I just bought a super-cheap electric bike from China. It was a bad idea
It’s no secret that most electric bikes come from China. Sure, there are high-quality e-bikes built in Europe and even a few in the US. But not the ones with the price tags that make you go, “Honey, how can we afford not to?!” And that’s exactly the story of my latest weird little e-bike purchase. Say hello to the Mihogo Mini, an ultra-low-cost electric bike direct from China.
If you weren’t nervous about this yet, wait until you hear this. Not only is this a super-cheap US $397 electric bike, but I didn’t even buy it outright. Yesterday I just “purchased” it on Indiegogo, a crowdfunding platform. That means I didn’t legally buy it, but rather I “backed” the campaign. Now it’s the responsibility of this mysterious Mihogo company to hopefully send me the bike, but they’re under no legal obligation to do so. Welcome to crowdfunding!
A quick disclaimer: This is of course not a sponsored article of any kind – I wouldn’t do that. I don’t know Mihogo or anyone at this company, I’ve never heard of them before I found the Indiegogo campaign, and I’ve never contacted them or talked to anyone there. They probably don’t know I exist, other than that I’m now on a list of people they owe an e-bike to. So in an effort to head off the ignorant comments claiming these are paid articles or something, please understand that this is the opposite situation. I merely had a bad idea to send them my money and see what happens, that’s all. And I figured it might be interesting for anyone who doesn’t want to take that risk themself to follow along with me.
Okay, disclaimer out of the way. Let’s get into this.
So here’s what the Mihogo Mini appears to be. Based on the Indiegogo page and the spec sheet, it looks like I’m on the list to maybe eventually receive a small-format folding e-bike that rocks teeny-tiny 12×2.125″ tires, has a 350W hub motor in the rear wheel, and touts a top speed of 22 mph (35 km/h). I assume that top speed is measured downhill.
The tiny e-bike gets powered by a surprisingly high-capacity 48V 16Ah battery (with claimed Panasonic cells). The 768Wh capacity battery is said to be capable of providing a range of 70-100 km (43-62 miles), though I fully expect that to be an overestimate.
The total weight is listed at 19.5 kg (43 lb.), and it claims a ridiculously high weight capacity of up to 200 kg (440 lb). I expect that if I loaded it up with that much weight, it would break. Not the first time. Probably not the second time. But I don’t think it would last very long. Much more expensive and nicely designed e-bikes have broken in half before, and there’s no way a $397 e-bike can claim to be as strong as a Tern e-bike that basically had to create new tests to find its load limit. For it’s part, Mihogo tries to back up its weight capacity claims with a weirdly upbeat video showing off some FEA analysis and a pile of frames as well as what appear to be pre-built bikes. But honestly, who even knows when you get into a grab like this?
The bike looks pretty small, and it is. They say it is “optimized for riders between 150-190 cm tall,” which in screeching eagle freedom units translates to 4’11” to 6’2″. I’d love to see someone on the upper end of that range try to sit on this bike. Personally, I’m conveniently in the middle of that range at exactly 170 cm (5’7″), so I think I can make it work.
When it comes to the price, to be honest I didn’t pay US $397 for this. I must have a taste for the finer things in life, because I sprung for the Mihogo Mini Pro – an upgraded version priced at US $447.
From what I can tell, the only hardware upgrades on the Pro version are a color screen and a slightly brighter headlight that appears to be powered from the main battery pack on the bike instead of from its own internal battery that needs recharging.
Both of those are nice upgrades, but not really worth US $50. If I’m being truthful, I paid one crisp President Grant extra because I wanted it to be yellow. The “cheap” version for US $397 only comes in gray or red. The “pro” version comes in both of those colors as well as purple, yellow, and blue.
Don’t judge me – if you drive a Tesla and it’s not the base model color then you did it too.
I’m not expecting the e-bike to be amazing by any stretch of the imagination, so I’d at least like it to look good. And that yellow color, it really pops.
If you know anything about me, you’ll know two things: I have a penchant for buying weird EVs from China, and I also like brightly colored bikes.
I also think that brightly colored bikes are an extra safety feature, making riders more visible to cars. And when you’re riding an e-bike built by the lowest bidder, you’ll take any extra safety points you can get.
At this point, you’re probably wondering why I even wanted this thing. Even though I don’t expect the bike to be a miracle of engineering, I still like the design enough to risk US $447 on it.
The split frame looks like a cool way to carry things between your knees (I should have sprung for the US $39 frame bag).
The tiny suspension fork should add a small amount of comfort.
The folding handlebars will make it easy to stash in a closet or under a table in my small apartment.
The big battery will offer even more range than most leading e-bikes found in the US these days.
Basically, despite its admittedly odd design, it’s got several features that actually sound promising.
