Picked up an E-Bike for a song

[DeuceWheeler]

I stopped by the local Goodwill today and saw a nice Trek Commuter sitting in the outdoor rack for $49.99.
As I got closer I noticed it had an Electric Hub and battery pack.
The pack was dead, but it did have the charger.
The rack that holds the battery is broken.
I took it for a pedal and it shifted smoothly and braked nicely.
I am anxious to see if I can get it working.
I guess these cost about $2200 new in 2011.

 

[DeuceWheeler]

It's on the charger now, fingers crossed.

 

[CrazyDave]

Nice deal man! May the bike gods smile upon you and have it work!

 

[deorman]

Heck, the bike's worth 50 bucks by itself.

 

[DeuceWheeler]

No Dice! Oh well, it's in mint shape otherwise. Might just have to get a normal hub and lace it up.

 

[deorman]

What is the battery voltage? Any way to hook to some other power supply?

 

[DeuceWheeler]

What is the battery voltage? Any way to hook to some other power supply?

I'm not sure, gonna go through the electrical wiring, make sure everything is up to par and then try to take the battery compartment apart. Just gotta find the time.

 

[horsefarmer]

Deuce, Keep us posted on your progress!

 

[Muttley]

Is that a nicad battery?

 

[RustySprockets]

It looks like the BionX battery packs are Li-ion...and don't come cheap. Perhaps you can troubleshoot it, or at least isolate whichever bad cells are causing problems and either replace or eliminate them alone. In any event, the price was very reasonable, even if it's reduced to full time pedal bike.

 

[Wildcat]

A guy who worked next to me used one of those to get back and forth to work. They have a fuse or breaker in there somewhere that he had to change out. If nothing smells burned and all the wiring looks good, that might be the problem, and hopefully an easy fix. But the bike looks in good shape otherwise.

Or do an online chat directly with Trek.

http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en_US/bikes/collections/electric-bikes/c/B507

 

[horsefarmer]

Trek Ride+ videos






replacement parts.
http://www.nycewheels.com/bionx-parts-oem.html

BionX | Battery, 48V Lithium Rear Rack
http://www.nycewheels.com/bionx-parts-battery-48-rear-rack.html
$980 or $1100!

Reviving a dead bionx battery pack.
http://www.bikeforums.net/electric-bikes/889221-reviving-dead-bionx-battery-pack.html

Rebuilding a BionX Battery Pack.
https://syonyk.blogspot.com/2015/08/rebuilding-bionx-36v-96ah-battery-pack.html

 

[DeuceWheeler]

Thanks for all the help and info guys!!
There are a few broken barrel connectors, where the various wiees screw togerher to connect, but the connections are tight. The other issue is that the key is broken, so I can't release the battery box from the rear rack easily.
I might have to send Trek a message on this one or pop by the local dealer.

 

[horsefarmer]

I think on the page where the guy talks about rebuilding the battery pack he states the charger is a smart charger and wont charge the battery if it's under 10 v so maybe you might try to get it up to 10 v with a simple charger like a wall wart from some tossed electronic do dad...

 

[DeuceWheeler]

I think on the page where the guy talks about rebuilding the battery pack he states the charger is a smart charger and wont charge the battery if it's under 10 v so maybe you might try to get it up to 10 v with a simple charger like a wall wart from some tossed electronic do dad...

Great idea, thanks! I'll see what I can come up with. The charging port closely resembles an s-video port. We have a ton of chargers at work. I'll check the supply and see if anything matches.