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Kalkhoff
Aggatu & Pro Connect
*****
£1,195+
You wait and
wait for a 5-star Giant Lafree replacement, then three come
along at once! Latest, and arguably the best are the
Kalkhoff Aggatu and Pro Connect. They use the latest version
of the Panasonic crank-motor we loved so much on the Lafree.
It's basically much the same as the Gazelle, but slightly
less well equipped, cheaper, and - in the case of the Pro
Connect - rather sportier. With three power settings, you
can opt for 40+ miles at low speed, or a much perkier 26
miles.
We have tested the Agattu in A to
B 63 and Pro Connect oin A to B 67 - see A
to B Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Smashing
German roadsters
Gazelle
Easy Glider *****
£1,460
We had almost given up hope of
finding a bike as good as the legendary Lafree, but here it
is. If you have £1,400 to spare (a big if), the Glider
has excellent equipment, modest power consumption, a useful
range of about 20 miles, and all sorts of other lovely
attributes. It isn't as fast as some, but - like the Lafree
- the performance is adequate. And if you live somewhere
very hilly, you will love the crank-motor and 8-speed
gearbox. For 2008 Gazelle is introducing a new model with a
larger battery (similar to the Agattu, above), but sadly
this is not retrofittable to older bikes. We have produced a
full review on the Gazelle Easy Glider in A to B 61. See
A to B
Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Delightful,
accomplished, classy Dutch
roadster
Brompton-Nano
*****
Typical kit
price £599+
Generally, we
don't recommend folding electric bikes, but this one is
light (14.4kg plus separate battery pannier), whisper quiet,
climbs big hills, and goes for miles and miles on a charge.
There has to be a downside: At the moment it's a kit, and
the kit isn't actually produced by Brompton (although the
company is said to be watching with interest), so we found a
few loose edges in the early sample we tried. But watch this
space - despite the niggles, it's a folding electric bike
that outclasses all others by a substantial margin.
We tested the Nano in A to B 60,
with a follow-up at 500 miles in A to B 61 - see
A to B
Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Superb
power-kit
Ezee
Range
****
From
£795
Ezee has
flirted with cheaper models such as the Rider, a budget bike
aimed at the Powabyke, but the Liv is a much better
machine - big NiMH battery and a good solid, fast bike,
although the price has crept up to £795. The Ezee
Sprint (now 7-speed) and folding Quando are almost as light
as the legendary Giant Lafree but with an assisted range
close to that of the cheaper (and much heavier) Powabyke.
Early models were easily the fastest in their respective
classes, and are now available with 'on-road/off-road'
switching. Despite some equally rapid price increases (now
£1,195), the Sprint continues to sell well,
having overcome early reliability problems, notably with the
motor drive gears and water ingress to the electrics. We
criticised the complicated power control system on our
pre-production model, but this has been replaced with a
straightforward twistgrip control in the UK, which is much
better.
Up market from the Sprint is the Cadence, which
everyone seems to love, and the Torq, a lighter,
faster, more conventional looking bike. Goes like stink -
see our preview in the Xmas 2005 magazine. The newer
Forte and Forza don't quite hit the spot in
the same way for us, but you might disagree.
Ezee has recently experienced problems with Li-ion
batteries, in common with manufacturers of other more
powerful machines. This now seems to be sorted, with a new
Sanyo battery coming on stream in May/June 2008, so battery
life should be much improved.
For full list of tests, see
A to B
Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
And here's some helpful independent advice on the Torq and
Quando: http://users.tinyworld.co.uk/flecc/torq.html
Quality
bikes from China
Sparta
Ion
****
From
£1,400
New to the UK,
the Ion overflows with high-tech features, and does just
about everything short of make the tea and giving you a nice
massage when you get home. It isn't particularly fast, it
doesn't go particularly far on a charge and it won't stomp
up 1:6 gradients, but it's a pretty bike, it feels
fast, and it oozes that indefinable IT factor. Not cheap to
buy or run, but when you ride it you feel good, and in our
book, that is enough to put it close to the top of the
pile.
