Wildeway FW11S e-bike review: A 30 mph 2-person electric bike with a ridiculously large battery
The Wildeway FW11S is another one of these e-bikes that we frequently see launched by lesser-known e-bike companies. But unlike the many dime-a-dozen models that fit into that category, the FW11S comes with something most others don’t: two to three times the battery capacity.
That’s right – the Wildeway FW11S e-bike has a battery that is between double to triple the size of the common batteries found on most other e-bikes these days. At 48V 32Ah, it’s one of the largest we’ve ever seen on a retail e-bike.
If you keep the bike in lower power mode, that’s enough battery for over 100 miles (160 km) of range!
Check out what else makes this e-bike so excessive in my video review below.
Wildeway FW11S video review
Wildeway FW11S tech specs
- Motor: 750W rear geared hub motor (1,000W peak power)
- Top speed: 30 mph (48 km/h)
- Range: Up to 100 miles (160 km) on pedal assist
- Battery: 48V 32Ah 1,536 Wh
- Weight: 77 lb (35 kg)
- Max capacity: 330 lb (150 kg)
- Wheels: 20-inch x 4.0-inch tires
- Brakes: Hydraulic disc brakes with adjustable levers
- Extras: Large color LCD, headlight and taillight, included padded rear bench seat with foot pegs, plastic fenders, 7-speed gearing, front suspension, kickstand
- Price: $1,399
A fast but slightly janky ride
The FW11S is a fast and fun ride, but the quality is only what I’d call mediocre. It’s fine for basic everyday use, but don’t expect to get a top-quality e-bike at this price – especially not one with such impressive performance specs. You can see where the money went on this bike, which is more toward the performance than the components.
The $1,399 price tag is largely thanks to the torquey motor (80 Nm) and the massive battery. The two combine to turn this into a seriously fast and powerful e-bike. In fact, it feels more like an e-moped that you’d use to replace a car for around-town trips. I didn’t quite hit 30 mph (48 km/h) as they claimed, but I did see peaks at around 28 mph (45 km/h), which is pretty darn close. Maybe they had a tailwind or perhaps a teenage girl doing the testing for an even better power-to-weight ratio – who knows?
So the power and speed are great, don’t get me wrong. But the corners that were cut in terms of quality will sneak up on you. For example, the cheap plastic fenders flop around like a fish out of water. The cheap tires weren’t even perfectly round but rather seemed to have an imperfection that created a slight bump when inflated to higher pressures. And the adjustable brake levers, while being a nice feature to have, seem to jiggle around while you ride. It didn’t impact performance, but it just looks and sounds a bit janky.
That said, if you can look past those issues, the bike is nearly all positives from there on out.
The rear seat is a great addition for carrying a friend or significant other with you, though the 110 pounds weight capacity means they better be a smaller friend or petite partner. I’m glad to see footpegs are included, too, since some e-bikes tend to leave the footpegs off, even when including a rear passenger seat.
The hydraulic disc brakes feel plenty grippy, which is good for a fast e-bike like this. The motor is powerful and gets you rolling quickly. And that battery – oh, that battery! It’s a massive 20-pounder, but it lasts all freakin’ day. For a fast e-bike like this (and a heavy one, too, at nearly 80 pounds), you’ll want a big battery that can supply the power-hungry motor.
As a folding e-bike, there isn’t anything too special here. It folds like any other e-bike, and the suspension seat post can drop down fairly low to the rear seat’s backrest height, meaning it’s both short and compact. But it’s heavy, so carrying it around in folded form is not easy.
Oh, and speaking of that seat post, that’s the last gripe I have here. The seat can’t go very high because the seat post starts quite low (to allow for shorter riders), but that meant that even in its highest position, I couldn’t get full leg extension to the pedals. You’ll notice the bottom bracket is fairly high on this model, so that only compounds the problem. And I’m not particularly tall at 5’7″ (170 cm), so taller riders will find it even more scrunched in the leg/knee department. But since most people will treat this like a moped anyway and will throttle around most of the time, that might not be a big issue for the majority of riders that choose a bike like this.
There’s also a step-over version of the bike called the FW11, and that model seems to have a higher maximum seat height, so it may be better for folks with longer legs and those who don’t necessarily want or need a step-through frame.
Sum it up for me!
To bring this to a close, here are my final thoughts: The Wildeway FW11S is a fast, powerful and fun e-bike. For anyone that wants speed and passenger-carrying ability on a budget, this can do it for you. You’ll get up to faster speeds than other passenger-carrying e-bikes on throttle only, and you do it for a fairly reasonable price of just $1,399.
But this isn’t the highest quality e-bike, so don’t be surprised if you hear some rattle along the way or see your fenders flopping up and down on big bumps. Trade-offs are required to get high performance at a low price, and you’re looking at them.
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Wind energy powered 20% of all electricity consumed in Europe (19% in the EU) in 2024, and the EU has set a goal to grow this share to 34% by 2030 and more than 50% by 2050.
To stay on track, the EU needs to install 30 GW of new wind farms annually, but it only managed 13 GW in 2024 – 11.4 GW onshore and 1.4 GW offshore. This is what’s holding the EU back from achieving its wind growth goals.
Three big problems holding Europe’s wind power back
Europe’s wind power growth is stalling for three key reasons:
Permitting delays. Many governments haven’t implemented the EU’s new permitting rules, making it harder for projects to move forward.
