Bikes FAQs

Investing in an electric bike isn't a decision that is taken lightly, but Halfords are here to help! With our free electric bike trial, you can test out an electric bike for up to 6 hours so that you can see if electric is the way forward for you. We offer nationwide store coverage for our Electric Bike Trials, test rides can be arranged by using our eBike Trial Finder to find your nearest trial store.

Please note that our colleagues in store will require a fully refundable security deposit of £/€101 and 2 forms of ID, including one photo ID to allow you to test the bike. 

Sadly, we can't let non Electric Bikes out for a ride, but the majority of our stores now have static cycle trainers set up which will allow you to sit on the bike they are looking at and get a good feel for it.       

E-Bike batteries are normally made of lithium compounds to make a Li-Ion battery, usually made up of lots of smaller 18650 size cells within a casing. The batteries should be cared for in the same way as mobile phone batteries, avoid heavy knocks or piercing the battery pack, and must not be left completely uncharged for long periods of time or they may eventually become incapable of holding a charge at all.

From flat, it would take around 3.5-4 hours to charge a battery to 100% full, but will be around 80% full after 1.5 hours  the battery automatically slows down its charging rate in the last 15-20%.  Try to let the battery get to around a 30-40% charge before recharging. Most batteries are good for around 1000 recharges, so an E-bike being used for commuting so a bike used for commuting 20 miles a day should last for around 7 years.

An electric bike, or E-bike, is one which has an electric powered hub which is designed to assist with pedalling rather than powering the bike without input from the rider. When riding up a hill, the motor will activate to help you reach a better cruising speed on an incline to make it easier to ride. The hub can be located in either the front or rear wheel, or in the central hub with the pedals.

The legal definition of an Electrically Assisted Pedal Cycle (EAPC) or E-Bike is an electrically assisted bike where an additional motor is fitted to supplement the cyclist. Fitting a bike with a full electric mode or a throttle changes the definition of the bike to one of an electrically-powered motorbike, where a license, insurance, road duty and MOTs would be required.

To define the difference between an electrically assisted pedal cycle (EAPC) and an electrically powered motorbike  that is a bike which can be powered solely be an electric motor  the EU specified a speed limit of 15.5mph (25kph) before the motor cuts out and no assistance is given. If you exceed this speed when cycling, the motor will cut out.Most riders will normally cycle at around this speed, and as the sensors are sensitive to speed changes, it may give the impression of an intermittent fault with the motor as you go above and below this speed.

In England, Scotland and Wales, no license, insurance, road tax or MOT would be required for an e-bike. However all of these things are required for riding an E-bike in Northern Ireland with the battery fitted, as well as a motorbike helmet.

We're able to get spares for the mechanical parts of the bike, such as the drivetrain  chains, chainwheel, derailleurs and for the consumable parts of the bikes such as tyres, tubes and so on. Depending on the electrical part which may need replacing, our colleagues may be able to fit these in-store. If there is a fault on the bike which can't be repaired in store, the bike would be sent back to the manufacturer for repair.

Yes, however we are unable to work on any non-Halfords electric bike where we need to complete electrical work, as this is due to access to spare parts and often voiding the manufactures warranty. We can still complete mechanical work on non-Halfords electric bikes.

All bikes will come boxed unless specified that you would like the bike built when you order or reserve it. You may be able to pick up your bike in as little as an hour if you collect it boxed. Building adds ½ day to the collection date. All Halfords stocked bikes which can be collected in store, and premium bikes ordered online for home delivery, such as Boardman and VooDoo, have the option of being built free of charge; sadly this option is not available for Apollo and Carrera bikes. Adding delivery to a built bike will normally make the delivery time around 7 days.

Yes, its perfectly fine to fit an E-bike to a rear mounted cycle carrier, provided it has the crossbar to fit it on. In this case, the bikes weight around 20Kg, so you would only be able to carry two at a time.If your bike has a step-through crossbar, you would normallyuse a false crossbar to mount the bike onto a carrier. Most false crossbars will only take a maximum of 15Kg, so would be unable to support the weight of an E-bike with a step-through crossbar. In this instance, we would recommend a tow bar mounted carrier.  

To change the the rim size on a bike you should consider a 1.5"" drop in tyre width for every inch bigger you're making the tyre. As you increase the size of the tyre, the width of the tyre will increase too, so by reducing this it will make the tyre fit within the frame. Moving down in size is much easier and will allow you to fit wider tyres on the rims, increasing comfort and ridability. However, it's always worth checking out the clearance of the frame, and whether there is any adjustment needed in the brakes.