I have a Bionx 500D on a recumbent and every once in a while the wheel starts making noise and does not want to assist. This has happened 2 times after hitting a bump and today after coming down a hill with brake lever in regen. I shut the system off and then back on and it was ok. Last time I had to put in assist level 4 and pedal hard and then it growled hard and then acted normal for the rest of the ride. Contacted Bionx since my Dealer went out of business for some advice but all they said was find another dealer and take it in. If it is not doing it at the time then nothing will be done. Has any one with the 500D system experienced anything like I am describing??????
Bionx 500D Growling
- Thread starter Jhorrick
- Start date
Ann M.
Well-Known Member
@Jhorrick , it's possible that the torque sensor was damaged when you hit a bump or somehow the alignment bolt shifted position. It's really hard to say; our shop has seen folks have creaking sounds from improperly tensioned spokes, something that can happen when you hit a bump (really got to watch for the potholes and slow down over curbs or other bumps!) The only way to know for sure is to have someone who does the computer based diagnostics on BionX kits plug in to your system and see.
Where do you live? The community here may be able to help you find a dealer.
Where do you live? The community here may be able to help you find a dealer.
I live in Antioch, California, my old dealer was by Stanford across in a shopping center. I always slow down for bumps and curbs
Ann M.
Well-Known Member
@Jhorrick have you gotten your D 500 checked out yet? If not, there's a good interactive dealer page on BionX's site. It appears to be reasonably accurate (at least for my own state, Texas 
)
)Yes I dropped it off at Blue Heron Bikes in Berkeley on Monday. They said they are waiting to see what Bionx wants to do and feel its in the motor. Has gotten worse and does it almost every ride. Glad it did it for them to verify complaint. Will post what happens when its fixed.@Jhorrick have you gotten your D 500 checked out yet? If not, there's a good interactive dealer page on BionX's site. It appears to be reasonably accurate (at least for my own state, Texas
FrederickV
New Member
The Bionx 500DV I purchased in September 2015. In April 2016 it developed what sounded to me like a "cat growel" as I was ascending our local mountain. I took it into the dealer where I purchased it (Vancouver BC). The mechanic first checked for wheel/disc brake rubbing but confirmrd the problem was within the motor. Bionx had a replacement motor shipped Shipped to the shop which arrived within a week as promised. Meanwhile I continued to ride with the noisy motor as it operated normally otherwise.
In late May 2016 while descending a steep hill with maximum regeneration, a severe growling sound came from the motor area. It seemed like the same problem. However in the process of removing the wheel I discovered that the rear disc brake was somehow jammed. After servicing the brake, everything returned to normal. The dealer was also much relieved that it was not a motor problem.
As I ride in mountainous terrain, I have set the regenerative braking assist to maximum (40) in the console menu. On the DV500, this braking effect is amazingly strong when the battery is at say half charge, and usually causes the motor to shudder but is very helpful in reducing break pad wear. With the 555 Wh 48V battery powering the D500 motor I was able to ascend a local mountain (1000 m elevation) with 55% charge remaing and 100% displayed before reaching the bottom. On the descent I found that the braking regen was actually slowing me down too much (it would require me to pedal) so mostly I used the controller variable regen going down to better control my speed of descent.
I'm in my 11th year riding a Bionx electric assist road bike (currently installed on my 8 year old Devinci Oslo) and especially like that it has not only good power going up hills but great regenerative braking. I was pleasantly surprised how much more effective the regeneration is on the DV500 compared to my previous 250 W system as this was not particularly advertised. Well done Bionx!
In late May 2016 while descending a steep hill with maximum regeneration, a severe growling sound came from the motor area. It seemed like the same problem. However in the process of removing the wheel I discovered that the rear disc brake was somehow jammed. After servicing the brake, everything returned to normal. The dealer was also much relieved that it was not a motor problem.
As I ride in mountainous terrain, I have set the regenerative braking assist to maximum (40) in the console menu. On the DV500, this braking effect is amazingly strong when the battery is at say half charge, and usually causes the motor to shudder but is very helpful in reducing break pad wear. With the 555 Wh 48V battery powering the D500 motor I was able to ascend a local mountain (1000 m elevation) with 55% charge remaing and 100% displayed before reaching the bottom. On the descent I found that the braking regen was actually slowing me down too much (it would require me to pedal) so mostly I used the controller variable regen going down to better control my speed of descent.
I'm in my 11th year riding a Bionx electric assist road bike (currently installed on my 8 year old Devinci Oslo) and especially like that it has not only good power going up hills but great regenerative braking. I was pleasantly surprised how much more effective the regeneration is on the DV500 compared to my previous 250 W system as this was not particularly advertised. Well done Bionx!
Ann M.
Well-Known Member
@FrederickV thanks for your observations! Issues come up with any electric bike or conversion system and most have rational solutions. BionX has a pretty comprehensive diagnostic system both with their computer based diagnostics used by their dealers as well as people based support at the company in Canada.
Ann M.
Well-Known Member
@FrederickV thanks for your observations! Issues come up with any electric bike or conversion system and most have rational solutions. BionX has a pretty comprehensive diagnostic system both with their computer based diagnostics used by their dealers as well as people based support at the company in Canada.
Ok it took almost 3 weeks but I got my bike back from Blue Heron Bikes in Berkeley, Ca. So Bionx sent a new motor and wheel assembly out to repair the problem and on first road test it seems super quiet and smooth. My complaint is that I had to pay 100.00 in labor to Blue Heron since Bionx does not reimburse bike shop for there time to diag and repair. I was really surprised at this since the Bionx web site states they will take care of the repair shop. I could have been a real prick and not paid the bill since I did not sign or authorize any amount of money to repair and was only told about it when I picked up bike. I will contact Bionx about this issue and see if they will make it right, if not this is the last Bionx system I will ever purchase. The frustrating part is the lack of any urgency by Blue Heron to install the wheel when it arrived on Monday. Took a email from me to them to get it done by wed nite. If this is how Bionx really handles there warranty issues its very disappointing.2 year warranty should include everything. Blue Heron said Bionx response about labor to them was that I should be glad they replaced the wheel at no charge and that was all they were going to do. Not a great experience to say the least.
Jhorrick
Jhorrick
Well took it out for a 20 mile road test today and it sure is much quieter and smoother than my last motor. No growl or noise even. It used to surge in level 4 assist but not any more so far very happy with replacement motor and its operation. Rode in level 3 assist the whole time for 20 miles and only used 2 out of 8 bars on the battery indicator. The tour of Napa Valley in August will be a great test for it at 35 miles with some climb.
I don´t think that setting the regenerative braking to 40 is a good idea. I´m concerned that the shuddering could provoke damage to the motor.
i´ve set it to 22 which is stronger than the original Setting (19) but does not cause any shuddering. By the way you won´t gain much improvement in regenerating energy by setting it to 40. It only improves the braking-performance.
Last edited:
