I Had To Hack This E-Bike To Make It Work Right | Berm Peak

The Gist

The $4,500 Ford Bronco e-bike is severely underpowered and heavily locked down by its manufacturer, but hacking its Lishui controller via CAN bus allows speed and throttle parameters to be adjusted for a better ride.

Quick Overview

The $4,500 Ford Bronco e-bike suffers from poor hill-climbing performance due to an overly restrictive motor controller and a heavy 70-pound frame. By building a custom ESP32 and CAN transceiver programmer, the creator successfully bypasses the locked firmware and modifies wheel circumference parameters to dramatically increase motor responsiveness and torque.

Key Points: The Ford Bronco e-bike is a $4,500 branded product that weighs 70 pounds and features a 750W motor. The motor controller is a potted Lishui EPAC Drive System that uses CAN bus communication rather than standard UART. The creator builds a custom programmer using an ESP32 microcontroller and a VP230 CAN transceiver. By tapping into the CAN bus lines, the creator successfully transmits ASCII command strings like MCREADY and MCREBOOT to the controller. Altering the programmed wheel circumference value tricks the controller into applying more torque and speed at lower actual wheel rotations. The hack allows the e-bike to successfully climb steep hills that it previously failed to navigate. The creator publishes the reverse-engineered project files and protocol details to a GitHub repository for other owners.

Context: The Ford Bronco e-bike is an expensive, branded electric bicycle that received harsh reviews for its inability to handle basic inclines despite its rugged appearance. Because the manufacturer locked down the motor controller's firmware settings completely, owners cannot change performance limits through normal display menus.

Detailed Analysis

The video details the step-by-step process of hacking a Ford Bronco e-bike to overcome its disappointing factory performance. The creator starts by tearing down the bike to access the Lishui motor controller hidden in the down tube, discovering that the internal wiring is encased in potting material. After ruling out standard UART communication, a multimeter and logic analyzer reveal that the system uses CAN bus protocol. Using an ESP32 microcontroller paired with a CAN transceiver, the creator builds a custom programmer and connects it to the bike's wiring. By sending specific commands and experimenting with parameters, the creator figures out how to read and write controller settings. Changing the wheel circumference setting tricks the motor into delivering significantly more power and torque, successfully turning the underwhelming e-bike into a much more capable machine on steep driveways and dirt trails.