If that’s the case, double check it’s got the battery included. Bafang is one of the largest and best-known electric bike motor companies in the world. It’s been around since 2003, and in 2014 Bafang established a US arm to better support the US market. There are many well-known electric bike companies sourcing its components, so if you want to get in the game and source your own electric bike components, you won’t go far wrong with Bafang.
At level 5, the throttle propels you up to 20 miles per hour and disengages if you go faster than that (for example, if you go downhill). Class 2 e-bikes are required to stop assistance past 20 miles per hour. Level 1 throttle tops out at around 10 mph while level 5 will give you the full 20 mph. When you think about EVs, you probably (rightly) think of cars. But there’s another class of EV that might have slipped below your radar, but which has transformed my summer in very unexpected ways. Of course, if you read the headline, you know I’m talking about electric bikes, and I’ve had the opportunity to test out Schwinn’s Coston CE electric bike for the past three weeks (and an older model before that).
Some thought was put into the idea there and I appreciated it. The Coston e-bike comes with a typical brick-on-a-string charger that plugs into a normal 110v outlet. You can plug the battery in while it’s inside the bike, or you can use an included key to remove the battery from the bike for charging. The battery meter is comprised of five segments to give you an estimate of how much power you have left. I think I would prefer something a little more concrete like a numeric display, especially given the range anxiety you can get while riding this bike, but again, some indicator is better than none. Before we get into the e-bike itself, I want to take a moment to talk about e-bike ownership and what it has meant for me.
E-bikes have enabled people who need or want some pedal assistance to broaden the range and scope of their riding while making it easier than ever to choose sustainable and greener transport methods. A growing number of US teens and young adults were purchasing imported European sport racing or sport touring bicycles, many fitted with multiple derailleur-shifted gears. Schwinn decided to meet the challenge by developing two lines of sport or road ‘racer’ bicycles. One was already in the catalog — the limited production Paramount series. The Paramount series had limited production numbers, making vintage examples quite rare today. Other road bikes were introduced by Schwinn in the early and mid 1960s, such as the Superior, Sierra, and Super Continental, but these were only produced for a few years.
Before you complete any purchase, make sure you have an understanding of the local laws that govern electric bikes, which is where our guide to e-bike classes comes in handy. For example, in the US, there are different classes of e-bikes that vary by their power, speed limitations and whether or not they have a throttle, mongoose excursion and each class is subject to different rules. Things are a little more simple elsewhere, with the UK and EU stating that anything with a speed limiter of over 25km/h is classified as a moped, while anything up to 25km/h (15.5mph) is classed as a bicycle. The kits themselves are entirely legal, and fitting them to your bike is equally so. However, the question of legality arises in relation to where you then plan to use your newly powered electric bike.
If mid-drive seems overwhelming, this is an excellent option. One of the easiest schwinn mountain bicycles ways to convert a bike to electric is to swap out the front wheel for one with a front hub motor. This is the approach that Swytch takes, but there’s more to a good system than just a motor and battery. From our time testing and reviewing it, it’s clear to us that the team behind Swytch has considered the whole system in its design.