You don’t need an SUV. You need a (much) cheaper electric cargo bike. Here’s why
America has an SUV problem. Or rather, just a big vehicle problem in general. The land of SUVs and pickup trucks has somehow been tricked into thinking you need a 4,000-pound vehicle to carry 20 pounds of groceries home from the supermarket.
But there’s a better way, and it’s called an electric cargo bike. It will save you money. It will save you time. It will make you more attractive. And it will make you happier. I all but guarantee it.
Now let’s be clear about something. When I say “You don’t need an SUV,” I’m speaking in general terms. It’s true – generally – for most people reading this article right now.
Sure, there are some of you that regularly transport seven people across vast distances on highway and interstates. But most of us don’t. It’s a simple numbers game. Most people in the US live in cities and urban centers. And that’s why you don’t need a massive SUV.
And even for those that do “need” an SUV for certain specific tasks, you don’t need it most of the time. I’d bet dollars to donuts that most people reading this right now who own an SUV do most of their trips in it with just one or two passengers.
For those that really need a car, you probably only need a small hatchback or sedan. But I’m going to make the case for why you probably don’t even need that, or at least not for most of your trips. Especially when you consider just how far electric cargo bikes have come.
Twenty years ago, a cargo bike was a nifty invention and fun to look at, but they cost a fortune and lord help you if you ever had to pedal one up a hill.
But electric bikes have come to the rescue. Electric motors now allow e-bike builders to make cargo bikes that are easier to pedal up hills (or that don’t require any pedaling at all in the case of throttle-enabled electric cargo bikes). Prices are also quickly dropping, meaning you can get a great cargo e-bike for a song. Instead of buying an expensive second car, you can probably get away with one car and one cargo e-bike.
There are two main styles of cargo e-bikes: front-loaders and longtails. (Technically there are also cargo e-trikes as well, but we’ll leave three-wheelers for another discussion soon.)
Front-loaders have a big cargo area in the front and are generally more expensive due to the funky frame and complicated steering linkage that front loaders require.
Longtails look more like a normal bike but have loooooong rear ends that are stretched to give more rack and seat space behind the rider.
Front-loaders are a bit more advanced and can take more time to get acclimated to, as the rider is much farther from the front wheel than they’re probably used to. If you’re new to cargo bikes, a longtail is probably a better place to start.
Both offer great cargo space, they just do it differently.
Can cargo e-bikes actually replace SUVs?
Okay, so cargo e-bikes sound neat and all. But c’mon, can they really replace cars and trucks?
Yes, for most people they can. And you might balk at that, but there’s a reason why I’m confidently correct here.
It’s true because most people don’t use their SUVs to explore to the Amazon. They use them to go buy the stuff they can’t find on Amazon.
Picking up groceries. Dropping off a kid or two at school. Driving to work. These are all normal, everyday tasks that for some reason people think requires heavy machinery. Which is as ridiculous as it is depressing. If you live in a city and you drive a massive car, then you’re probably in the wrong. Unless you’ve got several dozen 2×4’s hanging out the back of that truck or the entire starting lineup from little Jimmy’s T-ball team in your SUV, then you don’t need that massive vehicle.
I’ve actually used cargo e-bikes to carry construction material before, including bags of cement and dimensional lumber. It’s just not that hard.
And I’ve carried multiple passengers on them as well. Three people on a cargo e-bike is pretty standard, though it helps when one or two of those extra souls are also children.
A reddit commenter in a walkable cities advocacy group recently put it best. As the redditor explained, “Are there viable bikes that can replace the true power and utility of an SUV? Not even close. Are there bikes that can replace what 99% of drivers use their SUVs for 99% of the time? Absolutely.”
Now again, there are going to be those people who say, “But I need my truck, I use it for XYZ that a bike can’t do!”
And I get it. There are some big jobs out there. My sister runs a furniture refinishing business and regularly hauls dressers, desks, and other big things around town.
But then again, maybe you’re just still stuck in that “I need a car to do this” mentality. Did you know there are actually moving companies that work entirely by bicycle? They’ll move your apartment without getting trucks involved.
When there’s a will (and a cargo bike), there’s a way.
Cargo e-bikes save money
Not only can cargo e-bikes do most of what most people use their SUVs and trucks for, but they do it cheaper.
The hundreds of dollars per month that your truck or SUV burns in gasoline would equate to probably less than a dollar of electricity to power an electric cargo bike. If you do some serious mileage then you might be looking at as much as two dollars of electricity per month.
And don’t forget the hundreds (or perhaps thousands) of dollars you’ll save each month on parking, insurance, car payments, maintenance, and all the other costs associated with car ownership.
