Overpowered e-bike review: The E-cells Super Monarch AWD 1500 Dual Crown
I call this e-bike “overpowered,” but I should really call it “amazingly-powered.” Yes, it’s got more power than nearly anyone really needs – but then again, so does most every performance vehicle out there, whether we’re talking about cars, motorcycles, boats, or any other type of recreational runabout.
And so the Super Monarch AWD 1500 Dual Crown is perhaps the textbook definition of excess, but that’s exactly what makes it so much fun, and such a capable off-roader.
Now before we go too far, let’s address the elephant in the room. With 1,500W of stated power — which is even less than the true 2,200W peak power — this e-bike easily falls outside of the 750W legal limit for on-road e-bikes in many areas.
In fact, it possesses two 750W continuous-rated motors, which is what gives it such impressive power and performance. But while it may not fit within street-legal e-bike classes when fully unlocked (though it can be electronically limited to legal power and speed limits), using this e-bike on the streets is almost of a waste of its awesome abilities.
The dual motors, dual batteries, and dual suspension are just screaming for off-road riding across surfaces you simply couldn’t cover with lower power and lesser performance e-bikes.
So yes, you probably shouldn’t fly down the road at 30+ mph on this thing and think you won’t raise the eyebrow of a cop who hasn’t met his ticket quota this month. But when it comes to exploring the great outdoors on a silent, non-polluting two-wheeled adventure bike, the Super Monarch AWD 1500 Dual Crown is absolutely within its element.
Check it all out in my video review below, or hang on and keep reading for my complete thoughts below.
Super Monarch AWD 1500 Dual Crown e-bike video review
Super Monarch AWD 1500 Dual Crown tech specs
- Motor(s): Twin geared 750W continuous motors, 1,500W total
- Top speed (unlocked): 32 mph (51 km/h)
- Battery: 52V 15Ah (780Wh) & 52V 20Ah (1,040Wh)
- Weight: 95 lb (43 kg)
- Frame: 6061 aluminum
- Front suspension: Dual crown fork with 120mm travel
- Rear suspension: RockShox Monarch RL
- Tires: Vee Bulldozer 26×4.25” MPC
- Brakes: Four-piston Tektro Auriga hydraulic disc brakes, 203 mm diameter and 2.3mm thick rotors
- Extras: Front and rear rack, LCD display with speedometer, power meter, battery meter, PAS level indicator, odometer, tripmeter, light status indicator, front and rear LED lights, right-side half twist throttle, torque sensor, Shimano Deore 10-speed transmission, three frame sizes available (17″, 19″, 20″), and an accessory pack including helmet, gloves, mirrors, cargo net, rack-mounted tool kit, and electric pump
What is this thing packin’?!
There’s so much going on here that we’ve got to stay organized in order to see it all. On the component side, we’ve got full-suspension with a motorcycle-style dual crown fork up front for extra rigidity and a RockShox Monarch RL rear shock; massive 4.25″ wide fat tires make the ride even plusher than what the suspension already offers.
An included torque sensor pairs with a 10-speed Shimano Deore transmission, giving a higher quality pedal assist sensation and a more rugged derailleur – exactly what you need in an off-road e-bike designed for abuse on the trails.
The four-piston hydraulic disc brakes aren’t just high-end calipers, but they’re also biting onto massive 203 mm disc rotors that are thicker than standard at 2.3 mm. That translates into higher performance braking, better heat dissipation, and more stable performance under repeated heavy braking. Basically, when you’re flying down a hill on a heavy e-bike like this, these are the kind of brakes you want.
On the electric side of things, we’ve got a full color display with optional PIN code lockout for security. We’ve got controls for front, rear, or all-wheel-drive modes on the handlebars, and the bike even sees a return to my favorite style of throttle: the right-side half twist.
Two batteries combine to offer a nearly unprecedented 1,820 Wh of battery. Again, when you’re flying around off-road and through loose terrain that is known to burn through battery capacity, you’ll be thankful to have a pair of large batteries at your disposal.
And those motors are so torquey that you’ll be worried about traction before you’re worried about if you have enough power to get up a hill. There’s 170Nm of torque from those two motors combined, which is more than just about any other e-bike I’ve ever seen.