We tested the Ion in A to B 58 in
early February 2007, see A
to B Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Lovely Dutch
roadster
Heinzmann
& E-Go
****
Power-assist
kit or complete bike
From
£425
The Heinzmann
motors are made in Germany and have a deserved reputation as
the best hub motors around - they're relatively quiet and
reliable, but starting to look a bit dated, although changes
are in the wings). Range is less than average, but with a
charge time of less than two hours, you'll be ready to do it
all over again after a leisurely pub lunch. Or at least, the
bike will. The motors are also available built-up into a
bike - the Heinzmann Estelle. Typically German, the Estelle
is a competent and well-equipped machine.
Most Heinzmann bikes use a rack-mounted NiMH battery, but
the kits are also available in the UK with cheaper, heavier
(and slower charging) lead-acid batteries as the E-Go.
We have a number of road-tests of the Heinzmann - see
A to B
Back Numbers
Reliable and
Sturdy
Dahon
Roo EL (SRAM
Sparc power) ****
Folding
bike
£1,200
The Sparc is a
great idea. It's a combined hub gear and electric motor,
saving both space and weight. The weak points are limited
power and relatively noisy operation, but the small battery
was upgraded in 2005, and new electronics mean a bit more
oomph. The Sparc-powered Dahon Roo will now whip the skin
from a rice pudding with ease, but don't expect to climb any
steep hills unless you're willing to pedal fairly hard. On
the positive side, the whole bike weighs 18.1kgs, making it
one of the lightest around, and of course, it's a folder.
Our only real grumble is with the price.
For prices and stockists, see
Electric
Price Tag
We have tested the 2002 and 2005 Dahon Roo EL. See
A to B
Back Numbers
Technically
interesting and much
improved
Powacycle
Salisbury & Windsor ***
From
£595
Powacycle is best
of the many cheaper newcomers. Prices start very low, but
ignore the cheap and cheerful jobs - take a serious look at
the Salisbury and Windsor (effectively gents and ladies
roadsters). For £500 these really are quite decent
machines - NiMH battery, reasonable equipment (don't expect
too much at this level) and range better than claimed, which
is most unusual. There's now a lithium-polymer variant too -
Powacycle was the first mass-market bike with this battery
chemistry - a lighter, but bigger battery for an extra
hundred quid.
We tested the Windsor in A to B 56, see A
to B Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Genteel,
budget roadsters
BionX
***
Estimated
kit price £845
The BionX is
available either as a kit for fitting to a normal bike, or
as a complete machine. It's the first regenerative system to
become widely available, but STILL not launched in the UK,
depsite numerous promises. The bike not only supplies power,
but can 'recycle' it on descents and when slowing down. It
relies on complex electronics to do this (which always makes
us nervous), but it has many good features - near silent
operation, reasonable range and reduced brake wear (the
motor does most of the braking). On the negative side, range
can be limited if you don't 'drive' the system carefully,
and hill-climbing is not very good.
We carried out a full review of
the BionX system in A to B 45, see A
to B Back Numbers
Clever
Canadian system
Izip
(Formerly
known as the Electrodrive or
Curry)
***
Power-assist
kit or complete bike
From
£350
Plenty of
confusion here, indicating just how volatile this market has
become. When we tested this kit back in April 2001, it
included a small but powerful motor that latched onto the
rear spokes on a typical bike. At the time, the Curry was
made in America, but production shifted to the Far East,
then something corporate happened and the venture split in
two, with two different designs coming out of different
factories, with different names and specifications... To
make matters worse, there have been endless debates over who
might or might not be the UK importer, resulting in a number
of possible contenders offering a number of different
kits... All we can say with any certainty is that the model
we tested was immensely strong, but technically illegal in
the UK. If you're looking for brute power without much
endurance, look no further. The current range appears to
include the same direct spoke-drive, a toothed belt variant
and a complete bike with unknown spec... In 2007, the bikes
settled down as Izip (also Meerkat, just to confuse you), a
(mostly) budget-priced range, made goodness knows where, but
still carrying the trademark external
motor.
For a full test, see A
to B Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Brute power,
with limited endurance
Giant
Suede & Twist ***
£599
The Suede caused quite a stir,
arriving in the UK for just £599, but it's nothing like
as good as the now defunct Lafree. Good news: quiet, easy to
use, cheap. Bad news: slow, indifferent hill-climber and now
apparently withdrawn from sale. The new Twist is very
similar to the Suede, so we've put them together. It's
better made, with a lot more range, but it shares all the
same ideosyncracies, plus batteries that are almost
impossible to remove. Not long ago, Giant was our top
electric brand, but with only the dreary Twist, Giant is on
the way down in the electric bike world...
