Have you been thinking of getting out on your bike more, but just don't seem to get around to it? Want to get more exercise but never seem to find the time? The BionX electric conversion kit will make it fun to ride your bike again. It won't sit in the garage for months or years on end anymore. No, you'll be competing with your spouse and kids to see who gets to ride the bike.

The most integrated kit on the market.

It reads my mind - Deborah in North Carolina

BionX has regenerative braking

One of the most common questions we get from people looking at electric kits is "does it have regenerative braking?" The BionX kit DOES have regenerative braking, meaning that when you press the brakes, energy is going back into your battery. This can increase your range by as much as 25%. The motor also has a regenerative mode. You can put the bike in regenerative mode, rather than assist mode. Just like the assist mode, there are 4 levels of regeneration. In these modes, extra energy you are producing to pedal the bike is going back into recharging your battery.

BionX is the most popular kit on the market today.

BionX has built a reputation on a well integrated system that is easy to install and use. That's the reason it's the most popular and well accepted electric-assist add-on kit on the market today. The quality is so high, that it has even been adopted by bike makers Birdy (a high end folding bicycle) and Trek. Now you can have this high quality kit on your own bike that you love so much and you'll love it that much more! With BionX, you can keep up with your faster biking friends and get exercise as well. Or just make that commute or ride a little easier and more enjoyable.

If you want the easiest to use kit that makes it feel like you're riding a bionc bike, the Bionx kit is for you. The listed price includes free shipping to your door.

The Bionx is a complete kit, ready to go

An advantage of the Bionx kit is that it is a complete kit that comes ready to go. There's no figuring out which battery will work with which kit, digging around the basement for cable ties, or figuring out how to mount a massive lead acid battery your bike (the Bionx uses a lightweight lithium battery that mounts sleekly on your water bottle cage, more on that in a minute). It is already figured out for you!

[The Bionx kit is] a tailwind on demand! - Chris in North Carolina

You won't get any exercise riding an electric bike!

At least, that's what some people try to tell us. But they are wrong. For most people, they will get way more exercise than they are getting right now. The main reason people don't get exercise on their bikes is because they don't ride them! If you ride your bike often, because it is fun to ride, then you will be getting more exercise than driving a car or riding in the bus. That's true, even if you only pedal lightly. Electric bikes are about the most fun to ride of any bike we've tried. And we've been bike enthusiasts for most of our lives.

Here's an example. In 2008, Dr. Morgan, Cycle 9's co-founder, raced with a team of 3 other folks (all men) in a 200 mile bike race in the mountains of North Carolina, the Black and Blue relay. She rode a 50 mile, hilly stretch, and she passed quite a few men on her relay stretches (never being passed once). She maintained an average speed of 18.4 miles per hour, on her road bike in the mountains, without an electric assist (just her legs). And here's the thing... she didn't train for this race. She only did a few rides on her road bike the whole summer (she has no time for long training rides)! Her team placed 3rd, and was within a few minutes of being second place. How could someone who had not spent endless hours training for the race, do so well? She rides her electric bike, every day. If she is feeling sick, she rides (but uses the electric motor more and pedals less). If she is feeling great, she rides (and pedals more to get exercise). And each and every day on that bike, she is getting exercise and having fun. She never struggles up the hills - and she usually passes by most every other biker on the road - even when she has her daughter onboard. Each and every day she gets exercise, while most of the other racers she competed against are driving around in their cars, getting no exercise (then they do long rides to try to make up for it on the weekends).

Why buy from Cycle 9 instead of "saving money" buying from Joe operating out of his garage or apartment?

We are a real bike shop, with real people who work in the shop every day (except Mondays), and we answer our phones (toll free, 1-800-249-8098). We pride ourselves on customer service. If you have a problem, we respond to our emails right away. There's no wondering about whether you're buying from someone selling kits out of their garage, who may or may not answer the phone if you have a question. We have a full-time, professional bike mechanic on staff, and we have over 30 years of combined bike repair experience. We want you to be happy with your electric bike conversion experience - that is our number one priority. We have sold lots of kits, and had very few returns. Most people just can't get enough of electric biking once they discover it. (But if you do decide that the kit isn't for you, we will work with you to make sure you are happy). We will be there to support you. Our success depends on it.

Keep putting it off, until oil prices skyrocket, then you can buy an electric conversion (we're being sarcastic)

When oil prices go back up (and they will), there's going to be a mad scramble for alternatives to operating an expensive car. Some people may start taking the bus - but there's no freedom of movement or exercise in sitting on a crowded bus. And with the poor economy, many communities are cutting back on bus service, at the same time that more people may need it. Do you really want to wait until oil prices skyrocket again, when everyone else is going to be scrambling for solutions? In the summer of 2008, when gas prices shot up to over $4/gallon, we quickly sold out of electric kits, and there were no more to be had for a month. Don't wait until it is too late, when you'll be competing with everyone else for alternatives like this. When products are in high demand, prices go up. It seems unlikely that prices will fall on electric kits in the future, it is likely that they will go up.