And the little bike even claims to come with EN15194 safety certification from TUV Rheinland. That means that among other things, it conforms to certain battery safety standards.
That certification seems dubious to me though because the speed and power limits, not to mention the inclusion of a throttle, would normally preclude that European certification. Perhaps they have a second model for US-based customers.
But mostly, I’m just here for the adventure. It looks like a fun, weird little e-bike for cruising around the city. Something that can get you around at reasonably fast 22 mph speeds, has pedals in case you run out of battery mid-trip, and doesn’t break the bank.
So I hope I actually get the bike in the end. But I know this is a risk, and so I’m treating it like an adventure.
It’s not my first Indiegogo purchase. I’ve actually made three purchases on the platform in the past. The first was for a weird little Xiaomi e-bike. It cost me US $261 and it showed up several months later. It was awesome and I actually enjoyed using it until I sold it when I moved. The next was an even weirder tiny electric scooter. I paid US $544 for it and it was also awesome. I still have it, and I’ve been meaning to do a whole other video about it.
My third purchase didn’t go nearly as well. I got too cocky from my first two purchases and bought a $2,000 electric motorbike from BlackTea Motorbikes. In the end, the company #%$!ed me royally. They held my money for nearly three years while presenting delays as being pandemic-induced (fair enough) but then ultimately decided they just wouldn’t ship any of the bikes ordered by North American customers since they couldn’t find a way to ship them cost effectively. Meanwhile, Europeans got their bikes.
They did refund my money, admirably enough. They also refunded it quite quickly after the announcement. But I have a sneaky suspicion that it’s because I’m an e-bike journalist and they didn’t want me on their bad side. Let see how well that works out for them.
Anyway, my point is that I’ve bought from Indiegogo before and I’m used to the risk. I’m in this for the experience as much as for the bike. It’s an exciting thrill ride before my real ride ever shows up. For example, the campaign is currently at just over US $58,000 raised. They say if we get to US $70,000 we’ll all get a free frame bag (the one I should have added for US $39 during checkout).
Which is actually my real goal here. If I convince enough of you to join me, I’ll get that free bag.
Just kidding. Please don’t buy this bike. Seriously. If you’re reading this and you’re like, “Hmmm, I have a spare $397 burning a hole in my pocket…” then please put your phone down, splash some water on your face, and go for a walk outside. I don’t want anyone reading this right now to do what I’m doing here. It’s not a good idea. I’m not even linking to the page. I can’t stop you from finding it on your own, but I’m not going to make it any easier for someone to risk their money.
This very well may end with me losing my US $447 and never getting a bike. People have been screwed out of much more on Indiegogo. Please don’t be dumb like me. I’ve never heard of this e-bike company before, I have absolutely zero trust in them and you shouldn’t either. A decent chunk of why I’m even doing this is for a learning experience so that others don’t have to. If it works, you can enjoy the ride with me. If it doesn’t, it’s a small price to pay to warn others of the pitfalls of random fly-by-night Indiegogo e-bikes.
Lastly, while I’m giving you the straight talk here, listen to this doozy. It’s been a while since my last Indiegogo purchase, and I now see they’ve added something called an “Indiegogo Tip.” They suggested I add $50 as a tip, just for fun, I guess. Not to the Mihogo bike company, mind you, but rather to the Indiegogo platform itself.
Clicking through the “wtf?” question mark next to the tip selector brings you to a page that explains, “When you add a tip on to your transaction, you are supporting Indiegogo directly and furthering our mission to bring ideas to life through the power of community.”
Oh help me, Rhonda.
You Indiegogo execs can go right ahead and stub your little toe hard into a coffee table. You already charge these companies 5% of the funding they receive as the cost to use your platform. You made $13 million last year. What are your expenses? Website hosting and a subscription to an offshore customer service hotline? I’m not helping your C-level team each buy another boat. I tip my barber. I tip my delivery rider who brings me my food order. If it’s raining, I tip him or her exorbitantly. But you’re not getting a tip for checking emails from your yacht.
Fortunately, you can reset the Indiegogo tip to $0 by clicking “other amount,” but they don’t make it very clear at first that you can do that.
Okay, so here we are. I’m in for US $447 and supposedly have a yellow Mihogo Mini Pro with my name on it.
The estimated delivery is October 2023. I can already tell you that won’t happen. They’ll be late, if they deliver at all. In fact, if a yellow Mihogo shows up at my door before the end of October, I’ll ride it down the boardwalk wearing nothing but a frilly tutu.
As confident as I am that they won’t have my bike to me by their self-imposed timeline, I do have at least a decently good feeling that my bike will show up at some point. Sure, I can be cynical. But sometimes in life you just have to put in a little faith. If not, then what are we all even doing here?
