If you want to go adventuring into the woods on two wheels, there are more choices out there than you might think. For many, the answer is to charge or fuel up a traditional motorcycle and hit the trails. For others, the answer is a set of two narrow wheels and pedals. The motorcycle and the bicycle have been around for over a century, but now there’s a third option. A Sur-Ron Ultra Bee is light and nimble like a bicycle but capable like a motorcycle and legally, somewhere in no-man’s-land. Let’s see how they compare!
We’ve covered a lot of electric motorcycles here from the cheap and cheerful to the ostentatious. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, regardless if you like your bikes powered by dead plants or by juicy electricity, there’s something out there for everyone. Still, a surprising number of you have asked for some coverage on the little machine we’re going to talk about today. Sur-Ron seems to be making a name for itself among riders and reviewers alike.
For today’s Autopian Drive-In, we’re taking a look at these sort of but not really motorcycles through the lenses of Fortnine, a retailer of motorcycle parts and home of high-production quality motorcycle videos hosted by Ryan and friends. Recently, Fortnine uploaded a shootout between a Sur-Ron Ultra Bee, a Suzuki DRZ-400, and an eBike.
A What?
Like many of the brands I’ve covered before, Sur-Ron isn’t exactly a household name. The brand was founded in 2014 in China by a trio of motorcycle enthusiasts. The company scored $30 million in funding to build what it called an “e-dirt bike.”
Sur-Ron’s approach to this idea is a bit different. Its engineers designed a skeletal machine that blends the best parts of a motorcycle and a bicycle into one unit. The company launched its first electric bike in 2018, immediately straddling universes of eBike and motorcycle. The first Sur-Ron Light Bee bike had a 2kWh battery, a 50-mile range, an 8 HP motor, and a 50 mph top speed all wrapped up in a dirt bike frame and weighing in at 110 pounds. See what I mean when I say a Sur-Ron is more than an eBike, but not quite a motorcycle?
Well, Sur-Ron has continued to develop this concept and it has gotten even better, so let’s see how the scrappy electric dirt bike thing competes against the categories it straddles.
Sur-Ron vs Everyone Else
At the start of Ryan’s test, we meet up with Fortnine’s mechanic 44, a new character in the YouTube channel’s universe who is often seen reviewing gear and showing you how to do DIY projects. Our lovable 44 takes the Suzuki while a cyclist takes the eBike.
The first test is something I’m sure a few motorcyclists have encountered before. You’ve hauled your bike out to the trails in the back of your truck but oh no, you’ve left the ramps at home! Which of the three two-wheelers is easiest to load?
While Ryan is explaining the test, the cyclist gets the eBike in and out of the truck bed in three seconds. It’s an easy win owing to the fact that eBikes are still lightweight bicycles. What will be interesting will be seeing how the two bigger rides perform.
Ryan and the Sur-Ron are up next. As he pivots the front wheel into the truck bed with some relative ease, Ryan explains the Sur-Ron has a battery density of over 200 watt hours per kilogram, roughly similar to a Tesla. This translates to some impressive stats. The Sur-Ron Ultra Bee packs a 4.07 kWh lithium ion battery pack (74V/55Ah) yet it weighs just 187 pounds. Helping the bike shave weight is its forged aluminum frame, forged aluminum swingarm, and other lightweight parts. In other words, the bike is light, but still as strong as it needs to be. The Ultra Bee’s balance is also a desirable 50/50.
To put this weight into perspective, Ryan points out that the Sur-Run weighs 22 pounds less than a Yamaha YZ125 motocross bike. Heck, it’s lighter than both Ryan and myself! As another example of the Sur-Ron’s abilities, Ryan gracefully rides out of the truck bed, getting some glorious hangtime along the way.
Last to the tailgate is 44 and the Suzuki.
