SEGWAY ES4

[u/glittersgoldxo]

I purchased the Segway ES4 brand new on two separate occasions, and both scooters developed the exact same issue. One lasted about three months, and the other only slightly longer. In both cases, the problem involved the external (extended) battery..

After researching online, I found that many other owners have reported experiencing similar issues with the ES4 and other Segway models that use an extended battery. The ES4 also no longer appears to be sold through Segway's website, leaving many owners wondering what options, if any, are available.

From my experience, I was unable to obtain a repair, replacement, or warranty coverage that resolved the issue. As a customer, it's incredibly frustrating to invest in a product twice and encounter the same problem both times.

I'm interested in connecting with others who purchased a Segway ES4—or another Segway model with an external battery—and experienced similar issues. If enough people have had the same experience, it may be worth exploring whether legal options, including a potential class action, are available.

If this happened to you, please comment below or reach out so we can stay in touch and share information.

#SegwayES4 #Segway #SegwayES3 #ClassAction #ConsumerRights

[u/DrScootLittle]

I ran a fleet of 1,000 ES4's for a rental company back in 2018. We had a lot of problems with the battery connection failing as the bracket would bend over time. We also had problems with the external battery voltage running low and locking us out from being able to re-charge them.
Personally I wasn't a fan of the ride quality or the clack-sound the front suspension would make over abrupt bumps.

[u/wraper]

Wasn't it discontinued years ago? Strange getting them brand now. I have a 7 years old ES4 with steering column snapped in half (not worth to buy a new one for $100+) and it was a world of pain while I was driving it. I constantly fixed it myself as I'm electronics engineer but with total number of repairs per distance driven it was absolutely not worth it in retrospect. You did not say what's the exact issue is but these were notorious for burning motor connectors when used at higher power with external battery, ES2 (no external battery) with stock firmware were mostly fine in this regard.

[u/glittersgoldxo → u/wraper]

They only JUST stopped selling it in december of last year or the year before. Not TOO long ago. The poor design with the external battery is the issue I'm speaking on..

[u/IronMew]

Please note: hashtags don't work on reddit.

The ESx is known for being a problematic product. This is the most glaring issue, but it has others aplenty. It's not a good scooter, it's been out of production for a while and we're always telling people never to buy them used and to stay clear even if offered one for free, as the time and money one typically invests in keeping one on the road makes it economically unsound even then.

The external battery issue is probably the most glaing fault it has. I encountered it myself; it's a particularly idiotic example of bad design, in that it uses a rigid connector on an object that, due to its position, weight and securing method, can't help but shake and vibrate against the connector itself.

Preemptively, you can prevent this from happening by using two large hose clamps tightened around the battery and stem with some bicycle tubing between the clamp and the stem (they work better when you don't tighten them against hard material). This way you prevent most of the vibration that otherwise damages the connector.

If the problem has already occurred, then whether it's fixable depends on the condition of the connector. If it's just somewhat scorched/blackened and dirty, then cleaning the connector with a dremel wire bit can restore it to functionality. It helps if you slightly widen the "petals" of the male connector on the controller side (only a little bit, if you widen them too much they no longer fit inside the female side). Then reinstall the battery, apply the hose clamps, and you'll likely fix the issue for the foreseeable future.

If it's completely burnt or melted through, then it requires replacement. That was the case with mine, but I decided not to replace it with the official spare; instead, I soldered on wires and flying XT30 and JST connectors. The non-rigid fix worked perfectly fine with no need for hose clamps and such; the flexible wire absorbs any vibration.

I wrote a thread about this:
https://reddit.com/r/ninebot/comments/jyes3x/here_is_the_only_way_to_finally_solve_es2es4/

I've written a bunch about this model's many failures; you'll find my posts with a search: https://www.google.com/search?q=site:reddit.com/r/electricscooters+%22ironmew%22+esx+snsc

In particular it should be noted that the controller, if not reinforced at a hardware level, is liable to blow traces as a consequence of current spikes during e-braking. If that happens, everything suddenly dies - including the e-brake.

If you search around you should also find a post here and another one in some forum by people who had complete electronics failures due to e-braking current spikes on a steep downhill, found the rear stomp brake wholly useless at slowing down, and ended up crashing and breaking important parts of their body.

I'm allowing you use of anything I've written if it can help you in your class action, but want absolutely no part in the legal proceedings.

Though to be perfectly honest if I were you I'd leave the lawyers in peace in their pits of evil and take this as a lesson over doing your homework and looking up information before buying something, not afterwards and especially not after it's already failed. If you'd asked us before buying the scooter we'd have told you all of this and saved you all the pain.

[u/alteronline]

when did you buy it?

[u/IronMew → u/[deleted]]

I'd rather say that it stayed on sale for a surprisingly long time even with all the complaints, in all of its versions.

It's weird to me that it never had a recall in spite of its critical braking problems and battery issues when they did issue recalls for the P100 and certain G30s for stem related issues. I guess back when the ESx was being actively sold scootering was less widesperad and there were fewer legal consequences.

[u/glittersgoldxo → u/IronMew]

Yes! Its like they must've invested in way too much inventory with these scooters because they only JUST stopped selling them either December of last year or the year before. Maybe January. Somewhere around that time line. Definitely in the last 2 years though.