Where are the legal class 3s?

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CORockhound@reddit

Legal would depend on your locale no?

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John-AtWork@reddit (OP)

The standard class 3 definition that is legal in most of the United States, capable of 28 mph, 750w, peddle assist only, no throttle.

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MarioMadness1@reddit

most the US is cracking down,, not legal in most states, Canada or UK.. Now they're Illegal in cali,etc.. Class 3 is pedal only, no throttle , 28mph .. class 2 can have throttle , but only 20mph

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HistorianAlert9986@reddit

Ain’t nobody cracking down in the USA. They are making dumb rules in places like NJ and FL but they’re not being enforced.

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Revolutionary_Fly769@reddit

All it takes is one small town bored donut eater.

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Proxy345@reddit

Lmao but BARELY anything on the market comes without a throttle, at least in the US anyways. This is why the market couldn't care less about laws.

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HistorianAlert9986@reddit

Nah they won’t unless your on a emoto doing wheelies. They don’t mess when normal folks ever.

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ThriftianaStoned@reddit

It takes less than 30 seconds to remove a throttle

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Classic_Group8679@reddit

I thought it could be a class 2/3, no? Up to 20 mph with throttle and 28 without.

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SamosaPandit@reddit

If it bothers you, just buy a bike with a throttle and physically remove the throttle.

But these bikes aren’t illegal.

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John-AtWork@reddit (OP)

Laws vary, but they are definitely illegal in a lot of places.

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SamosaPandit@reddit

Edited my comment before I noticed that you replied

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Left-Efficiency-9944@reddit

You're right, but also I've not seen many like this.

Just do it. Sops aren't patrolling and you've got a pretty defense of it has a class 3 sticker that you just didn't know.

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Revolutionary_Fly769@reddit

Throttle is frowned upon most trails and illegal on many. I’ve heard throttles are also illegal in some cities.

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Dook23@reddit

Please show evidence of even just one city in which throttles on ebikes are illegal. I have never heard of any major city (in the U.S. at least) that has a throttle ban.

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Revolutionary_Fly769@reddit

Oh I’m already aware. Do your own research for your city.

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HistorianAlert9986@reddit

I think NJ is requiring e-bikes to be registered but it’s not being enforced.

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John-AtWork@reddit (OP)

Right, that's why 6 asked the question.

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Revolutionary_Fly769@reddit

Yeah I think I meant to respond to a comment pro throttle.

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Justinreinsma@reddit

I havent been up to date with ebike laws, especially up here in canada. Wasnt class 3 allowed to have a throttle before? Just limited to 32km/hr and 750w?

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The way class 3 is written, it is limited to 28 mph and cannot have a throttle. Class 2 is allowed a throttle but is limited to 20 mph. The compromise a lot of bike companies made is to put a throttle on their bike, but limit the throttle assist top speed to 20 while allowing pedal assist to 28. Lawyers (at least in the US) are reading the technical description and saying any bike with a throttle that can produce power to propel the bike faster than 20 mph is not a class 2 or a class 3.

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Justinreinsma@reddit

Thanksbfor the clarification! I always felt like it was a bit odd to police based on specs since what really should be enforced are speed limits. ( maybe we need more robust bike lanes to help this along since honestly, riding on the road with cars, going faster is safer).
I suppose its hard to complain since there is no registration or lisencing involved. Maybe theres room for a 'class 4'?

I know the rules up here in Canada are a bit different anyways, but very loosely enforced all the same.

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deck_hand@reddit

Agreed, on all points. I have a motorcycle license, and I have no problem registering an "e-moto" if they decide to create such a classification. My current favorite e-bike is a solid Class 2 - it tops out at 20 mph on throttle or with pedal assist. Which is fine with me, since I want an assisted bicycle, not a slow motorcycle with pedals.

I have a Class 3 e-bike, it's technically able to assist up to 28 mph, but the motor struggles to get past 25 on its own. If I could double the motor power, get to, say, 40 mph on electric alone, I'd register it. But, again, I'd consider it a scooter/motorcycle, not an e-bike.

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TheDarkClaw@reddit

specialized turbo vado

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beagles4ever@reddit

God you seem insufferable.

Pretty much any middrive that’s class 3 will do so without a throttle.

Specialized Turbo Vado 5, Trek Allant 8s, Gazelle Ultimate 10, Priority Current, etc.

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Taiyoryu@reddit

Serial 1 RUSH/CTY Speed Gazelle Ultimate C380+ Ride1Up Prodigy v2 Priority Current Plus (throttle capped at 20mph, pedal assist required for 28mph) Specialized Vado family

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Tall-Wonder-247@reddit

Thanks for responding to the OP question.

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John-AtWork@reddit (OP)

Priority Current Plus (throttle capped at 20mph, pedal assist required for 28mph)

That one would not fit the definition in my state. Thanks for the other ones though!

