Rad City 5 - Pulling My Hair Out Installing a New Controller

[@carmenperez4499]

I called Rad last week and it was determined I needed a new controller . The guy I spoke with could not find one and said it could take months to get one but he managed to find one and it was mailed out immediately . I got the controller yesterday and installed today , it works !! Thanks to Barry's videos and his longer screw jig to help with screwing in the controller , it took me 3 hours . I hope to God I won't have to do that again but for now all is working .

[@barry_k]

I'm glad that Rad responded quickly and that I was of some help with my videos. Enjoy!

[@frankdaeran352]

Thanks! This tipped me off to another idea. If anyone is struggling with this and you don't have another longer bolt ... just use a piece of strong wire as a fishing wire. It was then surprisingly easy to find and feel the hole on the controller. You can do a dry run first and line up the controller screw holes outside of the frame, to match the frame holes, then put a piece of tape on one of the wires at the distance that it would stick out when the control is pushed up. Modified your trick and got it done

[@barry_k]

That is a great tip! Thank you Frank. ~Barry

[@jamesshackelford4154]

I just completed this nightmare installation tonight. It was as you described extremely frustrating. I did finally get the lock in place and all together but found that the controller did not solve the problem. I replaced the controller, the headlight and the wiring harness all to no avail. My lights still don’t work. Wish you the best of luck. I like the bike it’s unfortunate that we haven’t been able to solve this problem. It’s only about seven months old

[@barry_k]

I know that is a lot of work and then to find out it didn't fix the problem is really frustrating. I hope you get it resolved soon and back on the road. All the best.

[@hromavicprovideos7155]

Very useful video. Just went through the process of replacing the controller on my Rad City 5. Also dropped one of the screws, but it was easy to retrieve. Hope that I never have to change a controller again, very difficult. Specially handling the screws, they are in hard to maneuver areas.

[@tonycam4849]

Wow your kidding me after going through all of that waiting then you do all that labor finally you got it to work AMAZING! I will say this I intend to email them tonight on this controller!! If I have the issues you have I can guaranteed you the bike will be ship back to them !! Period ! Thank you for your honesty and all your video’s very much appreciated!! 9/25 I’ll keep you posted !

[@barry_k]

Thank you Tony! And yes, keep the channel here updated. I'm sure others are curious as to how you make out with your new bike.

[@Mark-qv4bn]

I agree, unacceptable service. They lost me as a future customer.

[@paulmurphy6523]

You’re not alone! This whole thing is a nightmare!

[@barry_k]

It was certainly a nightmare at the time. Thanks Paul.

[@paulmurphy6523]

I got my bike this past May. Rad uploaded a new video and it helped … there is a small metal plate about the size of the controller. You attach the controller to it and then slide it up and it holds it in place better. I still used the long screw like you did and that was a great tip so thank you for that. Hopefully it’s easier to install than it was in the past if they didn’t have the metal plate. Hope that makes sense.

[@oopeeScoops]

I was able to get the controller installed. The wires that you say are in line with the lock hole need to be pushed down into the channels. If they are still in the way then you might have screwed the bottom bolt into the top of the controller. All I know is that it was an awful experience. I had to get help holding the lock in place so I could secure the screws. Even after all the effort installing the new controller and wiring harness, the bike still doesn't work....

[@barry_k]

Thank you for the tips. I plan on tackling this project when the weather gets warm enough so my fingers don't freeze as I'm working. I hope you get your bike going soon. All the best.

[@kennethjohnson220]

@@barry_k I went through the exercise of taking out and then reinstalling the controller on this bike yesterday. For the reinstall it definitely helps to have the "mechanics touch" so that you can "see" with your fingertips. When I did it I held the top controller mounting bolt in with one hand while pushing the controller up with the other until I sensed it touching the bolt. Then (with a hex key inserted) I slightly backed the bolt out until the controller could start moving up again. Using the bolt and my tactile sense I "scanned" the controller's heat sink plate for the top bolt hole and when it very slightly clicked down I twisted the hex key to get it to start threading in. You definitely have to stay calm for this one, maybe even close your eyes. Also, if you start with the bottom hole you may accidentally screw into the top hole on the controller which will then interfere with the lock going back in.

[@barry_k]

Hi Kenneth - Thank you for the reply. I found a trick to getting the holes to line up with the bolt but you still need a bit of a "mechanics touch." I went to the hardware and purchased a couple of long bolts, I believe they are M3 machinist screws, and used the long bolt to wiggle and "fish" in the top hole until I found the hole on the controller. I had a nut on this long bolt so I could use that to tight the controller on to the heat sink. The original bottom bolt then went in to the controller easily. I tightened the bottom bolt, removed the top "fishing" bolt, and then installed the original bolt. It took me about two hours of messing with the controller and the original bolts, and a trip to the hardware, to figure out the trick I used.

