Woosh bikes are electric. Pedal as little or as much as you like! Cycling is easy with an electric bike!
Gently turn the throttle, lift up your feet and glide effortlessly away. And no tax, insurance or parking fees to pay! With 9 models to choose from, all are practical, fun and at less than a penny a mile, cheap to run. Woosh bikes are beautifully built, come with a 1 year guarantee and because we sell direct, are much cheaper than other electric bikes on the market. Depending on your weight and th
e terrain, you can travel as far as 40km (25 miles) on a full charge without pedalling. Try before you buy with one hour rental for £4! Follow this link: http://wooshbikes.co.uk/pedelecs.php?hire
Cycle to work
If you have bought the bike before you read this page, your employer may still accept to support you by signing the contract now and (more or less) immediately giving you back 40% of the cost of the bike. The scheme does not cost your employer anything but it’s still prudent to ask your employer before paying for the equipment! Why and how the Woosh Bikes Cycle To Work scheme is revolutionary?
- employee buys the bike on behalf of his employer
- employee sets the salary sacrifice to suit himself
- the Woosh Bikes calculator will then adjust the Hire Contract to maximize employee’s savings and reduce financial support from his employer to a minimum
What is common in all Cycle To Work schemes?
- the bike belongs to the employer during the contract period
- the employee is totally responsible for the upkeep
- at the end of the contract, the employer is expected to sell the bike to the employee at government suggested price
- the savings are from recovery of VAT paid, tax and national insurance on salary sacrifice
- employee pays normal national insurance and tax
- employer passes on VAT and savings on national insurance to employee
- employee has an employment contract (permanent or longer than the contract length)
Sirocco Electric Bike
What a “great piece of kit”. I was not sure about buying an electric bike (don’t want to admit that I’m getting older). We looked around & for the specs & price this one seemed a good deal. I live on Orkney & at first it seemed that it was not possible to deliver it up here. Hatti at Woosh bikes was extremely help full & arranged for the bike to travel as far as Aberdeen for free & to be handed over to a local haulier, for the rest of the journey. The bike arrived well wrapped, although the box had split open, all contents were intact. My partner put it together, the handle bar holder did cross thread, a common problem with stainless steel threads & the two screws that hold the front mud guard on were missing. We over came this problems by re – tapping the joint & spare screws were soon found. I have ridden the bike into work five times, a twenty mile round trip & against 28mph winds. The bike coped with the wind with no problem, obviously slightly slower but I am averaging 15.3 miles an hour. The 10 mile ride has taken me between 36 & 42 minutes, depending on the wind. The battery has only dropped down one bar when going up a steep hill. I comfortably cycled up a really steep hill in forth gear, where as before it would of been in first gear & standing on the pedals. My only concern so far with this bike, is the stand may not be strong enough. With the pannier on, folks do not realize that it is an electric bike. It has honestly put the pleasure back into cycling & I can highly recommend it. PAUL NEWTON SEP/02/2011 on The Sirocco
Review for Sirocco bike purchased from www.wooshbikes.co.uk of Southend-on-sea, August 2011
I am writing this review after riding the Sirocco to work for a week – it has been a pleasure to ride. I am already recommending it to colleagues at work. I have found Woosh to be a great company to deal with both by email and phone. There were a few problems with the bike when it was delivered, but Woosh have continued to provide good after sales support.
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Background
Prior to the Sirocco I rode an “ED-1” E-Bike for the past 5 years. I have used it to do a 3.5mile commute to work in all weather (rain, ice and snow). The ED-1 is a heavy steel framed shopper style bike with rear hub motor, twist throttle (no pedal assist mode) and three very heavy lead acid batteries mounted on the frame in front of the pedals. The brakes were very poor for the weight of the bike. I was lucky to get up to 14mph on the motor alone, and the ratio of the top gear made it impossible to pedal faster than 18mph.
