“E-Brompton with Swytch kit: commuting is no longer the same
First of all, I was surprised (Note: it's my first experience with an e-bike) by the acceleration power of the engine... a bomb! Climbs no longer exist, with my 3 gear when you exceeded a 4% gradient the pedaling was quite hard without the engine.
The installation was simple and I had fun understanding how to manage the passage of the cables also to allow it to be folded without problems.
With the engine off, you can feel the resistance of the engine when starting to pedal, less during the bike ride on a flat ground. I appreciated the rather smooth power transmission mode and the relative silence of the engine.
The lightness and compactness of the kit - I took the Swytch max kit with an overall weight of the bike increased by only 3.5kg - comes at the expense of a not exceptional declared autonomy of 30km: after four months of use I travel about 45km and 400m D+ elevation a week with 2 full battery charges.
I quote from another review the ONLY NEGATIVE NOTE regarding the Swytch kit I found: "...the computer part and the battery both have power indicators and yet they almost never agree with each other. The computer power level indicator shrinks very quickly and will cut out and stop sending power to the motor even though the battery indicator is still showing three of five lights meaning there should be at least 50% of battery left. What makes this even worse is that when power is not actively being sent to the motor there is considerable drag against your self-powered pedaling. Then if I stop at a stop sign or for a minute or two on the side of the road the power indicator on the computer goes back up and now I have power again. So there's something wrong in the programming that hopefully could be fixed for future models. It's really frustrating to see that your battery has more than 50% power and the brain of the whole thing decide that you have zero."
Ultimately, I really appreciate the electric assistance of Swytch kit but I strongly recommend to buy the MAX battery pack in order to have a reasonable riding distance between recharges.”
“Kit has exceeded my expectations. Installation experience was acceptable, and the power and assist has been amazing. Completely changed my biking experience. We were missing one part (battery dongle) upon delivery. Support promptly sent us the missing part.”
“I wanted to keep my old Norco Monterey, the first bike I bought in Canada. Installing the kit on it was fairly easy. The key was making sure that the pedal sensor is within 3mm of the pedal magnetic disc. I can now ride to work without breaking out in sweat.
Although I did not get my kit at the promised delivery date, I can understand the supply chain factors that had disrupted economic activities around the world. Once I got my kit, customer service was great.”
“I was delighted with my Swytch kit which I received in Jan 2023. Packing and fitting instructions were excellent and I found it relatively easy to install having been used to bike maintenance for many years.
The immediate impact was amazing and makes all my local commuting so easy.
I use the bike for lots of short journeys, up to 15 kilometre round trip, where it’s not necessary to use my car.
The benefits from a health perspective are brilliant not to mention saving on motoring costs and helping to combat climate change!
I’ve been so pleased with my Swytch kit that I’ve now ordered one for my wife.
When you already have a good bicycle, Swytch provides a new lease of life for both rider and bike.
Hills are no longer daunting and you arrive at your destination unflustered and ready for your next adventure!”
“The max battery kit works well with my full suspension MTB , off road or a more leisurely on road ride. Nice and lightweight and doesn’t get disturbed or rattled by heavy landings (“casing” dislodged the peddle sensor a couple of times but nothing major that couldn’t be adjusted). Have to use the cable ties on the crank as not enough room due to the rear suspension link. The articulation of the joint for the crank fixing needs to be a bit more flexible as that took me the longest thing to set up to maintain a perfect 3mm gap all the way round. I did mange it and used that metal weld paste to hold it securely in place.”
“It works very well, especially now that I have the superior 'Mode' unit, which allows me to power down as well as up, and thus extends the range of the battery, as I pedal the flat on zero power. At age 75, I no longer feel exhausted by a typical 24 mile local ride, including a few uphill sections, which is brilliant.”