Getting the traditional motorcycle in was an immediate challenge. Depending on the configuration, a DRZ-400 weighs about 322 pounds wet. Fortnine’s 44 tried a clever trick in getting the motorcycle into the truck by lifting the front tire onto the back of the tailgate. He then attempted to throttle the motorcycle into the bed, which didn’t work.
The Hillclimb
Our next challenge is a steep hillclimb featuring loose dirt. Mechanic 44 explains that how far each bike makes it up will determine how much power each bike puts down. It would seem to be a good test of traction as well.
The Suzuki is up first, and it’s bringing some respectable power to the table. It comes with a 398cc single cylinder and new ones are rated at 39 HP and 29 lb-ft of torque. In the test, 44 makes it about halfway up before the rear tire starts digging in.
Ryan is next and the Sur-Ron starts with a kick and a wheelie. The little bike is rated for a peak of 16.7 HP, a top speed of 56 mph, and Sur-Ron says that motor can do 325 lb-ft of torque. Things look great until it gets to about where the Suzuki failed. Then the Sur-Ron starts losing traction and Ryan falls down not far from where the Suzuki calls it quits. Ryan explains that its not the fault of the Sur-Ron’s 37mm inverted fork or the monoshock in back. Both of those are adjustable and both ends have 9.4 inches of travel.
Instead, Ryan believes it was the 19-inch tires that did the Sur-Ron in, explaining that a taller 21-incher would have performed better, but Sur-Ron likely chose the smaller wheel and tire setup to maintain the bike’s 87-mile maximum range. Still, Sur-Ron developed the bike with larger wheels in mind so if you want more off-road capability the decision is up to you.
Lastly, we have the electric bicycle, which doesn’t even make it to where the Suzuki does.
The Black Diamond Enduro Trail
It’s now the cyclist’s turn to choose a challenge and he chooses what is called the “Widowmaker West,” a black diamond enduro trail that just so happens to be a kilometer loop. The challenge here is to complete as many laps as possible before running out of fuel, juice, or leg-power.
The cyclist explains that this one should be an easy win for the eBike as he’ll just pedal until he gets tired, then switch on the eBike’s power. By then, both the Sur-Ron and the Suzuki have to be out of the game, right?
This test will also show how quickly each vehicle and their rider can get through the forest terrain. It’s here where Ryan explains that Sur-Ron gives you a ton of different settings for crafting the perfect ride. You can adjust motor regen, brake regen, throttle response, brake-motor cutoff, power modes, and traction control. Ryan explains that the traction control is a marvel. See, dirt can support only so much power, so traction control limits wheelspin so the bike puts down just the right amount of power to go as fast as it can.
The Suzuki is old-school, of course, relying on its rider’s brain to find maximum traction and a 3.9-gallon fuel tank for range.
Fortnine’s video of the test show that the motorcycle and the Sur-Ron were made for this sort of thing. Both vehicles blaze through the narrow and obstacle-filled trails. The Suzuki is shown getting stuck, but only for a brief amount of time.
At the end of the enduro, the Sur-Ron put down 44 laps, or 44 kilometers (27 miles) over about two and a half hours. The test stopped only when the Sur-Ron went into limp mode with 44 behind the bars. Speaking of the number 44, that’s how many laps the Suzuki completed, but it’s notable that the Suzuki still had plenty of fuel while the Sur-Ron was dead.
Despite that, both 44 and Ryan felt they were faster on the Sur-Ron because they were always in the right “gear,” their feet were always in the right place, and the traction control is working at a blink of an eye to keep as much power down as possible. Of course, the Sur-Ron is also narrower and lighter, both great attributes.
As another show of the Sur-Ron’s abilities, Ryan and 44 play a game of HORSE. Really, it’s just Ryan showing off what the electric enduro could do. The instant torque allows the Ultra Bee to wheelie while its light weight allows Ryan to hop over obstacles. The Ultra Bee also pulls an easy 180, reverses under its own power, and does donuts. The Suzuki couldn’t do any of it.
The eBike was also no match, having completed only three laps in the time it took the Sur-Ron and the Suzuki to do 44 laps.
Next, the channel substitutes the eBike for a Sur-Ron Light Bee. As Ryan explains, the original Light Bee mixes the strong electrical components with bicycle parts. It didn’t take long for people to figure out how to crank up the power and as Ryan explains, some modded Light Bees beat sports cars off of the line. In a demonstration of this, the overpowered Light Bee wins a drag race between the three.
Different Strokes For Different Folks
A new Suzuki DRZ-400S costs $7,000 while the Sur-Ron Ultra Bee is $5,830 ($7,999 CAD). The eBike was also roughly $6,000. So, really, you just choose your style of riding and go for it.
Only the Sur-Ron Light Bee X is for sale in the United States for $4,400. For that price, you get about half of the battery, half the range, half the power, no lights, but just 123 pounds of weight. Or, as Ryan explains, you can find them for much cheaper online at sites like Alibaba. However, the Sur-Rons from unofficial retailers will have scratched out VINs, ensuring that, depending on where you live, you won’t get an ORV sticker or a plate. You’ll also have to trust that you’ll actually get your bike from the unknown retailer on those third-party sites.
Fortnine’s 44 does point out that Sur-Rons sit in this weird sort of legal no-man’s land. As 44 points out, neither the Ultra Bee nor the Light Bee are street-legal, and Sur-Ron’s American distributors are quick to point that out. So, they are relegated to sharing bike lanes and are treated like bikes. But, because they have motorcycle performance, Sur-Rons can be seen storming down bike lanes and bike trails at crazy speeds.
At the same time, the Sur-Ron also has a load limit of just 220 pounds. So, it can do more than a motorcycle, so long as you’re nearly as lightweight as the Sur-Ron itself.
In the end, while the Ultra Bee reigned supreme in Fortnine’s tests, Ryan concludes that really, all three of the guys are the same. They all just want to have the most fun for the least money and each person has their own way of doing it. The Sur-Ron is a great alternative to an eBike as it packs a ton of power and capability in a lightweight package for the same price. It could also be a good alternative to an electric motorcycle if you don’t care about legality. Really, it seems to be just plain fun, too. Just, be nice to the other people in the trails and bike lanes.
(Screenshots: Fortnine on YouTube)
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Mercedes, you are doing all the fun stuff. The Suron is a ton of fun.Yes, a little heavy. Luna in El Segundo was early in the Suron game and the owner is a character. I have this
https://krankedbikes.com/
On a YT Capra, it would be a $10k plus bike if it was Specialized with all the Fox Racing stuff. Anyway, power to weight ratio of a 125cc motorcycle. Battery is wore on back, allows/forces more body movement/control?. It’s a little scary, top speed it around 45. Bjorn the proprietor is also a character, it seems to be a theme among electric bike guys who are good at it.
The Sur-Ron does not have pedals and is therefore not an e-bike. Just as the author states; But, because they have motorcycle performance, Sur-Rons can be seen storming down bike lanes and bike trails at crazy speeds. This is exactly why so many people want to ban all e-bikes from traditional bike paths & MTB trails. The Sur-Ron is NOT a bicycle in any way, shape, or form & by riding it on bicycle paths you are doing the e-bike community more harm than good. I have a winter home in a large community in Florida and due to only a couple of Sur-Rons speeding down the bike paths, a great number of residents are calling for a ban on all e-bikes. They belong on an off-road motorcycle trail only.
This right here. I live in bike land (utah) and I am already seeing the calls to ban all ebikes which is bullshit but people are idiots and do this kinda crap with them.
This whole article and nothing about “bikelife” come on now. That’s the bread and butter of Sur Ron. Kids doing wheelies at street takeovers.
I don’t think I’ve seen a “vehicle” as polarizing as the SurRons.