Grid connection bottlenecks. Over 500 GW(!) of potential wind capacity is stuck in grid connection queues.
Slow electrification. Europe’s economy isn’t electrifying fast enough to drive demand for more renewable energy.
Brussels-based trade association WindEurope CEO Giles Dickson summed it up: “The EU must urgently tackle all three problems. More wind means cheaper power, which means increased competitiveness.”
Permitting: Germany sets the standard
Permitting remains a massive roadblock, despite new EU rules aimed at streamlining the process. In fact, the situation worsened in 2024 in many countries. The bright spot? Germany. By embracing the EU’s permitting rules — with measures like binding deadlines and treating wind energy as a public interest priority — Germany approved a record 15 GW of new onshore wind in 2024. That’s seven times more than five years ago.
If other governments follow Germany’s lead, Europe could unlock the full potential of wind energy and bolster energy security.
Grid connections: a growing crisis
Access to the electricity grid is now the biggest obstacle to deploying wind energy. And it’s not just about long queues — Europe’s grid infrastructure isn’t expanding fast enough to keep up with demand. A glaring example is Germany’s 900-megawatt (MW) Borkum Riffgrund 3 offshore wind farm. The turbines are ready to go, but the grid connection won’t be in place until 2026.
This issue isn’t isolated. Governments need to accelerate grid expansion if they’re serious about meeting renewable energy targets.
Electrification: falling behind
Wind energy’s growth is also tied to how quickly Europe electrifies its economy. Right now, electricity accounts for just 23% of the EU’s total energy consumption. That needs to jump to 61% by 2050 to align with climate goals. However, electrification efforts in key sectors like transportation, heating, and industry are moving too slowly.
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has tasked Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen with crafting an Electrification Action Plan. That can’t come soon enough.
More wind farms awarded, but challenges persist
On a positive note, governments across Europe awarded a record 37 GW of new wind capacity (29 GW in the EU) in 2024. But without faster permitting, better grid connections, and increased electrification, these awards won’t translate into the clean energy-producing wind farms Europe desperately needs.
Investments and corporate interest
Investments in wind energy totaled €31 billion in 2024, financing 19 GW of new capacity. While onshore wind investments remained strong at €24 billion, offshore wind funding saw a dip. Final investment decisions for offshore projects remain challenging due to slow permitting and grid delays.
Corporate consumers continue to show strong interest in wind energy. Half of all electricity contracted under Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) in 2024 was wind. Dedicated wind PPAs were 4 GW out of a total of 12 GW of renewable PPAs.
Read more: Renewables could meet almost half of global electricity demand by 2030 – IEA
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In the Electrek Podcast, we discuss the most popular news in the world of sustainable transport and energy. In this week’s episode, we discuss the official unveiling of the new Tesla Model Y, Mazda 6e, Aptera solar car production-intent, and more.
The show is live every Friday at 4 p.m. ET on Electrek’s YouTube channel.
As a reminder, we’ll have an accompanying post, like this one, on the site with an embedded link to the live stream. Head to the YouTube channel to get your questions and comments in.
After the show ends at around 5 p.m. ET, the video will be archived on YouTube and the audio on all your favorite podcast apps:
We now have a Patreon if you want to help us avoid more ads and invest more in our content. We have some awesome gifts for our Patreons and more coming.
Here are a few of the articles that we will discuss during the podcast:
Here’s the live stream for today’s episode starting at 4:00 p.m. ET (or the video after 5 p.m. ET):
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The Chinese EV leader is launching a new flagship electric sedan. BYD’s new Han L EV leaked in China on Friday, revealing a potential Tesla Model S Plaid challenger.
What we know about the BYD Han L EV so far
We knew it was coming soon after BYD teased the Han L on social media a few days ago. Now, we are learning more about what to expect.
BYD’s new electric sedan appeared in China’s latest Ministry of Industry and Information Tech (MIIT) filing, a catalog of new vehicles that will soon be sold.
The filing revealed four versions, including two EV and two PHEV models. The Han L EV will be available in single- and dual-motor configurations. With a peak power of 580 kW (777 hp), the single-motor model packs more power than expected.
BYD’s dual-motor Han L gains an additional 230 kW (308 hp) front-mounted motor. As CnEVPost pointed out, the vehicle’s back has a “2.7S” badge, which suggests a 0 to 100 km/h (0 to 62 mph) sprint time of just 2.7 seconds.
To put that into perspective, the Tesla Model S Plaid can accelerate from 0 to 100 km in 2.1 seconds. In China, the Model S Plaid starts at RBM 814,900, or over $110,000. Speaking of Tesla, the EV leader just unveiled its highly anticipated Model Y “Juniper” refresh in China on Thursday. It starts at RMB 263,500 ($36,000).
BYD already sells the Han EV in China, starting at around RMB 200,000. However, the single front motor, with a peak power of 180 kW, is much less potent than the “L” model. The Han EV can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 7.9 seconds.
At 5,050 mm long, 1,960 mm wide, and 1,505 mm tall with a wheelbase of 2,970 mm, BYD’s new Han L is roughly the size of the Model Y (4,970 mm long, 1,964 mm wide, 1,445 mm tall, wheelbase of 2,960 mm).
Other than that it will use a lithium iron phosphate (LFP) pack from BYD’s FinDreams unit, no other battery specs were revealed. Check back soon for the full rundown.
Source: CnEVPost, China MIIT
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