Help me pick out a cute bike <$2k that will manage Seattle's hills

Mr Bananagrabber · Sep 4, 2020

I'm in the market for a new electric bike after my last one was stolen. The problem is that I'm going down this rabbit hole of wanting fenders, then a mid-drive, then hydraulic brakes, then a belt drive, and suddenly I'm looking at $5,000 bikes. All of which would be a waste on someone like me, who put just a few hundred miles on my last bike before crashing and then losing the bike. Experienced e-bikers, please talk some sense into me. Here is what I'm looking for:

will get me 12 miles rt over some hilly streets, so either a removable battery that I can charge at work or one with enough power to get me both ways
fits someone 5'5"
upright seating
low maintenance
attractive: maybe a cruiser or a bright beachy color, normal-sized wheels
my ride has some bumps and I am recovering from arm injuries, so I think front suspension will be helpful
light enough that I can put it on the bus if needed
needs fenders and a rear rack
mid-step or a step-through would be nice

Things I don't care about: throttle, going over 20mph, fat wheels (actually I very much would like to avoid these)

I know the smart thing is to buy another Ariel Rider M-class, especially since I still have the battery from my last one, but for aesthetic reasons, I really don't want another bike with tiny wheels. I know I can't have it all, but what is the best compromise?

PatriciaK · Sep 4, 2020

LaFree E+ 2 (2020) | City & Hybrid bike | Giant Bicycles US

LaFree E+ is a perfect introduction to the exciting world of E-bikes. Designed for recreational riders, this upright and comfortable machine lets you cruise up climbs and cover longer distances in way less time. The Syn...

www.giant-bicycles.com

Works great on hilly Whidbey Island!

The Seafoam green is a nice beachy color, too

!

Mr Bananagrabber · Sep 4, 2020

PatriciaK said:
LaFree E+ 2 (2020) | City & Hybrid bike | Giant Bicycles US

LaFree E+ is a perfect introduction to the exciting world of E-bikes. Designed for recreational riders, this upright and comfortable machine lets you cruise up climbs and cover longer distances in way less time. The Syn...

www.giant-bicycles.com

Works great on hilly Whidbey Island!

The Seafoam green is a nice beachy color, too !

That's a very cute bike! Do you know if the Momentum Lafree E+ is the same as the Giant Lafree E+? They look the same but the momentum is actually in stock, although unfortunately not in that great seafoam color.

PatriciaK · Sep 4, 2020

Mr Bananagrabber said:
That's a very cute bike! Do you know if the Momentum Lafree E+ is the same as the Giant Lafree E+? They look the same but the momentum is actually in stock, although unfortunately not in that great seafoam color.

Giant may have moved the La Free to their momentum line for 2021 - haven't paid attention to the new models since I've already got mine... You can check the specs to find out if they're the same. Or, call your friendly local Giant dealer

.

I actually love the red color!

Dewey · Sep 4, 2020

Interesting, I hadn't noticed Giant had duplicated the LaFree on both the Giant and the Momentum websites. I agree with Patricia, the LaFree is better equipped for commuting with fenders and the rack than the other Momentum models. But Giant are dropping the ball by decontenting the MY2021 from the previous Giant LaFree models, no IGH model, no ebike lights. Another poster showed how ebike lights can be fitted after purchase to the TransEnd model but it's disappointing they have chosen not to include them.

Because you want front suspension, consider the Gazelle Medeo T9 HMB mid-step model in the S(45) frame size which fits riders 4'10"-5'6", it comes with rack, fenders, and lights.

PatriciaK · Sep 4, 2020

Was also looking at this as a second bike at our second home:

Flow

The perfect ebike for a casual cruise. Features an upright cruiser frame geometry and step-through for better accessibility. The urban commuter's dream. Flow is an affordable fat tire off-road electric bike with step-through & 20'' x 4” fat tires for added grip and stability that is ready to...

www.espinbikes.com

It's a hub drive, though, and I'd expect closer to the minimum range on the battery with Seattle's hills.

It does have fenders, hydraulic disc brakes, lights, and other niceties...

I'm always a bit suspicious when they mention "incline" rather than hills

.

They also have a mid drive model called the Reine, which was reviewed here recently:

Espin Reine Review | ElectricBikeReview.com

Price: $2000.00 | Model Year: 2019 | The Espin Reine is an approachable and feature-rich mid-drive city commuter that includes plastic fenders, integrated lights, a rear rack, and a Suntour NEX suspension fork. It is a new offering from Espin and their first bike with a mid-drive motor instead...

electricbikereview.com

Trying to stay in your price range, but it's close!

Mr Bananagrabber · Sep 4, 2020

PatriciaK said:
Was also looking at this as a second bike at our second home:

Flow

The perfect ebike for a casual cruise. Features an upright cruiser frame geometry and step-through for better accessibility. The urban commuter's dream. Flow is an affordable fat tire off-road electric bike with step-through & 20'' x 4” fat tires for added grip and stability that is ready to...

www.espinbikes.com

It's a hub drive, though, and I'd expect closer to the minimum range on the battery with Seattle's hills.

It does have fenders, hydraulic disc brakes, lights, and other niceties...

I'm always a bit suspicious when they mention "incline" rather than hills .

They also have a mid drive model called the Reine, which was reviewed here recently:

Espin Reine Review | ElectricBikeReview.com

Price: $2000.00 | Model Year: 2019 | The Espin Reine is an approachable and feature-rich mid-drive city commuter that includes plastic fenders, integrated lights, a rear rack, and a Suntour NEX suspension fork. It is a new offering from Espin and their first bike with a mid-drive motor instead...

electricbikereview.com

Trying to stay in your price range, but it's close!

Thanks! I like the Reine, it's weird that it's not on their website unless you search for it. But it looks promising!

Someone is selling a 1 year old Civia Parkway for $1500 near me, and a local bike shop has the Medeo T9 for $2k.

Dewey · Sep 4, 2020

Mr Bananagrabber said:
a local bike shop has the Medeo T9 for $2k.

That's likely to be the previous model Gazelle Medeo T9 "Classic" that Court reviewed on this site. The MY2021 Gazelle Medeo T9 HMB has the same Bosch Active Line Plus motor and 400wh battery but costs $500 more and has slightly different equipment - disk vs rim brakes, wider Schwalbe 'big apple' balloon tires vs Schwalbe Energizer, a slightly brighter headlight (35lux vs 30lux), a slightly longer travel suspension fork (50mm vs 40mm), and a redesigned low-step frame that reduces the frame flex Court mentioned in his review of the Medeo T9 Classic model. The Gazelle US website still has publicity photos of the Classic but they've removed it from their list of Medeo models so presumably there are just shop stock of Classic models remaining.

PatriciaK · Sep 4, 2020

Speaking of brakes, you do NOT want rim brakes, riding in Seattle - you need disk. It's important, because of the weather. Hydraulic would be best, but mechanical would work.

TomD · Sep 4, 2020

Check out step thru zen electric bike model that @Ravi Kempaiah is putting out. I am not sure it is available yet (despite what the website shows) but I think this is going to be the best bang for your buck. I suspect Ravi can customize to your needs but I'm sure he will chine in here.

Zen Nami - Zen eBikes

zenebikes.ca

More details in this forum thread:

Mother's Day Musings - Kick-ass Mama E-bike

Every year, around 700,000 knee replacements and 400,000 hip replacements happen in the US alone. https://www.campbellclinic.com/total-joint-replacement-procedures-continue-to-increase/ For the past 4 weeks, I kept thinking what would make an excellent gift to my mom or anyone's mother for...

electricbikereview.com

Other models:

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Mr Bananagrabber · Sep 4, 2020

TomD said:
Check out step thru zen electric bike model that @Ravi Kempaiah is putting out. I am not sure it is available yet (despite what the website shows) but I think this is going to be the best bang for your buck. I suspect Ravi can customize to your needs but I'm sure he will chine in here.

Zen Nami - Zen eBikes

zenebikes.ca

More details in this forum thread:

Mother's Day Musings - Kick-ass Mama E-bike

Every year, around 700,000 knee replacements and 400,000 hip replacements happen in the US alone. https://www.campbellclinic.com/total-joint-replacement-procedures-continue-to-increase/ For the past 4 weeks, I kept thinking what would make an excellent gift to my mom or anyone's mother for...

electricbikereview.com

Other models:

Zen Landing Page - Zen eBikes

Zen Electric Bikes Bosch Performance | Belt Drive | Internal Gear Hub | 1000Wh Battery SHOP NOW FOLLOW US SCROLL casino no deposit bonus free spins no deposit uk bonus ohne einzahlung leovegas mr bet mr bet australia This can be a very good option for those busy students. You can easily take...

zenebikes.ca

That bike looks great, I'll look into it!

Thanks everyone for the notes about the brakes and the different Gazelle models! I will definitely avoid rim brakes.

Mr Bananagrabber · Oct 22, 2020

I thought I'd update everyone! I ended up buying the 2021 LaFree. I've put 100 miles on it so far. I haven't really had the opportunity to ride it up many hills yet (we'll both be in Seattle soon but for now everything is FLAT) but it's been a very good bike and I enjoy riding it. I wish it had front suspension and lights but so far it's been fine. I've barely needed to use more than assist level one. I also think that I've been riding more slowly since there's no display to tell me my speed, but considering my crash earlier this year that's probably for the best. Thanks for the suggestions!

FlatSix911 · Oct 22, 2020

Mr Bananagrabber said:
I'm in the market for a new electric bike after my last one was stolen. The problem is that I'm going down this rabbit hole of wanting fenders, then a mid-drive, then hydraulic brakes, then a belt drive, and suddenly I'm looking at $5,000 bikes. All of which would be a waste on someone like me, who put just a few hundred miles on my last bike before crashing and then losing the bike. Experienced e-bikers, please talk some sense into me. Here is what I'm looking for:

will get me 12 miles rt over some hilly streets, so either a removable battery that I can charge at work or one with enough power to get me both ways

fits someone 5'5"

upright seating

low maintenance

attractive: maybe a cruiser or a bright beachy color, normal-sized wheels

my ride has some bumps and I am recovering from arm injuries, so I think front suspension will be helpful

light enough that I can put it on the bus if needed

needs fenders and a rear rack

mid-step or a step-through would be nice

Things I don't care about: throttle, going over 20mph, fat wheels (actually I very much would like to avoid these)
I know the smart thing is to buy another Ariel Rider M-class, especially since I still have the battery from my last one, but for aesthetic reasons, I really don't want another bike with tiny wheels. I know I can't have it all, but what is the best compromise?