Lectric XPeak e-bike opens orders, new high-water mark in affordable electric bikes
Lectric Ebikes, the Phoenix-based electric bicycle company known for the best-selling e-bike in the US, has just opened order books for its latest model. The new Lectric XPeak is the brand’s first non-20″ tire e-bike, ushering a big new look for the company that maintains the same low-level pricing.
If there’s one thing Lectric Ebikes is known for, it’s shoveling value on top of value in the US e-bike market. Several mid-tier and high-end brands consistently offer more features and fancier production methods, but Lectric has consistently focused on keeping prices reasonable without cutting too many quality corners. These aren’t the most high-end e-bikes, but they aren’t the junk you’ll find at Walmart.
And the new Lectric XPeak follows that same design ethos, though perhaps ratcheting up the quality another notch this time. That’s due in large part thanks to Lectric’s insistence on performing more than the required safety testing to rate the bike to ISO M4210-10, a standard we usually see on much higher-end electric mountain bikes.
Despite that meaning the Lectric had to use higher quality parts this time, including a more robust suspension fork that retails for around US $400, the Lectric XPeak is priced at a more than reasonable US $1,299, marked down at launch from its MSRP of US $1,399.
For that price, look at all you get on this e-bike. The motor is a 750W continuous-rated rear hub motor that puts out over 1,300W of peak power. Lectric Ebikes also claims the motor is 400% quieter than its previous 750W motors. That’s pretty impressive, considering it’s powerful enough to launch the e-bike up to 28 mph (45 km/h). For those that prefer Class 2 operation, the bike comes programmed with a 20 mph (32 km/h) speed limit out of the box, though riders can unlock the higher speed operation using the bike’s display.
The 48V battery has a 14Ah capacity for 672 Wh, and is UL-certified for extra safety. The bike includes a high-end adjustable RST suspension fork, hydraulic disc brakes on 180 mm rotors, quick-release pedals for more convenient transport in a vehicle, thru-axle front wheel for a stronger connection, LED headlight and tail light, and frame integrated cable routing for a cleaner look.
The launch package for the Lectric XPeak also includes a huge amount of accessories for free. Customers get a free front and rear rack, a pair of baskets for each rack, a fender set, an upgraded “premium” headlight, and a folding lock. While I normally like to see parts like racks and fenders included as standard equipment, in this case Lectric throws them into the launch package to ensure pre-order customers are set up with all of the important accessories right off the bat. The company also has more winter-focused accessories coming such as bar-mitts, thermal sleeve for the battery, and studded tires for riding on ice and snow. That’s good to know, since deliveries for pre-order customers are expected to arrive in January.
The bike comes in two frame options: a step-over that is available in black or a step-through that is available in white.
They’ll ship nearly fully assembled to make it easy to get riding as soon as possible. Lectric describes the at-home assembly process for the XPeak as a one-minute tool-free assembly, likely meaning you’ll open the box, pop the quick-release pedals and front wheel on, and get riding. For just US $1,299, it’s hard to ask for more than that!
Electrek’s Take
It’s fun to see Lectric Ebikes applying its same time-honored strategy to a new segment of electric bikes. Now expanding into larger models like this adventure-style bike, the company still focuses on high-value offerings.
Budget-friendly models like the Lectric XPeak make sustainable and efficient transportation accessible to students, daily commuters, and anyone interested in adopting a healthier lifestyle through active commuting.
I think it’s important to have a robust market full of several low-cost models that provide an affordable entry point into the e-biking community. These e-bikes help break down socioeconomic barriers to green transportation, promoting a more inclusive and environmentally conscious society.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
GreenPower Motor Company says it’s received three orders for 11 of its BEAST electric Type D school buses for western state school districts in Arizona, California, and Oregon.
GreenPower hasn’t made the sort of headline-grabbing promises or big-money commitments that companies like Nikola and Lion Electric have, but while those companies are floundering GPM seems to be plugging away, taking orders where it can and actually delivering buses to schools. Late last year, the company scored 11 more orders for its flagship BEAST electric school bus.
As far as these latest orders go, the breakdown is:
- seven to Los Banos Unified School District in Los Banos, California
- two for the Hood River County School District in Hood River, Oregon
- two for the Casa Grande Elementary School District in Casa Grande, Arizona
Those two BEAST electric school buses for Arizona will join another 90-passenger BEAST that was delivered to Phoenix Elementary School District #1, which operates 15 schools in the center of Phoenix, late last year.
