We are opening a series of articles about electric bike motors, where we will discuss their main characteristics, advantages, disadvantages and their most common problems. As it could not be otherwise, we will start with the Bosch Generation 2 that marked a before and after.

The Bosch Generation 2 motor, also known as the "BDU2xx", represents a significant advancement in e-bike technology. Introduced in 2014, this motor offers a number of advantages over the previous generation, including more power, higher torque and better efficiency, and great integration into the frame design, which led to it being adopted in mountain bikes with a success that not even Bosch expected.

Features of the Bosch Generation 2 motor:

- Power: up to 480 watts maximum power.
- Motor torque: 75 Nm nominal motor torque.
- Efficiency: Up to 85% efficiency.
- Noise: Less than 60 dB (A).
- Weight: 3.4 kg.

Advantages:
- Its integration into the frame and greater power than the previous ones make it stand out in mountain bikes.
- Its power delivery, which adapts according to the force applied, is very successful.
- Better weight/power ratio than other previous engines.
- "Possibility of maintenance" since there are spare parts and it is not a delicate engine to open (compared to others).

Disadvantages:
- Batteries up to 500Wh, somewhat short for long rides.
- Drag when pedaling with the engine off, which requires the engine to be on for longer, and therefore more battery consumption.
- Special small chainrings (14-20 teeth). Some bikes came with offset chainrings that were then impossible to find on the market.
- Very vulnerable to water and mud.
- More noisy than others.
- Larger and more robust bearings make it weigh more than more modern ebike motors.

Main faults:
- The first bearing to fail is usually the large bearing that supports the chainring shaft. You can diagnose it because the chainring starts to have looseness. If the wear limit was reached, the balls could come out into the engine, causing major breakdowns.
- The entry of water from washing with a hose or pressure, and crossing puddles and small rivers causes dirty water to enter, prematurely wearing out bearings, gears and electrical systems. It is important to put some seals that we sell at TiendaMTB.com to prevent dirt from entering and thus extend its life considerably.

In conclusion:
The Bosch Generation 2 motor first, together with the Brose later, have been the ones that have opened the world of ebikes to the general MTB public. Its good behavior, its robustness (treating it well) and good integration in the frames achieved the qualitative leap that was necessary for the adoption of ebikes in the mountains.

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