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by jeffbee 1066 days ago
Rad brand bikes with hydraulic brakes do not integrate the brake lever with the motor controller. Even on the ones you mention, that integrate the brake and motor controller, it’s still possible to come to a stop, release the brake lever, and then take off unintentionally into cross traffic because you were holding the throttle open the entire time. It’s a bad interface.

Total agreement on the other part but the injuries I’m hearing about have been kids riding their class-2 e-bikes into fixed objects, not crashing with cars.
2 comments
dghlsakjg 1066 days ago
Huh. I wonder if this was an early model thing. My 2020 Rad has a throttle disconnect on both brakes and the rad parts and instructions for those parts include the brake sensor. The brake handle sensor on mine also operates a brake light. On the mechanical disc brake rad that I have they even go so far as to disable the brake lever adjustment by putting a warning sticker over it to ensure that you don’t adjust it out of range of the limit switch.

https://support.radpowerbikes.com/hc/en-us/articles/44061799...

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dicriseg 1066 days ago
The newer Rad bikes have hydraulic brakes - the older ones (like my City 3) had cable brakes with the integrated motor cutoff.

I upgraded to hydraulic brakes and wanted to keep the motor cutoff - it was hard to find levers with the integrated switch. I ended up with a kit using XOD brakes, which have the integrated cutoff and are otherwise just fine. I did, however, toss their included brake pads after a bit of riding and replaced them with Tektro P20.11 metal/ceramic pads, and those made a huge difference. That and bleeding the brakes properly.

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DANmode 1066 days ago
> you were holding the throttle open the entire time

Imagine the equivalent argument for cars.

Are you, and this argument, the reason so many newer and/or electric vehicles don't have "idle creep"?

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