Now Yamaha and some of the other folks have some actual downhill e-bikes that look like they could maybe hold up okay against an actual dirtbike.
That 220lb limit is going to be making a lot of big boys cry. I can’t believe how many excessive calorie holding folks I see down-hilling at mountains. Bikes like this will be cracked down on fast over the next few years I am thinking as far as public road and trail use. For property owners wanting to cruise around or farmers looking for a new farm bike, this looks amazing.
I don’t see a grey area Sur Ron’s bike is an electric motorcycle so it belongs on OHV trails and dirt roads and is prohibited from MTB trails bike lanes and bike paths, no different than a CRF125R.
A few years ago someone was making ultralight motorcycles using downhill mountain bike components. Substituting an electric motor for gas on one of these would be good direction for a trail bike.
Yep
But that’s not what happens. As these things are silent, and small enough, people do just ride them on MTB trails (or where ever they want really) with little consequence. And while I’ve still got little time for e-mtbs (slowly coming around), at least they tend to have some trail awareness, even if they are missing a fair chunk of the etiquette that goes with it. From what I’ve seen, e-motorbikers in this category DGAF.
Technically… you can put pedals on them and crank the wattage down and it’s a really heavy ebike depending on local restrictions. You can also plate them as mopeds (with the pedal kit) in some places.
These things are mega popular in SoCal
This is not in any meaningful way a bike, it’s an electric motorcycle. It has no business on bike trails and they can’t regulate that soon enough.
That said, I’m sure these are super fun and as a silent sports enthusiast I would love it if the off road community would move to electric sooner rather than later so I don’t have to listen to them from 5 miles away every time I’m anywhere near a trail. I could even see owning one of these myself some day.
Tbh, they are regulated. Clearly just a motorcycle as it fails all of the class 1/2/3 standards. But enforcement isn’t up to stratch and so people want to make even more rules that already cover the problem this is.
Is it? Around me there are a very few trail systems that specify which class of ebike is allowed, but many are either silent on the matter or only say “pedal-assist”, which is not really helpful since that includes a huge range of ebikes, some of which do not belong on these trail systems.
I get the feeling most places are trying to just ignore the problem because ebikes are still relatively new, but as places with a large audience like the Autopian and FortNine tell people it’s okay to ride their electric motorcycle on a bike trail because it’s not road-legal it’s going to become more common.
I realize there’s no perfect solution. We also have people on gas motorcycles come tear up our bike trails every once in a great while, despite their being signs all over the place saying “No Motorized Vehicles”, but it’s not even clear whether that applies to ebikes. They clearly have a motor, but people are definitely riding them on these trails, so are they poaching? I’m not even sure, and we need a lot more clarity around that.
I mean when a Surron doesn’t even pretend to have pedals… it clearly fails the “bikes and pedestrians” only test.
I do expect more places will eventually restrict to clases of bikes as well though.
I completely agree. My concern is stuff like this line in the article:
Under no circumstances should this be treated as a bike or ride in a bike lane/trail.
I can’t say for everywhere, but that is ***not*** common or normal for them to be treated like bikes. That is just a factual error by the people pushing these motorcycles. The 1/2/3 ebike class has strict rules and this doesn’t meet them. It has too much power, it goes too fast, and it cannot be human powered.
They are electric motorcycles. Nothing more or less.
Why? Is it the weight or the speed that bothers you?
As a traditional cyclist and pedestrian I don’t mind sharing the path with quiet, lightweight electric motorcycles so long as they comply with the speed limits of those paths and present no more of a danger or obstacle than anyone else there. I want to encourage people to get out of gas powered cars as much as possible and to me lightweight electric motorcycles are a great mobility solution.
The speed shouldn’t be a problem. Most bike trails I use have a speed limit of 15 mph. For example a speed limited “bike trail mode” with a special flashing light to clearly indicate compliance could easily fix that, especially if its geofence triggered. Bonus points for the bike automatically recording speeds to prove you were in compliance if questioned.
Weight is a bigger problem. A heavy cycle moving at the speed limit hitting a pedestrian would not be a good thing. Perhaps the solution there is to use kinetic energy as the benchmark so overloaded bikes have a lower speed limit like 3 axle trucks on a roadway. I’d think its possible to use weight sensors, motor controller feedback and a speedometer to figure out how to make that work.
This is a problem in my area. We already have rules in place on our area trails, but there is little enforcement and mostly just volunteer help to rebuild the trails on a more frequent basis. The city and county complains, people get riled up and want more rules, and then we end up with more regulation that never gets enforced. It’s the same issue we also have with SxS owners destroying ATV trails.
Absolutely, or ATVs destroying snowmobile trails. The game is really futile without fair and consistent enforcement
As a DR-Z400 owner, I gotta to say that it’s unfair to compare the Sur Ron to one of those pigs. The grey zone between MTB and gas MX bike is a real sweet spot for fun electric motorcycles, and I’ll be curious what kinds of experiments happen with hub motors and 2WD in that space.
Unfortunately, it also means some serious damage to MTB trails unless people start to get serious about treating these (but not electric-assist MTBs) as motorcycles.
But can I do a BDR loop with the Sur-Ron? Also Fortnines videos are the most well produced when it comes to motorcycle content on Youtube. His K bike video was glorious
[knife review] “but can I eat soup with it?”
As a mountain biker, I absolutely loathe these things for the nitwits that take them out on the mtb trails and tear them up. Regulations for these gray area bikes can’t come soon enough. Just because you slapped some pedals on a scooter doesn’t make it a bicycle. Imo if it can be throttle powered at any time that makes it a scooter/motorcycle.
Big issue this is. Calling them e bikes I think has really made it harder to get people to not ride mountain bike trails. They are literally dirt bikes.
Conversely, these are what people think of whenever the issue of pedal assist e-bikes on mtb trails comes up. Some trail users are vehemently anti-ebike because they’re thinking of these roosting corners and rutting up the trails.
Me, I’m fine with the pedal assist. I’ve ridden with guys on them and kept up with them fine on my regular MTB. The assist just helped these older guys get out and continue to enjoy the trails.
This is still a problem with ebikes though. They allow you to put down inhuman amounts of power, not just make up for a deficit in the less-physically-fit. It’s especially a problem in winter here when they take e-fat bikes on snow trails and absolutely tear the crap out of them.
Road legal class3 in the US is broadly (though not universally) defined as 750W. Which is very near to the peak that a human can do for a min or so. In sub 30sec sprints, professional humans are capable of 1000-2500W, but are gassed after.
The “problem” is non-compliant bikes that pump out 3000W+ sustained, ridden badly. ATVs exist too and suck ass for snow trails even more.
Yeah, regulations are sorely needed here, as much as I’m sure that will piss off a wide swath of the population. There are too many people who look at ebikes as a motorcycle they can ride on bike trails instead of as a bike that lets them ride for a little longer than they otherwise could.
I agree, pedal assist ebike good! Both on and off road kind.
IMO the presence of a throttle shouldn’t matter if it is indeed capable of direct propulsion under human power and the electrical assist is limited to 28 MPH as class 3 reqs do. Throttles are incredibly helpful safety factors in urban cycling, just as brakes are. They make intersections much safer for cyclists as well as stop-go traffic.
Now obviously these 50MPH non-pedal powered dirt bikes are just that. Not eBikes at all.
I think 20mph should be the limit for vehicles around pedestrians. 28mph is much too fast for sidewalks and multi-use paths. Pedals vs throttle has been the dividing line between bikes, no reason that can’t continue in the electric era.
Now what this really points out is how car-centric our infrastructure is. If we had dedicated bicycle-only infrastructure, then yeah go for it. But with how car centric everything is, it really makes those gray market bikes appealing and puts the responsibility in the owners’ hands and I’m not so sure it should be. I’m already loathe to those who blow by, inches away from me on the Riverwalk and it’s only getting worse.