We have one test of the Giant Suede and one of the new Twist
- see A
to B Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Bargain
price, quality brand, but
flawed
Schwinn
**
from
£1,099
This might have been a 5-star
bike, but it isn't. It shares the same motor as the
Nano-Brompton, with a smart high-tech battery pack under the
rack, and a range of stylish frames, from Dutch roadster to
state-of-the-art hybrid. Unfortunately, the electrics
haven't been thought through and ours failed twice under
load...
We have one test of the Schwinn Transit in A to B 62- see
A to B
Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Quality
brand, but some serious reliability
issues
Powabyke
**
From
£539
Powabyke produces a number of
mid-range bikes. With steel frames and lead-acid batteries,
these machines are heavy and crudely made by modern
standards, but they're solid and trusty, and there's a good
dealer network should something go wrong. In recent years,
we've been a bit dismissive, but we've seen the hitech stuff
come and go, and Powabyke is still plodding along, doing
very nicely by all accounts, so they must be doing something
right. No fancy stuff here - the Powabyke features a large
motor fed by the largest battery on the market, itself
weighing more than many conventional bikes. But range can
exceed 35 miles on a good day, and assisted speed is
generally close to 15mph. This is one of the few E-bikes you
can realistically ride any distance (20 miles plus) without
pedalling. When the chunky lead-acid battery finally hands
in its notice, there's a unique subsidised battery
reconditioning scheme that helps to keep running costs under
control.
Powabyke is toying with Lithium-ion batteries and alloy
frames, but it's a bit like putting carbonfibre spoilers on
a steam roller. They should stick to what they do best -
retrochic.
We have tested the Powabyke Classic, Folder, Euro and
Commuter - see A
to B Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
A chunky old
favourite
S-Drive
**
Power
assist kit or complete
bike
From
£599
An interesting
one this. The S-Drive (or, more correctly Schnachner) is
broadly similar to the Heinzmann, although it's designed in
Austria and made in the Far East. Until recently, the motor
was noisy, slow, and tended to shred it's drive gears. On a
more positive note, it was an efficient system, and the
dashboard ammeter helped you 'drive' the motor, giving
world-beating economy... in excess of 40 miles on our hilly
test route. The current situation is unclear, with a new
importer and a new belt drive system. If it works, it's
probably a great little hub.
We have tested the early version of the S-Drive - see
A to B
Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see
Electric
Price Tag
Unbeatable
range and efficiency, question mark over
reliability
Euro
Ebike (EV
Global in the USA)
**
£745 -
£1,299
Great things
were expected of the EV Global, the U.S. parent of these
bikes, but the market never took off there, so sales have
languished. The bottom-end Enviro is actually a Far-Eastern
badge-engineered machine, albeit quite a nice one, but the
LE and SX are everything you would expect from a U.S.
manufacturer - big, brash, stylish, well-equipped and fast,
but with limited range.
In European trim, the power has been capped to 200 watts,
and top speed from a heady 18mph to 15mph, to keep within
the law. However, the importers can also supply a Euro-spec
bike with a crafty switch for 'off-road' use, if you get our
drift.
With rather low pedal gearing, these machines are more moped
than bicycle, but stylish and classy all the same.
For specification and
distributors, see Electric
Price Tag
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Lots of
style, but limited
endurance
Bright
Bikes GR-8 **
Folding
bike
From
£749
The motor and
battery appear to be identical to the Bliss (see below), but
the GR-8 is a bigger, more rideable, folding bike.
Styling-wise, it works better than the Bliss, although
there's something uncomfortable about the proportions.
Weight is tolerable at 26kg, but it's a bit feeble and our
test sample failed. However, we're reassured that things are
now better.
For prices and stockists, see
Electric
Price Tag
We have tested the Bliss. See A
to B Back Numbers
Almost
right, but not quite
there
TGA
**
From
£765
TGA was a slightly mysterious
outfit based in Essex, that has now moved it's base up the
road to Suffolk, where the company concentrates on selling
mobility trikes. However, they still build a few of their
ancient electric bikes and trikes. With the accent on crude,
but simple technology, (allegedly a lorry windscreen wiper
motor driven by car batteries) the machines should be
reliable, and are certainly easily fixed when things go
wrong. For a few hundred pounds, you can buy a kit of parts
to convert a conventional bike.