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Riding the Sirocco
Compared to my ED-1 the Sirocco is a very light bike, it looks great, and it is not that obvious that it is an electric bike (especially if you have pannier bags over the battery box). The Sirocco is slightly top heavy with the battery being mounted above the back wheel. However the lithium Ion battery pack is quite light and it is no different to having a set of pannier bags on the back of the bike. I have had no problems mounting my pair of panniers to the bike – the carrier includes holes to tie the bags down. It is quite easy to lift the bike to place it into a cycle rack, the tyres are just at the limit of width for a standard rack – so no problems there. I found that the batteries in my ED-1 did not perform well on cold days – this was mainly because the battery pack was too heavy to carry into work, hence the batteries got very cold in winter. In comparison, the Sirocco’s battery pack is very compact and light. It is quite easy to mount and remove from the bike and hence could easily be taken inside to keep warm (there is a lock to prevent the pack being stolen). The Sirocco does not have an “ignition” key, this means that if you leave it in a public place some helpful sole could switch on the battery pack. But, given how easy it is to remove and carry the pack with you, I don’t think this would be an issue. The mud guards are designed for road use – they are not the typical mountain bike after thought you often see. You will not get to work with a stripe up your back! Mostly the electric cables are hidden inside the frame, and where they emerge they are neatly cable tied without any lose loops of cable sticking out. The lights supplied with the bike are very good. They are LED lamps running off AAA batteries (they do not have a flashing mode). The battery pack also has its own rear light built in that is always on when the battery is turned on. The centre of the handlebars is free for fitting a speedo and/or an extra front light, but the tube work has a large diameter and the fitting for some lights may not reach around the tube (so check the fitting before you buy extra lights). The brakes seem to be very effective, and have microswitches that cut the power to the motor as soon as you brake. The motor is very quiet. The controls don’t require you to select between throttle and pedal assist. This means you can switch modes as you ride – allowing you to let go of the throttle to signal a right turn without losing power. The pedal assistance is triggered by the pedals moving round – you don’t have to apply any torque, they just have to be turning. It takes a moment for them to cut in, so if you pull away without the throttle, you have to turn the pedals about half a turn before you get any assistance. If you stop pedalling, the assistance continues for a while until the bike decides you have stopped. Touching the brakes cuts the power immediately, and after releasing them there is a short delay while you pedal until the motor cuts in again. The throttle takes priority over the pedal assistance. (If you turn the throttle while pedalling, the pedal assistance mode stops and the motor is under the control of the throttle only.) There is no delay using the throttle – pulling away on the throttle (with or without pedalling) gives instant motor power. If you let go of the throttle while pedalling (e.g. to give a hand signal), the pedal assistance cuts back in after a short gap in power. One big benefit of having the throttle is that in icy or snowy conditions, you don’t have to keep your feet on the pedals. Instead you can put you feet out to stabilise the bike whilst the motor pulls you along. Being rear wheel drive, the extra weight on the rear wheel should make the bike less inclined to lose traction compared with front wheel drive E-bikes. The seven gears allow good control of the bike, and the ratio of the top gear allows me to get up to around 20mph with a sensible rate of pedalling. Typically I find that it is easy to get to 18mph with a little pedalling. The battery lasts quite well, my ED-1 needed to be charged every night, so far I have used the Sirocco to go to work and back four times this bank holiday week and I think it would probably do a 5-day week. My round trip is 7 miles a day with quite a lot of shallow gradients, and one very steep hill where I have to pedal to keep going. One unknown for me at the moment is how water proof the bike’s electrics are (the ED-1 needed some work to stop road spray entering its controller). The main electronics are mounted in front of the battery below the saddle, hence they are well away from puddles and spray. Woosh suggested that it may be necessary to cover the battery pack in heavy rain. Given that I use panniers over the battery I don’t think this will be an issue for me.
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Dealing with Woosh
Two years ago I tried to buy a replacement E-bike from an e-bay super seller, and had a very bad experience. That bike was delivered by HGV requiring a forklift to unload it, and even though it was sold as a new bike, it was damaged beyond use with parts missing. I found Woosh Bikes by chance through a Google search for electric bikes. My first contact with Woosh was via emails that were answered promptly with useful information. Not living close to Southend, I decided to order by phone and have the bike delivered for self assembly. Contacting Woosh on the phone, I found the staff pleasant and knowledgeable. They arranged for the bike to be delivered to my place of work, and were able to instruct the courier to deliver within the opening times of our “goods in”. As promised, the bike arrived early the next day – which was fantastic. Delivery was by a small van (not an HGV). It was carefully packed but unfortunately it had received some minor damage in transit:
· The front brake receptacle had caught on the inside of the box and was slightly bent (this was easily rectified).
