This slightly shady $500 kit turns your e-bike into an electric snowmobile
It’s a situation we’ve probably all experienced before: you’re riding your e-bike and thinking to yourself, “This is nice, but you know what could make this bike even better? Tank tracks!”
Well now there’s an easy way to do it in the form of a conversion kit that takes an e-bike and turns it into something of a snowmobile with the inclusion of a snow track kit.
I’m not saying this is a good idea. In fact, it’s probably a terrible idea for several reasons that we’re going to cover. But none of them make this any less awesome or weird, which means it’s a prime candidate for a spot in this week’s Awesomely Weird Alibaba Electric Vehicle of the Week column.
I do have to let you know going into this that the product page is very light on details, so I’ve had to suss out some specs here.
I do know that the kit includes a 1,000W motor designed to run on 48V, though they also describe it as 2,000W in some areas. So your mileage may vary… literally.
The kit itself seems to include the rear assembly that consists of a snow track wrapped around a motor and two idler pulleys, all mounted inside a frame that replaces the bike’s rear wheel.
A ski attachment is also included so that riders can replace their front wheel and go full snowmobile.
There doesn’t appear to be a battery included in the kit, though it does look like a controller comes mounted on the rear assembly. That leads me to believe that it’s up to you to supply your own battery, and I’m guessing that trying to jury rig the wires from your RadRover battery into this setup is going to void your Rad warranty.
I guess you could also start with a non-electric bike and just find your own 48V battery, which is likely more advisable, though none of this is what I would classify as advisable.
Then there’s the issue of control. It seems like the whole bike chain thing becomes obsolete in the new setup, meaning your pedals are now freewheeling footrests. For power, I guess you run your throttle back to the new controller, though that’s another reason just to start this build from scratch. And brakes seem to be something of an afterthought. There’s a hydraulic disc brake on the rear motor, but it seems like it’s just going to lock up the track instantly, and you’ll eventually skid to a stop when physics decides your momentum is no longer worth sustaining. It’s kind of like anti-lock brakes except that it’s the opposite: only-lock brakes.
But hey, you can’t beat that orange color! If you’re going to head too far out in the snowy wilderness on a contraption that is likely to get you stranded, you might as well have the decent manners to make it easy for search and rescue to find you. That’s just how I was raised.
I think it’s fair to say that there are some concerns with this kit, most of which come from the design. But one final surprising concern of mine is the price – not that it’s too high, but rather too low. For just $520, this Bad Idea On Ice can be yours!
I feel like any self-respecting DIY electric snowmobile should cost significantly more than this. In fact, we usually see them for 4x-5x this price.
A lobster dinner for $50 sounds like a deal. A lobster dinner for $15 sounds like food poisoning. That’s kind of where I’m sitting with this DIY snowmobile kit.
But hey, I’ll try anything once!
Disclaimer: just in case anyone is still unsure or happens to be new here (welcome!), this part of a tongue-in-cheek weekly column that explores wild, weird, awesome, and sometimes outlandish EVs found on China’s largest shopping site Alibaba. Most of these would be a bad idea to actually try, and all would be a bad idea to actually order. Please don’t risk your money on this stuff – let’s just enjoy looking at it from a safe distance.
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The US Department of Energy (DOE) today announced $1.2 billion in financing to replace Puerto Rico’s fossil fuel plants with solar and battery storage through 2032.
The DOE’s Loan Programs Office announced two conditional commitments and one loan closing to power producers in Puerto Rico. Each supports a project contracted with the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority. The announcements include:
- The closing of a $584.5 million loan guarantee to subsidiaries of Convergent Energy to finance a 100 MW solar farm with a 55 MW (55 MWh) battery energy storage system (BESS) in the municipality of Coamo and BESS installations in the municipalities of Caguas (25MW/100MWh), Peñuelas (100MW/400MWh), and Ponce (up to 100MW/400MWh)
- A conditional commitment for a loan guarantee of up to $133.6 million to a subsidiary of Infinigen for a 32.1 MW solar farm with an integrated 14.45 MW (4.76 MWh) BESS, and a co-located standalone 50 MW (200 MWh) BESS expansion in the municipality of Yabucoa
- A conditional commitment for a loan guarantee of up to $489.4 million to a subsidiary of Pattern Energy for three stand-alone BESS in the municipalities of Arecibo (50 MW/200 MWh), and Santa Isabel (50 MW /200 MWh and 80 MW/320 MW), and a 70 MW solar farm with an integrated BESS in the municipality of Arecibo.
