Selling price approx. $12,500 Canadian.
Honestly, not bad when you consider the utility. Way cheaper than a second car, or as a replacement for a car that’s rarely used.
I just worry that as these e-bikes get more complex, it just serves as an additional barrier for people.
A bakfiet will change your life for the better. An electric bakfiet is a huge bucket of “…and to think I hesitated.”
That said, I am seriously annoyed by the suspension forks. There is such a scant selection of 20" suspension forks; about the only fork I found worth owning is the Kind A3.0, which is $450USD MSRP. I have a Hase Pino which came with a terrible Spinner 300 fork. I can’t find a parts kit or even parts list for this stupid fork. In talking with the LBS Jedi, he said it’s basically a disposable unit. Something tells me that Urban Arrow did not spec a decent fork.
Also not a fan of Enviolo hubs. They eat up so much torque. I had a Tern GSD S10 with the Enviolo. Holy hell, that hub was a slog without the motor.
But whatever, I’m being a nitpicky curmudgeon… moar cargo bikes, moar better. Suspension, even crappy suspension, is a huge factor in getting people onto bikes. So whatever gets more people onto bikes is okeefine by me.
Yeah, I’ve been wanting to upgrade the fork on my EP2 Pro (20"x4" tires) and all I can find are no-name forks.
I was reading about one that was actually crash rated for vehicle impacts (just the cargo/passenger area, but it did well).
For now, I’ve been totally fine with a regular bike + various trailers or pannier bags to accommodate my expected load. That way, I still have a regular bike, but can haul all kinds of stuff if I need to.
Tern has a few new backloader cargo bikes, that can apparently haul another adult. I’d consider that one over a bakfiet (for my needs), but everyone I’ve met who has a bakfiet is just so full of joy over it!
That said, Burley just announced a new trailer, “The Hopper”. In my home, trailers are the real N + 1! 😂
Ooooh, that Burley Hopper looks like it belongs in my trailer quiver!
I’m a total trailer junkie. I… uh, might have a problem. I had the Gen 1 Tern GSD S10. It can absolutely haul an adult, but the comfort is lacking. Improving passenger comfort on the longtail can seriously impact cargo volume capacity depending on your needs and bag configuration. I prefer a bakfiet or semi-recumbent tandem for hauling another person. Putting an adult on a bakfiet lowers the CoG and massively raises the CoG on a longtail. Added bonuses over a diamond tandem: nobody has to yell to be heard, everybody gets a view, and most semi-recumbents let the stoker coast. I had a Bilenky Viewpoint with an independent stoker drivetrain; the stoker could select their own gear ratio.
Here are some of the stupid things I’ve done with trailers and cargo bikes.
Making smashburgers for 20 hungry Juneteenth mountain bikers.
Thanksgiving dinner for 20 plus supplies for a 5-day vacation.
150 pounds of books? Sure!
OK, I love everything about this. 100% bike hauling perfection! The Travoy is a real gem among gems, eh?
But I also believe the Hopper belongs in your arsenal 🤭😂
How is it any better than a Pedicab for $400? Or an electric Rickshaw that can carry three people, for half the price?
https://www.amazon.com/WEIMMIN-Tricycle-tricycles-Absorption-Shopping/dp/B0CCVR2ZP9/
The bike shaped object you linked is a janky piece of shit. Did you even read the reviews on it?
You can have that, I’ll take the nice cargo e-bike that won’t tip over when you turn or fall apart mid-ride.
Good luck (especially with hills)!
I just picked a rando inexpensive pedicab. Just wondering what justifies a big price tag for essentially the same functionality. Plus 3-wheeler, so more stable. Ebike versions run half the price, or less.
So you can have it fall apart at 28 mph instead of 10? Come on, you are making a ridiculous comparison.
3 wheelers are just about the least stable thing you can ride too. How do you own a trike and not know that?
Haha. Happy owner and user of a 30-yo 2-wheeler (which the bike shop tells me I should not leave unattended, since it’s ‘vintage’).
I was just wondering what justified a $10K+ price tag for something that can be functionally purchased for a fraction of that price. I can see the point of an ultralight racing bike with fancy gears and brakes.
But once you attach a big carrier in front, you’re no longer going for performance or really, stability. At that point, a trike with a low CG is more stable and capable of carrying cargo than any two-wheeler, as demonstrated in half of Asia. They’re also far cheaper. You can buy 20 of them for the price of one of these.
I wasn’t trying to step on anyone’s toes. If they can afford it, more power to them. Was genuinely curious what the selling point was vs the price.
If you live on relatively flat land where it works for you, great. but you should know that trikes are less stable than reverse trikes and far less stable than a 2 wheel bike in turns.
Be very careful when making turns on a trike, slow down!
It is orders of magnitude better, they’re not even in the same category but then again so is the price.
Personally, I stick with regular bicycles because I’m not rich: They can still haul a ton of stuff with bags and that’s not even mentioning trailers.
