated. Thank you.
Quote from: jmarks on February 26, 2024, 01:26:00 PM
The bike turns on, but both pedal assist and throttle are not functioning.
Presumably the Walk Mode doesn't work either?
QuoteAlso, it won't roll backwards, like the back wheel or motor is locked up interally. The brakes aren't too tight ...
Huh. :-\
If the right brake handle
was squeezed, that would certainly stop any rolling.
Does it roll forward?
If either brake handle was even slightly squeezed that would momentarily kill the power to the motor, as it is meant to. There is a Hall Effect sensor switch in both brake handles that detects brake handle position. Check out this thread - https://www.radowners.com/index.php/topic,1331.msg6653.html#msg6653
Do you get an "Error 25" fault? That would disable power to the motor. On the LCD display it looks like this:
(https://files.mtstatic.com/site_14425/1677/0?Expires=1708987420&Signature=OWBveEKiP24JnkONKAI-lsDF2RZqsRF3YNkGJXVip3la0GwKRA6x786RHt-Nf8s88ranvExJblvbJ5SfKOK7kORAmvq8JcXuF~4AP8tCsAVm28yOG7BVi13ZqlM3vYmXHn8PK3HbGiKDWcyCknov7qTVS9URPF42LBVoAiuPGzY_&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJ5Y6AV4GI7A555NA)
Troubleshooting for that is here: https://support.radpowerbikes.com/Maintenance_and_troubleshooting/Other_Error_Codes/Error_25_troubleshooting_guide
IIRC, one common way to get that error is to power up the bike while squeezing a brake handle. Just let it go, turn the power off, and then back on.
QuoteDoes anybody think this might be something I could fix myself?
Very likely, especially if the problem can be reproduced repeatedly and reliably.
Quote from: John Rose on February 26, 2024, 02:32:54 PM
Presumably the Walk Mode doesn't work either?
Yes, walk mode does not work either.
QuoteDoes it roll forward?
It does roll forward, yes. I've checked all accessible wire connections and all electronics seem to be connected. I am guessing something is up inside the motor, but I am not mechanically savvy and have not attempted to open anything up to investigate.
QuoteIf either brake handle was even slightly squeezed that would momentarily kill the power to the motor, as it is meant to. There is a Hall Effect sensor switch in both brake handles that detects brake handle position. Check out this thread - https://www.radowners.com/index.php/topic,1331.msg6653.html#msg6653
Do you get an "Error 25" fault? That would disable power to the motor. On the LCD display it looks like this:
(https://files.mtstatic.com/site_14425/1677/0?Expires=1708987420&Signature=OWBveEKiP24JnkONKAI-lsDF2RZqsRF3YNkGJXVip3la0GwKRA6x786RHt-Nf8s88ranvExJblvbJ5SfKOK7kORAmvq8JcXuF~4AP8tCsAVm28yOG7BVi13ZqlM3vYmXHn8PK3HbGiKDWcyCknov7qTVS9URPF42LBVoAiuPGzY_&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJ5Y6AV4GI7A555NA)
Troubleshooting for that is here: https://support.radpowerbikes.com/Maintenance_and_troubleshooting/Other_Error_Codes/Error_25_troubleshooting_guide
I don't get an Error 25 or any other error indicator. Everything looks as it should look when I turn it on. Thank you for the links. I will keep reading up!
It does sound like the motor has an issue. Is motor cable connector on the left or PORT side? If so you can't open the motor up to check or repair. Have you tried flipping the bike upside down to diagnose? movement of the wheel....
You could try AREA13 for a replacement motor and they will even help with diagnosis. They respond fairly quickly.
Not sure why it worked before and now after shortage it doesn't work.
Best of luck. Let us know what comes of the motor issue.