How to Make My Electric Bike Go Faster: Speed Limiter Fix

Understanding Speed Limiters

Many riders ask us: "How can I make my electric bike go faster?" You feel that burst of power, and then you hit what feels like a wall. That feeling is your electric bike speed limiter working. This guide comes from years of real experience with e-bikes.

We'll show you two different approaches. The first is the safe and legal way to get faster speeds. The second explains the dangerous changes some people make to remove speed limits. Our goal is to help you ride faster while staying safe and smart.

Before you try to get around it, you need to know why the speed limiter exists. It's not there to ruin your fun. Instead, it serves important jobs for safety, following laws, and keeping your bike working longer.

What is a Limiter?

An e-bike speed limiter is an electronic system built into your bike's controller. It watches your speed all the time. When you hit the set limit, it doesn't use the brakes. The system smoothly cuts back or stops power from the motor instead. You can still go faster by pedaling harder or going downhill. But the motor will stop helping you once you reach that speed.

Why Limiters Exist

There are three main reasons for these built-in limits:

Legal Compliance: E-bikes fit into a specific legal group that's different from mopeds or motorcycles. To count as an "e-bike" and avoid needing a license, registration, and insurance, makers must follow strict rules. In the United States, this usually means a three-class system. Knowing your bike's class helps you understand its speed limits. You can check your local rules by looking at state-by-state e-bike laws.

Rider and Public Safety: Speed changes everything about riding. Higher speeds need faster thinking, much longer stopping distances, and better skills to handle problems. Speed limits help reduce how bad accidents might be for both the rider and other people.

Component Protection: Your e-bike's motor, battery, and controller work together as a careful system. They're made to work within certain power and heat ranges. Making them work beyond these limits creates too much heat and stress, which is the fastest way to break them early.

The Risks of Removing Speed Limits

We get why you might want to unlock more speed. A quick online search shows "tuning chips" and software tricks that promise to unleash your bike's "true power." While we won't give you instructions, it's important to understand what these methods are and why we strongly tell you not to use them.

Common Ways People Bypass Limits

Most methods to remove limits involve tricking the system.

• Software Hacks: Some controllers have hidden "P-settings" or can work with outside apps to change the speed limit or wheel size setting, making the bike think it's going slower than it really is.
• Hardware "Tuning Chips": These small devices go between the speed sensor and the controller. They catch the speed signal and report a lower number (like reporting 10 mph when you're really going 20 mph), stopping the motor from cutting off.
• Wire Cutting: On older, simpler e-bikes, cutting a specific wire in the controller sometimes acts as the speed limiter signal. Cutting it can turn off the function, but this is a rough and permanent method.

The Real Problems This Causes

Here's why getting around the limiter is a bad idea. We've talked with riders whose motors died just months after removing restrictions, often costing half the price of the bike to fix. The risks are real and serious.

• Voiding Your Warranty: This happens right away. Makers build data recording into their systems. If you need warranty repair on your motor or battery, they'll know it was used outside its design limits, and they'll say no to your claim. The warranty for the whole electrical system—the most expensive part of your bike—will be gone.
• Mechanical Failure: Pushing more power through the system than it was made for creates extra heat. This can fry the controller, melt the coating on motor wires, and permanently hurt your battery's ability to hold charge and last long.
• Safety Problems: Your bike's frame and, most importantly, its brakes are built for its designated class and speed. A bike made for 20 mph braking might not have the power to stop you safely from 30 mph. This can lead to brake failure or even cracks in the frame over time. These changes add to major safety worries about e-bike electronics and batteries.
• Legal & Insurance Problems: If you modify your bike to go faster than its legal speed limit, it might be called an unlicensed motor vehicle. In an accident, you could face big fines, have your bike taken away, and find your insurance company saying no to claims, leaving you personally responsible for damages.

The Smart Way to Go Faster

Now for the good news. You can definitely make your electric bike feel faster and more responsive without breaking the law or your bike. The goal is to reach your bike's legal speed limit more easily, keep it going with less work, and even go faster using your own power.

1. Take Care of Your Bike

A well-kept bike is a fast bike. These free or cheap habits give you huge improvements in how well your bike works.

• Keep Tires Properly Filled: Under-filled tires create huge rolling resistance, making your motor and your legs work much harder. Check your tire's side for the recommended PSI range. Use higher pressure for smooth roads to reduce resistance and slightly lower pressure for rough ground to improve grip and comfort.
• Clean and Oil Your Chain System: A dirty, dry chain is a slow chain. It wastes energy and causes early wear on your gears. Regularly clean your chain, cogs, and gear changer, then put on quality bike oil. This makes sure every bit of power—from you and the motor—goes to the back wheel.