[@mrgold3591]

My 2016 Radrover had the controller mounted on the lower back side of the seatpost. Made it easy to troubleshoot with a new controller and wiring harness because I could connect the new replacement parts without uninstalling/unmounting the old ones. I didn't have to install the new wiring harness because the new controller fixed my LCD Error issue.

[@barry_k]

It sure makes sense for a manufacturer to place the controller where it gets good air flow and is easily accessible. They didn't make it easy on the Rad City 5. ~Barry

[@cellphysfan124]

Wow, this is what I spent my morning doing...in my office at work, where it all started! Same deal. I was able to get the controller lined up by measuring the distance from the lower controller hole to the hole for the lock assembly (~8 cm). Then I gently taped a small thin plastic ruler onto the controller lined up with the lower hole on the controller, so the ruler extended down towards the crankshaft. Then shoved the controller in there until the 8 cm mark on the ruler lined up with the lock hole mentioned above. Then fiddle fiddle fiddle with the screw until it found the controller (didn't take too long), but didn't tighten all the way. Screwed in the other screw, then tugged on the ruler to pop it out, then tighten the screws down. Maybe I was just lucky today...should go buy a lottery ticket. And yes indeed getting that lock assembly on was a bear. The cables coming out of the controller need to be gently bent to each side so that darn thing fits. Good to look at the old one to see how they are bent. Those were the hard parts....except for dropping a screw down the battery case, all the way down to the grommet. Took long deep breaths to calm myself, and dug around for it. Altogether now, and the bike seems to work ....no more Error 30. Now for my day-job. What irked me the most was Rad's nonexistent customer service. I emailed several times, I tried the online chat thing several times, and never got a reply. I phoned and the message said to email or chat. Then out of the blue I get a notice that a part is being mailed to me sometime. Never said anything about if it was what i needed or how to install it!!! Obviously, they read my email but how weird to not even have the decency to reply to a customer. This is why I won't recommend that company to anyone.

[@barry_k]

I got a kick out of your description about installing your controller. It was funny but not really funny. There is a lot of frustration there I know -- from experience. I hope you are enjoying the ebike now that it's fixed.

[@timr31908]

I hope that new controller works I hear rad has had an awful lot of problems

[@barry_k]

It did work and I have put some miles on it and it is hanging in there. Thank you for the comment. ~Barry

[@donb4903]

Liked your idea of a longer pilot bolt to find controller holes. FWIW- my experience - after bike ( RAD 6 plus but same build) sitting for 2 months, had no throttle or PAS, but power everywhere else. Did all the "low hanging fruit" trouble shooting that RAD suggests- started with brake sensor disconnects, no help, disconnect and reconnect all others, no help. One step RAD suggests is after removing battery, press power button to bleed off residual voltage. I blew off that step the first time around. After thinking at this point it was controller, for grins I pulled battery again, BLED OFF THE RESIDUAL VOLTAGE per instructions, disconnected brake sensors again, and repowered. Everything worked again. Point is- maybe the voltage bleed down helps to "reboot" the controller? Or coincidence .... but doing that worked for me. Great video Barry- Thanks!

[@barry_k]

Great comment Don! This may save someone a lot of work and heartache. Thank you. ~Barry

[@marksaavedra3032]

I had the same issue after 430 miles. Unfortunately, the controllers are on "back-order". Now I have a bike just sitting in my garage after 1 month of use...

[@barry_k]

Hi Mark - I hope you don't have to wait too long to get that controller. All the best.

[@leomartinez3124]

@@barry_k I gave mine 1 week use and has been sitting there since late April. RadPower L

[@kevincaz]

Mine also quit after 400 miles in August. My controller just shipped in November! Hoping that fixes the issue...

[@marksaavedra3032]

@@kevincaz It does. I probably wouldn't unlock it again tho.

[@bobunderwood803]

"First get the cable cover off" It would have helped if you mentioned what size torx screwdrivers you used. The smallest one I have is too big.

[@obomartin5316]

Would it be possible to mount the controller on the outside of the bike and just weatherproof it?

[@Tom-jd1rm]

Thanks I need to learn how to do this...my daughter has two RAds

[@barry_k]

Hopefully, they are trouble free.

