Throw some bags on the rear, and you’ve got a great little flatland bike for grocery runs or potting around your retirement community. There are a lot of good ideas on this bike, but it still feels more like a bike designed by a committee that was told, “Build an electric bike so we can get some great press! ” than a group that actually understood electric bikes, or even had a real mission for this bike. It’s a heavy city cruiser with a little bit of power bolted on, driven by a battery pack that makes no sense except as a way to gather press for a particular type of battery. It got a lot of positive press for Schwinn and Toshiba, but it’s not a very good electric bike. Even when it came out, the 350W BionX packs were setting a standard, and this bike missed it – badly.
Oh, and it has hydraulic brakes, a custom stem for quick adjusting and folding for storing in compact paces, pre-slimed 20″ x 3″ tires, lights, fenders, and wheel guards all included. This fat bike takes the idea of a an all-terrain e-bike and bolts on a turbo unit. The schwinn mountain bicycles QuietKat Apex is the company’s top-shelf all-terrain e-bike, featuring a Bafang mid-drive motor for a more responsive ride and better performance on hills. This e-bike has the power necessary to take riders into the backcountry and the range to bring them back out.
Falling somewhere in the upper part of “in-between” is the Priority Current. At a few hundred bucks upward of $3,000, it’s certainly not spendthrift but it’s also not among the more unattainably priced ebikes. I mostly used the motor in pedal-assist mode, though I will cover the throttle in the next section. The motor on this bike is very aggressive in that is starts up quickly with even the slightest movement of the pedal, and it goes hard. When riding with level 5 assistance my pedals were free-spinning most of the time even on the highest gear. The bulk of electric bikes cost anywhere from $1,500 to around $2,500, and there are hundreds of models in this price range.
One of the most affordable e-bikes right now is Rad Power’s RadMission, a city bike with commuter potential. For $899, you get a stripped-down single-speed that moves along at 20 mph with a throttle to help you get up to speed or the top of punchy hills. Don’t expect to ride across the state on these bikes, either. The highest range in this list is 70 miles, but most average about 45. Like gas mileage in a car, real-world results vary depending on what assist level you use, terrain, and more.
A lock in the side of the battery pack turns the power on and off. A separate charger is included that can be plugged into any conventional AC wall outlet. Finally, the position of the plug connector for the battery pack means it can only be recharged when taken off the bike. It would be more convenient mongoose bmx if it could be left in position on the bike and plugged in. While it could use a little boost to a 500 watt motor to help on the hills, the smaller motor keeps the price lower. If you’re looking for a solid ebike to help you get around on-road and off, definitely check out the Schwinn Marshall.