Ride1Up Turris launched as low-cost electric touring bike with a pricier-feeling ride
San Diego-based electric bicycle company Ride1Up has just unveiled yet another new e-bike this season. Unlike the heavyweight electric moped we saw last month, the new Ride1Up Turris is a much lighter touring e-bike that also happens to be lighter on the wallet.
The Ride1Up Turris, which just launched at a comparatively reasonable $1,295, is ostensibly a touring bike. That means it falls somewhere between a light duty mountain bike and a city commuter. But what it really is depends on how you use, as the bike offers some serious versatility for such an inexpensive model.
The Turris has front suspension and knobby mountain bike style tires, yet sports a nimble city ride and more upright bars for a slightly hybrid-like ride posture.
It’s the best of both worlds, if you ask me. And having ridden one myself to prepare for this review, I’m pretty darn smitten with the new e-bike.
You can see what I think of the Ride1Up Turris and watch me testing it out in my video review below. Keep on scrolling if you want to read even more details about the bike and my experience testing it out.
Ride1Up Turris video review
Ride1Up Turris quick tech specs
- Motor: 750W rear hub motor
- Top speed: 26 mph (42 km/h) – perhaps a bit faster if you pedal harder than me
- Battery: 48V 12.8Ah (614Wh)
- Frame: Aluminum alloy 6061
- Weight: 55 lb (25 kg)
- Brakes: Hydraulic disc brakes
- Extras: LCD display, three colors, two frame styles (step-over and step-through), included fenders, mounting point for rear rack
- Price: $1,295
A little bit of everything
The Ride1Up Turris combines the essence of multiple styles of bikes. When you first hop on, the touch points of the bike make it feel a bit more urban. The riser handlebars don’t scream off-road, they whisper cruising and comfort.
The comfortable saddle, splash-reducing fenders, LED lighting, and even the spiral-wrapped cable management all belong in the urban category.
But then that 100mm travel suspension fork and the knobby mountain bike tires lend the bike enough off-road cred to tackle some decent nature trails, gravel roads, or other off-the-beaten-path paths.
So essentially, you’re getting two e-bikes in one. The Ride1Up Turris feels like an urban bike but rides more like a light-duty trail bike. And that’s exactly what you want in a touring bike.
Is it built to last?
So here’s the thing: At $1,295, there’s no way the Turris can hold a candle to the many thousand-dollar bike shop touring e-bikes. It’s just not built the same way.
I have no doubt that it will last for many years if you take care of it, but the components just aren’t top-shelf. The basic Shimano shifter is fine for leisure riding but isn’t a high-end piece of kit. Same goes for the derailleur. Good enough, but not great.
The hydraulic disc brakes are actually quite decent, and help to bring the bike to a quick stop. That’s important for a class 3 e-bike that hit speeds of up to 28 mph (45 km/h), though my own testing saw me getting closer to a peak of 26 mph (42 km/h).
If I had to choose, I’d go with the strategy that Ride1Up decided on: save a bit of money on the transmission and give us good brakes. Many people end up ignoring their shifters or only using the top few gears. But everyone stops – sometimes with more gusto than others. Good brakes are a necessity, and I’m glad to see that the Turris has some quality stoppers.
The suspension is somewhere in the middle, good not great. I rode on plenty of rutted-out trails and it worked just fine, especially with the tires at lower pressure of around 25 PSI instead of the 35-40 PSI I usually run on the street.
But this just isn’t a super rugged touring bike that I’d take on a trip across the US. Maybe across the state, but then I might want to bring a spare battery.
That’s the other area where the company saved a few bucks to offer that amazing $1,295 price. The battery is a tad smaller than average e-bikes these days at 48V 12.8Ah. With just 614 Wh of capacity, it seems like a solid 20 miles (32 km/h) of range is achievable on throttle only, with pedal assist riding netting closer to 35-40 miles.
You can stretch that pedal assist range to well over 50 miles if you keep it in the lowest power mode. But good luck resisting the temptation to pull more out of that 750W motor.
A great starter e-bike
Ride1Up has long been the king of affordable commuter e-bikes, and many of the company’s models have become the first e-bike for many riders. But now Ride1Up is branching out a bit into more off-road-ready riding with the Turris. And just like with the company’s commuter e-bikes, I think the Turris could become a great first e-bike for someone who wants a single bike that can live in both worlds. It’s a commuter during the week and a trail bike during the weekend!
Compared to something like the Ride1Up Roadster V2 Gravel Edition, the Turris has some real advantages. The battery is larger and removable, the motor is more powerful and you even get a throttle. For first-time e-bike riders, those are all going to be big advantages.
At $1,295, the bike offers features and performance far above its price class. Included equipment like fenders, LED lighting (at least a headlight) and even a kickstand are great to see as standard features. A rack might have been nice, but we can always add one if we really want it for commuter or urban use.