Basically, there are several things this e-bike lacks: grace, subtlety, and the ability to elegantly lift it into a truck by yourself. But one thing it doesn’t lack is power. In fact, there are a bunch of weak little e-bikes running around out there because this thing took all the power for itself.
But what can you do with it?
I did plenty of on and off-road riding on the Super Monarch AWD 1500 Dual Crown e-bike, and it excels at bot; though I guess it’s more fair to say it excels at a certain type of riding in both environments.
On the road, I have to treat it more like a motorcycle – especially when I can surpass 30 mph in unlocked mode. In that case I’m riding with traffic, and I’m keenly aware of those around me. I’m countersteering. I’m dressing the part. The whole nine yards.
Off-road though is where the bike really comes alive. This isn’t just a bike for the trails – it’s for when the trails end and you just have raw wilderness ahead of you. With these wide tires, the all-wheel-drive and the massive torque, you can climb up and over rocks, downed branches, or just about any other obstacle.
The suspension is fully adjustable in both the front and rear to dial it in the way you like it for your terrain and riding weight. And the components are up for the challenge, from the higher quality brakes to the nicer transmission.
For those that want to pedal, the torque sensor is a great addition – especially on a heavy e-bike that might not normally feel quite so intuitive to pedal. Torque sensors make pedaling on an e-bike much more natural feeling since they use the strength of your pedal output to directly control the motor power. But then again, I can see many of the customers for a bike like this not being the type of riders who pedal very often, so I’m not sure how much the torque sensor will be used.
I was glad to employ it though and I’d absolutely recommend that anyone who rides this bike make use of the pedals instead of purely riding like a motorcycle with the throttle. It’s fun to feel a powerful machine like this being controlled by your feet. It’s almost like a mech suit for your legs.
Are there any downsides?
Of course there are downsides – plenty of them! Buy a bottle of Advil now, since you’ll need it when you try to toss this thing in your truck by yourself and throw out your back. It may look like you can lift it, but that 95 pounds of bike feels a lot heavier at shoulder height than at waist height. You can take nearly 20 pounds off by removing the batteries, but still. It’s damn heavy.
Next, it’s expensive too. That’s not to say you don’t get your money’s worth. You basically have two e-bikes worth of parts here, and good parts at that. But $5,095 is a big chunk of change any which way you slice it. This e-bike is essentially competing with off-road electric motorbikes at this point, and the price confirms it.
Lastly, there are the legal downsides if you want to commute with this e-bike on a regular basis. Sure, it can be put in street legal mode, limiting the speed to 20 or 28 mph and the power to 750W. But whether that truly fulfills the letter of the law in each state may take some deeper consideration.
On that note, though, consider this. Today you can go out and buy a 10,000 lb tank of an SUV or truck that could mow down a third grade class on a field trip without the driver even knowing it. That’s not only a perfectly legal vehicle – it’s actively being promoted throughout the industry and even at the highest ranks of the current administration. So I’m not going to tell you not to ride a 95 lb electric bike that is literally one horsepower over the legal power limit for e-bikes in the US, but I will tell you to ride responsibly, consider who and what is around you, and where you ride such a large and powerful e-bike.
So what’s the summary?
Basically, if you’ve got the cash and you’re into off-roading with extra power, you absolutely can’t go wrong here. The Super Monarch AWD 1500 Dual Crown brings a giddy smile to your face, no matter how much of a tough guy you are.
It takes some getting used to — especially if you come from much smaller and tamer e-bikes — but it’s so worth it for this wild ride.
You’ve got to pay to play when it comes to these types of speciality e-bikes, but what you get in return is a seriously good time.
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Chevy is resurrecting both the Spark and EUV nameplates with the all-new, affordable Chevy Spark EUV. GM hopes its new, 249-mile range EV will be a “game changer” that helps accelerate the company’s EV transition in export markets.
There’s an old saying that goes, “If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em.” And to that end it seems that GM’s Chevy brand has figured out a way to put China’s electric technology lead to work in their favor, rebadging the Baojun Yep Plus SUV built by the SAIC-GM-Wuling joint venture.
