We need to talk about Rad Power Bikes’ new e-bike batteries
Electric bikes just may be the biggest transportation revolution of our generation, helping millions replace car usage with more affordable, more efficient alternatives. But there’s no denying that concerns have been swirling about the safety of e-bike batteries, even if such fire fears have primarily been overblown by much of the media.
Leading electric bicycle maker Rad Power Bikes has just unveiled its new “Safe Shield Battery” in an effort to mitigate worries over e-bike battery safety. And it’s something we need to talk about.
The whole underlying issue here is based on the fact that e-bike batteries are usually comprised of dozens of smaller, energy-dense lithium-ion battery cells. Those cells are similar – and sometimes identical – to the battery cells used in everything from electric cars to power tool battery packs.
The individual battery cells store lots of energy and are generally quite safe. However, danger can occur when the cells are punctured or short-circuited, with the latter often happening when water makes its way into battery packs over time. Well-made e-bike batteries use several methods to mitigate these risks, and the result is that battery fires are exceedingly rare. Even in e-bikes, which seem to unfairly receive the brunt of lithium-ion battery fire scaremongering, such fires occur in a tiny, tiny fraction of a percent of e-bikes.
To put things into perspective, New York City often gets labeled as the epicenter of e-bike fires, yet New Yorkers are somewhere around 5x more likely to die on the subway than from an e-bike fire.
However rare though, e-bike fires can and do occur in poorly made batteries or in battery packs that have been abused, damaged, or otherwise misused. And that’s exactly what it looks like Rad Power Bikes set out to solve with its new Safe Shield e-bike batteries.
The secret sauce in Rad’s batteries isn’t actually the battery cells themselves. Those are fairly standard cells like you’ll find in many other e-bike batteries. The major difference is how the battery packs are constructed.
They use a method known as potting, which basically encapsulates electronics in a waterproof resin barrier. It’s common in electronics that will live much of their lives outdoors, as it seals the sensitive components from moisture.
Remember that mosquito from Jurassic Park that was encased in tree resin amber? That’s kind of the idea with potted batteries, just with a urethane resin instead of tree sap. The battery pack already uses quality construction methods, but then to top it off, the entire thing is filled with resin that makes it impermeable to water – or intruding fingers, tools, or anything else. It’s forever sealed away from the world (though Rad says it’s still recyclable in their battery recycling program).
But it’s not just any resin, the idea is that it is also thermally insulating, which means that if one battery cell ever did go rouge and start overheating (an incredibly, incredibly rare event in well-made battery cells), the barrier would help protect any nearby cells from joining in and developing what is known as a “thermal runaway” condition that is what ultimately leads to the spread of most battery fires.
We spoke to one of the country’s leading battery experts Luke Workman on our Wheel-E podcast last year, who has often performed forensic evaluations in the aftermath of battery fires. When we asked him if there was anything that could be done to help mitigate the fire risks we were seeing in the e-bike industry, such as the widespread adoption of UL certification, he had a simple answer: “Potting.”
Workman explained that he’s performed post-fire forensic analysis on plenty of UL-certified battery packs, indicating that such certification isn’t a guarantee of safety. “You can pass UL water ingress tests with a bit of strategically placed tape over the battery seams,” he explained at the time. But potting was the truly safest method of building batteries that wasn’t intended to merely pass a certification test, but rather to actually ensure the battery cells were isolated and protected.
At the time, there was just one major company producing potted e-bike batteries, Luna Cycle, but it hasn’t gained significant traction anywhere else in the e-bike industry.
At least not until now.
With Rad Power Bikes adopting potted battery design practices, the entire industry has been put on notice. Until new technologies like fireproof solid-state batteries become commonplace, potted batteries are the single best defense against battery fires. And with one of the largest e-bike retailers in the country hopping aboard the potted train, others are all but sure to follow.
Rad has a history of setting examples that are quickly copied throughout the US e-bike industry. New e-bike models like the RadRunner spurred several copycats and jumpstarted the utility e-bike market. Rad’s expansions into several large brick-and-mortar stores pre-empted a major push by several other US e-bike companies to expand dealer networks with independent bike shops. Rad’s electric trike was quickly followed by several other competitors seeking to undercut its price.
In none of these examples was Rad the first e-bike company to make a major move, but it was the first big e-bike company to do so, and thus helped shift the industry each time. And while there’s no guarantee how the industry will react, especially in a year where e-bike sales have lagged behind the post-pandemic boom, there’s no doubt that a major e-bike maker finally adopting potted battery technology is a sign of where the industry is headed. How long it takes us to get there though, that’s anyone’s guess.
resin pouring image via: Pexels
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A new bill submitted to the Oregon Legislative Assembly seeks to ban street-legal Class 3 electric bicycles from bike lanes in the state.
Class 3 electric bicycles include those that can reach motor-assisted speeds of up to 28 mph (45 km/h), whereas Class 1 and 2 electric bicycles can only reach 20 mph (32 km/h) under motor assist.
Under Senate Bill 471, the proposed legislation would make it an offense if a rider “operates a moped or a Class 3 electric assisted bicycle upon a sidewalk, a bicycle path or a bicycle lane.” Under Oregon law, traditional pedal bicycles can be legally operated on sidewalks unless restricted by a local ordinance, but e-bikes are already banned from operating on sidewalks.
Thus, the proposed legislation is effectively a ban on electric bikes capable of speeds exceeding 20 mph from being used in bike lanes. Instead, such bikes would only be permitted for use on public roadways.