If there is one thing you can be sure of, it’s that I’ll be back to let you all know how this saga plays out. Feel free to place your bets in the comment section below. Here we go!
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Tesla’s stock (TSLA) crashed by as much as 5% in pre-market trading after President Trump threatened to set DOGE on Elon Musk, who has been criticizing his ‘Big Beautiful Bill’.
After being kindly shown the door to the White House last month, Musk had a brief moment of clarity and started to criticize Trump and the Republican party, which he helped elect with almost $300 million of his own money in the 2024 elections.
He highlighted how Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” is expected to increase the deficit and debt. The Tesla CEO even linked Trump to Jeffrey Epstein, something that has been well known for decades, but Musk conveniently ignored it as he was backing the President and wearing hats that read, “Trump was right about everything.”
Musk quickly calmed down and even apologized for “going too far” and started praising Trump again.
That didn’t last long.
Over the last few days, as the Senate attempts to pass Trump’s budget and tax bill, Musk has renewed his efforts to halt the legislation.
The CEO appeared to renew the attacks after the Senate updated the bill to kill the EV incentive sooner and to increase taxes on solar and wind projects.
However, Musk said that he doesn’t mind EV and renewable energy subsidies going away, but he believes that fossil fuel subsidies should also be removed, which is not in the plans at all.
Trump campaigned on Musk’s money, claiming that he would get America to “drill, baby, drill” again.
The CEO went as far as threatening any Senator who vote for the bill, all Republicans, to face his money in their next primary. He added that if the bill passes, he will create a new “America Party.’
Musk’s attacks have focused on the bill itself and the Republicans voting for it, but Trump likes to call it his bill, and unsurprisingly, he is unhappy with Musk.
Last night, he took to Truth Social to highlight again that Musk “would probably have to close up shop and head back to South Africa” without US government subsidies.
The President then suggested that he could have DOGE, a department that Musk created, go after him and the subsidies that his companies get:
Elon Musk knew, long before he so strongly Endorsed me for President, that I was strongly against the EV Mandate. It is ridiculous, and was always a major part of my campaign. Electric cars are fine, but not everyone should be forced to own one. Elon may get more subsidy than any human being in history, by far, and without subsidies, Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa. No more Rocket launches, Satellites, or Electric Car Production, and our Country would save a FORTUNE. Perhaps we should have DOGE take a good, hard, look at this? BIG MONEY TO BE SAVED!!!
Tesla’s stock dropped by more than 4% in pre-market trading following the President’s threat.
Musk responded to the President by pointing out that he is asking to remove the subsidies, but he didn’t add his usual caveat of also removing all subsidies for fossil fuel.
Electrek’s Take
It’s both sad and funny to see Elon now. It’s sad because the US is plunging back into an energy dark age of relying on fossil fuels. Still, it’s amusing because Elon is acting as if he’s just now realizing what he has done, despite everyone but a few cult members screaming at him that this was going to happen for the last year.
Elon got what he wanted out of Trump with his $300 million, and now, he realizes that his influence has limits and that Trump is going to do way more damage than just what Musk wanted out of him: to stop illegal immigration and the so scary “woke mind virus.”
The result will be a significant blow to the growth of electric vehicles and clean energy in the US, and Tesla will be affected in the process, exactly what we have been saying for the last year.
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Police across the US are cracking down on illegal use of out-of-class e-bikes or non-street-legal electric motorcycles used on public roads. It used to be that if you sped off on an illegal electric dirt bike or mini bike after a traffic stop in California, there was a good chance you’d get away. Most police departments don’t want to engage in high-speed chases over these types of violations, especially if the rider isn’t wearing a helmet or is weaving through dense traffic. And since these types of bikes almost never have license plates, merely outrunning or outmaneuvering a police cruiser through some bushes or over a sidewalk was usually enough to evade justice. But lately, a new kind of chase is happening – from above.
Several California police departments are now turning to small, simple-to-operate drones similar to consumer drones to track down illegal e-bike and electric dirt bike riders who flee traffic stops.
These drones, often built on platforms used by consumer drones but with upgraded camera equipment, are quiet, effective, and don’t put pedestrians or officers at risk like a high-speed pursuit.
And while the tech isn’t new, the way it’s being deployed marks a turning point in how cities are responding to the rise of unregistered, high-powered electric motorbikes and minibikes on public roads.
Recently, the Irvine Police Department shared details on how they caught a minor who was illegally operating a Stark Varg electric dirt bike on public roads and then sped away from police attempting to conduct a traffic stop.
“A 16-year-old juvenile recklessly fled from officers during an attempted traffic stop on Jamboree, reaching high speeds. The rider ran multiple red lights, placing innocent lives in danger. Thankfully, with the assistance of our drone team, officers quickly located the teenager and safely took him into custody. He was later released to his parent. The juvenile was unlicensed, and the motorcycle was purchased by a parent who knowingly allowed their child to ride it. That parent was cited, and the motorcycle was impounded.”