“As school districts continue to make the change from NOx emitting diesel school buses to a cleaner, healthier means of transporting students, school district transportation departments are pursuing the gold standard of the industry – the GreenPower all-electric, purpose-built (BEAST) school buses,” said Paul Start, GreenPower’s Vice President of Sales, School Bus Group. “(The) GreenPower school bus order pipeline and production schedule are both at record levels with sales projections for (2025) set to eclipse the 2024 calendar year.”
GreenPower moved into an 80,000-square-foot production facility in South Charleston, West Virigina in August 2022, and delivered its first buses to that state the following year.
Electrek’s Take
Since the first horseless carriage companies started operating 100 years ago (give or take), at least 1,900 different companies have been formed in the US, producing over 3,000 brands of American automobiles. By the mid 1980s, that had distilled down to “the big 3.”
All of which is to say: don’t let the recent round of bankruptcies fool you – startups in the car and truck industry is business as usual, but some of these companies will stick around. If you’re wondering which ones, look to the ones that are making units, not promises.
SOURCE | IMAGES: GreenPower Motors.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
While some recent high-profile bankruptcies have cast doubt on the EV startup space recently, medium-duty electric truck maker Harbinger got a shot of credibility this week with a massive $100 million Series B funding round co-led by Capricorn’s Technology Impact Fund.
It’s been a rough couple of weeks for fledgling EV brands like Lion Electric and Canoo, but box van builder Harbinger is bucking the trend, fueling its latest funding round with an order book of 4,690 vehicles that’s valued at nearly $500 million. Some of the company’s more notable customers including Bimbo Bakeries (which owns brands like Sara Lee, Thomas’, and Entenmann’s) and THOR Industries (Airstream, Jayco, Thor), which is also one of the investors in the Series B.
Other prominent investors include Tiger Global, the Coca-Cola System Sustainability Fund, and ArcTern Ventures.
As for what makes Harbinger such an attractive investment prospect, Dipender Saluja, Managing Partner of Capricorn Investment Group’s Technology Impact Fund explains that, “Harbinger has demonstrated a remarkable ability to reach significant milestones far quicker than other EV companies … the market has been impressed by their ability to develop large portions of the vehicle in-house to drive down unit costs, while remaining capital efficient.”
The company plans to use the funds to ramp up to higher-volume production capacity and deliver on existing orders, as well as build-out of the company’s sales, customer support, and service operations.
“Harbinger is entering a rapid growth phase where we are focused on scaling production of our customer-ready platform,” said John Harris, co-founder and CEO. “These funds catalyze significant revenue generation. We’ve developed a vehicle for a segment that is ripe for electrification, and there is a strong product/market fit that will help fuel our upward trajectory through 2025 and beyond.”
The company has raised $200 million since its inception in 2021.
SOURCE | IMAGES: Harbinger.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
There is no state more associated with cars and car culture than Michigan – and the state that’s home to the Motor City has just taken a huge step into the future with the deployment of its first-ever all electric police vehicle.
The 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E patrol vehicle is assigned to the Michigan State Police State Security Operations Section, and will be to be used by armed, uniformed members of the MSP specializing in general law enforcement and security services at state-owned facilities in the Lansing, MI area.
“This is an exciting opportunity for us to research, in real time, how a battery electric vehicle performs on patrol,” says Col. James F. Grady II, director of the MSP. “Our state properties security officers patrol a substantially smaller number of miles per day than our troopers and motor carrier officers, within city limits and at lower speeds, coupled with the availability of charging infrastructure in downtown Lansing, making this the ideal environment to test the capabilities of a police-package battery electric vehicle.”
The MSP’s Precision Driving Unit is nationally renowned for its annual Police Vehicle Evaluation, which our own Scooter Doll participated in last year, driving the then-new Chevy Blazer EV Police Pursuit Vehicles in a game of “cops and robbers.”
In those tests, the EVs have impressed – but the MSP has been hesitant to commit to a BEV until now. “We began testing battery electric vehicles in 2022, but up until now hybrids were the only alternative fuel vehicle in our fleet,” said Lt. Nicholas Darlington, commander of the Precision Driving Unit. “Adding this battery electric vehicle to our patrol fleet will allow us to study the vehicle’s performance long-term to determine if there is a potential for cost savings and broader applicability within our fleet.”
Michigan joins other states like Wisconsin and California in deploying electric patrol cars and saving big money on fuel and maintenance, with many more out there and many more to come.
SOURCE | IMAGES: Michigan State Police.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports10 months agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports3 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business2 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway