Sales of electric bikes have spun into high gear this year — some merchants like Amazon are reporting a 6000% increase this summer from last year. This is good news, because, for short trips, the efficiency and convenience of electric bikes is hard to beat.
Here are some statistics that still amaze me: 40% of all trips are made within two miles of the home, and 50% of workers commute five miles or less to work.
I recently heard about an inexpensive electric bike conversion kit that appears to be of good quality. It’s offered by a family-run company called AmpedBikes. (more…)
A company called Ultra Motor has released a new electric bike called the A2B. This bike looks great - I like the functional, minimalist style. The A2B is designed for urban or suburban commutes. According to Ultra Motors, the A2B offers unassisted power on demand for up to 20 miles at a cruising speed of 20mph. At that speed it’s still categorized as a bicycle as opposed to a scooter, moped or motorcycle. No special license is required. (more…)
The Street Enlightened electric bike from IZip is a good example of a “stealth” electric bike –the batteries are concealed inside the bike’s frame (in the down tube), and the DC motor is integrated into the rear wheel. You don’t have to mention this fact to your fellow cyclists! The bike has a three hour charge time and an electric-assisted range of 23 to 30 miles (38 - 48 Km) with normal pedaling. The battery pack contains twenty 1.2V NiHM (Nickle Metal Hydride) cells, delivering 24V total.
The iZip Street available from Walmart.Com (select “Electric Bikes”) and Amazon.
Today, electric scooters or electric mopeds are just as powerful as their gasoline-powered counterparts, with the added advantage of being virtually silent, clean machines that can plug into a standard electrical socket to recharge. Typically, a charge will give you enough juice to travel 20-60 miles, depending on the scooter and battery system. Most scooter comes with lead-acid or nickle-metal hybrid (NiMH) batteries, but they can usually be upgraded to the more expensive lithium-ion batteries, which are lighter and last longer. A scooter’s top speed is usually limited or “governed” to 25-28 mph in the U.S. in order to be classified as a “moped”. (more…)
The Zapino scooter, made by ZAP, in a company better known for their electric cars, has been getting rave reviews. Many Zapino owners report that this scooter performs really well and is quite reliable (see here and here). It’s also relatively inexpensive, being sold for just under $3000. It has a powerful 3000-watt brushless DC hub motor, which, according to ZAP, makes it the most powerful scooter in its class. This motor is so powerful it can win drag races against gas scooters, with speed and acceleration that leaves the polluters in their own dust. It has a maximum speed of 30 mph, and can it’s range is “up to 30 miles per charge”. It will soon be possible to extend the range of the Zapino to 65 miles per charge, with an optional 60V 40AH lithium-ion battery.(more…)
The Vectrix is a 100% electric scooter that is available for sale in the U.S. This bike goes 62 mph, has a claimed range of 68 miles, and it accelerates faster than most cars at the stoplight. The Vectrix is powered by a low-mounted, 3.7 kilowatt NiMH battery pack that re-charges to 80 or 90 percent of capacity in two hours. Three hours is usually enough for a full charge, four if you start from flat empty. (more…)
Based in British Columbia, OHM Cycles make high-end electric bicycles that feature 38V lithium-ion batteries, regenerative braking and powerful BionX motors. The company offers two styles of electric bike: one built for the urban rider, and one suited to rugged terrain. (more…)
The Zero X Motorcycle was designed from the ground up to be a 100% electric bike. What makes this new bike truly different is that it contains 168 individual high-power lithium ion cells and is expected to endure six years of hard riding. Zero Motorcycle’s power grid technology has the highest power density (power storage per weight) battery pack on the market, delivering the full current of the battery pack immediately, safely and without overheating. (more…)
A to B Magazine is a comprehensive electric bike review magazine published in the U.K. Here’s their electric bike review page, where bikes are rated on a five star scale. Unfortunately, all of their 5 star bikes are only available in Europe. One brand that got a 4 star rating is the eZee electric bike range from South Africa, and these bikes are available in the U.S. from NYCEWheels.
Schwinn’s new range of electric bikes are finally available. These innovative bikes have electric motors and batteries integrated seamlessly into their design. Schwinn claims that the four pound Protanium® lithium polymer battery included with these bikes is the lightest and most durable on the market. One charge will last 40-60 miles. The battery also charges faster than those found on most electric bikes — they become fully charged in less than four hours. (more…)
There are only a few electric mountain bikes on the market, but electric motors can certainly assist with off-road riding. You can also build you own electric mountain bike by installing an electric motor kit onto an existing mountain bike. There’s also the Biontague, which is a mountain bike that has a electric kit pre-installed.
The best value for an electric mountain bike is the E-Zip Mountain Trailz Electric Bicycle, made by Currie Technologies. I’ve found that the range of a fully-charged battery is about 20 miles — that’s if you make liberal use of the electric assist. If you just use it to go up hills, the charge will last for about 30 miles. You can also add a second battery for $120 from Currie Technologies, that will double your range (but it will also increase the bike’s weight).
The Liberty Stealth Climber Mountain Bike is sold by Liberty Bikes in Pennslyvania. This bike has a 450 watt 36V motor and it’s powered by a lithium-ion battery. Electric-assist is engaged with a throttle, and motor will get you up to 18 mph. If you want to go faster than this, you can provide further pedal power using the 6 speed gears.
Weighing only 68 pounds, this mountain bike comes with our front and rear disk break systems. It also has built-in shock absorbers, and front and rear lights. Charging time is 4-6 hours, and the range is 20-27 miles. The bike is priced at $1275, but it looks like its being sold on eBay for $900.
A group at MIT has unveiled a scooter that folds in half, and collapses to the size of a suitcase. The low-cost bike could be carried on a bus or stored under your desk at work. A prototype of the new design was recently unveiled at the Milan Auto Show. According to William J. Mitchell of MIT’s Smart Cities Group, “the design is all about providing a clean, green, silent electronic scooter that would provide the same kind of urban mobility as motor scooters.” (more…)
Scheduled for release in early 2008, the iZip Express is an electric bike that will operate without a throttle. Instead, the bike has a special torque sensor that applies power as the rider requires it. Basically, the harder you pedal, the more the motor assists you. Test drivers have said that this automatic drive system is one of the most intuitive they’ve tried. The bike is said to have a 70+ mile range. (more…)
This could be a great commuting machine — it’s an electric-powered bike designed by the French company Matra. The bike was recently introduced at the Paris Motorshow. It has a range of 60 miles, in addition to the mileage you add by using pedal power. It has a top speed of 30 miles per hour, but this is an artificial limit set on the motor.
This customized bike, the Biontague, is a powerful combination of a folding bike and a lithium-ion powered electric motor. It was created by Electric Cyclery in Laguna Beach, California. They built the Biontague by taking a Montague Swiss Bike LX folding mountain bike (we featured this bike previously here) and fitting it with a Bionx PL350 electric conversion kit. The resulting electric bike offers speeds in the 20 MPH range, great hill climbing assistance, and a range of up to 60 miles on a 3-hour charge.
The Navitas is a bike trailer that generates its own power using the sun and wind. Designed by Paul Smith, a student at University of Derby in England, the trailer has a rear wheel that splits three ways to become a vertical axis turbine. There is also a compact solar panel to help to provide a charge to the onboard 24V battery. The battery provides power through a 12V cigarette lighter socket and a USB hub. I’m not sure how practical a wind turbine the wheel would make, but the idea is interesting nonetheless.
This compact electric bike, the EC-02 from Yamaha, costs just under $2000. First introduced in Japan two years ago, the EC-02 is similar to the Enertia motorcycle I wrote about recently in TreeHugger. But this scooter has more modest specs: a top speed of 18 MPH and a range of 40 miles. So it’s more suitable for commuters and scooting around in your neighborhood. There’s also a special iPod edition of the EC-02, that has a built-in iPod dock.
The maker of the popular Vespa family of scooters, Piaggio, is set to release a new series of scooters called “HyS” which will feature hybrid engines. The bikes will be electric plug-ins, and will boast 85% stronger acceleration. The parallel hybrid engine is remarkably small, requiring no visual modifications to the Vespa LX, Piaggio X8 or MP3 (seen here), while hugely improving the gas mileage of all three. Capable of recharging from a standard 220v European outlet, the scooters can travel up to 12 miles on electricity alone.
We recently featured the high-performance electric Optibike, which was mentioned in a New York Times article. Well, apparently you can build a equivalent electric bike for much less (for around $1,600). See the video for more details, and see notes on the bike’s design after the fold.
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