If you feel that you are not satisfied with the speed of your ebike, there are a lot of things you can do to make it go faster. You can replace some parts, do maintenance, adjust electrical configurations, and some other things to help increase its speed. In this article, we will talk about the simple things you can adjust and the parts you can replace to make your ebike faster the way you want it.
Adjust Pedal Assist
Aside from the obvious solution of pedaling harder to increase your speed, the first, and the easiest, thing you can do is to adjust the level of pedal assist. If you are new to owning an ebike, you may have just overlooked this. Most ebikes will have an LCD display which will display the pedal assist level you are currently on, and they will have a “+” and “-” buttons which you can press to adjust through various level. The higher the pedal assist, the higher the motor will allocate power to your ride.
Fully Charge Your Battery
Another simple adjustment you can do to is to always make sure that your battery is fully charged. A full ebike battery will always go faster than an ebike with a battery running low. When its battery level is low, the ebike will start to sputter and won’t deliver as much power and as consistently.
Adjust Max Speed in Advance Settings
Most ebikes will have advanced settings that you can adjust to make your bike achieve higher speeds. Usually, ebikes will come with a preset that limits it to only a certain speed which is lower than the maximum speed it can really perform. This is intended for the safety of the rider, especially if they are new to riding an ebike. But as a rider progresses and is more comfortable to handle an ebike at higher speeds, you can adjust this setting and go for the maximum speed that the ebike is engineered for.
On the Tower Beach Bum and Tower Beach Babe, it is initially configured to go only up to 18mph. But you can configure it to output and go as fast as 25mph. Other ebikes will have similar options as well. To access the advanced settings, be sure to check on the manual of your ebike.
Adjust Voltage
One of the most practices to boost the power of your ebike is to switch it into a higher voltage system. This can also be achieved by replacing your battery with one that has a higher voltage or by adding performance chips.
Use Slim Tires
Based on our experience, this next option is the most overlooked aspect when people want to increase their speed. This is in regards to the type of tires they use. Tires are one of the most critical spots on the ebike when it comes to going fast. A lot of people like to use fat tires because they are nice and cushy, and they roll over everything with ease. However, if you want to go faster, slimmer tires will be the way to go.
Fat tires will always go slower than skinnier tires. This is mainly attributed to the rolling resistance and the amount of power is needed to get those tires rolling faster. Because fat tires have bigger surface areas that come into contact with the ground, they require more power and will thus slow you down. The tread on the fat tires will also contribute to this as well. On the other hand, slick tires will go much faster because they have much less rolling resistance and less contact area with the street to slow them down.
Use Bigger Wheel Size
Another big factor if you want to increase the speed is the wheel size. Generally, the bigger the wheel, the faster you are going to go. If you observe those really fast race bikes, you will see that they have really big 700 wheels, which are about the same 29 inches on big mountain bikes. Compared to 20-inch wheels that are more commonly found on ebikes, they will go much faster.
Therefore, if you really want to optimize your speed, you can go for the biggest possible wheel size for your ebike. However, we must caution you to be sure to check that the wheel size you are getting will fit with your bike and it will still ride perfectly
Increase Tire Pressure
If you are looking for an adjustment to increase speed that won’t require you to replace parts, this next one can help you. Tire pressure is very important for the performance of your ebike. Most riders like to run their ebikes in a lower tire pressure configuration in order to have more cushion and make their rides nice and plush. However, this will not only make you more prone to punctures, but this will also make you go way slower. The logic here is the same as using slimmer tires: the lower pressure you have on the tire, the higher surface area it will have that comes into contact with the ground. Alternatively, the higher pressure you have, the lower your rolling resistance will be and less contact with the ground.
Have Better Aerodynamics
Another thing you can do to improve your speed is by having better aerodynamics. There is a reason why guys that race in Tour de France spend thousands of dollars trying to get as aerodynamic and slick as possible. They achieve this by optimizing their clothes, helmets, shoes, bike accessories, and even their body.
Obviously, you don't want to get decked out in Lycra and an aerodynamic helmet every time you hop on the bike. But there are some small things you can do on your bike to help you go a little bit faster. Your handlebar selection can improve your speed. If you get one that's a little bit more swept back or has a little more curve to, it might be a little more aerodynamic. Additionally, if you have a lot of things hanging from your handlebars, that's going to create more drag and make you go a little bit slower. So be sure to remove items or parts that might give you more drag when you are out for a ride. Lastly, you can also adjust your posture to create as less drag as possible. You can go for a more aggressive ride position and lean your body forward.
Change the Drivetrain
If you are still not satisfied with the speed even after doing all the above-mentioned options, as a last option you might want to consider altering your drive train. However, we must advise you that this can be pretty expensive.
On the internal hub, you can change the size of the front ring to a bigger one to give you more resistance. On the rear, you can replace the cassette with a faster one which has smaller rings. The bigger front ring combine with the smaller rear cassette ring will result to higher speeds.
