Heard back from Rad. They said they couldn’t view my video and recommended I take the Rover to a local bike shop since I live outside their service area. They recommended REI and two shops in NYC. REI won’t work on hub motor bikes according to a fellow I spoke with before I purchased the Rad. As for the NYC shops… I’m not a fan of going into the city between the cost of the bridge, parking issues and cost of services.
I ended up finding a local shop 3 1/2 miles away from my home willing to work on my bike. They initially couldn’t replicate the noise and just did a tune up I asked for and tightened the crank hub/bracket. They said the hub was not loose to begin with so they thought it was the rear derailleur because it was way out of spec. They told me it was fixed but when I tried it I noticed the noise was still there. The tech took it for a spin after I returned from my test ride. This time he heard the issue. He said when he did his initial ride, he used the battery and thought that might have prevented the noise from happening.
Anyway… They decided to keep the bike another day and try again in the morning. I had a dream that night that I was working on the bike and the front crank hub needed lube. I remembered looking for the nipple to attach a lube gun to. Does that age me a bit? It was a quick dream. I know… dreaming about lube and nipples… insert jokes below
Well… Guess what it turned out to be. There was no lubricant in the front hub at all. The tech said he took it apart and it was bone dry inside. Then he said he lubed everything up and reassembled and the noise went away. I confirmed this with my test ride and my ride home. No more clank.
The cost for the repair was $48. The cost for the tuneup was $85. I’m trying to see if Rad will pay the $48 for the repair. I think that is only fair as it should be considered warranty work. Fingers crossed…