We aren't professional marketers

We feel a bit funny doing all this marketing stuff. We are not marketers by training - we are people with a passion for bikes in all their forms. But if we're going to be effective in spreading our passion for bikes, to make the world a cleaner and healthier place for everyone, we have to do some marketing. So please bear with us, for just a bit more about why the Bionx kit is one of the best conversion kits available.

What wattage means

Electric bike conversion kits are often listed by wattage (the same kind of watts used to describe lightbulb power). Some electric bikes and kits may be listed as 150w (watts), and others as much as 600w or more. But the important thing to realize is that there is no ratings agency that makes sure these claims are valid. Manufacturers can say anything they want, so the ratings don't really mean much. We've seen many products on the market that claim to be high-watt motors (600 watts or more), that aren't. If you use them for very long at the rated watts, they will burn out. Other motors are rated too low, because in some areas of the world (like Europe) there is a limit on maximum power. So motors are under-rated to appear to comply. The Bionx motor kit is rated at 350 watts, but that doesn't tell the whole story.

Bionx kits are built and rated for the long haul

For a reputable company like Bionx (the leader in electric conversion kits), they want to make sure their electric motor kits will last for the long haul. So they intentionally under-rate their power. This is a common trick known to engineers - figure out what the maximum load of your bridge/motor/building/stairway is, then rate it at a fraction of that amount so that it is always used well below maximum. It will last a lot longer that way. So for the Bionx kit, a rating of 350 watts really means that you could operate the kit constantly at 350 watts, for many years, and get reliable service out of it. And 350 watts is a lot of power. For comparison, a professional bike racer might produce 350 watts in short bursts, but they can't keep doing that for more than a few minutes. So, having a 350 watt motor on your bike is like having a tireless professional bike racer helping you pedal your bike.

But 350 watts isn't the whole story. These motors can actually produce much more than 350 watts, say if you are going up a steep hill, or need to accelerate across an intersection. For the standard Bionx kit, the peak power is around 700 watts. That means you will have almost as much power as two professional athletes, at your fingertips. The power is controlled simply by how hard you press on the pedals. Push hard and you'll feel the bike helping you along. You set the level you want from 0 to 4. If you come to a big hill and need just a little extra boost, you can push the thumb throttle for a temporary extra assist, then go back to pedaling normally.

The lithium ion battery is light weight, reliable, and comes with an automatic charger

The Bionx kit comes with a light-weight, highly reliable, rechargeable Lithium ion battery. The battery comes in a solid plastic case with an on/off switch. It is one of the lowest profile and nicest battery mounting systems we have seen. Simply install the mounting rail on your water bottle cage, and the battery slides on and off easily. There is no messing with rear racks or bags. Take it inside to charge, or leave it on the bike. One battery charge will cost from $0.03 to $0.07 (thats 3 to 7 cents), and will take the bike 20-70 miles, depending on your assist level and how hilly it is.

The kit comes with a fully automatic, 2 amp, UL rated charger. You just plug the battery into the charger, plug the charger into the wall, and turn the charger on. It will automatically charge the pack, with an amber light indicating charging, and a green light indicating charged. Don't worry, if you forget and leave the battery plugged in, it will be fine. When it is done charging, the charger will turn off the power to the battery automatically. Inside the battery case, there is a special charge monitoring circuit called a battery management system (BMS for short) that is always monitoring the battery, to prolong its lifespan. When you are charging, the BMS makes sure that the battery is perfectly charged, and no more. In typical use, these batteries will give years of maintenance free, no hassle service.

Why go electric?

We see more and more gas-powered motor kits being advertised around the internet for converting a regular bicycle to a motorized bicycle. There are a couple things to consider before making a gas conversion. The first thing is the pollution. Small, 2-cycle motors are very polluting (think of a lawnmower or chainsaw). The second thing is noise (again, think of a lawnmower or chainsaw). And the third thing is that they regularly require gas, oil, and maintenance to the spark plugs, air filter, etc (lawnmower? chainsaw?). The difference with an electric kit is that it is quiet and clean. There is no gasoline or oil to handle. You just charge it up overnight, and go. It charges in as little as 2-4 hours. And you can charge it up using renewable power like solar (that's what Dr. Morgan does).

Can I install it?

Installation of a kit can be done by anyone with some basic bike mechanical skills. To install it, you just take off your existing bike wheel, replace it with the Bionx wheel, use the enclosed zip ties to route the wires, and mount the battery where your bottle cage normally goes. The command console mounts on the handlebar just like a headlight or cycle computer. No need to remove hand grips or deal with compatibility issues with brakes and shifters. Clear directions and pictures for every step are included.

How much capacity does the battery have?

