An electric bike that looks (and rides) like an electric motorcycle: G-FORCE ZM review
The G-FORCE ZM electric bike is one of those e-bikes that borrows heavily from motorcycle styling while maintaining its street-legal status as an electric bicycle. But the motorcycle influence doesn’t just run skin deep; it’s also got a powerful ride to match.
G-FORCE ZM tech specs
- Motor: 750W geared rear hub motor
- Top speed: 28 mph (45 km/h)
- Range: Claimed 60-80 miles (96-128 km)
- Battery: 48V 20Ah (960 Wh)
- Weight: 85 pounds (38.5 kg)
- Max load: 400 pounds (181 kg)
- Brakes: Hydraulic disc brakes, 160mm rotors
- Extras: 7-speed Shimano drivetrain, large color LCD display, LED headlight and tail light, half-twist throttle, removable battery, padded bench seat with space for second passenger, fenders, kickstand, mag wheels
G-FORCE ZM video review
Want to watch me take this e-bike on a series of test rides? Check out my video review below!
Rides like a small-format electric motorcycle
Everything about the G-FORCE ZM screams moto, not bike.
I’d call it a fairly true-to-form electric moped, even if it technically fits into e-bike classification.
Yes, it’s a class 3 e-bike in the US, but it rides more like a moped that has vestigial pedals there for resting your feet. You could pedal it in the event of a dead battery, but the 85 pound (38 kg) bike isn’t going to be a pleasure to pedal at anything more than around 4-5 mph (8 km/h). And lord help you if there’s even a small uphill section on your pedal ride back home.
But with the option for a 48V and 20Ah battery (or a smaller 13Ah battery if you want to save some cash), you should have plenty of range for a day trip. And since the $1,899 entry-level model with the 13Ah battery is only $100 cheaper than the 20Ah version, I don’t know why anyone wouldn’t want to spend that extra Benjamin to get 50% more range.
In addition to decent range, the G-FORCE ZM is also fast and peppy with a 28 mph (45 km/h) top speed. The 750W Bafang motor is actually putting out closer to 1,300 watts of peak power, and the bike has good acceleration under my 150 pound (68 kg) load.
The dual suspension setup makes for a comfortable ride, though I don’t know how the suspension would fare under the max 400 pound (181 kg) weight rating (or if the acceleration would be nearly as peppy).
The 110mm-travel suspension fork is adjustable, but the rear suspension is a what-you-see-is-what-you-get kind of situation. It’s fine for me and makes for a good ride, but it’s not exactly going to handle a downhill mountain bike trail. Speed bumps are a little more its pace.
Which also begs the question, why did they give the bike knobby tires? The 4″ fat tires in 20″ diameter size are great for street riding, except that the knobbies don’t give quite as much traction as I’d like on asphalt. You could theoretically go off-roading with these tires, but the suspension isn’t really designed for anything more than a shortcut across a fairly manicured grassy field. I’d have preferred to see street tires instead of all-terrain tires, but tires can of course be swapped at home or by your local bike shop.
I really like the tires that Specialized showed off on its low-cost utility bike, which feature a street-optimized center patch with knobbies on the edges for better turning off-road. That would have been a decent compromise here.
Another upgrade I would have liked to see on the G-FORCE ZM would have been larger disc rotors. The hydraulic disc brakes seem fine, but the smaller 160mm rotors are definitely going to heat up quicker when repeatedly stopping this heavy bike from higher speeds. It seems to me that 180mm rotors would have been a better choice.
The G-FORCE ZM still scores several points in my book though, even if I would have like to see some brake and tire upgrades.
The bright and colorful LCD screen is easy to read at a glance and looks much nicer than the displays we often see on similarly priced e-bikes.
The motorcycle tank-shaped battery is a neat feature that adds to the fun vibe of the bike, though I can pretty much already guarantee you that there are going to be armchair physicists in my comment section below educating us on the travesty of having that weight higher up on the frame. In practice, the rider’s center of mass, which is around 15x heavier than the battery and much higher up, is going to have way more of an effect on the bike’s handling. And for a bike that is going to spend most of its time riding straight in a bike lane or making easy 90-degree turns on city streets, the higher center of mass from that tank-battery just isn’t going to be very noticeable. So for me, I’ll enjoy the fun motorcycle-styled design.
It’s true that a lower mounted battery would technically be better. But having ridden the bike and also having ridden others with lower batteries, I can tell you that the difference is simply quite small, all things considered.
There are other nice features that often get left off these moped-style e-bikes, such as a 7-speed Shimano transmission and a USB charger built into the handlebar display. The massive LED headlight and included LED tail light make the bike plenty visible, which is important for commuter-style riding at night.
While I can nitpick about the G-FORCE ZM’s smaller brake rotors and tire choice that doesn’t quite make sense, there’s a lot more here that I like than that I don’t.
The full-suspension setup normally jacks the price up quite high, but a starting cost of just $1,899 feels reasonable for a Class 3 e-bike with dual suspension, hydraulic brakes and some nice added features.
A pair of footpegs are just about all that is missing to turn this into a pretty awesome urban cruiser, giving motorcycle vibes in an e-bike price class.
It may not have the gravitas of a SUPER73 or other big name moped-style electric bikes, but it sure offers a fun and reasonably priced ride!
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Locals call him the “Bicycle hero,” but Texas man Evan Wayne says he’s just doing what he can to help his community after it was cut off due to the recent devastating and deadly flooding tragedy.
When the local Sandy Creek flooded following torrential rains in Texas, it destroyed the only bridge into one community. Residents were cut off from access to supplies, including everything from necessities like food, water, and medicine to basic comforts.
Although the bridge was impassable to cars, volunteers who quickly organized to help the stranded residents found that the damaged bridge could still be traversed on foot. Or in the case of Evan Wayne, it could be covered by an electric bike.
Evan joined hundreds of volunteers who answered the call of grassroots organizers by working together without any official capacity. While many started by hand-pulling garden carts of supplies uphill to reach the stricken community, Evan jury-rigged a trailer to an e-bike and took on as much of the load as he could, helping shuttle much-needed food and gear into the community over hundreds of round-trip journeys.
“This was a dog trailer 48 hours ago. I had a hacksaw, hacked the top off, grabbed some bungee cords, and here we are,” explained Evan in an interview with CBS Austin, while waiting for the next load of gear to be stacked on his trailer.
In the first two days of the operation, he made around 100 round trips each day, shuttling food and water as well as critical rescue supplies. “Right now, I’m waiting on a couple of chainsaws that I’ll bring in for a crew that’s been going at it with handsaws so far.”
In addition to delivering needed supplies, Evan has often found himself moving something even more important: information. “I’ve flagged down medics. I’ve been the guy that goes between Austin EMT and STAR Flight because I’m quicker than cell phones sometimes, people don’t have signal a lot of the time.”
Evan quickly points out that he isn’t the only one helping. “I’ve got an e-bike, but other people are pulling carts. People are walking, people are carrying things. Everyone is doing what they can.” But there’s no doubt that his ability to carry more gear at higher speeds and make hundreds of round-trip journeys so far in and out of the stricken neighborhood has helped impact countless lives.
“This is all volunteers here. They’re just taking it upon themselves to get people where they need to go. I think there’s an umbrella company coming in, taking over tomorrow, but until they get here, people are just taking care of people, which is what you’ve got to do.”
E-bikes proving their worth in emergencies
While many people consider electric bicycles just another form of recreation, they’ve proven to be potent transportation alternatives after natural disasters worldwide.
Not only do their small and efficient batteries make performing hundreds of rescue trips like Evans’ possible, but recharging can be done simply and easily with a solar panel when electricity is out after a disaster. And when gas stations are out of fuel (or simply can’t pump it with the power grid down), e-bikes can keep running while gasoline-powered motorcycles or ATVs run dry.
Electric bicycle batteries have also proven to be a handy source of emergency power after hurricanes and other disasters, often helping owners keep their phones charged up for days to remain in contact with family or rescue services.
While most hope to never need theirs for emergency purposes, electric bicycles have proven their worth in countless disaster scenarios, adding benefits far beyond just alternative transportation, recreation, or fitness riding.
Image credits: CBS Austin (screenshots), used under fair use
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Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey testifies during a remote video hearing held by subcommittees of the U.S. House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee on “Social Media’s Role in Promoting Extremism and Misinformation” in Washington, U.S., March 25, 2021.
Handout | Via Reuters
Block jumped more than 5% on Monday, leading a rally in shares of fintech companies as analysts downplayed the threat of JPMorgan Chase’s reported plan to charge data aggregators for access to customer financial information.
The recovery followed steep declines on Friday, after Bloomberg reported that JPMorgan had circulated pricing sheets outlining potential fees for aggregators like Plaid and Yodlee, which connect fintech platforms to users’ bank data.
In a note to clients on Monday, Evercore ISI analysts said the potential new expenses were “far from a ‘business model-breaking’ cost increase.”
In addition to Block’s rise, PayPal climbed 3.5% on Monday after sliding Friday. Robinhood and Shift4 recorded modest gains.
Broader market momentum helped fuel some of the rebound. The Nasdaq closed at a record, and crypto rallied, with bitcoin climbing past $123,000. Ether, solana, and other altcoins also gained.
Evercore ISI’s analysts said that even if JPMorgan’s changes were implemented, the most immediate effect would be a slight bump in the cost of one-time account setups — perhaps 50 to 60 cents.
Morgan Stanley echoed that view, writing that any impact would be “negligible,” especially for large fintechs that rely more on debit, credit, or stored balances than bank account pulls for transactions.
PayPal doesn’t anticipate much short-term impact, according to a person with knowledge of the issue. The person, who asked not to be named in order to speak about private financial matters, noted that PayPal relies on aggregators primarily for account verification and already has long-term pricing contracts in place.
While smaller fintechs that depend heavily on automated clearing house (ACH) rails or Open Banking frameworks for onboarding and compliance may face real pressure if the fees take effect, analysts said the larger platforms are largely insulated.
WATCH: Congress moves to redraw $3.7 trillion crypto market rules, opening door to Wall Street
The global EV market is still charging ahead. According to new numbers from global research firm Rho Motion, 9.1 million EVs were sold worldwide in the first half of 2025, up 28% compared to the same period last year. But not every region is accelerating at the same pace.
China and Europe are doing the heavy lifting
More than half of the world’s EVs this year have been bought in China. That market hit 5.5 million sales in the first six months of 2025 – a 32% jump year-over-year. Around half of new cars bought in China are now electric.
While some Chinese cities’ subsidies have dried up, Rho Motion expects momentum to pick back up later in the year as more funding is released.
In Europe, 2 million EVs were sold in the first half of the year, up 26%. Battery electric vehicle (BEV) sales also rose 26%, thanks in part to affordable models like the Renault 4 (pictured) and 5 entering the market. Plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) weren’t far behind, growing 27% year-to-date. Chinese automakers are leaning into PHEVs as a way to work around the EU’s new tariffs on BEVs.
Spain is leading the pack with EV sales soaring 85% so far this year. Its generous MOVES III incentive program was extended in April and has kept sales strong. The UK and Germany are also seeing solid growth – 32% and 40%, respectively. France, however, is slumping. With subsidies cut, EV sales there have dropped 13%.
North America is stuck in the slow lane
Things aren’t looking quite as bright in North America. EV sales in the US, Canada, and Mexico are up just 3% so far this year.
Mexico is the one bright spot, with a 20% boost. The US is up 6%. But Canada is down a whopping 23%.
And things could get bumpier. On July 4, Trump signed Congress’s big bill into law, which axes all the Inflation Reduction Act EV tax credits. Those consumer credits for EVs now officially end on September 30.
Just over half of the EVs sold in the US this year qualified for those credits. Rho Motion predicts a rush in Q3 before the subsidies disappear – and a decline in sales after that.
Rho Motion data manager Charles Lester said, “With Trump’s latest cuts in his ‘Big Beautiful Bill,’ the US could struggle to see any growth in the EV market overall in 2025.”
Global EV sales snapshot, H1 2025 vs H1 2024
- Global: 9.1 million (+28%)
- China: 5.5 million (+32%)
- Europe: 2.0 million (+26%)
- North America: 0.9 million (+3%)
- Rest of world: 0.7 million (+40%)
Read more: China breaks records as global EV sales hit 7.2 million in 2025
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