Narrowed Down to the Velotric Fold 1 (Plus) & Lectric XP4 (Long Range)

Posted by PseudoChris@reddit | ebikes | View on Reddit | 133 comments

Please Note, I'm relatively new to e-bikes and was looking for the best bikes currently available between around the 1200-1500 price point and for the mostly casual and exploratory riding me and my partner will be doing.

I went down a bit of a rabbit hole, looked into 30+ different brands, domestic/foreign mfr. options, various tiers of part specs, compared with traditional bike tech/design, tested a few brands/models locally, and finally landed on these models as the final two we'll be deciding on.

I made a spec comparison list for our top considerations using info from brand pages, videos, and articles (since brand marketing will sometimes do nonsensical things like use the "average" value between the e-bike weight with and w/out battery)

Since the XP4 is new and I haven't seen much comparing these two yet, here's a side-by-side of some specs & features:

Model: Velotric Fold 1 Plus Lectric XP4 (Long Range)
 Price: $1,499.99 $1,299.99
 Motor & Torque: 750W (1100W peak), [75Nm] 750W (1310W peak) [85nM]
 Weight: 67lbs (57 bike+10 battery) 71lbs (62 bike+9 battery)
 Frame: Step-Through Step-Through or Step-Over
Suspension: Front Fork (60mm) Front Fork (50mm)
 Battery & Range: 48V, 13Ah, IPX7 (up to 68mi.) 48V, 17.5Ah, IPX5 (up to 85mi.)
 Wheels & Brakes: 20"x3", Hydraulic Front/Rear 20"x3", Hydraulic Front/Rear
 Display: Color LCD, BT, USB-C (IPX6) Color TFT, USB-C (IPX5)
 Throttle Type: Thumb Trigger Thumb Trigger
 PAS/Modes: 3 Modes x 5 Levels, Class 1/2/3 5 Riding Modes, Class 1/2/3
Drivetrain: 7-Speed Shimano, 52-tooth 8-Speed Shimano, 56-tooth
 Sensor: Torque&Cadence Swap Sensor Torque Sensor ("In-House")
 Lights: Front, Brake, Turn Signal (IPX6) Front, Brake, Turn Signal (IPX5)
 Max Load: 450lbs. (120lb cargo) 330 lbs. (150lbs. cargo)
 Warranty: 2-yr  1-yr (Opt. 3rd-Party Extend?)
Folded Size:  37.8" L x 19.7" W x 33.5" H 37"L x 17"W x 29"H
 Dealers/Availability: Test Ride & Local Servicing Test Ride & Local Servicing
Pros (Subjective): IP-Rating, Max Load, Warranty Range, Torque, Frame Options
Cons (Subjective): Cargo Max, Folded Size, Price Max Load, Weight, FS Travel

Some personal preferences we settled on include: folding style for space requirements, quality motor/battery for steep/hilly terrain, reasonable comfort/ride experience (e.g. front suspension, torque sensor, front/rear hydraulic brakes), Weather Resistance, and ideally brands that can be locally serviced.

I'm roughly 190cm tall, 90kg, don't mind some extra pedaling, and will be riding more in rain, so I'll likely opt for the Fold 1+ for its higher weight capacity and better water resistance.

My partner is shorter, lighter, and may spend more time on the throttle depending on the day, so the extra range and torque on the XP4 will be great for them.

Some honorable mentions that didn't make the final cut include: Aventon Sinch 2.5, Rad Power RadExpand 5/5P, Heybike Ranger S, Randride Elf/Hummer.

Let me know if there are any notable considerations we may have missed in our search! :)

Otherwise, I hope these considerations may be helpful to someone else in their search and I'll try to remember to follow up here to give additional thoughts after some time riding.