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Much of the media is at it again, hyping up a manufactured fear of electric bikes. (Side note: I know that sentence makes me sound all MAGA, but even as a card-carrying liberal, I can call out media bias). The issue this time centers around American teenagers on e-bikes and the manufactured choice between supposed “freedom or danger.”

While not alone, the New York Times has been at the forefront of a slew of anti e-bike articles. The latest example attempts to offer a balanced presentation of the arguments for and against teenagers riding electric bikes. But it betrays that guise of impartiality with an underlying implication that there are two sides in the argument: Parents who don’t want their kids on e-bikes and irresponsible parents who do. Case in point: The example in favor of teens on electric bicycles used in a recent NYT article featured an anonymous mom who lets her 14-year-old son ride an illegally modified 70 mph (120 km/h) electric motorcycle. That would be like presenting the debate about gun control and using the example of a 14-year-old whose mom lets him drive a battle tank.

Unlike the NYT article which was ostensibly marketed as unbiased news, I have the privilege of telling you outright that this is an opinion piece, and thus, I’m sharing my own views. As someone who has worked in the e-bike industry for nearly 15 years and also once spent an entire seven years in a row as a teenager, I figure I’m as qualified as anyone to discuss the issue of e-bikes and teens.

aventon sinch

E-bikes: An imperfect yet amazing solution

Look, I’m not going to sugar coat this or tell you that every teenager should have an e-bike. There are real safety concerns here. Not everyone is ready for an electric bike. E-bikes can go fast (most are limited to either 20 or 28 mph in the US (32-45 km/h) depending on the classification, though some people modify them to go faster). There are dangers, but there are also incredible upsides to electric bicycles as well. And balancing those two is the key here.

Everything in life comes with some level or risk. But you once put your small child on their first bike so they could learn to ride, didn’t you? You eventually removed the training wheels and gave them some taste of freedom riding around with their friends, even if just in the neighborhood. There may have been some skinned knees and ruined pants along the way, but it was worth the risk.

Now those same cute little kids have grown up into teenagers, the kind that want to get to school or go to the movies with their friends. And instead of needing their parents to drive them like they did a decade ago, we now have the glorious invention of electric bikes. Unlike pedal bikes, which most Americans don’t want to ride very far due to the effort required, e-bikes can actually move teenagers nearly anywhere in their city with ease. What was several years ago just a way for older folks to enjoy riding again has now turned into one of the biggest revolutions in teenage freedom since the repeal of child labor laws.

E-bikes give teenagers personal agency. In cities without good public transportation (i.e. most of the country), a teen can ride an e-bike several miles to get to school, visit friends, get to work or just enjoy some fresh air. Parents enjoy that freedom as well, no longer serving as a personal chauffeur for their teens.

So many people miss the amazing potential of an e-bike: This is a fully-functional transportation device that can increase the resources in a city that are available to teens while simultaneously teaching them responsibility and freeing up their parents. And it even comes at such a low cost compared to nearly every other form of transportation other than walking.

razor rambler 20

Sure, there will always be some people who act as gatekeepers, working under the impression that there’s an arbitrary age at which someone becomes responsible enough for anything. For some reason Americans think teens are ready for guns and war at 18 but that it takes another three years until they can handle a sip of wine. Car rental companies think young adults aren’t ready to drive cars until their 25th birthday. You have to be 35 to run for President of the United States, yet senility apparently isn’t a disqualifier (the fun thing is that one works for both parties). Our society is full of arbitrary guidelines for responsibility, but the real world isn’t so black and white.

I hope we’re all open-minded enough to realize that there is truly a spectrum of responsibility. There are 16 year olds who can be safe, conscientious and responsible e-bike riders, and there are adults who shouldn’t set foot near an e-bike. In the same way, there are 16 year olds who can be safe, conscientious car drivers despite there also being adults that should probably have their car driver’s licenses revoked.

It’s time we stopped babying teenagers and treat them with the respect and dignity they deserve. Sure, they still need parental guidance and benefit from the wisdom of age and experience. But this notion that they aren’t “ready” for an e-bike is simply misguided, and I would argue insultingly coddles them. There are teenagers on the other side of the world that ride a 40 mph (64 km/h) scooter or moped to work a 12-hour shift everyday. Those teens are no different than your own kids, other than that they weren’t as fortunate to be born into the same money and privilege. Instead, they had to grow up learning responsibility. And having agency over their own transportation became part of that.

