Thousands of super cheap Amazon & Walmart e-bikes recalled after fires
VIVI e-bikes, a budget-friendly brand commonly found on Amazon and Walmart, just got hit with a major recall affecting around 24,000 electric bicycles due to fire risks. The US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced that the lithium-ion batteries included with VIVI e-bikes can overheat, catch fire, and potentially cause injury or death.
According to the recall notice, VIVI has received at least 14 reports of their e-bike batteries overheating, with at least three reports of the batteries catching fire, though fortunately no injuries were reported in the recall notice.
The faulty batteries were shipped with a range of VIVI electric bikes sold between December 2020 and November 2023, priced between $365 and $950.
That puts them among the cheapest full-size e-bikes on the market.
The affected bikes include long list of VIVI models, with the complete found here and seen in the table below.
The e-bikes were most commonly available online through Walmart.com and Amazon.com, but were also sold on eBay.com, Wish.com, Sears.com, Wayfair.com, Aliexpress.com, and the company’s own site (viviebikes.com).
Riders who purchased a VIVI e-bike are encouraged to check their model immediately to see if it matches the list of recalled e-bikes or battery packs.
The problem stems from the lithium-ion battery packs, which were not certified to UL standards, which are the most common safety standards for e-bikes in the US.
Consumers are being told to stop using the bikes immediately and contact VIVI for a free replacement battery. According to the recall notice, “Consumers should immediately stop using e-bikes with the recalled lithium-ion batteries and contact VIVI to receive a free replacement battery and battery charger. Consumers must dispose of the recalled battery at a household hazardous waste (HHW) collection center or follow the instructions of their municipality and confirm that this was done by sending an email to vivirecall@163.com.”
This recall adds to growing concerns about the safety of low-cost e-bikes flooding online marketplaces. While affordability has helped e-bikes become more accessible, it’s also opened the door to corners being cut, particularly when it comes to the batteries, which are arguably the most dangerous component of any electric vehicle when poorly made.
On the other hand, the increase in UL certification in the US e-bike industry has led to higher consumer confidence among respected e-bike brands that prominently display their safety certifications. This practice has helped assuage consumers’ fears and serves as a reminder of why these safety certifications are so important.
Electrek’s Take
Here we go again – another Amazon e-bike brand that was selling what looks like a too-good-to-be-true electric bike with a questionable battery. And surprise: it catches fire.
Now I want to make sure we keep this in perspective here, because the story isn’t that e-bikes are dangerous. Even among these ultra-super-duper-extremely cheap e-bikes, there have been 14 overheating cases and three reported fires out of 24,000 e-bikes sold. So it’s not like batteries are cooking off left and right like meth labs in Arkansas here or something. But this is still a stark reminder of the risks of purchasing bargain-basement electric bikes. In fact, just a couple of weeks ago, I wrote a piece about the hidden risks of the cheapest e-bikes, and this issue was front and center.
In this case, these VIVI e-bikes are just some of the many aggressively priced models on Amazon, and that’s always a red flag when it comes to lithium-ion safety. At Electrek, we’ve said it before and we’ll keep saying it: cheap batteries are risky batteries. UL certification isn’t legally required in most places (yet), but if a company isn’t willing to invest in the most basic safety testing, it should raise alarm bells.
If you’re hunting for a budget e-bike, stick to brands that at least use name-brand cells (like Samsung, LG, or Panasonic) and ideally have UL certification. Otherwise, you’re not just gambling with performance, you’re gambling with your garage, your home, your apartment building, and potentially the lives of your family and neighbors.
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Aviation startup ZeroAvia says it’s been granted a “raft” of 45 new patents key to the development of practical large hydrogen aviation engines – and the company says it has 200 more H-related patents in the pipeline!
The news comes just weeks after ZeroAvia and Scottish regional airline Loganair announced a new, hydrogen-electric “turboprop” replacement motor capable of up to 5MW of shaft horsepower (~6,700 hp). United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) no. 12,341,225 covers an integrated hydrogen-electric engine design land is key to the development of a modular multi-MW hydrogen-electric engine for the ATR 42 and 72 model aircraft — which Loganair owns more than twenty of.
ATR isn’t the only potential customer ZerAvia is eyeballing, either. Despite hydrogen losing ground on utility-scale projects and more companies realizing that it’s “impossible” for hydrogen to compete as a transportation fuel, the fuel still seems to have some practical application in the aviation space. Both Airbus and Boeing have advanced plans and IP for hydrogen-ready airframes in recent weeks, as well, making the IP for large hydrogen-powered aviation engines that much more valuable.
“Recent patents filed and granted around hydrogen aviation give a window into an accelerating field of innovation,” explains Val Miftakhov, Founder and CEO, ZeroAvia. “As we see the large airframe manufacturers beginning to compete on technologies for hydrogen aircraft, there is a big opportunity for companies pioneering hydrogen propulsion systems. These are the inventions that will deliver truly clean, more affordable and highly efficient commercial air travel.”
What it’s all about
Like many tech-based startups, securing IP has been an integral part of ZeroAvia’s strategy, with the value of its patents being, essentially, the value of the company. Just as – if not more important to airlines like Loganair, American, and EcoJet, however, are the potential cost-savings of hydrogen compared to conventional aviation fuels like kerosene.
Importantly, these novel engines promise cost reductions for airlines. The substantially lower maintenance needs of hydrogen-electric engines will mean a decrease in maintenance and downtime for an airline’s fleet, with hydrogen fuel also projected to be significantly more cost effective than kerosene over time.