Even the purchase price is usually 10x less. If you go nuts with the best electric cargo bikes out there from the highest dollar manufacturers, you could be looking at expensive $8,000 e-bikes. But if you are more reasonable, there are great options in the $4,000 range and still very good options in the sub-$2,000 range.
Heck, you can even get close to $1,000 if you really try. Take for example the $999 Lectric XP 3.0. It’s not a cargo e-bike (but rather a fat-tire folding e-bike), though it turns into a cargo bike when you add the $110 cargo package. Or add the $74 passenger package to easily carry a second adult rider on the bike.
Other affordable e-bikes like the Rad Power Bikes RadRunner 2 (or RadRunner Plus shown in the video above) are purpose-built for carrying passengers and offer a comfortable way to bring a friend or loved one on back.
You can even fit two riders on the back of a RadRunner as long as they’re fairly small.
Why drive to dinner in a massive car when you and your wife could zip there on an e-bike built for two? Add a little excitement and adventure into date night!
Look, just think about it
Let’s get real: Most people could do most of their daily travel needs in a city on an e-bike. But because of the world we live in, that doesn’t mean that a car can be totally replaced all the time.
For some people, that means not owning a car and occasionally using a car sharing service for the once-in-a-while Ikea trip or other car-related journey. My wife and I did that for years. If we needed a car for a couple hours here and there, we rented a car for a couple hours. It was waiting on the street corner and that’s where we left it when we were done. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.
For others that still use a car somewhat frequently, perhaps that means having one family car but getting an e-bike instead of a second car. And of course, that also means trying to use the e-bike for as many trips as possible.
If you live at the end of a 3-mile private driveway that connects to a 70 mph six-lane highway, then an e-bike probably can’t be your only vehicle. But you also don’t exist because that’s a silly made-up scenario that the anti-anti-car crowd tends to think is all too common.
In reality, of course there are people that an e-bike won’t work for and of course there are still some cases where a big vehicle may be necessary. But those people and those cases are much fewer and farther between than most will realize. Sometimes it just takes looking at the problem from another angle.
The cargo e-bike angle.
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Tesla and Rivian have been embroiled in a lawsuit in which the former accused the latter of having stolen battery technology by poaching Tesla employees.
It sounds like the two automakers are finally about to settle the lawsuit, which has been going on for 4 years.
In 2020, Tesla filed a lawsuit against Rivian over allegedly stealing trade secrets by hiring former Tesla employees and encouraging them to bring documents. Rivian has denied the allegations.
When Tesla filed the lawsuit, it wasn’t clear what trade secrets Tesla was claiming Rivian had stolen. However, we noted that the employees listed in the lawsuits were two recruiters, an EHS manager, and a manager of Tesla’s charging networks.
The automaker claimed that these employees brought “documents consisting of highly sensitive trade secret, confidential, and proprietary engineering information” when they went to work for Rivian.
A year later, Tesla expanded the lawsuit, claiming more specifically that Rivian was “stealing the core technology for its next-generation batteries.”
At first, the companies tried to settle out of court, but it didn’t work out, so the lawsuit was moved to court last year.
Over a year later, we now learn that Tesla had notified the court that it expects to file to get the lawsuit dismissed after reaching a conditional agreement with Rivian. The company didn’t disclose the details of the settlement (via Bloomberg):
Tesla didn’t disclose specifics about the agreement in a court filing, but told a California state judge that it expects to seek dismissal of the case by Dec. 24 upon satisfactory completion of the terms.
Neither Tesla nor Rivian have commented on the reported settlement.
While Tesla has claimed that it somewhat open-sourced its patents, we have previously noted that it’s not exactly the case. Tesla claims to let other companies use its patented technology as long as they themselves don’t sue them over patent rights.
And in this specific case, Tesla alleges that Rivian has specifically hired employees to steal technologies. Again, Rivian has denied the allegation.
Electrek’s Take
The terms are unknown, but in similar cases, it often involves things like some level of access to make sure that no proprietary technology is being used or has been used.
The lawsuit is not exactly clear, but based on the timeline and the allegations of “next-gen batteries”, Tesla could have been talking about its 4680 battery cells, although those are cells. It could also be the structural battery pack.
Rivian is expected to use a taller 4695 battery from LG Energy Solutions for its next-generation vehicles.
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French infrastructure specialists Proviridis have partnered with EVSE manufacturer Kempower to deliver a novel, underground charging solution for electric semi trucks designed to easily integrate into existing truck depots.
By installing its high-powered charging cabinets underground and integrating the charging cables into a solid metal pipe, Kempower and Proviridis have been able to make room for high-powered charging points in an existing truck depot that didn’t have enough space to install either conventional EVSE or overhead “drop lines.”
For the pilot, the metal pipe is painted in a striking yellow color to make it easier to see while maneuvering the lot, and keeping the dispensers themselves more protected than conventional concrete bollards. The 600 kW power cabinet is positioned a few yards away – a typical space-saving Kempower solution – and connected to the charge points by underground cable.
Proviridis believes their solution provides enough of a competitive advantage that fleet buyers looking to electrify will be eager to give it a try.
“The product is durable across a wide spectrum of temperatures and conditions, requires minimal ventilation, and can cater for a wide range of customer needs,” explains Olivier Verdu, Technical Director at Proviridis. “These are features which perfectly place the Kempower solution for this type of charging configuration in a logistics environment.”
Electrek’s Take
While traditional charging equipment can cause up to 20% of an existing truck depot’s parking capacity to be lost, the Kempower products have already gained recognition for the efficient size footprint of its overground Satellites. If this underground version proves to be even better, you can expect to see a lot more Kempower installations near you.
SOURCE | IMAGES: Kempower.
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In honor of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, eBike specialist Buzz Bicycles is offering an exclusive discount for Electrek readers on its Centris Class 2 Folding Bike.
Table of contents
Buzz Bicycles is back with an exclusive new deal
Buzz Bicycles has been a mainstay on Electrek for a few years now, as we have covered several of its electric bikes, which suit riders of all skill levels and help them “Buzz through life.” Buzz is an omnichannel eBike brand that prioritizes direct-to-consumerism and has found success in its mission to deliver ultimate transportation solutions at an excellent value for its growing base of eBike enthusiasts.
The company strives to deliver riders a “Wow moment,” which is usually brought on as they feel the pedal assist function kick in. This feature delivers all you need to conquer hills and longer rides while enjoying new adventures with friends.
The Buzz team has utilized decades of industry experience into its portfolio of eBikes, all conceived and designed in Dayton, Ohio. The company, which operates under the United Wheels umbrella alongside brands like Huffy Bicycles, Niner Bikes, and Batch Bicycles, has adopted an ethos that the freedom of riding should be fun and accessible for everyone, no matter what adventure lies ahead.
By leveraging the global presence of its parent company, Buzz Bicycles can make good on its promise to deliver affordable eBikes that are comfortable, powerful, and safe, much like the Centris Folding eBike, which is as versatile and compact as it is fun. The exclusive deal Buzz Bicycles is offering on the Centris makes it even more fun. You can take advantage of it below.
But first, you’ll want to learn about the capabilities of this foldable eBike to truly understand its value, as well as what accessories are available to level up your purchase.
The Buzz Centris is an easy to ride foldable eBike for all
The Buzz Centris is a Class 2 Folding eBike built for comfort and convenience no matter where you take it. At full size, the Centris’ step-through frame offers a low step-over height of just 16 inches, perfect for riders of all sizes, enabling easy transitions from ground to saddle for its riders.
When you’re not riding, the Centris from Buzz Bicycles folds neatly to 34 inches in length and 22 inches in height, making it easy to store at home or to carry in a vehicle on the way to your next ride. Furthermore, the assembled bike only weighs 68 pounds, making it easy to transport.
You can easily navigate tougher terrain on the Centris thanks to the eBike’s 20″ x 4″ knobby tires and front suspension. The bike is powered by a 48V, 500-watt-hour (Wh) battery pack that can propel it to a top speed of 20 mph for an all-electric range of up to 40 miles on a single charge.
Additionally, this folding model from Buzz Bicycles comes equipped with both a front and rear rack, offering versatile cargo-carrying options so you can customize your ride with a variety of Buzz accessories.
Like all Buzz eBikes, the Centris is tested and deemed compliant with the UL2849 standard. This standard covers the entire electric bicycle system, including the motor, battery, controller, and charger, offering the highest safety standards for added peace of mind.
The Centris Class 2 folding bike from Buzz is available in two colors: Gloss White or Matte Black. This $1,199 eBike is currently reduced to $899 – and you can score an additional $200 off with this exclusive promo, but only for a limited time.
With the purchase of any Buzz eBike, including the Centris, you are guaranteed the following:
- 10-year limited warranty (lightweight aluminum frame protected for full 10 years)
- 2-year limited warranty (electrical components covered by 2-year warranty for peace of mind)
- 6-month limited warranty (additional bike components protected by a 6-month warranty)
Are you interested in the Centris from Buzz Bicycles? You’ve come to the right place. Starting today, while supplies last, you can take advantage of an additional $200 off the sale price by using promo code “ELECTREK200.“ That’s a $500 discount in total!
Don’t wait, because this deal only runs through 11:59 PM on December 8, 2024.
We highly recommend perusing Buzz’s entire lineup of products. They are designed for commuters and casual riders, with technology and features that help you quickly feel comfortable riding. If you are new to the world of E-transportation, Buzz Bicycles is the brand for you.
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