Juiced Crosscurrent X

[Dan klauber]

I recently purchased and received my 2021 Juiced Crosscurrent X. Like a lot of people on here, I did as much research as I could before choosing the bike and I rode a few bikes although that was difficult because most shops have a very limited supply of ebikes right now. I initially wanted a fat tire EBike but my brother, who knows a lot more about bikes than I do, talked me into getting a more traditional style EBike. The Crosscurrent rides fairly similar to a traditional bike and I like that but, I may have preferred the comfort a fat tire bike would have provided. I will also note I’m over 60 and 6 feet tall and about 200 pounds so, not the smallest guy or in the greatest shape. The thing I truly love about the EBike is that it gets me outdoors and gets me exercise and fresh air and it is a blast to ride! The experience is so wonderful that I truly think EBikes are going to be very big in the future And that you will see more and more people riding them.

my EBike arrived quickly and as scheduled and in good shape. It is a heavy bike but paint was super nice and everything was in the box. I was going to put it together myself but given my lack of tools and experience, I decided to take it to my local local bike shop and have them put it together for me and check everything to make sure it was completely ready to ride. Doing this cost approximately $100. The plastic fenders are pretty cheap and took some work to get right and my back light did not work. Juiced sent me a new back light right away and fender seems to be fine now.

The great about this bike is that it rides very well and is very powerful with a lot of range. I can see it easily going over 50 miles between charges. It rides and looks mostly like a conventional bike and is comfortable. I like the 5 power levels but with you didn’t have to use the race mode to get assist at 28 mph. It would be nice to go 28 mph at lower assist levels. Overall, I’m very satisfied and impressed with my bike after “fine tuning” just a couple of things.

My advice for Juiced would be simple. You have a pretty great product on your hands and I would love to see you offer a higher level bike for another three or $400 extra dollars And I think the market would eat it up. I would upgrade and use metal fenders, wire in the back light and use upgraded derailleurs and brakes. I would go up at least 2 levels on most components and I think you’d hit the sweet spot in the market and the bike would then have a real premium feel and ride.

I have now put close to 100 miles on my bike and, overall, I love it and plan to ride it all the time. I don’t think I will be making any upgrades myself because that is a hassle and very expensive to do versus having it done at the factory when the bike is initially built. I think this is probably The best value for an Ebike out there and that you have to spend a couple thousand more dollars to really get that much more bike. It doesn’t mean it’s perfect but it really is good and at this point I would definitely recommend the bike. I will update this review later as I put more miles on my bike.

 

[Ebiker33]

It's a great Ebike, but you were considering the Juiced RipCurrent S, but your brother convinced you not to get it.
Some people have both on EBR, it's personal preference thing, there is no "right" answer on this.

 

[Hintrod]

The OP is right on target. I love my Crosscurrent X and actually bought another one for a different home I liked it so much. But I have been wishing for two+ years that they would create a Crosscurrent X premium version,so the bike would be taken to the next level. It is a great product and deserves to see how great it could be with upgrades to critical features...

 

[john peck]

Everyone loves their ebike, but my love for my CCS diminished considerably over time. What i´m
riding now cost half as much & is a much better general purpose bike.

 

[Hintrod]

I actually have bought quite a few ebikes from 4 different brands. The gist of my comments were simple the CCX has an excellent structure,feel, and usability, and it would be great if Juiced or others took a CCX like bike to the next level. I have on order a Wattwagons Helios which will do that but at a much much higher cost.

but a really upgraded Hub Drive commuter would be a blessing and fill a niche....

 

[Inujosha]

Everyone loves their ebike, but my love for my CCS diminished considerably over time. What i´m
riding now cost half as much & is a much better general purpose bike.

Which bike are you currently riding ????

 

[linklemming]

I actually have bought quite a few ebikes from 4 different brands. The gist of my comments were simple the CCX has an excellent structure,feel, and usability, and it would be great if Juiced or others took a CCX like bike to the next level. I have on order a Wattwagons Helios which will do that but at a much much higher cost.

but a really upgraded Hub Drive commuter would be a blessing and fill a niche....

