Repairs: Console LCD LED back-light

As if my TWIKE wants to be ready for TDST2017, one little thing after the other starts to manifest itself in the last few weeks (spoiler alert: another entry after this one is already lined-up…) This time it’s the central displays back-light. Unlike previous display problems, which popped-up the first time in India and which originated at Dreifels’ controller (DFC 3.0), this problem is directly linked to the 2×16 character LCD back-light. (yet another spoiler alert: I’m currently writing-up an entry outlining what makes this controller a must-have addition to any TWIKE out there.) See for yourself how this problem […]

To be expected after 17 years…

Once every month, I check my TWIKE’s exterior for potential problems (like this one, or this one) that are easily fixed if detected early and turn can into very costly repairs, if left unattended. This entry shows you another part of your TWIKE you should check regularly – which I haven’t … until now. TW560’s swing steering arm!   Seeing this brown colour – very unusual for a TWIKE since all other parts are made of either plastic or aluminium – got me thinking: rust is never a good sign. I’m aware that most of my readers haven’t seen this […]

TDST2017, TW560’s second pan-European trip in 2017

As you might already know, the Austrian part of my family meets up once a year in Styria for a few days of catching-up, eating good food and drinking Styria’s very drinkable white wine. We from Switzerland have been taking part for over a decade now and wouldn’t want to miss this event for nothing in the world. (Teenage daughters insisting on coming is always a good sign 😉 ) TW560 has also been to Styria a few times and it has always been a very memorable trip. Last year’s attempt with my youngest daughter wasn’t very successful and resulted […]

Repairs: Reclaiming lost recuperation

One of the most important features of an electric car is its ability to capture kinetic energy by converting it back to electric energy via recuperation. (Why many electric scooters being sold still lack this feature remains a mystery to me) Only with recuperation can a TWIKE be one of the most economical electric vehicles world-wide! Therefore, as TW560 started to refuse to recuperate intermittently I immediately started asking the usual suspects what their take was. Interestingly enough, I wasn’t the only one with this problem. Feedbacks, however, weren’t too encouraging: The problem usually originates from a solder pad with […]