2. Improve Your Parts

Smart upgrades can give you a clear boost in speed and efficiency.

• Upgrade to Faster-Rolling Tires: The tires that come with many e-bikes are built to last, not for speed. Bumpy, wide tires are great for dirt, but on pavement, they create lots of drag. Switching to smoother, narrower commuter or road tires can greatly reduce rolling resistance, giving you "free speed" on every ride.
• Think About Your Gears: This is for more advanced riders. If you find yourself "spinning out" (pedaling very fast with little resistance) once the motor cuts out, your gearing might be limiting you. A bike shop can help you put in a larger front gear or a back gear set with a smaller 11-tooth high gear. This lets you keep putting effective pedal power at speeds above the electric bike motor limit.

3. Get the Most from Your Battery

A healthy battery gives steady power, which directly means better performance.

• Always Start with a Full Charge: A battery gives its maximum voltage and power output when it's fully charged. You might notice a slight drop in performance as the battery level goes below 50% and especially below 25%.
• Avoid Very Hot or Cold Temperatures: Lithium-ion batteries hate extreme heat and cold. Never leave your battery in a hot car or a freezing garage. Storing and charging it at room temperature will make it last longer and make sure it gives you the power you expect.

4. Improve How You Ride

How you ride is just as important as what you ride.

• Improve Your Wind Cutting: At speeds over 15 mph, the biggest force you're fighting is wind resistance. Simply lowering your body, tucking your elbows in, and getting into a more athletic position can make a big difference. Research shows that understanding how much wind cutting matters is key to going faster for free.
• Use Pedal Assist Smartly: Don't just leave your bike in "Turbo" mode. This drains the battery quickly and doesn't teach you to be an efficient rider. Use lower assist levels on flat ground to save energy and keep momentum. Save the highest power settings for speeding up from a stop and climbing steep hills.

Cost vs. Impact of Upgrades

To help you decide where to focus your efforts, here's a realistic breakdown of legal and effective methods to go faster.

Choosing Your Next E-Bike

If you've improved your current bike and still want more speed, your next step might be a new e-bike. If speed is what you want most, look for a Class 3 e-bike, which will give motor help up to 28 mph. Pay attention to motor torque (measured in Newton-meters or Nm)—a higher number means faster speeding up. Also, think about battery voltage and amp-hours (Ah); higher voltage can help with higher top speed, while more amp-hours means longer range at those high speeds.

Speed with a Strategy

The desire to make your electric bike go faster makes perfect sense. However, how you get that speed matters a lot. Getting around your e-bike's speed limiter is a short-term thrill that comes with high risk of voided warranties, expensive mechanical failures, and serious legal and safety problems.

The smarter, more lasting path is through improvement. By taking care of your bike well, making smart upgrades, and improving your riding technique, you can build a faster, more efficient, and more enjoyable partnership with your machine. You'll not only reach your bike's top assisted speed easily but also gain the satisfaction of going beyond it with your own power—safely, legally, and intelligently.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1: Will a bigger battery make my e-bike go faster?
Not directly. A battery with higher voltage (like upgrading from 48V to 52V) can increase motor speed and thus bike speed, but this is a complex change that can damage your controller if it's not compatible. A battery with more Amp-hours (Ah) will increase how far you can go, but not your top speed.

Q2: Can't I just pedal harder to go faster than the limit?
Yes! The speed limiter only cuts off motor help. Your e-bike is still a bicycle, and you can always pedal it faster than 20 or 28 mph, especially on flat ground or downhills. The gearing and wind-cutting tips mentioned above are key to making this easier.

Q3: Is removing the e-bike speed limiter illegal?
Changing your bike to go faster than the legal speed for its class can make it an illegal, unregistered motor vehicle in many places. While the act of changing it might not be watched by police, riding it on public roads, trails, or bike paths is likely illegal and carries big liability.

Q4: How much faster can I realistically make my e-bike legally?
While you can't increase the motor-assisted top speed legally, you can reach that speed more easily and maintain it better. With proper maintenance and upgrades, you might gain 2-5 mph in practical riding speed and significantly improve acceleration. Beyond the motor cutoff, good gearing and technique can help you pedal to 30+ mph on flat ground.

Q5: What's the most effective single upgrade for speed?
Switching to faster-rolling tires typically gives the biggest speed improvement for the money. This single change can reduce rolling resistance by 20-30%, making it much easier to reach and maintain your bike's top assisted speed while also improving your ability to pedal beyond that limit.