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Review: Lectric XP

At $899, this folding electric bike's tremendous value makes it easy to look past its faults.
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Photograph: Lectric EBikes

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Rating:

7/10

WIRED
Smooth ride thanks to the fat tires. Powerful 500-watt motor with five levels of pedal assist, plus a throttle. Good 20-mile-plus battery range. Accessories like front and rear lights, a built-in display, a rack, and fenders are included. It can fold, has a removable battery, and arrives fully assembled. You can manually bump the maximum speed up to 28 mph (Class 3).
TIRED
It's bulky and heavy (63 pounds)! Folding it can be cumbersome, and it's not a good option for apartment dwellers without an elevator. It rattles, and the hub motor runs for a few seconds after you stop pedaling.

There's something exhilarating about riding a fat-tire bike. It's like you're in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight, conquering Gotham City with wheels that can do just about anything.

The 4-inch-wide tires on Lectric Ebikes' Lectric XP will make you feel like a cloud on the road. And like all of the Caped Crusader's rides, this electric bicycle comes fully kitted out, with an integrated front light, a rear rack, a built-in LCD display, and a removable battery. Plus, it folds in half for easier storage—for only $899.

I've ridden it for more than six months now, learning its quirks. The front fender, for example, often rattles like it's on death's door. The bike is also a whopping 63 pounds, making it a pain to move around, even if you can fold it. But its value continues to shine through. If you want an electric bike but have been put off by the jaw-dropping $1,000+ price tags, the Lectric XP is for you—as long as you don't live in a walk-up.

All Assembled

The Lectric XP comes in two variants: a step-over and a step-through model. I tested the latter. It arrived nearly fully assembled in a box, which is a nice change from the usual 20-minute assembly process with many new bikes. All you need to do is unfold it and attach the handlebars.

Its weight makes tough to move around when it's folded up. If you're an apartment dweller, don't have an elevator in your building, and don't want to lock it outside, find another bike. It's too heavy. The whole thing is so thick that carrying it isn't comfortable either, even if the weight doesn't bother you. That thickness means it still takes up a good amount of room when folded, which might be an issue if you're in a tiny apartment like me where every inch of space counts.

Photograph: Lectric EBikes

Folding it is fairly simple. Just undo two clamps. The XP's weight turns it into an unwieldy process, but if you have a good foothold and enough clearance, it's manageable. Thankfully, you can remove the battery, so you don't need to bring the bike to an outlet to recharge it. 

What's weird is you need to stick a key into the bottom of the bike for the battery to work. Without this key, it won't turn on. I usually leave it in all the time, but if you store it outdoors away from your watchful eye, make sure to remove it.

Aside from the wonderfully fat tires, I also love the bounty of included accessories. You get fenders, a rear rack, a twist throttle, an integrated front and tail light powered by the battery, and an LCD center-mounted display to show battery levels and other useful data like your speed (no app needed!). As an added bonus, you can bump the max speed from 20 miles per hour to 28 via the display, converting it from a Class 2 to a Class 3 ebike.

Ready. Set. Go!

The ride itself is comfortable. The thick tires help smooth out a lot of the bumps in the road, but it is meant for the road. There's no suspension system, so avoid big potholes or extremely rocky terrain. 

You have five levels of pedal assistance to choose from; I mostly stuck to levels two and three. Anything more wasn't as fun. I felt no resistance, as though I was pedaling air—even in seventh gear (the highest on the 7-speed Shimano shifter).

The 500-watt rear hub motor is impressive for such an affordable bike. I was able to power through the steep hills of Brooklyn and Manhattan with ease. Having a throttle is handy too, especially when you need to gently navigate narrow spaces with bumper-to-bumper traffic. 

What I don't like is how the motor continues running a few seconds after you stop pedaling. I'm glad I figured this out when testing the bike in an empty parking lot and not when I was coming up to a traffic light. It's potentially dangerous. At least the Tektro disc brakes do their job well and halt the whole thing reasonably quickly.

Photograph: Lectric EBikes

Lectric says you can get more than 45 miles out of a charge. That will depend on a variety of factors, like your weight, pedal assistance level, terrain, weather, and more. For me, it was north of 20 miles. It got me to my dentist's appointment and back, around 12 miles, with juice to spare for other errands. I never felt like I had to charge it after every ride, which is nice. 

Long-Term Reliability

Lectric is able to lower its price because of the parts the company uses. The Chaoyang or CST tires that come with the bike and the Tektro brakes are nothing special. That initially had me concerned about long-term reliability, but after six months none of the parts have given me any issues.

If you're concerned, Lectric says it's very easy to replace the electrical parts of its bike by using the quick-disconnect plugs everywhere. Its customer service team will walk you through it, and the company has several videos if you just want to follow along. Lectric doesn't have much of a dealer network, but if you do want to take it to a shop, the company says it's “happy to locate a local bike shop” to assist with a warranty repair if you've owned it for less than a year. (It will provide the shop the necessary parts and cover the cost of the repair.) 

You may want to consider a small paint job, too. I don't like that “LECTRIC” is written in a gigantic typeface on the side of the bike. It just makes the XP a big target for bike thieves. A little subtlety would have been nice.

If stairs aren't something you have to deal with on a regular basis, and you can lift 63 pounds, this is one of the best and most affordable ways to wade into the ebike world.