Electric Bike Hub Motor Problems and their Solutions

Last updated on May 11th, 2022 at 05:18 am

This article is going to help you find the solution of Electric Bike hub motor problems. Electric bikes are getting popular nowadays they are cheaper than cars, portable and manageable many people prefer electric bicycles as a means of transportation.

Like other vehicles, the electric-bike owner also faces a few problems like battery problems or motor problems. Facing the motor problem is very common in electric bike if you are also facing electric bike Hub motor problems like hub motor won’t start, or motor making wired noises?

If you have any motor problems, then you have come to the right place because, in this guide, we will mention all potential electric bike hub motor problems and their solutions, so if you face any problem, you can fix it.

What is Hub motor?

Before jumping into hub motor problems, let me first tell you all the information about the hub motor so you can better understand.

Usually, E-bike comes with two kinds of motor Hub motor and Mid-drive motor. Hub motor, as the name suggests, is connected to wheel hub; some bike has hub motor on the front wheel, and some bike has hub motor on the rear wheel. The mid-drive motor is connected with bike pedals in the middle of the bike.

Most bikers prefer mid-drive because the motor is positioned at mid providing perfect balance for a rider, and on hub motor electric bike, it is hard to balance. Changing tire of hub motorbike is a challenging task. But hub motor is way cheaper than mid-drive and can easily replace with a new one. Maintaining and fixing the hub motor is easy.

 

Electric Bike Hub Motor Problems and their Solutions

Now I will discuss most critical problems you might face in Hub motor with their solutions.

Electric bike hub motor noise

The noise problem is a very common in-hub motor. Mostly the reason for motor making grinding noise is due worn-out gears, disk brake, loose bolt, or bearing.

You can open your hub motor to check the gears’ condition if gears are not in good condition; then, grinding noise is due to gears this can be fixed by replacing old equipment with a new one.

If the gear is in perfect condition, then you can check there is any loose bolt because most of the time, bolt are loose, which forces the motor to make noise; this can easily be fixed by tightening the bolt. You can check your disk break working fine because sometimes break is pressed even you are not using them, which will result in noise.

If you are still facing the noise problem, then culprit might be a ball bearing trying some lubricant oil to reduce friction, you should regularly apply lubricant oil if not the friction will increase and you will get weird noises.

Hub motor not spinning

The man reason for hub motor not spinning is the due controller; the controller is the heart of the electric bike, which will provide energy to bike from battery. Sometimes the controller is not connected, so if the controller is not connected, the motor will not get power from the battery, and it will not start.

The first check is your controller is connected to the battery then check if it is connected to the motor if it is not connected then connect it and your motor will start moving. After checking the controller is connected and the motor is still not starting, your controller is damaged; try replacing the damaged controller with a new one you can easily buy from local stores.

Electric bike motor stop spinning under load

Sometimes the motor is working fine, but stops spinning under load is due to weak motor, which doesn’t have the potential to move under heavy load, or your motor gears are slipping when the load is applied.

Most of the time, people buy cheap motors that don’t produce enough power, so if you are an e-bike owner, never buy an inferior product because you will not get excellent performance.

Firstly check do you have a good motor with huge power output? If not, you will have to replace it with a good brand hub motor; getting a new motor is easy, but it will cost you a lot. If you have good motor still motor stop spinning under load, then the culprit is gear because sometimes gear is worn out and will slip under load.

You can easily replace your old broken gear with a new one; all you have to do is open your hub motor, remove old gear, and replace it with a new one. If you don’t want to open it yourself, you can give it to any professional to replace it for you.

Tips for Protecting Hub Motors

It is always better to protect your hub motor from any potential harm, so you don’t get any problem in the future, so below, I will tell you a few tips to protect your motor from damage.

Always use good lubricant oil for ball bearing; it will give you a smooth ride. Never put more load then it can sustain sometimes, people place so much load, which will damage the motor.

Always check for loose bolt; if you have a loose bolt, it can potentially damage the motor, and lastly, never cheap out on electric bike motor, always use a good brand motor which will give you excellent performance and will last for many years.

I know that good motors are expensive, spending money one time on a good hub motor is a good option than spending money on the lousy motor so many times. These are some easy tips and tricks you should keep in mind, so you don’t face any problem in the future.

Conclusion

I hope this guide helped you with ebikes motor hub problems, so next time, you should remember all solution mentioned above. Always use good brand hub motor, use lubricant oil on ball-bearing regularly.

The most common reason for the motor problem is the damaged controller because the controller is the heart of an electric bike, which sends energy from battery to motor. You might be interested in reading article related to e bike Battery Problems & their Solutions.

If you found this guide helpful, please share it with your friends and family, and if you have any questions regarding electric bike motor hub problems, feel free to ask us in the comment box, and we will try to reply you ASAP.