Wilderness Electric Bike Kit Review

Oct 22, 2005 By RL Policar Posted in The Archives Tagged with Commute by Bike 16 Comments

We’ve posted our review on the Wilderness Energy Bike Kit.

16 thoughts on “Wilderness Electric Bike Kit Review”

Electric Bike Rebate at Commute by Bike says:

April 19, 2006 at 6:31 pm

[…] e actually got to review the Wilderness Electric Bike Kit ( […]

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Electric Bike Rebate at Commute by Bike says:

April 19, 2006 at 6:31 pm

[…] e actually got to review the Wilderness Electric Bike Kit ( […]

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Electric Bike Rebate at Commute by Bike says:

April 19, 2006 at 6:31 pm

[…] e actually got to review the Wilderness Electric Bike Kit ( […]

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frank saunders says:

March 27, 2007 at 4:15 pm

i have used the wilderness energy kit, brushless for two years and it is very good. i suggest it to anyone.36 volt whatever im sure they are all ;fine, the only weak part is the charger which is worthless so i suggest the soniel. the connectors can be a problem to so should be replaced, i have given it alot of road time so not everyone will wear these things out, i dont have a car and use this thing to go everywhere, i live in vermont. i got a cheap walmart bike works fine. you can do the whole thing for 450 bucks and it is as good as many more expensive models.

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John Morris says:

April 8, 2007 at 9:36 pm

Ditch the suspension fork and go with steel a fork instead! It can save your LIFE!! The pull of the motor will weaken the fork and break like it did on my way to work ofter 6 month of using it and it was painful. John Morris

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Chris Lee says:

July 17, 2007 at 6:55 am

I have the same kit, and did as Frank Saunders did. Bought a cheap bike from Canadian Tire (I’m in Ottawa, Canada). No suspension, and put the kit on. I love it. I commute 20km a day when going to work on it.

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Tom says:

July 17, 2007 at 11:50 am

Bought the Wilderness Kit, and one year later the motor is having problems. It is binding and what sounds like gears meshing, also speed is slower. They do not repair them and replacement cost for the motor is almost as much as a whole new kit. The original batteries are too small and run down quickly. I had to go to 17ah batteries. In installing on an adult trike the axel is just a hair to large for the dropouts so you may need to grind a little, not enough to hinder replacing the original wheel if you change systems.

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Chris says:

November 28, 2007 at 8:46 am

I have had BL36 for over 2 years and ride about 5 miles per day with original batteries. Never let it get wet. Mine seized up with rust and I had to disassmble and clean it. I wish they would provide locking washers with the little hooks so I wouldn’t need to drill out original ones. Otherwise, I am very happy with it.

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Shawn says:

May 14, 2008 at 1:57 pm

I have had this unit on a 7-speed comfort bike for about two years. Everyone should have one just in case there is no gasoline at the gas station.

Bought the non-suspension-fork bike on clearance at Sports Authority for $25. It sometimes doesn’t get power to the wheel, and I don’t know if it is loose connections or a faulty throttle lever. But normally I get it going again with a little jiggling here and there.

Be careful about the bike falling over. (It’s prone to it because of the battery weight.) It doesn’t like the impact. My battery will stay up going full speed for 6 miles or so.

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bingamar says:

June 9, 2008 at 1:36 pm

Purchased the BL-36 kit almost three years ago. In less than a year the hub motor broke the aluminum suspension fork on my 700c Trek mountain bike, severing some of the hub motor wiring harness. Cost me ~$150 for parts to replace the fork (non-suspension) and had to convert to threadless system because couldn’t find threaded replacement fork. Motor is difficult to get apart to replace the harness. (Anyone have instructions? WE won’t respond.) System worked great before all these problems. WE finally posted a warning about suspension forks after I broke mine. (No warning with the kit.) Not happy with their service, which is apparently non-existent.

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tom black says:

June 26, 2009 at 6:29 am

you have to use a wheel puller to remove the side hub..

tom

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David C. says:

July 29, 2009 at 8:56 am

I purchased my Wilderness Energy kit through a company called TAPEWORM phone number 1-800-245-6000.I have the BL36,since purchase the charger had too be replaced,they FED-EXed the charger in 3days under warranty,the wiring going into the motor wore through because of friction,they are sending me new motor in rim under warranty.I know now to check mounting nuts daily and wrap wire coming out of hub with additional elec. tape before mounting.I love this conversion kit,it is past expectations!I paid $359.00 which included tax&shipping by FED-EX!Everytime I’ve had question or problem TAPEWORM had answer in 3hr.s max!Nothing but praise for TAPEWORM!

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Eric Hanson says:

August 20, 2009 at 10:41 pm

Having problems with Wilderness Electric myself. No customer service, wiring designs are faulty, installation manuals for kits are severely lacking.

Be careful what bikes you use. The welds on department store bikes and Schwinns are sub-par. Giant and Fuji are to companies that cost money, but their bikes have solid welds and reliable components.

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manny1025@aol.com says:

September 16, 2009 at 2:10 pm

I really like the B-L 36 kit I bought one and liked it so much I bought the girl one to.
we really enjoy riding on the bicycle trails again. she is a little bit over weight and I have had back problems and the legs are not working as well as they use to. my question is does anyone know is there away to extend the distance maybe by regenerative brakes or a small generator that works when I pedal. is there anyone making something like this.I have 36 volt system I can go about 18 miles when i pedal. I would like some how to extend the bikes distance to be able to travel 50 miles and still have it look like a regular bicycle. does anyone have any ideas thanks manny1025@aol.com

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Glenn says:

September 8, 2011 at 4:04 pm

Purchased a BL-36 a little over a year ago. Really started using it allot this year. After only 6 months of riding it 20 minutes every other day, it stopped working while traveling to work. I was so upset. I got of the bike and started jiggling the wires and then the front wheel just started turning on its own. I couldn’t stop it until I turned off the controller switch. Waiting for a reply from bernson ev for wilderness on how to troubleshoot. Has anyone else gone through this?

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Tina DiFeliciantonio says:

January 1, 2012 at 12:04 pm

I purchased the kit and had it professionally installed by the company that sold me my trikeâ€”adult sized with a chair in the back that can carry an adult or kid. Even my dog loves riding on it.

I’ve had troubles wit the system…mostly cheap wiring connections. I’ve owned the system for about 6 months and it has lost its capacity.

When calling, emailing and faxing Wilderness, it has taken weeks to even get a response. Customer service is almost non-existant and rather rude when someone finally gets back to you. VERY frustrating!

Can anyone recommend a better battery replacement? I just can’t bear to deal with Wilderness anymore.

Thanks in advance!

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Wilderness Electric Bike Kit Review

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