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Ancient but
Reliable Brit technology
SolarTracker
**
From
£595
China exports vast numbers of
electric bikes, both good, bad and ugly... some of them
effortlessly achieving all three. The SolarTracker SLB
machines are better than most, being neatly styled, but like
the Powabyke, too expensive. When we tested it, the power
output was (deliberately) set very low, but we understand
they're now a bit nippier.
We have tested the SolarTracker SLB-2000 - see
A to B
Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
A neat
Powabyke clone
Thompson
*
From
£350
Thompson market a range of
well-equipped, bargain-basement Chinese electric bikes.
Whether you'd find one useful depends on what you're after:
These single-speed, very low geared machines are not really
designed to be pedalled, although a large battery propels
them for a fair mileage. A good choice for older, less
active folk.
We have tested the Thompson Euro-Classic, Euro-City and
Euro-Tourer - see A
to B Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Value for
money oldie-transport
E-Bike
*
From
£400
Like the
Thompson range, these two bikes - the Retro and Cruiser -
are cheap and cheerful Chinese imports. However, the Retro
is the crudest machine we've seen, and they're not quite so
cheap, so you won't be quite so cheerful. The well-equipped
Cruiser might be worth looking at, but bear in mind that the
low saddle and even lower gearing make pedalling almost
impossible. And don't expect to stop in a hurry.
For prices and stockists, see
Electric
Price Tag
We have tested the E-bike Retro and Cruiser. See
A to B
Back Numbers
Value for
money Chinese jobbies for non-pedalling
types
Oxygen
Atala
*
From
£699
Oh dear oh dear. It's almost
beyond belief that a machine this poor could have made it on
to the market, but here it is - Italian with US
characteristics. Without dwelling too long in this dreary
place, the Oxygen is over-weight, over-priced, unstable,
under-powered and much else besides. In the test, we summed
up by saying '...the wrong sort of motor, drawing too much
power from the wrong sort of batteries, mounted in the wrong
place...', which just about covers it. Still, the Italians
are very good at photographing attractive young ladies, so
we must forgive them.
We have tested the Oxygen Atala once, and will almost
certainly never return - see A
to B Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Hopeless
bike, but sexy
photography
Others
**
£300-£600
There are now so many cheap
Ebikes flooding in from China it's impossible to rate them
separately. However, there are three broad classes:
1) Wierd, dodgy-looking little folders. Keep well
away - they are heavy, unreliable and with limited range. It
will be one of the worst things you've ever wasted £300
on
2) Super-snazzy MTB-style machines. Sheep in Wolf's
clothing. Mostly heavy, crude and impractical. Aimed at
people with more money than sense and selling like Hot
Cakes, which is a bit depressing.
3) Facsimiles of successful machines. Less clear cut
(see Powacycle above), but we haven't yet found a copy of -
for example - the Giant Twist, or Honda Compo that was worth
buying. Electric bikes are high-technology machines... it's
generally not worth buying something from a market trader
(we may be proved wrong though).
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Mostly a
complete waste of garage
space
Out
of Production (or no UK
distributor):
Aprilia
*
Out of
production, but may still be in the shops
Aprilia's Enjoy has been
withdrawn, and we're not surprised. It looked the part,
thanks to some wicked Italian styling and lots of techy
bits, but it was inefficient, over-priced, poorly designed
and generally a bit of an also-ran. And you needed a
mortgage for a replacement battery...
We have tested the Aprilia Enjoy Race - see A
to B Back Numbers
Best
forgotten - a complete disaster
area
Bliss
*
Folding
bike
From
£699
We liked the
tiny motor and NiMH battery, but the Bliss proved a bit
disappointing. It's reasonably light, but horrible to ride,
poorly geared and over-priced. And the claims are
unrealistic - it will not do 20-30 miles. It survived our
test, but we wish it had broken down and gone back where it
came from.
For prices and stockists, see
Electric
Price Tag
We have tested the Bliss. See A
to B Back Numbers
Rather
unpleasant, but good in parts
Eco-Bike
Tornado, Hurricane etc *
From
£895
We had a few
problems with our test prototype Tornado, and the importer
seems to have disappeared.
