Potential risks from the trend of "modifying" electric bicycles

As the new school year approaches, the demand for purchasing and maintaining electric bicycles and electric motorbikes among students is increasing, especially in large cities. However, instead of just regular repairs, many students seek out “tuning” services to increase their speed.

"Modifying" a vehicle poses a great risk of losing control and causing accidents, especially for students who do not have enough skills to handle traffic situations.

Trends accelerate, from "cool" to dangerous

These days, on central roads in the province such as Pham Van Thuan, Dong Khoi, Nguyen Ai Quoc, etc., it is easy to see electric bicycle and electric motorbike shops bustling with customers. Notably, many students come here not only for maintenance and regular battery replacement, but also to request to "modify" their bikes, change the design or add accessories to increase speed.

TQH (a 10th grader living in Tam Hiep ward) admitted: “I see many friends “modifying” their cars to make them run faster, look more beautiful and “cool”, so I also want to do the same. Going to school or going out is convenient and fast”. When asked about the level of safety, H. simply said: “It’s probably okay, because we drive carefully”.

Customers are introduced to electric bicycles that have been “modified” with batteries and auxiliary lights. Photo: LD

Through research, some electric bicycle and electric motorbike repair shops in the province also accept "upgrades" to increase the capacity of the vehicle or add accessories such as: brake levers, brake calipers (brake assembly, an important part in the disc brake system...).

According to the owner of an electric bicycle shop on Pham Van Thuan Street (Tam Hiep Ward), students often come to replace the battery or electric battery because the original battery is worn out after 2-3 years of use. Many students request to upgrade to a larger capacity battery to go further, and the shop can even "upgrade" it.
battery up to 5-6 batteries. From there, the vehicle's power supply is stronger, from 350W of a normal vehicle can be up to 3,000W (about 10 times more) helping the vehicle reach a much higher speed. If some special accessories are attached to the rear wheel, the electric bicycle can reach a speed of 100-120 km/h, a speed approaching that of a regular motorbike.

However, the problem lies in the fact that the frame, shock absorbers, and braking system of electric bicycles are designed to operate at low speeds (under 40km/h) which are suitable for students going to school. When "modified" to run too fast, the vehicle is at risk of losing control and the possibility of accidents is very high, especially for students who do not have enough skills to handle complex traffic situations.

Not only taking place in stores, the buying and selling of batteries, speed controllers, motors and accessories for "tuning" electric bicycles is also very popular on social networks. Just type the phrase: Upgrade electric bicycle batteries or Upgrade electric motorbikes on Facebook, Zalo, TikTok..., the results will show a series of groups and classifieds pages with tens of thousands of members such as: Vietnam Electric Bicycle Upgrade; Electric Vehicles, Modification and Exchange or Cheap Electric Vehicle Batteries.

In these groups, dozens of posts appear every day offering high-capacity lithium batteries, speed controllers, “tuned” wheels, and even “full upgrade” packages that help the car reach speeds of 80-120 km/h.

The price of these batteries or accessories ranges from a few hundred thousand to a few million VND depending on the capacity and configuration. The transaction is very quick and discreet. Buyers only need to leave a comment or message the seller directly to get advice on the type of components suitable for the vehicle. Some sellers also provide detailed instructions on how to assemble it themselves or send a “home-made” video , which makes it almost impossible to control safety.

Parents need to pay close attention to the vehicles their children are using, avoiding the mentality that “electric bicycles are safe” and loosening management. Authorities need to increase inspections and handle establishments and individuals who illegally trade in “modified” components; at the same time, step up propaganda so that students understand the consequences of changing the configuration of their vehicles.

Tighten management to prevent dangers from "modified" electric bicycles

Many parents admit that they are not aware of their children’s changes to the bike’s configuration. Mr. LVH (living in Trang Dai ward) shared: “I thought it was safe for my child to ride an electric bike, so I didn’t pay attention. Recently, when I saw the bike running smoothly, I realized that my child had “upgraded” the battery.”

Mr. Nguyen Tien Thanh, a vehicle testing staff at VinFast , said: "Upgrading" the capacity of an electric bicycle can increase 8-10 times compared to the design, while the braking system and wheels do not respond, just sudden braking or sudden steering can easily cause an accident.

Mr. Thanh said: It is "unacceptable" for students to drive vehicles that have been "modified" with such high power. At speeds of 80-100 km/h, drivers need handling skills equivalent to those of motorbikes and cars, while students do not have a driver's license and do not have enough experience. "Even in factory tests, we must have strict safety procedures and testers must be properly trained. Therefore, it is extremely dangerous for students to drive "modified" vehicles on the street," Mr. Thanh emphasized.

From another perspective, Mr. Vo Van Cuong, chief technician of an electric vehicle care garage located in Binh Tan Ward ( Ho Chi Minh City), said: “When the capacity is increased to too high a level, the battery and controller must withstand a discharge current many times greater than normal. If the components are not up to standard or are assembled manually, the risk of explosion is very high. In fact, there have been many cases of “modified” batteries exploding while charging or when the vehicle is operating at high speed”. Mr. Cuong recommends: Parents need to closely manage and not let their children arbitrarily buy and install batteries and accessories that are floating around the internet.

Le Duy - Thuy Tien

Source: https://baodongnai.com.vn/ban-doc/202509/nguy-co-tiem-an-tu-trao-luu-do-xe-dap-dien-7e42048/