Beware of AliExpress

[fizzy]

I have used them many times. But I have never had to return anything.
Their customer service is useless - they simply don't care.
2x 12V LiFePO4 batteries for my wife's mobility scooter. She has only used it a few times - batteries 8 months old. Only been charged twice.
The batteries were brilliant. Scooter in my warehouse. Last weekend I decided to give it a spin - I am waiting for surgery on my left foot so biking is out at the moment. Went through Swansea docks - lovely run. On the way back the scooter cut out dead!
Circuit breaker 100amp hadnt tripped. There is a freewheel mode so started pushing. Was meeting @Dapph2 at my warehouse. Gave him a ring - can you tow me please! About 2 miles from base.
The problem is that the freewheel mode has a safety brake - if you go over 3mph it kicks in with a vengeance - a vital safety feature. One poor lady died as hers was older.
The road by the docks is very quiet but being towed at 3mph no fun. Once we went a touch too fast. Brakes locked and snapped the small ratchet towing strap
Truly was like a scene from Last of the Summer Wine

Anyway AliExpress don't want to know. Several emails asking for proof. 4 times they asked for evidence and 4 times I sent them the photos - "insufficient evidence" they kept saying. I asked what evidence do you require? No response - then I had this email

"Thank you for contacting AliExpress regarding order 3056240471474709. We truly value your shopping experience and regret any frustration this may have caused.
We have conducted a thorough review regarding your request for this order. After careful consideration and verification, we regret to inform you that we are unable to proceed with a refund or compensation for this order.
We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this situation may cause and deeply appreciate your understanding and cooperation in this matter. Your patience and trust are highly valued, and we are committed to assisting you with any further questions or concerns you may have.
Thank you for your understanding and support.
Your understanding and cooperation is highly appreciated and we hope you have a great experience shopping with AliExpress."

Here are the pics I sent.

These cheap Chinese batteries are a lottery - sometimes they are brilliant - other times not. Price is no indication either. There is a US company building batteries in the US - massive class action lawsuit - they are 4 x the price and even worse!

I have sent an email to Datouboss - we shall see. It may be the BMS has fallen asleep and needs a jump start - will try that later. If not I will dismantle and video it - stick it up on Youtube for all to see.

By the way the scooter is 400w 24v constant and 800W peak - or max 33.3 amps - well below the BMS 120amp limit.

 

[daedalusminos]

It does say built in BMS which will protect against over charge/discharge, overload etc etc . Try charging as the BMS may have isolated the battery

 

[fizzy]

It does say built in BMS which will protect against over charge/discharge, overload etc etc . Try charging as the BMS may have isolated the battery

I will give it a try - apparently you have to connect up a good 12v battery first to jump it or it wont take a charge. But why would the BMS kick in during use on a battery with a good state of charge?

 

[Other Daniel]

What a PITA
Like yourself, I've bought loads from AliExpress.
So far I remain a happy customer, but that could have
a lot to do with the fact that I haven't needed to
return anything yet.
I have heard before that the returns system can be
very frustrating.
I do hope you get somewhere with them, good luck
and keep us posted...

 

[reb78]

In my limited experience there is a load of rubbish out there.

I bought a 24v LiFePO from a UK company - looks like it did the same thing as yours. They argued about a refund telling me the thing was fine when they finally tested it (I dont beleive they tested it as it wasnt fine and after 30 seconds of load from a full charge it read very low volts). I pushed back and told them to keep it and resell it then as I didnt want it back and the only reason it had gone over their returns window was their delay responding to me initially. Thread here:

https://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/threads/24v-lead-acid-battery-upgrade.141174/post-2548240

 

[reb78]

I cant bring myself to buy from AliExpress - just the name makes it sound like it is run by a magical Genie... I find the website awful.

 

[fizzy]

In my limited experience there is a load of rubbish out there.

I bought a 24v LiFePO from a UK company - looks like it did the same thing as yours. They argued about a refund telling me the thing was fine when they finally tested it (I dont beleive they tested it as it wasnt fine and after 30 seconds of load from a full charge it read very low volts). I pushed back and told them to keep it and resell it then as I didnt want it back and the only reason it had gone over their returns window was their delay responding to me initially. Thread here:

https://www.mig-welding.co.uk/forum/threads/24v-lead-acid-battery-upgrade.141174/post-2548240

It looks like yours was NOT a cheapy like mine. As I said price is no indicator of quality. Battleborn batteries made in the USA were 5x the price of the cheap Chinese ones - and worse!
Apparently Wattcycle aren't too bad.

Will's channel is amazing - he does full battery teardowns etc. The only problem is many of the batteries in the USA are branded differently to the ones we get from China. Although Wattcycle can be had here as well. They are about 1.5 to 2x the price but worth the extra I think.