For prices and stockists, see
Electric
Price Tag
Let down by
hardware and software
faults
ETC
*
Power
assist kit or complete
bike
Reduced to
£90
This sounded
jolly clever - you whip off the back mudguard from a
standard bike and mount the battery/motor unit over the
wheel. In practise, the friction drive sliped wildly in the
wet, the system was horribly heavy, and the frumpy lead-acid
batteries provided a laughably short range of just a few
miles at lethargic speed. This was a seriously inefficient
machine - ETC has now ceased trading.
For specification and distributor,
see Electric
Price Tag
For a full test, see A
to B Back Numbers
Heavy, slow,
crude and overpriced.
RIP
Giant
Lafree *****
From
£899
Giant's first Lafree was a
dreadful thing, but the classic machine, produced between
2000 and 2006 was a superb bike. Just to confuse you, this
started life as the Lafree Twist, became generically known
as the Lafree, but the Lafree branding was later dropped, so
they became Giant Twists. Giant has now withdrawn the bike,
but it's still tops in our book, so still a 5-star electric
bike. The Lafree (sorry, Twist) is a proper bicycle, with
power-assistance. Designed by Giant's Dutch arm, this
attractive machine looks like a Dutch roadster, and includes
such features as a step-thru frame (or not if you prefer),
lots of practical accessories, hub gears and quiet
trouble-free Panasonic motor assist. At around 20 miles,
range is better than average, and the battery is one of the
smallest and lightest around, so if you can afford it, buy
two. Efficiency is unsurpassed.
Problems? After four years, the bikes themselves are proving
extremely reliable, but there have been a few battery and
charger faults. Giant had to withdrawn the original
Panasonic charger, replacing it with a Metco unit while the
problem was fixed, but the last machines were back to
Panasonic - watch this if buying a bike.
Developments for 2006 included a larger battery,
retrofittable to all models and complete destruction of the
Lafree range. Still that's multinationals for you. We've
heard that secondhand prices are now rising fast, but we'd
consider the Lafree a good buy for anything under
£900. Like
all thoroughbreds they can be a bit highly-strung, and we've
had a report or two of complete electronics failure - with
spares being run down, this could be a
problem.
We have several Twist tests: E-series (this is something
different), Lite, Comfort, Comfort ST, and Comfort at 2,000,
3,500 and 5,000 miles - see A
to B Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Rest in
Peace. A modern classic - will be remembered as the best
electric bicycle of its era
Honda
Step Compo
***
Folding
bike
£1,095
Beautifully
made in Japan, the Step Compo was an electric folder that
really worked. Plus points include superb styling, good
folding and light weight, bad points have to include the
four-figure price tag and limited range form a microscopic
battery.
Why the past-tense? It's out of production, but Honda never
tell us anything, so we can't be absolutely sure... And
beware of Chinese imitations, which look just as pretty, but
are heavy, with limited range.
We have one test of the Honda Step Compo - see
A to B
Back Numbers
Stylish and
fun, but no longer on
sale
Sinclair
Zeta 2 & 3
*
Out of
production, but may still be in the shops
Sir Clive Sinclair has a
track-record of superb technical and design innovation, but
since the not-quite-right C5, his record on transport has
been less than meteoric. The Zeta power-assist attachments
were noisy, underpowered and effectively useless. They have
now been withdrawn. We've awarded one star because they were
cheap, so if you insist on buying one you won't have wasted
too much money.
We have tested the Zeta kits - see A
to B Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Effectively
useless
Viking
*
From
£800
Chunky lead-acid batteries and
friction drive... it doesn't sound very promising, and it
isn't. There are lots of rather gimmicky extras, which might
appeal if you like that kind of thing, but they certainly
don't justify the £800 price tag.
We have tested the Viking - see A
to B Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Way, way
over-priced
Zap!
**
£350
or $350
The basis of the design is a
simple, quiet, reliable motor driving straight onto the
tyre. Powered by a similarly cheap, reliable lead/acid
battery, the Zap (either a complete bike or easily-fitted
kit) is a surprisingly good performer, outpacing all other
friction drives. There are one or two disadvantages - the
friction roller tends to slip in the wet unless you choose
the tyre with care, and the roller wears out fairly quickly,
although later models are ceramic rather than steel.
Otherwise, a great little performer for the price. Out of
production for a while, the Zap reappeared, but has now
finally bitten the dust, overwhelmed by much cleverer
technology from China.
We have tested the Zap kit and Zap/Brompton adaption - see
A to B
Back Numbers
For prices and stockists, see Electric
Price Tag
Simple,
crude and effective friction drive system
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