In addition, Section 2 of the bill seeks to remove key protections for cyclists operating such 20+ mph electric bikes in bike lanes. Under current law, a motorist can be cited for failing to yield right of way to a cyclist in a bike lane when the motorist crosses over the bike lane, such as when crossing into a driveway, parking lot, etc.
The proposed legislation would remove the requirement for motorists to yield the right of way to cyclists on Class 3 e-bikes in bike lanes.
It should be noted that drivers cannot visually distinguish a Class 3 e-bike from other classes of e-bikes being ridden in a bike lane because the difference is performance-based.
Electrek’s Take
Sure, I support this law, as long as we can apply the logic equally. If the logic goes that Class 3 (28 mph maximum) e-bikes have the ability to be ridden faster than much of the traffic flow in a bike lane and thus should be banned in such bike lanes, then we might as well just ban cars capable of highway speeds from being operated on city streets. “Can your car go faster than 40 mph? Sorry, you know the rules. Keep that thing off city streets.”
It makes sense, right? Same logic. If it *can* go faster, it shouldn’t be allowed to operate there at all.
I mean, if a 60 lb e-bike that has the potential to go 8 mph faster than another e-bike is such a menace to public health and safety, then oh lordy what must we think of 5,000 lb vehicles that can easily exceed 120 mph with just a two-inch deviation of a distracted driver’s big toe? Surely we’ll be kicking those out of cities any day now, right? Right, guys? Guys…?
Ok, let’s get serious now. This law is awful and the legislators that conjured it up should be put on a 21 mph bicycle and forced to spend a couple minutes riding with their handlebar inches from 40+ mph cars to truly understand what real danger is. Then let’s hear them try to tell us how it’s a Class 3 e-bike that is the true danger.
I’m not trying to say that we should completely ignore that sometimes people get hit by an e-bike. It happens. It has even been lethal on exceedingly rare occasions. But you know what happens on regular occasions? Cyclists and pedestrians getting hit and killed by cars. So instead of spending legislative effort trying to push e-bikes back out onto roads, maybe we should expend some effort keeping car fenders off of cyclists’ bodies. Or invest in more bike lanes. Or increase enforcement of traffic violations for all road users. Or increase awareness education for drivers and riders alike. There are so many good answers, but none of them can be found in this bill.
via: KMTR
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Environment
Polestar expects profits in 2025 with 5 GT launch, confirms Polestar 7 will be an entry level compact SUV
Swedish and Chinese EV automaker Polestar has shared an updated business strategy, looking to 2025 and beyond as its next chapter in growth. Per the release detailed below, Polestar is expecting increased sales volume, especially as its long-promised Polestar 5 GT is set to launch this year. Additionally, the automaker confirmed its Polestar 7 model will be a compact SUV and its most affordable BEV to date.
Polestar remains a growing name in the EV segment, and more and more people are becoming aware of the Geely-owned brand as it brings more models to market. Its two most recent were the Polestar 3 SUV and 4 crossover, built in the US and China, respectively. According to Polestar, those two models have gained “strong product momentum,” accounting for 56% of orders in Q4 2024.
Polestar looks to ride that wave into 2025 and add to its impetus with the launch of the Polestar 5, a sports sedan based on the automaker’s Precept concept EV that is targeting up to 884 hp and will attempt to compete against some of the big boys, like the Tesla Model S and Porsche Taycan.
While it won’t be part of Polestar’s 2025 launches, the automaker’s executives have divulged some new details about a new model called the Polestar 7, which was teased back in April 2024.
Polestar 7 to replace the 2 as its entry-level model
According to a release published on its investor page, Polestar expects a fruitful 2025 that will set the town for its revamped business strategy through at least 2027. Per the automaker, it is targeting compound annual retail sales volume growth of 30-35% over the next three years and positive adjusted EBITDA in 2025. Furthermore, Polestar executives expect positive free cash flow after investments in 2027. Polestar CEO Michael Lohscheller elaborated:
With Scandinavian design, performance and a premium brand, Polestar has successfully positioned itself in the global automotive market. We have three outstanding cars on the road and a growing, passionate customer base.We are building on the strong Polestar brand with design and performance at its core.
But significant changes are needed to make this well-respected progressive brand a successful and viable business. We are speeding up our retail expansion and commercial transformation, whilst adjusting our future model line-up and significantly reducing our cost base. Both in terms of volumes and financials, we expect 2025 to be the strongest year in Polestar’s history.
Part of Polestar’s success in 2025 will depend on the start of sales of the Polestar 5, the automaker’s first model to sit atop an 800V platform. According to the company, that launch is expected in the second half of this year. Until then, Polestar will continue to push sales of its current lineup, which consists of the Polestar 2, 3, and 4.
While the Polestar 2 will be remembered as the BEV that put the brand on the map, its days are unfortunately numbered. Previous Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath said the company intends to phase out the 2 sedans around 2027, and its successor will be a new model called the Polestar 7.
We hadn’t heard much about the Polestar 7 since then, but the company confirmed today that it will arrive as a premium compact SUV. Additionally, we’ve learned the Polestar 7 will be the brand’s first model built in Europe. With production footprints in China, South Korea, and the US, Europe is a natural next step in expansion, especially for an affordable, compact SUV the Polestar 7 promises to be, because that is such a popular segment in the EU.
The Polestar 7 will also represent a new design strategy for the automaker. From that launch onward, it will “gradually move from a multi-platform approach to one single architecture, reducing complexity, costs, and investments.”
While we’ve learned what style of BEV the Polestar 7 will be, we don’t know much else at this point. With the expectation that we won’t see anything come to market until 2027 at the earliest, our immediate focus will remain on the upcoming launch of the Polestar 5 in 2025, followed by the Polestar 6 roadster convertible in 2026.
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