There is a lot of technical jargon in the electric bike world, and we think that scares many people off. But some of the jargon has important ramifications, like the term "amp hours" (often written as Ah or AH). Amp hours is a measure of the capacity of a battery, expressed as current (amps) times time (hours). A battery with 10 Ah can run twice as long as a battery with 5 Ah. The most common size for e-bike batteries is 10 Ah, because these are compact and light, but give enough range for most uses in and around towns. The standard Bionx battery is rated as 10 Ah (9.6 to be exact), and weighs in at just under 10 pounds. That's a lot of power in such a small package. A lead acid pack that has similar range would weigh in at around 34 pounds.

We like our electric bikes to still feel nimble and lightweight, like a bike should. The Bionx kit accomplishes this with its light weight and small form factor. Your bike still feels like a bike, not like a big heavy scooter. It is a pleasure to use, and to ride.

What about when gas prices go up again?

But, don't wait until gas prices skyrocket again. When that happens, there is likely to be a mad rush to alternatives like electric bikes. This is your chance to get ahead of that curve, and just not worry about it. Once you have your bike electrified, you probably won't care whether gas prices go up (or even if there are gas shortages due to unexpected events). The electric bike requires so little power, it can be easily charged by solar. So you don't have to rely on grid to charge the bike (unlike electric cars, which require a large solar array for charging).

Get more exercise riding an electric bike, and have fun doing it!

Would you like to get more exercise, but find it hard to get motivated? Exercise means doing work of some kind. Lots of people find it hard to get motivated, and so they just put it off until tomorrow... and then the next day... and the next day... And the result are epidemics of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease in places like the US. Electric bikes are so fun to ride, that exercise naturally happens. You get on the bike, and most people just naturally pedal, even when the electric motor is doing most of the work. And even that little bit of pedaling adds up. If you ride 45 minutes a day, 5 days a week, that is almost 4 hours of exercise, every week. Four hours of light pedaling is a lot better than no pedaling at all. And that is four hours spent outdoors, doing a non-polluting, fun, and healthy activity.

We aren't just saying all of this as some marketing schtick. We ride our own electric bikes, every day. And our customers love it too. They have things like this to say:

I just wanted to let you know that I am now in love with my motor! I rode 19.6 miles today and wasn’t sore and barely tired. Prior to the installing e-assist, I think I had maxed at 12 and was dead when I got home! I now LOOK for reasons to ride instead of dreading the hills. One hill is really steep and I have always had to walk it (and could barely do that pushing the bike!) I actually RODE up that hill the other day. It was a little bit of a struggle and I had to get out of the saddle, but I conquered it! In the future, I’ll probably take slightly longer routes around that hill, but I wanted to see if I could actually do it!

What about the warranty, and why buy from Cycle 9?

First, we offer the "Ride Your Bike More or your money back" guarantee. Anytime in your first six months of ownership, if you decide that the electric kit just isn't helping you get more out of your bike, just send it back for a full refund (we ask that it be in good working condition). That way, you can try out an electric bike kit, with virtually no risk to your pocketbook.

Second, The Bionx kit has a 2 year manufacturer's warranty covering all components including motor, throttle, and controller. The battery has a 1 year manufacturer's warranty. If there are any problems (they don't happen often), we'll send replacement parts out to you right away. And another benefit of buying from Cycle 9 is that, even after your kit goes beyond the warranty period, we can repair any problems if they ever arise, usually for much less than the cost of buying a new kit. Because we have a regular shop with full-time professionals, we regularly do repair work on batteries, electric motor kits, controllers, and bikes. While we will repair kits purchased from other sellers (we have done so many times), we give special consideration to people who bought their kits from us. If something fails that we think shouldn't have failed (i.e., it wasn't misused or abused), we often repair it for a reduced cost, or for free. Think about it this way - would you buy a new car from an online seller operating out of their garage? Probably not unless you're good enough at auto repair that you can trust yourself to fix any problem that comes up (and better hope the car isn't a lemon). And yet all the time we see people who've bought electric motor kits or batteries for their bike through sellers on auction sites or who just threw together a website. And unfortunately, we've seen some of those folks be left out in the cold if they have a problem. Then they turn to us for help, since we're one of the few people who can actually service and repair these. Is it really worth the gamble, buying from someone who can't or won't repair what they sell. Or is it worth buying from someone who can service their products, to give you many long years of reliable use? In a tough economy, we think that buying something meant to last for the long haul - and backed up by a company that will help you keep it running for many years - is the most economical investment you can make.

Any questions? Just contact us, it is easy

We're here to promote bikes as transportation. We're in it for the long haul. We realize that it is critical for customers to be happy with their experience, from start to finish. We are here to support people and help people in getting on their bikes more often, getting more exercise, and reducing fossil fuel dependency. We won't leave you out to dry if there is a problem. We will be here to cheerfully help with any questions, concerns, or problems you may have. Just call us at our toll free number, 1-800-249-8098, or email us if you have any questions, before or after purchasing a kit. Available in 26" or 700c wheel sizes