Here are three possible ways how to start an electric bike without a key but they come with caveats.
- Remove the ignition – Technically, if you can detach the battery from the bike and you can remove the ignition circuit board you could wire your bike to work without an ignition – but it would require a good knowledge of electronics.
- Manually connect the wires – Like a car, if you know the ignition wiring well enough you can hot wire it to start by getting the neccesarry wires to touch. But this, again, requires a knowledge of the internal electronics of your specific bike model.
- Force the ignition – Again, in theory, if you could find a way to force your ignition to turn then you could start the battery like this but it depends completely on the model of your bike and how it’s ignition/key works. Depending on the shape of the hole that the key goes in, you could use a screwdriver or hairpin to unlock the ignition and start the bike, but you would be lucky.
If you want to get into your electronic bike’s battery power, you are going to have to mess around with the electronics which could void your warranty and chance of getting a replacement key, it also requires a decent knowledge of electronics – it’s not going to be easy.
Most electric bikes have a key system that works a little differently from a car locking mechanism. If you have lost this key, you can still use your bike but won’t be able to access the battery. Read on to learn more about how electric bikes work and how to get into them without the necessary key.
Do You Need A Key To Ride Your Electronic Bike?
No, electronic bike keys don’t work like this. Your electronic bike can be ridden without a key, the battery simply won’t work. The key doesn’t stop your bike from being stolen, rather, it stops your battery from being stolen.
As an electronic bike doesn’t have a starter motor like a car or motorcycle, they require a key to start the engine. As an electronic bike is semi-electronic, semi-manual, someone could steal your bike and use it without a key, but they wouldn’t be able to use the electronic side of it.
If you have lost the key to your bike lock, that is a separate matter.
In essence, an electronic bike key locks the battery down. A key is required to unlock the battery for use and is also required to recharge the battery and also replace it if needs be.
So if you have lost your electric bike key then you can’t use its electronic motor, nor can you charge it or remove the battery.
Your electric bike battery is locked down like this as they are usually expensive lithium-ion batteries, and these are usually worth more than a manual bike, so are targeted by thieves. The key prevents this from happening but if you have lost it you can’t use your battery either.
What If I Have Lost My Electric Bike Key?
Well, there are a few issues here that prevent you from being able to ‘unlock’ your electric bike as easily as you could unlock a car door if you had lost the key.
The first thing to know is that if you have lost your electric bike key you can still ride your bike manually, you just won’t be able to use the electric battery.
Most bikes come with more than one key to the battery, but if you have lost both you could be in a sticky situation. This is because most electronic bike keys are uniquely manufactured alongside the battery.
This means that each key is unique to each battery, model, and make – this is so you have to buy a replacement from your manufacturer. While this can be annoying if you have lost your key, it’s made this way so that thieves can’t steal the expensive battery on the bike.
This is your best option if you have lost your key, to buy a replacement from a manufacturer. The manufacturer can easily find the key you need for your battery and quickly supply it to you, likely for a fee.
A locksmith or key cutter can probably make a duplicate key but this could cost more than simply replacing them due to the complexity of the key and lock.
Even without your key, a locksmith should still be able to remake your key by researching the battery and model of your bike, but this might take a specific locksmith who has unlocked electric bikes before. In preparation for avoiding this situation, make copies of these keys so you don’t end up here again.
Conclusion
So, as you can see, it’s pretty tough to get your electronic bike to work if you don’t have a key. Your best decision is to either call a key cutter who has duplicated similar keys before.
Starting your battery without the key is basically impossible unless you are an electrician and know the wiring of the battery.
This is thanks to the unique design of the keys, and the way the battery and key have a unique link. What’s even worse is that even if you can rewire the electronics or force the ignition, if your bike’s battery is dead you won’t have any luck.
At the end of the day, this protects your bike’s battery from being stolen, and they try to make up for this issue by providing you with spare keys. What you can be glad about is that you can still ride your bike around, it’s not immobile.
You simply can’t use its electrical power which makes it a fair waste of money if you can’t use it for its purpose. But it does mean you can ride it home and wait for the replacement keys to arrive.