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Taiyoryu@reddit

You can just remove the throttle

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Superb_Raccoon@reddit

Support your local Moil!

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SamosaPandit@reddit

Velotric Tempo ships with a throttle but it’s made to be easily removable. This is the bike I have.

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OlDirtyBaskets@reddit

I ride past cops daily going 34 I don’t think I need to worry

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Ranccor@reddit

Love my Aima Santa Monica. Can switch between class 1-3 in the menus. The class is as you would expect, 28 mph assist no throttle.

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John-AtWork@reddit (OP)

Does it have a throttle on the bike?

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Ranccor@reddit

Yes, so you can throttle while in class 2. It doesn’t work when in class 3.

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John-AtWork@reddit (OP)

That would not be legal in California and a lot of other states. I am not saying it makes sense, it's actually stupid, but that's the way the law is written.

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Dook23@reddit

Which law would that be? Only states have laws about ebike classifications and they can be quite different. There is no federal law (yet) and the People For Bikes written correspondence on their own classifications do not specify that a bike cant fall into more than one class.

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John-AtWork@reddit (OP)

California, which adopted the P4B standards, but now are making the rules even more restricted. As of now the P4B class 3 definition is still legal here.

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Ranccor@reddit

I don’t know dude. I just read the law and it clearly says “functional throttle”. When it is a class 3 bike it isn’t functional.

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Ranccor@reddit

Ah, didn’t know that. Thanks for the info.

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Adam40Bikes@reddit

I ride a Benno Boost class 3, and my fiance has a gazelle. Both legal, no throttle.

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Inciteful_Analysis@reddit

You know that if strict class 3 compliance is a concern, you can always physically remove the throttle and stash it away. You may decide to go class 2 at some point. Or maybe your state becomes sensible and allows a class 2/3 hybrid.

No need to artificially limit your options.

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John-AtWork@reddit (OP)

Or maybe your state becomes sensible and allows a class 2/3 hybrid.

That would be nice. Is there a state that allows this right now?

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Inciteful_Analysis@reddit

Only California explicitly disallows class 2/3 hybrids to my knowledge. It was the only state that Trek was refusing to ship its FX+ 1S to.

And of course New Jersey which has reclassified all ebikes.

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James-B0ndage@reddit

The ones with throttles ship with the throttle limited to 20mph. If a class 2 ebike can have a throttle that goes up to 20mph, surely the class 3 can as well.

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Inciteful_Analysis@reddit

Hybrid class 2/3 absolutely SHOULD be permitted. In states like California it is not.

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John-AtWork@reddit (OP)

I agree. That would be really nice and I can't really understand why they don't allow them. There is no logical reason.

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John-AtWork@reddit (OP)

I don't think that is actually the case.

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liamnajor2@reddit

Actually...in a lot of cases, edge cases like this are decided by the market, and the market seems to have come to a consensus.

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John-AtWork@reddit (OP)

I am not sure what you are trying to say. Yes, most people (including me) would like the option of be able to used a throttle, but the definition of class 3 is that there is no throttle at all, not that the throttle stops working at 20 mph.

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liamnajor2@reddit

I have read the laws, and the phrasing varies by state. I would argue this is a case of following the law in spirit, not in letter.

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John-AtWork@reddit (OP)

"But officer, in my spirit this bike is legal"

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liamnajor2@reddit

I have been riding these for almost 10 years now, and because I don't ride like an asshole, I haven't been stopped on definitively illegal vehicles. But go off, king.

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John-AtWork@reddit (OP)

Hey, I am with you, but my state is in the middle of a crackdown and I would like to be able to go 28 mph legally.

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liamnajor2@reddit

ugh. I want to open an ebike repair business, and this bullshit regulation which doesn't even solve the problem it aims to address might close off one of my few remaining economic prospects. They already took coding (even though the bots really can't do it to even a basic standard)...

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Inciteful_Analysis@reddit

In point of fact, a class 2/3 hybrid ceases to be class 2 above 20mph and ceases to be class 3 below 20mph. At no time does it behave in a way that is illegal for a class 2 or class 3 ebike. The law is just poorly conceived which erodes respect for it.

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James-B0ndage@reddit

My state doesn’t care yet, but if they did I feel like as long as you’re not riding a surron or a super 73 style ebike aka one that looks like a motorcycle. Cops aren’t gonna care much, as long as you’re riding safe, they aren’t going to be pulling over e-bikes to check for throttles if you’re not going over 20mph

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liamnajor2@reddit

I have never been stopped on my scooters. Any of them. I have owned an Ezip 900*, Uberscoot 1000*, Segway F40, Apollo Air, Ninebot Max g3, and now a Joyor s5-z. Weirdly, the ezip and uberscoot were just seen as mopeds by basically everyone, and I was essentially ignored.

*both had a lithium upgrade, lead acid is worthless for a commuter EV

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James-B0ndage@reddit

Weird.

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John-AtWork@reddit (OP)

I agree.

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