I also have had and still own quite a few ebikes (4 at the moment, 5 overall, 2 DIY).

When I got my CCX in early 2019, it was pretty much one of the fastest and longest range reasonably priced ebikes,

I instantly(out of the box) turned it into a gravel bike (MTB tires, removed racks and fenders, 42t front chainring) and rode over 5k miles with pretty minimal issues (I have documented my experiences on this site). I am actually very impressed with its reliability given that I was operating it more than 70% offroad which is surely outside its intended design parameters.

It was the fastest bike I owned till I built my own GMAC motor ebike (documented on this site). When I put on some 'alt' bars (origin8 strongbow), it was pretty much untouchable if I was in the aero position in any sort of wind.

I recently converted it back to stock to sell and decided to take it for a ride and was amazed at how much it excelled at a 'commuter'. Much faster with the narrower higher psi tires than on the lower psi MTB tires (no surprise).

That being said, I think Im going to convert it back to a gravel bike and keep it. While it wasnt the nicest bike, it had alot of unique things that make me want to keep it around. My main reason for wanting to sell it was to simplify the need for tools to change a flat tire which were not the same on my DIY GMAC bike,

FWIW, the bike feels CHEAP including the paint, no questions there. Every bolt hole seemed like it had bad threads so I was always running a tap to clean up threads. Alot of stuff also seemed misaligned so removing/reattaching stuff can be a hassle.

I never regret buying/riding my CCX, while Im a long time MTBr and definately a mid-drive fan, the CCX taught me what a hub motor could actually do, which expanded into my own DIY GMAC ebike.

I would like to see a Juiced bike with a Bafang Ultra Mid Drive.

Im seriously considering a WW Helios at the moment

 

[john peck]

Which bike are you currently riding ????

NCM Moscow, 3k+ mi. ,a few hassles, mostly tires & my screwups, good bike for cheap. Hung a
new rear derailleur today. I stripped the hanger, ´poxied it, then dropped bike, requiring a new hanger
so why not a new derailleur too. I´ts a tough bike that has survived some abuse. Lotsa power. It will
teach you a few things e-riders oughta know.

 

[Inujosha]

Ill check it out ty !

 

[Asher]

Agree with the OP, but I strongly doubt it will happen.

When Juiced rolled out the CCS, it was at a cross roads. It could either gradually upgrade and refine the CCS, and offer it in multiple quality levels much like every big bike brand does. Or it could simply move on to making the next type of ebike. Aside from upgrading spokes and the battery voltage, it's mostly done the latter.

One problem is Juiced never grew up. Its volume increased but it still seems like a one man band in terms of company direction and design. And refining a utilitarian commuter model just doesn't interest that one man, when he can focus on more popular, more powerful, less human powered devices. Tora likes to build new things or throw more power at existing ones, and neither of those really apply to the CCS.

This wouldn't be such an issue, except that decent Class 3 commuter pedelecs under $3k are still somewhat rare. Ride1Up is the most analogous, and in some ways better, but they don't currently offer torque sensors. Still, it's strange they wouldn't adjust the CCS when it partly comes down to ordering different parts out of a catalogue.

For some time it seemed like Rad and Juiced were neck and neck, in the mind if not in sales, but Rad seems much better poised to mature (and I don't like Rad bikes at all).

 

[john peck]

Agree with the OP, but I strongly doubt it will happen.

When Juiced rolled out the CCS, it was at a cross roads. It could either gradually upgrade and refine the CCS, and offer it in multiple quality levels much like every big bike brand does. Or it could simply move on to making the next type of ebike. Aside from upgrading spokes and the battery voltage, it's mostly done the latter.