[@jonhoare446]

Excellent and Informative video - I think I am just about to go through this as I have a very similar issue. I am in Germany, so don't the throttle, just PAS. It totally failed on Friday so I had a 17km cycle home with no power, but thankfully the lights worked. Oddly, the walk assist still works as well. Bike is just over a month old with 400Km on the clock. I look forward to the wait for parts and the frustrating controller exchange. I guess it's back to my non-ebike for a few weeks/months... 😞

[@barry_k]

Hi John - Thank you for the comment and I hope my videos help you when you get ready to install a new controller. Also, I hope you don't have to wait months for a new controller. All the best. ~Barry

[@jonhoare446]

@@barry_k I finally have this fixed! Rad sent me a Bottom Bracket sensor which I had to take to a local bike guy to replace - no change. Then they sent me the controller with an aluminium section that helps guide the unit over the bolt holes. Makes it so much easier. Still a few hours to sort it out, routing and rerouting cables etc. Watched your videos a few times as well. Just tested it and it works fine. Just worries me that this failed so early on...

[@barry_k]

Hi Jon - That's great that it is fixed. I still have in the back of mind the thought, "when is the controller going to fail again?" Enjoy your rides. When the Rads are working they are a lot of fun to ride. ~Barry

[@jonhoare446]

@@barry_k I know what you mean, although I have to say, RAD were very good in responding (after an initial wait), getting parts sent to me and paying the labour charge for the bottom bracket sensor replacement etc - all with no quibble or issue. Fair play to them. Can't fault their customer service!

[@baraakuranya2995]

Bei mir Funktioniert der Pedalassistent und der Gasgriff nicht. War das bei Ihnen auch so, und wie haben Sie das Problem gelöst?

[@oncemore7116]

Same issue on my end - controller failed (faulty ones are made in Vietnam, new ones from China) no stock - been down for a month, bike was one week old/20 miles when failed

[@barry_k]

That is really unfortunate. My bike had 36 miles on it when the controller failed. I am at a loss why Rad would ship bikes with faulty controllers. They are obviously aware of the issue. I hope your Rad ebike is up and running soon. All the best. ~Barry

[@paulmurphy6523]

Did you have to pay for labor for the bike shop to finish out the controller install?

[@barry_k]

I couldn't find a bike shop that would install the controller. I installed it myself. Thanks Paul for the comment. ~Barry

[@dogit1840]

Any strong magnet that you know of in your house attached a screwdriver to it for a little while. refrigerator magnets leave them attached to the screwdriver retrieve the screw

[@barry_k]

A magnet would likely do the trick. Thanks. ~Barry

[@GeRom831]

Thanks for sharing your experience with us. I'm having a similar experience with a brand new Rad City 5 Plus that I haven't even been able to ride yet. Right out of the box, I was getting an Error 22 which apparently means a bad twist throttle (although I'm not getting any pedal assist either). So Rad sent me a new twist throttle but still getting the same error. Now they are sending me a new wiring harness (not sure if this will include a new controller or not), which they admit, is difficult to install. So once I receive it, they recommended that I take it to a bike shop. Looks like it will be weeks before I get to try out this bike for the first time. I know that you are still waiting to get some help to put everything all back together again but it looks like you did at least get the new controller installed. Were you able to test anything after doing this? Just wondering if you can tell yet whether the new controller is going to fix your issue?

[@barry_k]

Hopefully, they will send you the controller too and hopefully, you have a real Rad repair shop near you. I didn't get the error code on my bike. The readout was normal but there was no power getting to the motor. I don't know yet if the controller is going to fix the bike. I am going to have to install the top battery lock so I can power up the bike. I was going to have a Rad service shop install the lock when we got home to Michigan. It took two weeks for Rad to respond to my service ticket and they recommended two shops, neither have any association with Rad. The closest shop, 30 miles away, didn't have any interest in working on anything electrical. The other shop was 100 miles away. I live in a metro area with over 1.5 million people and Rad has no formal relationship with a bike shop in this area. Another Rad fail. I hope the wiring harness works for you. This whole thing is unfortunate because the Rad City 5 is a will built bike but they fail big time with their electronics. All the best George.

[@GeRom831]

@@barry_k Hi Barry, so I convinced Rad to send me a new controller however, after waiting for over a week for it to ship, I emailed them for a status and came to find out that now their controllers are out of stock! Of course they are. Probably because they keep having to send these to people who are having issues similar to ours. Well, since I hadn't even been able to ride the bike yet, I told Rad that I just wanted to return it and get a new one. They approved the return and send me a replacement bike. The new bike is working however I only have a few miles on it. Hopefully I don't run into the same issues that you did after I get a few more rides in. I saw your comment in your latest video saying that you now have the replacement controller installed in your bike and that fixed your issue. Congratulations on getting it fixed finally. Thanks again for sharing your experiences with us.

[@barry_k]

Hopefully, Rad exhausted their supply of bad controllers and replaced them with good controllers. I'm sure they have taken steps to remedy this problem. So, I'm happy you have a replacement bike and you are out enjoying the e-bike experience. Happy trails George.