· The saddle post had rubbed against the cross bar and caused some scratches (even through the bubble wrap). Assembly was straight forward – allen keys are supplied with the bike, but you will also need a spanner for the pedals. There were a few minor differences compared with the bike shown on the Woosh web page,
· the style of the front light and mud guard fitting had both changed,
· my bike did not come with a quick release front wheel (I prefer this as it is then harder for an opportunist thief to steal the wheel)
On riding the bike I found two more issues:
· One link in the chain was stiff causing the gears to clatter.
· The saddle can knock against the battery box.
· The battery switch is a bit temperamental, and can get stuck in the on position. Woosh were great at helping sort out the issues. They sent emails with updated photos showing how to assemble the new style lights correctly, how to re-fit the saddle post to avoid the battery box, and how the get the chain running smoothly. I have touched up the scratches myself and they offered to pay for the paint. I am currently keeping an eye on the battery switch, but if it becomes a problem Woosh have offered to replace the battery. Had I chosen to collect the bike fully assembled and tested from Southend I believe it would have been perfect. Instead I chose to have it delivered part assembled and the issues I have had are not un-expected. Overall, I have been really pleased that I bought this bike from Woosh.
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Paul Newton, Reading, 2nd September 2011
PETER SIPOS AUG/20/2011 8:24 pm on The Sirocco
wow woosh
Hie All
the white SIRROCO electric power assist is fantastic. I have now cycled from wisbech to spalding in the fen’s by the Wash, twice. The trip is 22 miles there and 22 mioles back. I charge the battery at my friends house that takes 4 hours to fully recharge. The top speed i have hade is 25 mph and average 16 mph. I am fitter for the fact and now have been coverted to cycling.. I have an ordinary bike for wisbech town but us the woosh for long distances…. I recomend this bike as it goes an incredible distance on a charge and is easy to use. It also looks like a standard bicycle not as a lot of other types you can buy…
Yours
CHRIS JULY/13/2011 2:28 pm on The Breezer
Delivered on time. Easy to assemble the bits that needed it. Two small niggles sorted out in a flash. The bike goes like a dream and in Tenterden its quiker than using a car. Also no parking charges or petrol costs. I would certainly recommend Woosh Bikes. DEREK HAWKER JUNE/18/2011 4:19 pm on The Elios
THE ELIOS
I dont normally do reviews but I feel compelled on this occasion. I have been looking for a replacement for my Powabyke Urban for some time. I have a spinal problem and find the powabyke difficult to mount etc. I have looked at all the usual suspects but there seemed to be a problem with either the specs. or communication. I looked at the `Woosh` website and it gave me the confidence to Telephone them. I spoke to a very helpful and friendly lady by the name of Hatti who put me in touch with a customer who had purchased a Woosh bike. I viewed that bike and was impressed. So impressed that I bought the Elios model. Ordered one day and delivered the next morning with a phone call from Hatti with a delivery time, true to within 5 minutes!! It is early days yet, but the bike functions well, better than I expected and so far I am very happy. I may have an issue somewhere but I am confident that the after sales service will be fine. This company offer a fine range of above standard bikes at competitive prices. Worth a look!! Caryl MAY/21/2011 5:14 pm on HIRE
Just to let you know we rented a Woosh bike the other day. It was FANTASTIC much better than we thought it would be. Me and my mum took out the 2 pink ones (angels) and went down the sea front it was a bit on the cold side bit no rain. We had a practice first outside Woosh in queens Road, mum was a bit wobbly cos she is really old now (56) but she got the hang of it in less than a minute. Me I was fine cos I’ve had a bike since I was 13 also I tried an electric one on France last year so I knew the score. ANYWAY, after the initial wobbles (which for Mum was about 30 seconds) we were fine. Went up to Hamlet court Road, then down over the bridge down the steep hill and left past the arches. Got off there cos mum was a bit nervous, then crossed over and went almost all the way along right up to the Garisson Shoebury, it was really amazing. Sun came out, we stopped at Uncle toms and had a tea and coke, then on to Shoebury, really really nice afternoon. Then back, when we got back to the Arches we had an ice cream, then staggerred up the hill to the Cliffs but actually the bikes made it up there even though we were loaded with ice cream!!!! So the low down is….the Angel bike (pink) is really good, we used the throttle almost all the time so we just kept our feet up and slid along it was really amazing. Brakes worked fine but didn’t really need them only once when Mum nearly ran over some old boy, but otherwise it was a good run. Also up the hill by the arches I thought Mum wouldnt make it, she is quite chubby but when she started going up the hill and pedalling she made it up to the top., no hassle.. Caryl.
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