One problem is Juiced never grew up. Its volume increased but it still seems like a one man band in terms of company direction and design. And refining a utilitarian commuter model just doesn't interest that one man, when he can focus on more popular, more powerful, less human powered devices. Tora likes to build new things or throw more power at existing ones, and neither of those really apply to the CCS.

This wouldn't be such an issue, except that decent Class 3 commuter pedelecs under $3k are still somewhat rare. Ride1Up is the most analogous, and in some ways better, but they don't currently offer torque sensors. Still, it's strange they wouldn't adjust the CCS when it partly comes down to ordering different parts out of a catalogue.

For some time it seemed like Rad and Juiced were neck and neck, in the mind if not in sales, but Rad seems much better poised to mature (and I don't like Rad bikes at all).

I´ll grant my CCS was a first edition & needed some refinement. I enjoyed it while it lasted. Since then Juiced
seems to have gone more toward scooters than bikes. Thatś too bad, I think the Ocean Current was a great
newbee bike, but was discontinued. It used basic real bike parts that are available & affordable. Tech advance
has is not necessarily improvement. Sometimes its just marketing for planned parts obsolescence. I still prefer
6,7 spd freewheels to all those 8,9,10 speed cassettes that don´t last nearly as long. Same goes for derailleurs,
which are much easier to keep tuned. The nice thing about friction shifters was that, once proficient in their use,
there was no need for constant adjustments.

 

[john peck]

Ill check it out ty !

The main thing I learned is that every maintenance procedure works best with a step by step order.
Discovering that exact order can be very frustrating.

 

[Inujosha]

Thanks 4 the advice John cheers will do

 

[Marrduk24]

I actually have bought quite a few ebikes from 4 different brands. The gist of my comments were simple the CCX has an excellent structure,feel, and usability, and it would be great if Juiced or others took a CCX like bike to the next level. I have on order a Wattwagons Helios which will do that but at a much much higher cost.

but a really upgraded Hub Drive commuter would be a blessing and fill a niche....

is what I think is sorely lacking. I find a lot of people are chasing mid-drives without truly knowing the pros and cons.

I wish there was a premium hub motor drive bike that’s not a Stromer.

 

[Asher]

is what I think is sorely lacking. I find a lot of people are chasing mid-drives without truly knowing the pros and cons.

I wish there was a premium hub motor drive bike that’s not a Stromer.

Ravi is making a $2k hub drive commuter bike that from the sound of it will be just that. Ravi's will have a suspension and 2.5 lb (each) tires, but I think there's ample room for a nimbler, rigid fork, lighter tire style bike as well.

I think both variants, with good quality in the $2-2.5k price range direct, or $3k through retail, would be very compelling and could become tops in its category rather quickly. The basic formula is: athletic posture hybrid bike, hub motor, 28 mph capable, torque sensor, downtube 500+ wh battery, with rack and fender mounts, ideally included, with integrated lighting. And not a fat tire toy. An obvious yet rare solution among internet brands.

It seems like a no-brainer that Rad would do something like this, given all the money its raised, but 1) it never does 28 mph ebikes, 2) its bikes are kind of crappy (one size fits all, exposed controllers, among others) and 3) it has repeatedly said the money it raised is for marketing/distribution, so I don't expect much product innovation necessarily.

Ravi's bike:

Zen Shakti

Then there's B.C., where regular bikes have a single tax and an ebikes have both taxes. :mad:

electricbikereview.com

 

[AHicks]

is what I think is sorely lacking. I find a lot of people are chasing mid-drives without truly knowing the pros and cons.

I wish there was a premium hub motor drive bike that’s not a Stromer.

How handy are you? Have you considered buying something with the "bones" you prefer (motor, battery) and modifying it to the extent you feel it best suits you? I've done this (continue to do this) on 2 bikes now. Not only have they taught me a ton, the 2 together (both are 1000w+) cost me less than what some might consider a high end bike....

Regarding a premium hub motor, that's a fairly easy swap, even if you add a decent controller to the plan.....