What’s your setup for protecting your e-bike? Is anyone using GPS trackers?

Posted by 98vicky@reddit | ebikes | View on Reddit | 14 comments

I’m trying to improve security on my e-bike and looking at different options beyond just locks. GPS trackers seem interesting, but I’m not sure how useful they are in real-world situations.

Do they actually help if a bike gets stolen, or are they more for peace of mind? Would love to hear what’s worked for you.
Thanks ahead.

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Fair-Discipline-1005@reddit

More different locks,it will not stop thieves,but You will get on time, because of different tools...alarm deffinitelly...👍

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Relative-Display-676@reddit

i keep mine in garage when at home or inside secured facility at work. when i'm out shopping i take the bike with me inside the stores. i don't even have a lock for the bike.

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SnapGoesTheShutter@reddit

Yeah im on the same trip. I've seen a crackheads with dewalt grinders. Its gone if they want it.

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SirWrong3794@reddit

I live in Wyoming so I don’t even lock it up most of the time.

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Cable Lock and Apple AirTag. I always make sure I can see the bike if I stop at a restaurant. Never had a problem. That said, I only ride for fun, during daytime, in generally safe areas so my experience may be different.

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MrKeepFierce@reddit

Angle grinder proof locks are a good start, but heavy and bulky.

Different ebikes have different strategies. What country/city and what type of ebike?

Sometimes your insurance company can tell you the minimum they need to insure, they can also tell you what claims they are seeing trending. For example: Laka.com shares this information in their variable claims data in their monthly email.

In my particular case living in Netherlands with a premium cargo bike, I have a primary tracking device wired up which is highly accurate but thieves will follow the cable and try disarm it as fast as possible. Because of this it has another two physical trackers installed in the ebike (overkill) but I like the idea of catching vans of crooks trying their luck. They would have to strip down the entire ebike and reassemble it to disarm the other trackers which is pretty time consuming.

However my primary regular ebike is 2 art 4 locks and a built in esim gsm tracker, lean and mean.

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Superb_Raccoon@reddit

Smith and Wesson.

Works great, no bikes stolen.

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theroyal1988@reddit

allrisk insurance.

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NotASockPuppet88@reddit

I soldered in an alarm system on my ebike that when triggered, tricks the motor controller into thinking the ebrake is on.

This means when the alarm is going off it disables all drive.

I can also remotely trigger this switch by pressing the keyfo. So essentially if a thief tried to steal the bike as im riding it, their getaway is impossible unless they pedal with no assist (doing that on a 35kg+ ebike? Good luck!)

I also have a gps tracker fitted, which also allows me ne to call it and listen in on any surrounding noises.

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_Cerebral_Musings@reddit

You need LAYERS of deterrent. 3 locks, alarm and GPS. Even then I wouldn't leave it more than an hour or so because smart thieves get through the locks, disable the alarm and toss the GPS fairly quick.

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Curious_Party_4683@reddit

never leaving it out of my sight. locks dont work in my ghetto. if they cant cut the lock, thieves will sabotage.

i do have a "disposable" normal bike with a super cheap lock. the bike was spray painted to look like trash. absolutely no resell value for the thieves to care.

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TopRepulsive4766@reddit

I do not have a tracker on my ebike at this time. I do have a really loud (and I mean REALLY loud) obnoxious alarm on my ebike however. If it goes off, you can hear it for several blocks.

If your ebike has a GPS tracker on it, that might help finding it if it gets stolen. If it has a feature that notifies you if the ebike is moved from where you parked it, that would help also.

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Hopeful-Driver-3945@reddit

My bike has a GPS built in. Besides maybe calling the police I don't really see how it's useful. Once they leave the country here in Europe it's nearly impossible to get it back.