In a similar case just a few weeks ago, the Desert Hot Springs Police Department used a similar drone setup to catch a juvenile illegally operating a non-street-legal minibike on public roads.
As the department shared in a social media post mocking the rider, “Officers attempted to stop a suspect illegally riding a mini bike on city streets. Instead of pulling over like a reasonable person, he chose to flee… on a mini bike. Little did he know, our drone team was already in the air and had front-row seats to this low-speed drama. They followed him as he weaved through traffic, blew through stop signs, and ultimately led us right back to his own front door.”
The DHSPD explained that after the drone watched from above and followed the rider home, police officers arrived and knocked on his front door, which he promptly answered. “He was arrested at his residence without incident,” the post continued. “The mini bike? Impounded. The escape attempt? Hilarious.”
Some police departments in California are still employing police helicopters as their go-to “eye in the sky” for tracking Sur-ron riders who try to run from police, but these light and inexpensive drones are proving to be a more cost-effective and efficient alternative.
The rise of unregistered and often illegally modified electric motorbikes that don’t fit inside existing three-class electric bicycle regulations – many of them closer to light motorcycles than bicycles – has created a real challenge for cities. Riders can disappear down alleyways, weave through traffic, or vanish into neighborhoods where a patrol car can’t follow.
But a few grand for a simple drone? That’s a safer, cheaper solution that can hover and follow quietly from above, sometimes all the way to a suspect’s front door.
This drone-based enforcement strategy raises some interesting questions – not just about surveillance, but about how cities will regulate a fast-evolving micromobility landscape. As out-of-class electric bikes and light electric dirt bikes blur legal categories and create enforcement gaps, tech like drones is stepping in to close them.
Whether that’s a good thing or not depends on your perspective. But one thing’s for sure: the days of just gunning it and getting away are coming to an end.
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The Dodge Charger Daytona EV made headlines when it rolled out fake engine noises as a way to make the EV appeal to muscle car drivers. As it turns out, they weren’t the right sort of fake engine noises – and now Stellantis has to recall 8,000 of them for a fix.
According to the ChryCo fans at Mopar Insider, Stellantis is recalling ~8,390 examples of its 2024 to 2025 Dodge Charger Daytona EVs because of an exterior amplifier that may be missing critical enabling the amp to emit exterior sounds – including the Federally mandated pedestrian warning sounds designed to keep pedestrians safe.
What’s more, the recall’s “suspect period” reportedly begins on 30APR2024, when the first 2024 Dodge Charger Daytona was produced, and ends 18MAR2025 … when the last Charger EV was produced.
RECALL CHRONOLOGY
- On April 17, 2025, the FCA US LLC (“FCA US”) Technical Safety and Regulatory Compliance (“TSRC”) organization opened an investigation into certain 2024–2025 model year Dodge Charger vehicles that may not emit exterior sound.
- From April 17, 2025, through May 13, 2025, FCA US TSRC met with FCA US Engineering and the supplier to understand all potential failure modes associated with the issue. They also reviewed warranty data, field records, and customer assistance records to determine field occurrences.
- On May 14, 2025, the FCA US TSRC organization determined that a vehicle build issue existed on certain vehicles related to a lack of EV exterior sound, potentially resulting in noncompliance with FMVSS No. 141.
Without the software patch, the vehicles don’t comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) No. 141, “Minimum Sound Requirements for Hybrid and Electric Vehicles.” The rule requires noisemakers for EVs and hybrids when operating under 19 mph, the safest speeds for pedestrians.
Basically, if you have a Dodge Charger EV, expect to get a recall notice.
It just keeps getting funnier
If you’re not familiar with the Charger Daytona EV’s “Fratzonic Chambered Exhaust,” it’s a system that employs a combination of digital sound synthesis and a physical tuning chamber (translation: a speaker) to produce a 126 decibel sound that approximately imitates a Hellcat Hemi V8 ICE. That’s loud enough to cause most people physical pain, according to Yale University – putting it somewhere between a loud rock concert and a passenger jet at takeoff.
While you could argue that such noises are part and parcel with powerful combustion, they’re completely irrelevant to an EV, and speak to a particular sort of infantile delusion of masculinity that I, frankly, have never been able to wrap my head around. Something akin to the, “Hey, look at me! I’m a big tough guy!” attention-whoring of a suburban Harley rider in a “Sons of Anarchy” novelty cut, without even enough courage to ride a motorcycle, you know?
You know – and I bet you can help me dial in the the comparison to perfection (and help me explain why the car just isn’t selling) in the comments section at the bottom of the page.
SOURCE: Mopar Insiders; featured image by Stellantis.
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