If all are finalized, these projects would more than double LPO’s support for utility-scale solar generation and battery energy storage in Puerto Rico.
LPO provides low-cost financing and a rigorous due diligence process, making it a valuable resource for Puerto Rico as it works to rebuild an affordable, reliable, and clean energy system. As a result of reliance on imported fuel, the persistent threat of tropical storms, and underinvested infrastructure, Puerto Ricans today face average energy costs that are twice the US average – all while consuming only one-quarter of the energy of the US per capita.
LPO’s initial loan to a power producer in Puerto Rico, Project Marahu, closed in October 2024, and when complete will add more than 200 MW of solar and up to 285 MW of stand-alone energy storage to Puerto Rico’s grid.
Through its September 2023 partial loan guarantee to Project Hestia, LPO also supports virtual power plant (VPP)-ready rooftop solar and battery storage installations in Puerto Rico. As a nationwide project, Hestia’s sponsor is committed to at least 20% of installations under Project Hestia going to homeowners in Puerto Rico.
As part of its procurement plan, Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority seeks to install 1,500 MW of battery storage and requires a minimum capacity of storage to be co-located with each utility-scale solar project. Energy storage systems currently online in Puerto Rico are being dispatched every day.
When including Marahu, LPO’s closed and conditionally committed financing supports over 100% of the capacity Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority aimed to procure under its initial request for energy storage project proposals, the first of six.
Read more: Cleantech investments to top fossil fuels for the first time in 2025
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Chevy just introduced new deals on the Equinox and Blazer EV models to make them even more affordable. With 0% interest and a new trade-in bonus, Chevy is offering over $5,000 in savings.
Chevy adds new Equinox and Blazer EV deals in January
Although the Chevy Equinox EV is already “the most affordable” EV in its class with over 315 miles range, it’s getting even cheaper.
Earlier this week, Chevy launched new deals on the 2024 Equinox and Blazer EV models. According to a note sent to dealers, viewed by CarsDirect, the electric SUVs are now available with 0% APR financing for 60 months. You can also choose from 0.9% AP for 72 months and 2.9% APR for 84 months.
This marks the best financing offer on Chevy’s newest EVs to date. The previous best rates were 0.9% APR for 60 months, 3.9% for 72 months, and 5.9% for the longer 84-month option.
On a 7-year $45,000 loan, online auto research firm CarsDirect estimates the new deals amount to around a $5,200 price cut. The lower APR rates are already offered on the Chevrolet Silverado EV pickup.
In addition, Chevy is offering a trade-in bonus of up to $3,000 on the Silverado EV and $1,000 on the electric Equinox and Blazer models. If you choose to lease, the bonus is cut in half: $1,500 for the Silverado and $500 for the electric SUVs.
Chevy’s new EV deals started on January 14 and run through March 3, 2025. The deals come as rivals like Hyundai and Ford recently launched new EV promotions.
On Thursday, Hyundai launched a new promo on the upgraded 2025 IONIQ 5, which includes monthly leases as low as $199 and a free ChargePoint home EV charger (or $400 charging credit). Meanwhile, Ford extended its “Power Promise” program earlier this month, which also includes a free home charger, among several other benefits.
The 2024 Chevy Equinox EV started at $41,900 with up to 315 miles range. Prices for the electric Chevy Blazer start at $43,690 with up to 279 miles range.
If you are ready to try out Chevy’s new electric SUVs for yourself, we’ve got you covered. You can use our links below to view offers on the Chevy Equinox, Silverado, and Blazer EV models near you.
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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 non-Tesla EVs getting Supercharger access, Cybertruck sales in the spotlight, Rivian getting some money from Biden, 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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