 

[reb78]

It looks like yours was NOT a cheapy like mine. As I said price is no indicator of quality. Battleborn batteries made in the USA were 5x the price of the cheap Chinese ones - and worse!
Apparently Wattcycle aren't too bad.

Will's channel is amazing - he does full battery teardowns etc. The only problem is many of the batteries in the USA are branded differently to the ones we get from China. Although Wattcycle can be had here as well. They are about 1.5 to 2x the price but worth the extra I think.

It wasnt cheap at all, so agree that price means nothing.

Weirdly, they removed the link to my battery shortly after they finally accepted the return. Its back up under a different link now. I stuck two 12v LA batteries in, in the end. The kids havent run them flat yet. I should have just gone that way in the first place.

 

[MattF]

Their customer service is useless - they simply don't care.

It can be somewhat hard work, on occasion, but no more so than the likes of Amazon customer service or such. I've always had excellent customer service from them.

 

[fizzy]

It wasnt cheap at all, so agree that price means nothing.

Weirdly, they removed the link to my battery shortly after they finally accepted the return. Its back up under a different link now. I stuck two 12v LA batteries in, in the end. The kids havent run them flat yet. I should have just gone that way in the first place.

They did transform the scooter weight saving of 40kg is substantial. But where weight is not an issue for say ground based solar it does make you wonder. My forklift battery took 18 years to become scrap. £3000 buys you a 48v 600a/h battery or 28kw/h.

 

[Dev]

Is worth a watch

 

[fizzy]

Is worth a watch

Lithium Iron Phosphate or LiFePO4 batteries are different but still worth a watch. The 18650 cells are used everywhere these days.

 

[badabec]

Would a Section 75 claim work on fizzy's batteries?

 

[Dragnet]

At least you got a good story out of it - imagining the 3mph tow through Swansea docks with locking brakes is definitely straight out of a screenwriter's dream!

I don't buy from Amazon on principle. I value shops and people I can talk to, and want to do at least what microscopic amount I can to make the world as I would like it to be. Part of that is doing my best not to support the avalanche of dross coming out of China, which is fuelling the AliExpresses, Amazons, Temus and Sheins of this world. At least trying to buy from a UK supplier can (and I realise it's by no means guaranteed) result in more reliable service when something goes wrong. We also have access to Trading Standards and if the company's in the UK they may actually be able to enforce something. Yes, trying to buy from Europe or the UK is many times more expensive than from China or Amazon, but we need to ask why that is. Labour, insurance, social care, environmental protection and lack of government subsidy. It is a Chinese policy to subsidise (especially the postage) from these sites, presumably to try to weaken manufacturing bases elsewhere in the world, and Amazon's tiny tax bill is well known.

Sometimes it's impossible, which is frustrating - there are occasionally certain small electronic components I have had to buy one or two of from AliExpress because they were not available from any European suppliers, not even the big boys where I have accounts. Sometimes I have to suck it up and pay ten times the price on principle to buy PCBs made in Europe, but then that has included personal discussions with the bloke operating the machines and back-and-forth drawings for no extra charge, even for a hobbyist. If someone employs me I would cost many times my Chinese equivalent, and the hidden costs that don't come out economically (particularly environmental and waste disposal ) are reflected in UK pricing. I tell myself "value remains when cost is forgotten". Some things, particularly computer components can be found made in Korea, Japan or Taiwan which I personally find more palatable.

I do find lithium batteries rather terrifying!

 

[fizzy]

At least you got a good story out of it - imagining the 3mph tow through Swansea docks with locking brakes is definitely straight out of a screenwriter's dream!

I don't buy from Amazon on principle. I value shops and people I can talk to, and want to do at least what microscopic amount I can to make the world as I would like it to be. Part of that is doing my best not to support the avalanche of dross coming out of China, which is fuelling the AliExpresses, Amazons, Temus and Sheins of this world. At least trying to buy from a UK supplier can (and I realise it's by no means guaranteed) result in more reliable service when something goes wrong. We also have access to Trading Standards and if the company's in the UK they may actually be able to enforce something. Yes, trying to buy from Europe or the UK is many times more expensive than from China or Amazon, but we need to ask why that is. Labour, insurance, social care, environmental protection and lack of government subsidy. It is a Chinese policy to subsidise (especially the postage) from these sites, presumably to try to weaken manufacturing bases elsewhere in the world, and Amazon's tiny tax bill is well known.