I’m not in favor of bikes on normal sidewalks regardless the situation, and certainly not at 28mph.
But being able to keep up with legal city/town traffic is the #1 way to make it usable and safe. 20mph is just less safe for everyone on the road (yes sidewalks should be way slower than that).
All of my prior comment was on the assumption that it was ‘share the road’ not ‘hog the sidewalk’. Definitely for anything with peds, I’m in favor of a 15mph limit or less.
I do a regular morning walk for a couple of hours in a park along a river. I already don’t like bicycles much because the casual weekend riders come up behind me silently at 15 mph or so.Good riders give me a call or a bell; I raise my arm to show I heard and stay right. Stupid riders graze my elbow. Worse is when there are two or three who pass in series.I’m talking about The Spandex Posse, here. Oddly the e-bikes with pedals are usually older people riding slowly and politely.
I’m only started to see assholes riding these kind of e-scooters/ motorcycles in the park (illegally). The other day there were 3 together and some guy shooting drone footage. Maybe it was just for the footage, but they were sure cooking it. Silently. A bit unhappy about them hitting 25 or more mph. On the weekends when the paths are crowded, sooner of later somebody walking is going move into the middle of the path and get shredded. I’m wondering:
Do these require licensing as with license plates? That would make keeping the off walking trails a lot easier. I don’t care what they do if the stay off the walking trails.
Grump Monkey Mode disengaged.
I have a class 2 ebike with a throttle. I use the throttle occasionally to propel the bike around at 1-2mph when I’m starting in too high a gear or need to make a super tight turn to jump up on the sidewalk to push the crosswalk button.
Agree. I have no problem with e-ASSIST bikes, but these things are pretty much MX bikes and do not belong on mtb trails or bike paths. Also, the vision of these roosting trails and digging ruts is what most of the anti-ebike crowd thinks of when they hear the term “e-bike”. I know some older guys that ride E-assist mtbs, they don’t move unless you’re pedaling, and I kept up with them just fine under my own power on my conventional mtb. It just helps them stay out on the trail as they get older and/or are recovering from injuries. I have ZERO problem with those on any MTB trail.
As more and more people are using twist-throttle e-bikes as transportation, I’m soon they’ll be more regulated soon enough. As a road cyclist as well, I’m tired of seeing these things flying through traffic and stops signs, a lot of times being ridden by kids. Recently I saw a teenage girl blow through a stop sign, with her cell phone in her right hand. Anything happens and she panics, with only her left hand on the bar she’ll be grabbing a handful of FRONT brake.
I live near(ish) a mixed use urban park, designaed for multi-use which means off leash dogs and cycling are A-OK. I’ve been frequenting the area with dogs for years, and for similar reasons e-bikes are a fucking menace. To be clear, the park is dog park 1st use, cycling is secondary by number of users.
With terrain limitations (where trails are or aren’t well packed) and just the physical ability and to quickly cross grass/side trails, regular bikes were never a problem in the completely unpaved park. E-bikes mean that dramatically less skilled riders can go faster than any cyclist could in the same areas. That any anyone riding a non assisted bike that fast was almost always someone with a lot of seat time and bike control to match. Now you have out of shape yahoos bombing around in ways that wouldn’t be possible with all human powered machines.
One thing that makes a Sur-ron a no go for me is that they can’t be made street legal. If they made a dual sport ultra-bee then I would be much more inclined.
“One thing that makes a Sur-ron a no go for me is that they can’t be made street legal.”
So what? If its legally considered a bike and can use bike lanes (and bike paths) why not just do that?
Its not legally considered a bike in many regions, as it is impossible to pedal.