You don’t even have to go halfway around the world. Just go a quarter of the way, to Europe, where you’ll find kids that look just like yours but ride their bikes to school every day. I know, it’s even harder to dismiss it when they have the same complexion. And if your immediate response is “Yeah, but those countries have bike lanes,” well then look at that, it seems we all came to the same solution!

American kids are so overprotected by helicopter parents these days that their development is being stunted. I see parents idling their SUVs next to neighborhood bus stops so they can pick their kids up and drive them two minutes home. Heaven forbid those middle schoolers walk five minutes on the safe, setback sidewalks in the planned community. Of course this doesn’t mean all parents do this; I don’t mean to overgeneralize. But it’s common enough to serve as a warning of what we should collectively strive to avoid.

electra ponto go

This national trend towards nannying kids and teenagers has unfortunately spilled over into electric bikes, and it’s a real shame. We’re all hurtling towards climate catastrophe here, whether you accept it or not. (Less-than-fun fact: Your kids will suffer the dangers of climate change regardless of whether or not you acknowledge the problem). The best chance those kids have of spending their middle and old age years in an environment that isn’t downright physically hostile to them is to instill upon them the importance of making environmentally responsible decisions. Transportation is just one sector contributing to climate change, but it’s a large one.

Teaching kids that they can get around without needing a 5,000 pound vehicle is a great early lesson. Instead of trying to teach kids about the value of electric cars, let’s teach them about the value of not using a car.

An e-bike for teenagers means freedom, but it’s also an early lesson in alternative transportation. It teaches kids from a young age that we can move ourselves around in a way that is both efficient and sustainable. We don’t have to burn gallons of fuel to get to school or buy a carton of milk. We don’t have to pave more lanes and expand roads to fit ever-larger cars (both physically bigger and more numerous, each a unique and dangerous trend on its own). Owning and using an electric bike is a lesson in so many fields, from personal responsibility to punctuality and even environmental stewardship.

specialized electric bike riding

And look, I know this is going to be controversial. There are certainly going to be many arguments against what I’ve said. That’s fair and valid. I’ve expressed my opinion, but it doesn’t mean it’s the only opinion in the room. I’ll try to address some of what I expect to be the main counterarguments against my position that we should encourage more teenagers to ride e-bikes.

“What’s with all the e-bike stuff? Just put those kids on pedal bikes!”

Sure, I’d love that. I would truly love to see more kids and teenagers riding pedal bikes. I’d support any initiative that pushes that agenda. The problem is that it just isn’t realistic, no matter how much I want it to be. American kids are lazy. I’m sorry, but they are. It’s not their fault, it’s mostly their parents’ fault and the culture. The US has an obesity problem that we can’t ignore. Kids simply don’t want to ride pedal bikes because it’s too much effort. However, we’ve already seen that they take quickly to e-bikes. We can’t wish kids onto pedal bikes, but we can bribe them onto e-bikes with the promise of fun and freedom. And if they happen to accidentally get a little exercise at the same time, that’s great, too.

As much as I’d love to see more kids on pedal bikes, it’s electric bikes that will actually get kids moving, get them traveling on their own and give them true, effective freedom.

“Teenagers don’t know road rules, how can we put them on little electric motorcycles?”

First, stop with this “e-bikes are motorcycles” fear-mongering. You’re better than that, I believe in you.

Yes, a lot of teenagers don’t know the rules of the road yet. Many are delaying getting their drivers licenses or aren’t getting one at all. I personally believe that we should have rider’s education classes similar to driver’s ed, but for cyclists. It’d be a great way to teach new road users the nuance of road rules as well as instill rider training similar to what you learn in a motorcycle license course. California has gone as far as to propose a law that would require unlicensed e-bike riders to get a watered down “bike license” to teach them road laws. That has a few problems, but it’s an interesting rough draft.

“Teenagers ride on sidewalks and endanger pedestrians.”

They shouldn’t do that. Stop them. Fine them. Confiscate their bikes. Punish the parents. If that’s illegal in a certain area, then punish the rule breakers. This isn’t rocket science. Don’t break the law and also punish people who do.

That being said, let’s ask ourselves why people are riding on the sidewalk. The answer is that they don’t feel safe on the road because there aren’t safe, protected bike lanes. Perhaps we should also put effort into solving the root problem here. I know, it’s a crazy idea: Solving the problem instead of covering it with a band-aid. But if we give cyclists a safer place to ride, it will make everyone safer.

“I know my kid is alright, but what about those other kids? I can’t trust them.”

Here’s the thing. Your kid isn’t special; I know you think they are because you made them, but statistically speaking, they aren’t. Think about the average kid out there. There’s a 50% chance your kid is worse than that one. Ok, probably slightly less than 50% chance since Electrek tends to draw a more educated audience. But you get the point.

The point is, no one can trust anyone else’s kid. The best we can do is collectively educate our youth. Instill responsibility and critical thinking from an early age. If you give teenagers responsibility, most will rise to meet it. If for some reason yours doesn’t, then maybe an e-bike isn’t for them. The sheer number of revoked driver’s licenses out there shows that a car isn’t for many adults, either.

Not every human is ready for motorized transportation, but most are and it’s a matter of evaluation. This is a personal decision that parents need to make about their own kids, not something that others can decide for them.

blix dubbel electric bike

In conclusion

I’ve beaten this horse well past death now, so let me leave it with just one more small whack.

Electric bikes are such a revolution in transportation freedom that we’d be sorely missing out by depriving a future generation from experiencing them at such a useful age. There is simply far too much good that can come from giving teenagers the freedom and responsibility of being in charge of their own mobility.

Yet at the same time, that responsibility is a double-edged sword. Parents need to be aware of their own kids’ ability to exercise that responsibility. E-bikes are not without danger and there is no age that we can be sure of that everyone is ready for any level of responsibility. But one thing is for sure: There are many teenagers that are ready. And there are a lot worse things your teen could be doing right now.

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Honda now has an electric Ruckus. Will they bring it to the US?

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Honda now has an electric Ruckus. Will they bring it to the US?

The Honda Ruckus has earned cult status thanks to its minimalist styling, exposed frame, and seemingly endless customizability. The scooter, also known in international markets as the Honda Zoomer, has spent years being seen as a blank canvas for scooter tuners, urban commuters, and anyone who just wanted something simple, small, and kind of weird to zip around town. A few years ago, Honda finally answered the call for an updated version by announcing and producing the “Zoomer e:”, which was an electric version of the Honda Ruckus. So where is it?

When Honda launched the all-electric version of the Ruckus, the Zoomer e:, back in 2023, many fans hoped it was only a matter of time before we saw it quietly glide onto U.S. streets.

But two years later, there’s still no sign of a stateside release, and no indication that Honda plans to change that anytime soon.

The Zoomer e: was first introduced in China in early 2023 alongside two other retro-inspired electrics: the Cub e: and Dax e:.

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The Zoomer e: keeps the stripped-down, industrial look of the classic gas-powered Ruckus, but swaps the 49cc engine for a 400W rear hub motor and a 48V 24Ah battery (around 1.15 kWh).

It was originally given a top speed of a mere 25 km/h (15.5 mph) to keep it street legal as an electric bicycle in its first market of China, where it also came with functional but stubby pedals so riders could pretend it was actually pedalable.

The first version of the electric scooter claimed a range of up to 80–90 km (50–56 miles) from its removable lithium-ion battery, depending on conditions.

An advertisement for a Honda Zoomer e: in the Philippines via Facebook

We’ve since seen the performance bumped up to 40 km/h (25 mph) top speeds when the scooter was introduced into the Philippines market, where the local L1B classification allowed for higher speeds. It’s fairly obvious that the performance can be software-tweaked by Honda depending on the market, though likely to a limit. To achieve speeds much higher than 25 mph, a motor and controller swap may be required, though neither would be complicated.

In other words, the electric Ruckus’ debut revealed an ultra-lightweight, street-legal runabout designed for countries with expansive low-speed e-bike laws. But in the U.S., these types of quasi-e-bikes that are actually scooters are few and far between. The same performance can be had from a $1,000 electric bicycle, and in fact, Class 3 e-bikes in the US can go nearly twice as fast as the original electric Ruckus.

So Honda obviously hasn’t been in a rush to bring its low-spec version of the bike to the US market, where it would be a slower and heavier competitor to the wide range of cheap imported electric bicycles. However, its iconic design and cultural legacy have kept enthusiasm up for riders who have managed to privately import their own models. One Redditor appears to have imported two Honda Zoomer e: models in parts to assemble in the US, while someone else posted a YouTube video of his completely assembled Honda Dax e: model that was launched along the Zoomer e:.

Despite clear consumer interest and a growing market for low-speed electric vehicles, as well as Honda’s own proven interest in growing its electric scooter market, the company hasn’t made any moves to release the Zoomer e: in the US. That’s not surprising since America still lacks a robust electric scooter culture (or even a gasoline scooter culture, for that matter), and anything motorcycle-shaped that doesn’t hit 30+ mph tends to get passed over by mainstream buyers.

But perhaps that could change one day. Technically, bringing the Zoomer e: to the US wouldn’t be a monumental task for Honda. The U.S. is a self-certify country, meaning Honda could design a version that meets federal vehicle safety standards, beef up the motor and controller for higher speeds, and sell it as either a Class 2/3 e-bike, or perhaps more appropriately, as a low-speed motorcycle with a top speed in the 35-45 mph range (55-70 km/h).

With the rise of micromobility, electrification, and growing frustration with car-centric cities, now might actually be the perfect time for a reborn electric Ruckus to hit US roads. But until Honda decides to take that step, American riders will have to keep dreaming – or start importing.

A private import of a Honda Zoomer e: to the US

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BMW ups the ante with the fastest, most powerful electric maxi-scooter

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BMW ups the ante with the fastest, most powerful electric maxi-scooter

BMW Motorrad’s futuristic electric scooter just got its first real refresh since beginning production in 2021. The BMW CE 04, already one of the most capable and stylish electric maxi-scooters on the market, now gets a set of upgraded trim options, new aesthetic touches, and a more robust list of features that aim to make this urban commuter even more appealing to riders looking for serious electric performance on two wheels.

The BMW CE 04 has always stood out for its sci-fi styling and high-performance drivetrain. It’s built on a mid-mounted liquid-cooled motor that puts out 31 kW (42 hp) and 62 Nm of torque. That’s enough to rocket the scooter from 0 to 50 km/h (31 mph) in just 2.6 seconds – quite fast for anything with a step-through frame.

The top speed is electronically limited to 120 km/h (75 mph), making it perfectly capable for city riding and fast enough to hold its own on highway stretches. Range is rated at 130 km (81 miles) on the WMTC cycle, thanks to the 8.9 kWh battery pack tucked low in the frame.

But while the core performance hasn’t changed, BMW’s 2025 update focuses on refining the package and giving riders more options to tailor the scooter to their taste. The new CE 04 is available in three trims: Basic, Avantgarde, and Exclusive.

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The Basic trim keeps things clean and classic with a Lightwhite paint scheme and a clear windshield. It’s subtle, sleek, and very much in line with the CE 04’s clean-lined aesthetic. The Avantgarde model adds a splash of color with a Gravity Blue main body and bright São Paulo Yellow accents, along with a dark windshield and a laser-engraved rim. The top-shelf Exclusive trim is where things get fancy, with a premium Spacesilver metallic paint job, upgraded wind protection, heated grips, a luxury embroidered seat, and its own unique engraved rim treatment.

There are also a few new tech upgrades baked into the options list. Riders can now spec a 6.9 kW quick charger that reduces the 0–80% charge time to just 45 minutes (down from nearly 4 hours with the standard 2.3 kW onboard charger). Tire pressure monitoring, a center stand, and BMW’s “Headlight Pro” adaptive lighting system are also available as add-ons, along with an emergency eCall system and Dynamic Traction Control.

BMW has kept the core riding components in place: a steel-tube chassis, 15-inch wheels, Bosch ABS (with optional ABS Pro), and the impressive 10.25” TFT display with integrated navigation and smartphone connectivity. The under-seat storage still swallows a full-face helmet, and the long, low frame design means the scooter looks like something out of Blade Runner but rides like a luxury commuter.

With these updates, BMW seems to be further cementing the CE 04’s role at the high end of the electric scooter market. It’s not cheap, starting around €12,000 in Europe and around US $12,500 in the US, with prices going up from there depending on configuration. However, the maxi-scooter delivers real motorcycle-grade performance in a package that’s easier to live with for daily riders.

Electrek’s Take

I believe that the CE 04’s biggest strength has always been that it’s not trying to be a toy or a gimmick. It’s a real vehicle. Sure, it’s futuristic and funky looking, but it delivers on its promises. And in a market that’s still surprisingly sparse when it comes to premium electric scooters, BMW has had the lane mostly to itself. That may not last forever, though. LiveWire, Harley-Davidson’s electric spin-off brand, has teased plans for a maxi-scooter-style urban electric vehicle in the coming years, but as of now, it remains something of an undefined future plan.