Sometimes it's impossible, which is frustrating - there are occasionally certain small electronic components I have had to buy one or two of from AliExpress because they were not available from any European suppliers, not even the big boys where I have accounts. Sometimes I have to suck it up and pay ten times the price on principle to buy PCBs made in Europe, but then that has included personal discussions with the bloke operating the machines and back-and-forth drawings for no extra charge, even for a hobbyist. If someone employs me I would cost many times my Chinese equivalent, and the hidden costs that don't come out economically (particularly environmental and waste disposal ) are reflected in UK pricing. I tell myself "value remains when cost is forgotten". Some things, particularly computer components can be found made in Korea, Japan or Taiwan which I personally find more palatable.

I do find lithium batteries rather terrifying!

Amazon have brilliant customer service but I often find stuff cheaper on Ebay - who also have good customer service.

LiFePO4 batteries are a lot safer than the lithium ion batteries.

 

[Dapph2]

At least you got a good story out of it - imagining the 3mph tow through Swansea docks with locking brakes is definitely straight out of a screenwriter's dream!

I don't buy from Amazon on principle. I value shops and people I can talk to, and want to do at least what microscopic amount I can to make the world as I would like it to be. Part of that is doing my best not to support the avalanche of dross coming out of China, which is fuelling the AliExpresses, Amazons, Temus and Sheins of this world. At least trying to buy from a UK supplier can (and I realise it's by no means guaranteed) result in more reliable service when something goes wrong. We also have access to Trading Standards and if the company's in the UK they may actually be able to enforce something. Yes, trying to buy from Europe or the UK is many times more expensive than from China or Amazon, but we need to ask why that is. Labour, insurance, social care, environmental protection and lack of government subsidy. It is a Chinese policy to subsidise (especially the postage) from these sites, presumably to try to weaken manufacturing bases elsewhere in the world, and Amazon's tiny tax bill is well known.

Sometimes it's impossible, which is frustrating - there are occasionally certain small electronic components I have had to buy one or two of from AliExpress because they were not available from any European suppliers, not even the big boys where I have accounts. Sometimes I have to suck it up and pay ten times the price on principle to buy PCBs made in Europe, but then that has included personal discussions with the bloke operating the machines and back-and-forth drawings for no extra charge, even for a hobbyist. If someone employs me I would cost many times my Chinese equivalent, and the hidden costs that don't come out economically (particularly environmental and waste disposal ) are reflected in UK pricing. I tell myself "value remains when cost is forgotten". Some things, particularly computer components can be found made in Korea, Japan or Taiwan which I personally find more palatable.

I do find lithium batteries rather terrifying!

Try driving an electric car at less than 3mph. I kept finding my foot and leg going to sleep . fizzy kept shouting into his phone ( I'm on hands free ) Dave slow down DAVE slow down , Panic setting in , DAVE SLOW DOWN SLOW DOWN . Then even Louder DAAAVEEE slow down the centricfugal brake is starting to rattle . By this time Fizzy had no need of the phone , my windows were open and he came through at storm force 9.

A Chinese family near the roundabout were pizzing themselves laughing as we went by , no doubt knowing we had problems with Chinese batteries . I was very pleased when we reached Fizzy's unit as local Swansea drivers aren't very good at handling traffic conditions where they are required to think .

 

[Gareth J]

I cant bring myself to buy from AliExpress - just the name makes it sound like it is run by a magical Genie... I find the website awful.

All Chinese direct sales websites I've used are atrocious. Some of the ebike ones I've bought from are just awful.

Yet they do seem to work.

 

[Porkypine]

I bought a pair of the same Datou boss batteries from Temu, (these were for solar system rather than scooter) took me a very long time to get a round to fitting the system up, upon which i found one of the batts wouldn't take a charge.
I contacted Temu, at first they said 'ard luck', then I reminded them that under any reasonable year's warranty one of these dead is unacceptable, they soon changed their tune, and I got credited for a FOC replacement battery.... this is now in use with the original one and both working as expected.
Often worth persuing and being the bloke who won't let it go with the initial 'No'
Temu tbh have always been fine for me, other than the above blip. I think I've only ever had one item from Ali Ex.

 

[fizzy]

Try driving an electric car at less than 3mph. I kept finding my foot and leg going to sleep . fizzy kept shouting into his phone ( I'm on hands free ) Dave slow down DAVE slow down , Panic setting in , DAVE SLOW DOWN SLOW DOWN . Then even Louder DAAAVEEE slow down the centricfugal brake is starting to rattle . By this time Fizzy had no need of the phone , my windows were open and he came through at storm force 9.

A Chinese family near the roundabout were pizzing themselves laughing as we went by , no doubt knowing we had problems with Chinese batteries . I was very pleased when we reached Fizzy's unit as local Swansea drivers aren't very good at handling traffic conditions where they are required to think .

Good job it was a small ratchet strap - a great safety feature

Being overtaken by slugs and snails

 

[colnerov]

Not specifically hoverboards, but the trouble with no name brands, will they learn?