All told, I’m very happy with what the Ride1Up Turris delivers for the price. The bike offers excellent bang for your buck. It won’t compete with fancier touring e-bikes, but it does the job for a much more affordable price, and comes from a company known for its good products and support. That’s what I like to see!
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Leading electric vehicle analyst, author, and industry thought leaders Loren McDonald and Bill Ferro stop by Quick Charge to discuss EV Adoption’s acquisition by Paren, the “crisis” of EV charging reliability, and the real state of the EV market.
Depending on who you listen, EVs are either driving brands to record growth and are about cross that critical 10% of the overall market nationwide, or the future is bleak, the market is down, and EVs just aren’t selling. What’s really going on? Loren and Bill (probably) have some answers.
Today’s episode is sponsored by BLUETTI, a leading provider of portable power stations, solar generators, and energy storage systems. For a limited time, save up to 52% during BLUETTI’s exclusive Black Friday sale, now through November 28, and be sure to use promo code BLUETTI5OFF for 5% off all power stations site wide. Click here to learn more.
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Read more: All my favorite EVs, racecars, and robots from Electrify Expo Austin.
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Chevy EV owners in Texas who have Reliant as their electric utility can now charge for free at night with renewable energy.
Over 150 Chevrolet dealerships across Texas are now offering the Reliant Free Charge Nights plan to new EV buyers. With Free Charge Nights, customers can offset their charging costs by receiving credits for electricity used between 11 pm and 6 am. The plan is powered entirely by renewable energy, thanks to the purchase of renewable energy certificates (RECs).
Rasesh Patel, president of NRG Consumer, says the plan is about making power personal: “We’re excited to help Chevrolet EV drivers offset the cost of charging their vehicle all while having access to a renewable electricity plan.”
This collaboration aims to make EV adoption more appealing by making charging cheaper and greener. GM Energy’s chief revenue officer, Aseem Kapur, emphasized that partnerships like this help build the ecosystem needed to support an all-electric future: “The Reliant Free Charge Nights plan is a great example of how an automaker and an energy company can work together to make EV adoption an easy decision.”
Existing Reliant customers can also sign up for the Free Charge Nights plan. To get started, Chevrolet EV owners need to designate their vehicle on the GM Energy Smart Charging Portal before enrolling in the plan.
Reliant Energy, a subsidiary of NRG Energy, serves over 1.5 million customers in Texas, making it one of the largest electricity providers in the state.
Read more: Texas to get 1 GW AI-powered virtual power plant, enough to power 200,000 homes
If you live in an area that has frequent natural disaster events, and are interested in making your home more resilient to power outages, consider going solar and adding a battery storage system. To make sure you find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. They have hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and share your phone number with them.
Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisers to help you every step of the way. Get started here. –trusted affiliate link*
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Texas is about to get a major power boost – a new AI-powered virtual power plant (VPP) delivering capacity equivalent to 200,000 homes during peak demand.
NRG Energy is teaming up with Renew Home to bring nearly 1 gigawatt (GW) of capacity to the Texas grid by 2035, aiming to make it more resilient while helping residents save on energy costs.
The new VPP will rely on hundreds of thousands of smart thermostats and other connected home devices, making use of AI technology provided by Google Cloud. These devices, like Vivint and Nest smart thermostats, will be offered to eligible customers at no cost. By automating HVAC adjustments, they help shift energy use to when electricity is cheaper, cleaner, and less strained.
NRG and Renew Home have big plans for the VPP. Starting in spring 2025, the companies plan to roll out the program across Texas, installing these smart thermostats in homes served by NRG’s retail electricity providers. Eventually, they plan to add home battery storage and EVs to expand the power plant’s capabilities.
Texas has faced record-breaking energy demands, with peak usage hitting 85 GW in 2023. As the state’s population grows and extreme weather becomes more frequent, VPPs like this one could play a key role in stabilizing the grid. VPPs aggregate a lot of small-scale energy resources, from smart thermostats to home batteries, and use them to help balance supply and demand during times of high stress on the grid.
This nearly 1 GW VPP will be one of the largest of its kind in Texas. NRG’s president of consumer operations, Rasesh Patel, calls it a “pivotal step” for improving customer experience while making Texas’ energy infrastructure more sustainable and resilient.
In addition to Renew Home, NRG is working with Google Cloud to maximize the power plant’s effectiveness. Google Cloud’s AI and analytics tools will help predict weather conditions, forecast renewable generation, and optimize energy usage, all of which will help make energy management smoother for both customers and the grid.
Ben Brown, CEO of Renew Home, said:
NRG’s commitment to creating a more resilient and sustainable energy future while also making electricity bills more affordable makes them an ideal partner for co-developing this unique VPP program.
This initiative raises the bar for future-proofing our electricity infrastructure and delivering cost savings to customers.
Read: Chinese solar giant Trina sells its Texas factory a week after it opens
To limit power outages and make your home more resilient, consider going solar with a battery storage system. In order to find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. They have hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high-quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and you share your phone number with them.
Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisers to help you every step of the way. Get started here. –trusted affiliate link*
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