Meanwhile, BMW is delivering not just a concept bike but a mature, well-equipped, and ready-to-ride electric scooter that keeps improving. For riders who want something faster and more capable than a Class 3 e-bike but aren’t ready to jump to a full-size electric motorcycle, the CE 04 hits a sweet spot. It delivers the performance and capability of a commuter e-motorcycle, yet with the approachability of a scooter. And with these new trims and upgrades, it’s doing it with even more style.

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I found this cheap Chinese e-cargo trike that hauls more than your car!

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I found this cheap Chinese e-cargo trike that hauls more than your car!

If you’ve ever wondered what happens when you combine a fruit cart, a cargo bike, and a Piaggio Ape all in one vehicle, now you’ve got your answer. I submit, for your approval, this week’s feature for the Awesomely Weird Alibaba Electric Vehicle of the Week column – and it’s a beautiful doozie.

Feast your eyes on this salad slinging, coleslaw cruising, tuber taxiing produce chariot!

I think this electric vegetable trike might finally scratch the itch long felt by many of my readers. It seems every time I cover an electric trike, even the really cool ones, I always get commenters poo-poo-ing it for having two wheels in the rear instead of two wheels in the front. Well, here you go, folks!

Designed with two front wheels for maximum stability, this trike keeps your cucumbers in check through every corner. Because trust me, you don’t want to hit a pothole and suddenly be juggling peaches like you’re in Cirque du Soleil: Farmers Market Edition.

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To avoid the extra cost of designing a linked steering system for a pair of front wheels, the engineers who brought this salad shuttle to life simply side-stepped that complexity altogether by steering the entire fixed front end. I’ve got articulating electric tractors that steer like this, and so if it works for a several-ton work machine, it should work for a couple hundred pounds of cargo bike.

Featuring a giant cargo bed up front with four cascading fruit baskets set up for roadside sales, this cargo bike is something of a blank slate. Sure, you could monetize grandma’s vegetable garden, or you could fill it with your own ideas and concoctions. Our exceedingly talented graphics wizard sees it as the perfect coffee and pastry e-bike for my new startup, The Handlebarista, and I’m not one to argue. Basically, the sky is the limit with a blank slate bike like this!

Sure, the quality doesn’t quite match something like a fancy Tern cargo bike. The rim brakes aren’t exactly confidence-inspiring, but at least there are three of them. And if they should all give out, or just not quite slow you down enough to avoid that quickly approaching brick wall, then at least you’ve got a couple hundred pounds of tomatoes as a tasty crumple zone.

The electrical system does seem a bit underpowered. With a 36V battery and a 250W motor, I don’t know if one-third of a horsepower is enough to haul a full load to the local farmer’s market. But I guess if the weight is a bit much for the little motor, you could always do some snacking along the way. On the other hand, all the pictures seem to show a non-electric version. So if this cart is presumably mobile on pedal power alone, then that extra motor assist, however small, is going to feel like a very welcome guest.

The $950 price is presumably for the electric version, since that’s what’s in the title of the listing, though I wouldn’t get too excited just yet. I’ve bought a LOT of stuff on Alibaba, including many electric vehicles, and the too-good-to-be-true price is always exactly that. In my experience, you can multiply the Alibaba price by 3-4x to get the actual landed price for things like these. Even so, $3,000-$4,000 wouldn’t be a terrible price, considering a lot of electric trikes stateside already cost that much and don’t even come with a quad-set of vegetable baskets on board!

I should also put my normal caveat in here about not actually buying one of these. Please, please don’t try to buy one of these awesome cargo e-trikes. This is a silly, tongue-in-cheek weekend column where I scour the ever-entertaining underbelly of China’s massive e-commerce site Alibaba in search of fun, quirky, and just plain awesomely weird electric vehicles. While I’ve successfully bought several fun things on the platform, I’ve also gotten scammed more than once, so this is not for the timid or the tight-budgeted among us.

That isn’t to say that some of my more stubborn readers haven’t followed in my footsteps before, ignoring my advice and setting out on their own wild journey. But please don’t be the one who risks it all and gets nothing in return. Don’t say I didn’t warn you; this is the warning.

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