“Its not legally considered a bike in many regions, as it is impossible to pedal”
YMMV:
“Fortnine’s 44 does point out that Sur-Rons sit in this weird sort of legal no-man’s land. As 44 points out, neither the Ultra Bee nor the Light Bee are street-legal, and Sur-Ron’s American distributors are quick to point that out. So, they are relegated to sharing bike lanes and are treated like bikes. But, because they have motorcycle performance, Sur-Rons can be seen storming down bike lanes and bike trails at crazy speeds”.
The legal definition of ” bicycle”:
“Bicycle” includes, but is not limited to, a human-powered vehicle designed to transport by the act of pedaling which has more than two wheels when the vehicle is used on a public roadway, public bicycle path, or other public road or right-of-way, but does not include a tricycle.
https://definitions.uslegal.com/b/bicycle/
Check your local laws carefully. You might be able to ride a ” bicycle” pedals or no.
That was a lot of text by mercedes, but most places do not allow random unregulated stuff in bike lanes either…. yes YMMV, but I would be willing to bet there is a lot less gray area than is being presented, at least without a liscense or registration.
FWIW we in California can if the bike lanes/bike ways are adjacent to a roadway or if the locals say its OK:
“Mopeds and high-speed electric bikes are not like regular bikes. Gas-powered bicycles and type 3 electric bicycles (with top assisted speeds of 28 mph) may not be used on trails, bike paths, or bike lanes unless allowed by local authorities. They may be used in bike lanes or separated bikeways adjacent to the roadway. VEH 21207.5 They require helmets and may not be operated by people under age 16. VEH 21213
Low-speed electric bicycles are almost like regular bikes. Type 1 and 2 electric bicycles (with top assisted speeds of 20 mph) are allowed wherever regular bikes are allowed unless a sign specifically prohibits electric bicycles.”
https://www.calbike.org/go_for_a_ride/california_bicycle_laws/#toggle-id-1
You can get a pedal kit and plate it like a Tomos moped.
That’ll be regulated soon enough. Sooner than later the bike lanes will be designated “human-powered” only or something like that.
I doubt it. The disabled community would raise a fit. I’d think it more likely these would be classified as electric mopeds.
Right, and an electric moped would not be allowed on a bike path, they’d be considered road vehicles like gas mopeds (where I live, mopeds have to be registered and obey the same rules and traffic patterns as cars).
It’s neither. Can’t treat it as a bike or a motorcycle
The text says otherwise.
That is a shame. I have an old street-legal Zero with similar specs and it’s a perfect little runabout.
I’ve heard conflicting statements about grey market Sur Ron purchases and would love to hear from someone who has actually bought a bike from AliExpress. Is the VIN actually scratched out or are these bikes registerable? I would easily take this over a Grom or equivalent pocket bike.
I don’t visit reddit any more, but even if I did, the Sur Ron subreddit is pretty useless. It’s just people sharing referral codes and asking inane questions.
“Is the VIN actually scratched out or are these bikes registerable?”
If its legally considered a bicycle why not just stick with a bicycle licence? That is if you feel the need to licence it at all.
It isn’t legally a bicycle almost anywhere and the text suggesting otherwise by mercedes (and others) is incorrect. It doesn’t have human propulsion via pedals and so in the 33 states using class 1/2/3 it automatically fails all 3. Plus the speed fails all 3 as well. The gray area is almost exclusively in enforcement not legality.
My brother built up a light bee a year or so ago that was an absolute monster and it was a ton of fun. Upgraded to 72 volts, and around 15 kw (about 20hp) from the motor with a new controller. Big Fox 40 up front and motorcycle wheels and tires. You really need to spend some time and money fixing up the weak spots and tweaking to make them what they need to be, but once you do they absolutely rip.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XF8RgTKV-wc
I really wanted one as a dingy to the Land Cruiser, but recharging it remotely SUCKED so much that it sorta turned me off.
Taxonomically, these are just electric trials bikes, surely?
F9 is a great channel, don’t own a motorcycle but I watch everything they do