Mini VS Rover

[smas]

Mini VS rover for a 6 ft. 220 person how do they compare for all around riding ? Ready to buy now wife is getting folding mini .And I am between mini and rover.
I plan to ride daily gravel & asphalt roads trails and some light sand thanks Dave.

 

[Browneye]

Depending on your locale, RadPower has demos and rentals around the country to introduce their bikes. Failing that, at least ride something similar to get a feel, or it's a gamble on the money invested.

If you like the way the tiny wheels handle like on a mini, they are a cool little bike. Also know that even folded, they are pretty heavy to lift over a trunk apron or into a storage compartment on plane, boat, or RV.

I'm not a fan of either kind of bike - minis or fat-tires, but some do like them. Lots of reasons for both. If you really do intend to ride on sand a fat-tire is great. Otherwise they're bulky and noisy on pavement.

I would encourage you both to try the City - a regular and a step-thru, especially if you intend to actually put some miles on them.

 

[smas]

We test road both rovers and liked them but they did not have a mini.
Mostly wondering how the mini would be for all around riding for a person my size 6 ft tall 220 pounds.

 

[mrgold35]

I'm 6'3" and I had to add a 400mm adjustable seatpost, Cloud-9 cruiser seat, extra wide MTB pedals for my size 14 shoes, and adjustable stem to raise the handle bars for my two 16 Radrovers. It was a touch too short for me right out the box; but, the few bucks in upgrades allowed me to put +7000 miles between both ebikes since.

The biggest Con for me with the rovers is the size. The rover and mini come in about the same weight. You will need a lot of space for the rover to store, platform bike rack or truck to haul, and it is very bulky to handle if you need to lift.

The biggest Pro is it is a 10 out of 10 to ride the trails, standard MTB parts fit for almost any upgrades, turns heads when riding, zero issues with sand+throttle, and it fits me perfectly being a big guy. Ended up getting the wife the Radcity step-thru because she felt he rover was too big for her.

 

[Browneye]

We test road both rovers and liked them but they did not have a mini.
Mostly wondering how the mini would be for all around riding for a person my size 6 ft tall 220 pounds.

We pass them on the bike path like they are standing still. LOL
The term 'short-coupled' is what comes to mind. A lot of people really like them, but just as many don't view them as something as serious as a regular-sized bike with 26" wheels and up. The 29's are really nice riding and you can cover a lot of ground effortlessly. I guess another way to put it would be 'casual' or 'serious'. The mini-type bikes are simply not in the same league or category as a 650b like you find on the Aventons, or even the 29-r's like my Giant Explore.

When we rode 'acoustic' bikes (as they call them, I like 'pedalic') we rode about 12-14mph and covered ten to fifteen miles. With ebikes we run 15-20 and go 20-30 miles. The beauty is that it's a similar exertion, but you go 50% faster and twice as far. Plus it's three times as much fun so you do it more. Some fun stats!

In our group of 8 couples, half of them are RadPower bikes - 3 rovers and a city. The guys really like them, and the one lady that has one is kind of new at it, she likes it, but it seems more like a tractor with her on it. Another wife has a City. The rest are an assortment of hub-drive bikes except mine.

 

[ElevenAD]

James Bond swears by his mini,says the torque is improved vs his Rover,he regularly achieves top speeds of around 28 to 30 on both the Rover and Mini, maybe some of his vids will help you choose

 

[Radycle]

I am 5'6", 220 lbs, and I have ridden both the Rover and the mini (which I have now). The Rover, with its bigger tires, could in fact be more comfortable ON-ROAD, but was a HUGE machine, which I nicknamed "Godzilla". In all honesty, despite what the website said, it was TOO BIG for my body, and I always worried about castrating myself in a complete panic stop. The mini, of course, fits me better, does ride a bit rougher ON-ROAD, but is far more NIMBLE, especially on trails. It also has the convenience of folding and going into the trunk of the car, which the Rover did not. Both are good bikes, but I think if I was 6' tall I would hav e stuck with the original Rover.

 

[Banzai]

I have four RADs and they all go the same places the Rover will, except the Rover does everything a little better.
You already have the Mini, makes sense to get the Rover for those long rides when you want a good work-out.

 

[trainman]

I'm 6'1" and 240 lbs., I ride a Rad Mini Step Thru, I'm totally happy with mine, I also come from riding off road motorcycles so the smaller handling of the Rad Mini's work for me riding both on and off road.