Purchasing a Neo Cross

[DBSeattle]

New to the site and enjoying it very much... I am about to purchase my first ebike and am very interested in the Neo Cross. It's for an 8 mile commute in Seattle with some good hills.

The dealer only has medium frame which he felt was ok on my test ride. I'm 6'2" with an inseam of 35". I am thinking a large frame would make more sense - I like to ride a bit more upright for commuting. Any thoughts?

There is only one dealer in Seattle - gives me a bit of pause in case there are any problems. Should this deter me? - I also checked out the E3 Dash and Path Plus (way more dealers).
Thanks

 

[Court]

Hey @DBSeattle, these are all solid bikes but no matter which one you choose I think the large frame would make the most sense... I'm a bit surprised that your shop would recommend a medium given your height and inseam? Yes, you could probably make it work but for such a large purchase and something you may be riding regularly the fit is important.

The Cross and Dash are most similar offering an active forward leaning design, suspension fork and no real accessories (fenders, lights, racks). The Path Plus is more stiff but offers an upright body position with the swept back handlebars. The motor feels very good and basically uses the design as the Dash (the battery is also roughly the same just mounted in the rear with cells laid out inside the pack differently). If you want to share what type of riding you'll be doing I'd be happy to zoom in a bit on these.

If the first dealer you went to is just trying to move inventory and neglecting your comfort and safety I'd suggest passing them up. Use your gut instinct and think about how they are really treating you... Is it that they really think the medium is best? Maybe it is if you plan to share the bike and are comfortable going slightly small. Could they be trying to save time or move an older model to make way for the new 12 amp hour Neo Cross? I don't want to pass judgement here but it leaves a bad taste in my mouth and you might need these guys to look out for you int he future with warranty claims or maintenance. If they are going for the quick win here you may not get the best support further down the road.

 

[DBSeattle]

Hey @DBSeattle, these are all solid bikes but no matter which one you choose I think the large frame would make the most sense... I'm a bit surprised that your shop would recommend a medium given your height and inseam? Yes, you could probably make it work but for such a large purchase and something you may be riding regularly the fit is important.

The Cross and Dash are most similar offering an active forward leaning design, suspension fork and no real accessories (fenders, lights, racks). The Path Plus is more stiff but offers an upright body position with the swept back handlebars. The motor feels very good and basically uses the design as the Dash (the battery is also roughly the same just mounted in the rear with cells laid out inside the pack differently). If you want to share what type of riding you'll be doing I'd be happy to zoom in a bit on these.

If the first dealer you went to is just trying to move inventory and neglecting your comfort and safety I'd suggest passing them up. Use your gut instinct and think about how they are really treating you... Is it that they really think the medium is best? Maybe it is if you plan to share the bike and are comfortable going slightly small. Could they be trying to save time or move an older model to make way for the new 12 amp hour Neo Cross? I don't want to pass judgement here but it leaves a bad taste in my mouth and you might need these guys to look out for you int he future with warranty claims or maintenance. If they are going for the quick win here you may not get the best support further down the road.

 

[DBSeattle]

Thanks Court. I appreciate your prompt reply and noticing your input throughout this site am also very grateful for your helpful and frequent input. It makes entering the ebike scene (which is not cheap), much easier to navigate and is a great contribution in my opinion to this area... As mentioned this is a pretty significant investment for me (3X what I paid for my non e-bike) so I especially appreciate this site and your input...

I have ridden a bike to work for 20 years, but the ride was three miles, downhill to work and no shower ever needed. I switched jobs last year and now have a 7.5 mile commute with several hills, some of which are pretty steep. It took me 50 minutes on my regular bike and I was pretty sweaty on arrival. The hills are daunting and after a couple of trips, I simply ended up commuting by car and have missed the biking experience since. I got into the ebike idea by accident (I know no one who has one) and after a test ride of the path plus and dash was sold on the concept. Life is busy and I haven't been able to get regular exercise time. From all I've read, an ebike is so much "fun" that one looks forward to commuting or errands or simply riding around...

Thanks for your specific feedback. I had what I felt to be a very good experience with the dealer who took time with me and made me feel pretty comfortable, so I think that they are honorable. To give a bit more information, the dealer and his staff have accompanied me on two test rides (about 15 minutes each) and felt that I looked comfortable on the medium Neo Cross (the one they had in stock). It did feel pretty comfortable truthfully, but I had to have the seat post pretty high (still a good 1" from the maximum) and didn't quite extend my knee fully. The dealer felt that the shape of the frame of the neo cross allowed a smaller frame to fit most people and said they hadn't needed to stock the larger frame for this reason. We did spend 15 minutes trying to figure out whether to take the in-store model or order a large frame (21") and again, to the dealer's credit, he said he felt based on what he observed and my height, it was a borderline call and the choice was mine. I would have loved to try the large side-by-side but this isn't an option currently and so I have opted towards getting the larger frame based on my measurements. The BH site for example suggests a large for someone with my measurements and quick internet research suggests there is lots of individual preference but most guides would go with the large (21") for someone of my height - this informed my decision. I am mostly interested in comfort and a bit more of an upright posture for my commute, so I hope that the larger frame won't interfere with that too much and will simply right-size me on the bike and allow me to keep the seat post not so high.. The dealer will be installing an attachment that allows me to adjust the height of the handlebars so I'm hoping that I'll get a great fit.
Any significant disadvantage to my decision to go for the the larger (21") frame that outweighs from your perspective? It's hard to tell how much heavier the larger frame is than the medium or if that extra weight (whatever it is) would make a significant difference to the experience (especially riding without assist).

In the end, I really liked the Dash and the Path plus but the integrated frame/battery on the neo plus the hydraulic disk brakes plus the feel (great torque in eco assist) won me over. It felt the most like a real bike that I could actually pedal unassisted for a while. Also, I got the impression that the company has longevity and is very responsive to issues ( I am sure Currie is too). BH certainly has a longer warranty than the Izip bikes. Finally, again to their credit, the Seattle dealer outfits all of his Neo Crosses with fenders at no extra charge (it is Seattle after all) which minimized the advantages of the path plus. I asked to add mirrors and a Topeak rear rack so it should be delivered and ready for commuting by next week. I am quite excited, imagining returning to bike commuting once again!!

Any further input is welcome (including reassurance that getting the larger frame without being able to ride it was not a dumb idea)!
Dan

 

[DBSeattle]

Thanks again Court for your input.
Spoke with BH (very responsive on the phone) and they recommended the larger frame. The Seattle dealer has been great and also very responsive with phone and email and was able to secure a large-frame Cross for delivery to the store. The large frame is on its way to Seattle and I should be riding it this time next week...
Dan

 

[Court]

It sounds like you made a solid decision Dan, I think the Large is probably the right way to go with this and the additional weight will be < 1 pound so that's not a big deal at all. The complimentary fenders sound great! I just added a set to my bike and feel more comfortable going out now because it has been raining a lot. The Topeak rack and mirror are also a great idea. I'm excited for you! Be sure to share a picture once it all arrives

 

[DBSeattle]

It sounds like you made a solid decision Dan, I think the Large is probably the right way to go with this and the additional weight will be < 1 pound so that's not a big deal at all. The complimentary fenders sound great! I just added a set to my bike and feel more comfortable going out now because it has been raining a lot. The Topeak rack and mirror are also a great idea. I'm excited for you! Be sure to share a picture once it all arrives

Thanks Court. I am extremely grateful for your support of the ebike community. It makes a huge difference!
Dan

 

[DBSeattle]

Update 2 weeks into Neo Cross arriving. Large frame came and dealer put on fenders.
I have put 120 miles on it and have commuted nearly every day to work and loving it. Really feels like the bike experience but taking hills out of the equation. I don't use the throttle and have it in eco mode 99% of the time. By adjusting the gears I can titrate speed/effort and assist in what feels like a very natural fashion. I love the Torque sensor on this bike - it feels very natural (though a couple of times it failed to kick in from a dead stop - the bike is very ridable with no assist but not so easily from a dead stop in a high gear on an incline).

Dealer has been great. Front wheel needed truing and this was done promptly and with no charge

Overall I couldn't be happier. Feeling a small bit disappointed in seeing the new line come out so soon after my purchase (nitro city bike looks great) but so happy with my current experience that I will find it easy to remain grateful that I have had a chance to get involved with this bike...