Meet the all-new 2026 Chevy Spark EUV – a compact, Bronco-lookin’ four-door crossover that’s ready to take South America, Africa, and the Middle East by storm.
Big style, tiny package
Like its Baojun-badged siblings, the new MY2026 Chevrolet Spark EUV is powered by a single 75 kW (101 hp), 180 Nm (130 lb-ft) motor driving the front wheels. Power comes from the Baojun’s 42 kWh LFP battery that, with regenerative braking, is good for up to 360 km (220 miles) on the NEDC driving cycle.
The new Spark is also equipped with a 10.1″ infotainment screen and 8.8″ digital instrument cluster. Interestingly, the Spark EUV ships with support for both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto standard – two technologies that GM claim lead to “unsafe” driver in North America.
Built to turn heads and spark excitement, the 2026 Chevrolet Spark EUV debuts in the ACTIV trim, boasting a bold, boxy exterior, a sleek two-tone roof, and sporty 16” wheels. Compact yet spacious, it’s the perfect everyday runner, offering seamless balance of practicality, driving dynamics and personality.
And for those who love to stand out, the Spark EUV offers six vibrant color options, including Sea Blue with a Polar White roof, Track Yellow, Tiger Blue, Gentle Gray with a Star Twinkle Black roof, and Milky Tea. But personalization doesn’t stop there – drivers can further customize their Spark EUV with exclusive accessories like Ground Effects for the front and rear, Side Moldings, Assist Steps, and Side and Rear Storage Boxes.
Whether you’re an adventurer, gaming enthusiast, music lover, sports fan or someone who enjoys pop culture, a range of unique accessories and themes ensures your Spark EUV stands out and feels uniquely yours.
“The Chevrolet Spark EUV is the coolest and most attainable vehicle in its segment – and is positioned to drive EV adoption in the Middle East,” explains Jack Uppal, General Motors Africa and Middle East President and Managing Director. “Not only is it fun to drive, but the Chevrolet Spark EUV also offers customers the chance to personalize their vehicle with a variety of customization options, making it uniquely their own.”
In addition to basically re-using R&D and tooling budgets from the Baojun brand, the 2026 Chevy Spark EUV keeps its price low with relatively low EV tech. The charging, for example, tops out at “just” 50 kW – a far cry from the 300-plus kW from Tesla, let alone the 480 kW from some of the cutting-edge Chinese brands.
The 2026 Chevrolet Spark EUV will be available in UAE, KSA, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Lebanon, Iraq, Oman, and Egypt later this Summer. No official word on pricing.
Electrek’s Take
I know this is an overseas model with almost no chance of coming to the US – and that’s our loss. A practical, fun, affordable EV like this could do huge numbers if it was priced right. And with the Baojun Yep starting at less than $12,000 US in China, I can’t imagine a sub-20K MSRP would be entirely out of the question.
SOURCE | IMAGES: GM.
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The 2025 US Electric Vehicle Experience (EVX) Ownership Study from J.D. Power tells us that more people are more satisfied with their EV experience than last year – and the EV owners who are the most satisfied with their rides can be found behind the wheel of the BMW iX.
Now in its fifth year, the J.D. Power U.S. Electric Vehicle Experience (EVX) Ownership Study focuses on the the first year of vehicle ownership. The overall EVX ownership index is a 1000-point score that measures EV owner satisfaction in both premium and mass market segments across 10 factors. Those being (in alphabetical order):
- accuracy of stated battery range
- availability of public charging stations
- battery range
- cost of ownership
- driving enjoyment
- ease of charging at home
- interior and exterior styling
- safety and technology features
- service experience
- vehicle quality and reliability
And, for the second year in a row, a BMW has taken the top two spots in J.D. Power’s survey, slotting just ahead of the Rivian R1T and R1S models (the leaders in 2023). In the mass-market BEV segment, BMW’s MINI sub-brand also performed well.
The reason BMW is consistently pulling ahead? It seems to come down to education. “First-time EV buyers are receiving minimal education or training,” explains Brent Gruber, executive director of the EV practice at J.D. Power. “Dealer and manufacturer representatives play the crucial role of front-line educators, but when it comes to EVs, the specific education needed to shorten the learning curve just isn’t happening often enough. The shortfall in buyer education is something we’re seeing with all brands.”
