Ebike · electric bike · noisy ebike · quieter · Mar 07, 2022

Are E-Bikes Noisy or Loud? How to Make E-bike Quieter?

Nowadays, e-bikes are becoming increasingly popular, and a lot of different brands exist. For end users, their operating range is an important aspect. However, e-bike noise is also important for both manufacturers and end users.
Electric bike noise is generally caused by the motor and the tires. However, you may hear noises from your electric bike if the chain, pedals, or brakes have been damaged or are contaminated.

The light noise on your electric bike is usually coming from the motor or the tires. However, if it is not coming from one of those two places, there could be a problem with anything from the chain to the pedals to the brakes.

Noise from the Motor

The motor noise is actually a combination of two different sounds coming from an electric motor. The first is the noise created by the bearings against the axle. Since electric motors are usually spinning at a much faster speed than their ICE brethren, this bearing noise is not terribly loud but it can be very loud.

First, there is the mechanical noise made by the bearings against the axle. Electric motors are typically 10-50x faster than their ICE cousins, so noise generated by them can be significant. Generally, bearing noise from healthy bearings is not terribly loud, but it can be annoying when it is high pitched. The noise caused by failing bearings tends to be extremely high pitched and incredibly irritating. When your car's wheel bearings fail, the noise is the only warning you'll get that there is anything wrong.

'Coil noise' is the second noise you hear from an electric motor. Magnetic field changes cause the coil assembly to vibrate physically, and if the vibrations are audible to humans (often not), you'll hear it as a whine.

You can also hear a third noise from electric motors called cogging, which sounds exactly like what it sounds like. As the motor turns, the stator and rotor teeth are magnetically locked together, creating a clicking sound. The only cogging noise I've heard is on an older cheap Direct Drive hub, but every other motor I've come across has not had cogging noise, so the article is 'complete' as it mentions it.

Noise from the Tires

Just like regular bikes, electric bikes produce noise from their tires. Of course, as you ride your e-bike, the tires are touching the road, which creates noise. You should however not be concerned about this, except if you hear unusual sounds like squeaks and creaks coming from the tires.

Noise from the Chain

E-bikes can also produce a chain noise. Chain noise can also be heard on an e-bike, just like on a traditional bike. Any chain will make a noise in this instance, since it does not matter what type of chain it is. It is expected that the bigger the chain, the louder the noise will be. Also, the quality of the chain contributes greatly to the noise. A poor-quality chain will be noisier. The reason for this is that poor-quality chains make more contact with the gears. There will be some friction during this contact, especially when gears are loaded or unloaded. Therefore, it is recommended to repair the chain as often and as often as possible, so that the noise can be reduced.

How Can You Make the Bike Quieter?

In order to make the bike quieter, you can reduce the amount of vibration that the various parts of the bike can generate.

The first thing you need to do is tighten any loose bolts on the bike. If there are loose bolts on the bike, then the parts will have more room to vibrate, leading to increased noise. The second thing you can do is to clean it. Dirty bikes can accumulate leaves, twigs, and other debris that cause the bike to vibrate too much when you are pedaling. This can cause the bike to be extremely noisy. Another factor that may increase the noise level of your bike is mounting the conversion kit on the front wheel. In addition to becoming louder, the front forks can vibrate more when you put the conversion kit on the front wheel.