ZEROAVIA
You can read more about the new ZA600 and ZA2000 hydrogen-electric av motors here, and let us know what you think of hydrogen’s chances against traditional, kerosense-based aviation fuels in the comments.
SOURCE | IMAGES: ZeroAvia.
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You might want to hold onto your handlebars for this one – literally. The fashion-forward British electric scooter maker Bo just unveiled what could be the most extreme electric scooter the world has ever seen. Named The Turbo, this standing e-scooter isn’t just playing around with speed – it’s aiming to smash right through it and find out what’s waiting on the other side.
And it all begs the question, “How much is too much?”
When we talk about fast electric scooters, we’re usually in the neighborhood of 50 mph (80 km/h). But the Bo Turbo doubles those numbers.
With 100 mph+ (160+ km/h) top speeds and claimed acceleration that’s faster than a Tesla, this scooter seems to use a design philosophy pulled straight from the playbook of Formula One. Thus, it should come as no surprise that the team behind The Turbo includes engineers with experience from Williams F1 and the Bloodhound Land Speed Record rocket car.
The world’s fastest e-scooter?
Built on the same base chassis as the company’s sleek road-going Bo Model-M, The Turbo takes everything up a notch – actually, several notches. It features a 24,000 W dual-motor powertrain, 1,800 Wh battery, advanced traction control, and a power-to-weight ratio that reportedly beats a Bugatti Veyron.
At full power, the system is capable of propelling riders down a straightaway at three-digit speeds while standing upright. It’s absurd. It’s glorious. It’s gratuitous. It’s a dream. Or it’s a nightmare.
Bo says the machine is already delivering 85+ mph (137+ km/h) in early track testing at Goodwood Motor Circuit and is currently in development to push beyond the 100 mph barrier under Guinness World Record supervision.
And just in case you’re wondering if this is some experimental prototype cooked up in a lab – it’s not. The company is planning a limited run of built-to-order Turbo scooters, starting at a whopping $29,500. The first one is scheduled for delivery to a collector in Madrid during the 2026 Formula One race weekend.
From F1 brake ducts to street scooter DNA
Despite the headline-grabbing speed numbers, there’s a ton of serious engineering going on here. The Turbo uses ram-air intakes based on F1 brake cooling designs to keep the motors and controllers from overheating. The chassis – made from aerospace-grade aluminum and CNC-machined billet parts – is based on Bo’s proven Monocurve platform, the same structure that underpins the Bo Model-M. In fact, that might be the most impressive part of all, that the same chassis used underneath their everyday-ride-it-to-work Bo Model-M scooter is also holding together this 100 mph beast.
Bo’s team insists that despite the monster specs, The Turbo remains “surprisingly rideable.” Professional BMX rider Tre Whyte has piloted over 20 high-speed test runs, with the team now preparing to push the envelope even further.
A wild PR stunt – or something more?
It’s tempting to see The Turbo as just a headline machine (and hey, it works), but Bo says this project is about more than just chasing speed records. According to Bo CEO Oscar Morgan, “The Turbo is part of our mission to elevate these futuristic electric vehicles into the top tier of automotive performance.”
And honestly, they’ve got a point. E-scooters have exploded in popularity as low-speed urban vehicles, but the category rarely gets taken seriously in the performance world, despite the advent of racing leagues. Bo wants to change that – and they’re using motorsport technology to do it.
Electrek’s Take
Is this a practical daily rider? Absolutely not. But that’s not the point.
Bo is doing what so few e-scooter companies are willing to do – pushing boundaries, proving performance, and trying to make scooters feel exciting, not just functional. Whether The Turbo hits 100 mph or not, it’s already helped raise the bar for what electric micromobility can be. And if that means they develop safer and stable ways to build scooters along the way, then all the better.
The fact that they actually plan to sell these is a bit worrying, though the $30k pricetag means the local teens on your street aren’t going to be terrorizing the sidewalks with them. Well, not unless you’ve got an oil sheikh and his teenagers living on your street.
But hey, if you’ve got thirty grand and a need for painful death levels of speed – maybe this is your next toy.
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Environment
Chevron defeats Exxon in dispute over Guyana oil assets, clearing path for Hess acquisition
Chevron has prevailed against Exxon Mobil in a dispute over Hess Corporation’s offshore oil assets in the South American nation of Guyana, Exxon CEO Darren Woods told CNBC’s Becky Quick on Friday.
The ruling by the International Chamber of Commerce in favor of Chevron clears the way for the oil major to complete its $53 billion acquisition of Hess Corporation.
Chevron shares jumped about 3% in premarket trading.
“We disagree with the ICC panel’s interpretation but respect the arbitration and dispute resolution process,” Exxon said in a statement Friday.
The dispute had created significant uncertainty over whether Chevron’s acquisition of Hess would close, weighing on the oil major’s stock performance. The transaction would have failed if Exxon had prevailed.
Exxon and China National Offshore Oil Corporation had filed an arbitration case with the ICC, claiming a right of first refusal over Hess’s assets in the Stabroek Block, an oil development off the coast of Guyana.
Hess has a 30% stake in an oil patch, while Exxon leads the project with a 45% stake and CNOOC maintains 25% stake.
“We welcome Chevron to the venture and look forward to continued industry-leading performance and value creation in Guyana for all parties involved,” Exxon said.
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