For their part, BMW and MINI do a great job with consumer education – and the company’s Genius program (cunning cribbed from Apple’s Genius Bar playbook) is the best in the car business. With that in mind, it’s hard to imagine this going down any other way.
Bigger trends in the EV space
After a decline in BEV owners’ overall satisfaction results in 2024, J.D. Power reports that owners of both premium and mass market battery electric EVs are expressing a change of sentiment this year. Part of that is better education, another part is more mainstream awareness of EV charging basics, but most of that is the overall growth and improvement of America’s publicly accessible DC fast charging network.
Among mass market BEV owners, satisfaction is up 86 points year over year (396) as infrastructure buildout continues and brands benefit from the opening of the Tesla Supercharger network. Satisfaction with public charger availability is highest among owners of premium BEVs (551).
These results should come as no surprise to Electrek readers and Quick Charge listeners. We covered a Paren study late last year that showed a nearly 50% increase in DC fast charging sessions YOY over Thanksgiving weekend. In that study, the company’s proprietary EV charger reliability index was up 3.4% compared to last year, reaching 85.5% and signaling an improving charging experience overall for EV drivers.
Another big EV trend covered in J.D. Power’s survey is the market’s permanence. EVs have staying power, in other words, with the vast, sweeping majority of first-time EV buyers indicating that they’re not going back to ICE.
verall, 94% of BEV owners are likely to consider purchasing another BEV for their next vehicle, a rate that is also matched by first-time buyers. Manufacturers should take note of the strong consumer commitment to EVs as the high rate of repurchase intent offers the ability to generate brand loyal customers if the experience is a positive one. In fact, during the past several years, the BEV repurchase intent percentage has fluctuated very little, ranging between 94-97%. This year’s study also finds that only 12% of BEV owners are likely to consider replacing their EV with an internal combustion engine (ICE)-powered vehicle during their next purchase.
“With five years of conducting this study and surveying thousands of EV owners, it’s apparent that once consumers enter the EV fold, they’re highly likely to remain committed to the technology,” Gruber adds.
J.D. Power reports that BEVs reached a market share of 9.1% in 2024, up from 8.4% in 2023. That’s in line with Cox Automotive’s numbers, which led that company to predict that 1 of every 4 new cars sold in the US (cleverly sidestepping the truck segment) would be battery-powered in 2025.
You can check out the results of the J.D. Power surveys, below, then let us know what you think of these results in the comments.
EVs with most satisfied owners
SOURCE | IMAGES: J.D. Power; BMW.
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Dutch charge point operators Fastned have opened their first DC fast-charging station with up to 400 kW chargers in Italy, marking the eighth nation the company has built stations in.
Fastned’s new EV charging location was built into the existing Truck Park Brescia Est service plaxa on the busy A4 motorway roughly between Milan and Venice. The A4 is a major traffic artery in the northern part of Italy, but that’s not the only reason the site was chosen.
Fastned says that the majority of electric vehicles registered in the boot-shaped nation are located in the northernmost regions of the country of the country. More specifically, the new charging facility is located roughly halfway between Bergamo and Verona, while the A4 continues west to Lake Lugano and Lake Como or and east to Lago di Garda.
The facility offers four Alpitronic-built HYC400 Hyperchargers, DC fast charging stations with a massive, 400 kW output – quite a bit more than what even the newest Tesla EVs can make use of, but still significantly slower than either the megawatt charging some battery electric semi trucks or the latest 6C luxury cars from China can make use of.
The new Fastned charge park was originally set to open in 2024, but wasn’t officially commissioned by the Italian motorway operator A4 Holding Group until this week.
Electrek’s Take
You might be asking yourself why I’m writing about a new charging station in Europe when I usually write about big trucks and tractors. The answer is simple: I read “Truck Park Brescia Est” and assumed this was a truck stop. By the time I figured it out I’d already written about three quarters of the article, and rather than throw it away I decided to use it as yet another opportunity to point out that Tesla is a step or three behind the latest charging tech from China.
I also re-posted an episode of Quick Charge on this same topic (above). Enjoy!
SOURCE | IMAGES: Fastned, via Electrive.
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