[@nickre96988]

It looks like yours was located at the top..mine was in the bottom. Just an FYI to anyone who opens the top and can’t find their controller.

[@robin2080]

In the same situation.. for a company that raised $300 million from Fidelity, I sure would hope they'd test their gear better

[@barry_k]

I agree. They do need better quality control on their electronic components. Thank you for the comment Franklin. ~Barry

[@johngarcia8266]

Same problem here ebike will not power up ,only 20 miles on it.😮

[@barry_k]

Start with the simple troubleshooting step -- unplug the brake cable and see if it powers up. Also, you might take a look at my "FAIL!! Plus Troubleshooting" video. I wish you the best with this.

[@TrackFarmer]

What size Phillips screw did u use?

[@barry_k]

The screws and bolts on the bike are Torx heads. The size and type of the screw or bolts are different depending where they are on the bike.

[@TrackFarmer]

@@barry_k What size did u use to remove the internal cable cover?

[@oopeeScoops]

@@TrackFarmer It should be either a torx 8 or 9. I can't remember.

[@markanderson2713]

Ugh! I don’t know if this is worse or better than your situation. I bought a brand new Rad city 5+ bike and write out of the box I had an error code of number 21. I did the same thing that they suggested which was unplug and reconnect every single stinking connection on the bike. After that I had to take apart the battery compartment and replace the lower battery mount and that didn’t stop the error code. Now I’m waiting for a new controller and watching your video did not make me feel any better about this. I don’t understand how they can sell a brand new bike that’s broken. Why don’t they check these before they ship. Rad is now telling me that because of supply chain problems they don’t have any controllers and I now need to just wait. This is beyond frustrating. Please think about buying one of these expensive bikes as this has been a royal pain in the ass.

[@barry_k]

Hi Mark. Unfortunately, I receive a lot of comments just like yours. And, I agree, Rad could do a much better job with their quality control. I hope you don't have to wait too long for a new controller. All the best! ~Barry

[@johnmayerislovee]

Thanks for your video. Question - If the parts where sent to you free under warranty, why not take your bike to a reliable E-Bike shop for replacement as service is also covered under RAD'S warranty?

[@barry_k]

That's a great question. The reason was that I knew that by the time the parts were shipped to the bike shop, and the time it would take the bike shop to repair the bike, we would have left Florida and returned to Michigan. I didn't want to take the chance that my bike would be in Florida all summer while we were at home in Michigan.

[@BlueberryAmaryllis]

Don't complain.....at least you got a new controller. Rad Power is telling me that the controller piece is back ordered and so I haven't been able to ride the bike ever since I got it- 5 months ago. Rad Power has no idea when the controller will be shipped to me! Grrrrrrrrr Soooo all that said....have fun riding your bike. :)

[@barry_k]

Hi Portia - Wow, that is a long wait with no end in sight. I hope that situation changes quickly for you and you are up and riding soon. All the best.

[@mac1637]

Have you gotten to ride your Rad City 5 yet?

[@barry_k]

I still have to get the top battery lock installed. Maybe this weekend.

[@dogit1840]

Have you ever watched a documentary building a skyscraper you see the guys with the big all they put it in the bolt hole to line up the other bolt hole on the bean lol

[@barry_k]

I'm glad I didn't have to balance myself 20 stories up and repair my bike. :-)

[@Mark-qv4bn]

I couldn't do it myself, and i won't. Even my $750 fat tire used ebike was perfect, until i wrecked it. Still i rode it every day over a year. This is not acceptable in any way.

[@barry_k]

I've thought about picking up a used ebike. I may have to do a video about that. Thanks for the comment Mark. ~Barry

[@dogit1840]

Yeah you think you pay a lot of money you get a lot but you know ain't shitt if they don't stand behind their warranty. Walmart sells cheap stuff but they stand behind their products I don't buy anything from them unless it says I can bring it back to the store💥💥

[@barry_k]

At this point, I would recommend to people to buy their ebike from a local, reputable, bike shop that will stand behind the product. You may spend a bit more money for the bike but it may be worth it if the bike has problems. ~Barry

[@dogit1840]

@@barry_k to much money you can get the same bike from Walmart with a great warranty return policy probably half the price

[@albertng888]

No way I am spending a couple of thousand bucks to troubleshoot and fix a new bike. Until the reliability of new EBIKes is established, I will not buy one. I have not seen any reliability ratings on any bikes! Almost all the videos I have come across put their emphasis on performance which is a distant second consideration.

[@barry_k]

I agree with you and it is unfortunate there are no reliability ratings out there. If there are, maybe someone will post link(s) here. Thank you for your comment.

[@paulmurphy6523]

If i had to do it over, i would definitely buy a different brand from our local bike shop. That way, i could get service.