Lectric XP Trike first ride: Testing the low-cost electric trike made for everyone
Lectric eBikes is know for two things – making affordable e-bikes and making a lot of them. The company’s main goal has been to look at the e-bike market, figure out what people want, and find a way to make it more affordable. They’v’e done it time and again with their other e-bikes and that’s exactly what they’ve done this time with the new Lectric XP Trike.
The company invited me out to see the new e-trike at their headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona. There I had the chance to hop aboard and get a sense of just what this $1,499 electric trike can do.
And the answer, it turns out, is a lot. It can haul. It can climb. It can fold. It’s a three-wheeled Swiss Army knife with a ridiculous amount of torque and seating for one.
I only spent a single day with the capable little trike, and so this isn’t a full review… yet. That’s still to come. But even with only a few hours in the saddle, I can already tell you that this is absolutely going to be a major hit… if they can keep it in stock.
Check out how the Lectric XP Trike performed in my first ride video below. Then keep reading for the nitty gritty details.
Lectric XP First Ride video
What the e-trike offers
Let’s nail the specs right away, so we can quickly get to the ride.
I’d say that the trike is almost like a three-wheeled version of the famous $999 Lectric XP 3.0 folding e-bike, albeit with hydraulic brakes, a bigger battery, and an extra wheel.
The Lectric XP Trike has a 500W motor that puts out 1,092 peak watts of power. It’s mounted in a mid-drive setup as the trike’s jackshaft, giving it the ability to power both of the rear wheels via an open differential axle.
It draws power from a 48V 14Ah battery with 672 Wh of capacity, which is enough for 60 miles (96 km) of range in the lowest power mode on pedal assist. But honestly, even on throttle at the trike’s top speed of 14 mph (22 km/h), you’ll probably still get a solid 30-40 miles (48-64 km).
The bike rolls on 20″ x 2.6″ tires, has a single speed drivetrain, and rocks hydraulic disc brakes on 180 mm discs. The brake levers each have a parking brake, which I’ve never seen before on hydraulic brakes.
The 69.5 lb (31.5 kg) e-bike folds to fit in tight spaces, and that folding trick allows it to arrive in fully-assembled form. You don’t have to bolt anything together, you just unfold it and ride. That’s going to be a major benefit for many riders, especially older ones that don’t want to be bent over a box lifting a 70 pound bike around.
Speaking of weight, it’s actually relatively lightweight for an electric trike. And the low step-through size makes it great for shorter riders down to 4’10” (147 cm). It’s apparently good for taller riders also, with a rating for folks up to 6’4″ (193 cm). I’m squarely in the middle of that range, so I can’t personally speak to the extremes, but it felt great to me in terms of sizing.
It can also fit a wide range of rider weights thanks to its maximum capacity of 330 lb (150 kg). In addition to the rider payload, the rear rack can carry 75 lb (34 kg), while the front basket can carry 35 lb (16 kg).
And as part of the launch, Lectric is including the cargo package consisting of the front and rear basket for free! Getting an entire trike plus the cargo package for just $1,499 is a hell of a deal.
So how does it ride?
Here’s the crazy part: Despite being nice and gentle when you keep it in the lower power modes, there’s some significant torque in the higher power modes that is great for hill climbing.
The Lectric team took me to a hill that looked like a small mountain, and I was able to ride the Lectric XP Trike right up the side of it. We even put a few dozen pounds of steel weight in the rear basket to give me a sense of what it’d be like if I was a heavier rider. The trike didn’t care – it just kept climbing like a machine.
Coming back down the side of the mountain helped me appreciate those hydraulic disc brakes, especially when I remembered how much steel weight I had in the back.
Moving to a park next, I did a combination of paved trail and off-road grass riding. The trike performed well at both. Tight donuts are even possible, though you have to be careful about going too tight. I could get the outer wheel to lift up in tight turns if I really tried, but it was something I had to make an effort to achieve. I never felt like I would tip in a normal turn.
Is it as stable as the RadTrike? Not quite. That one feels like the king of stable trikes to me. And the Lectric XP Trike is a tad narrower in the back and has a bit higher center of gravity with taller wheels and a higher cargo rack in back. But it still feels plenty stable, and I’d be comfortable putting my parents on it – if that puts things into perspective.
While there’s no suspension on the trike, you’re never really going fast enough to feel like it’s critical. Suspension is more important to me at higher speeds where I hit obstacles with more force and where I have less time to avoid them. At a maximum speed of 14 mph, you see things coming up in slow motion and can easily wiggle around them.
As you can see in the video above, I even took the Lectric XP Trike over some seriously rugged terrain in a washed out dry riverbed. I was truly surprised how well it handled such rough off-road conditions.
That being said, the three wheels takes some getting used to when avoiding obstacles. You have to learn how to put the pot holes or rocks between two of the three wheels or take a wide berth around them.
It’s something that new trike riders will take a few days to get used to, but quickly becomes second nature.
Is the Lectric XP Trike worth the price?
At just $1,499, this is a smoking hot deal, and it follows Lectric’s playbook of bringing popular e-bikes at affordable prices to the masses.
How long will the bike last? I have no idea. I only spent a day with it.
But the trike felt solid so far, and I also saw a room full of customer service representatives sitting in Lectric’s Phoenix headquarters waiting to help anyone should they have an issue in the future, which gives me good confidence on the customer support side.
For the thousands of people aging into electric trike territory every day, I’m excited to see options like this hitting the market. And once I get even more time on the XP Trike than just a fun day in the sun, I’m sure I’ll like it even more.
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Wind energy powered 20% of all electricity consumed in Europe (19% in the EU) in 2024, and the EU has set a goal to grow this share to 34% by 2030 and more than 50% by 2050.
To stay on track, the EU needs to install 30 GW of new wind farms annually, but it only managed 13 GW in 2024 – 11.4 GW onshore and 1.4 GW offshore. This is what’s holding the EU back from achieving its wind growth goals.
Three big problems holding Europe’s wind power back
Europe’s wind power growth is stalling for three key reasons:
Permitting delays. Many governments haven’t implemented the EU’s new permitting rules, making it harder for projects to move forward.
Grid connection bottlenecks. Over 500 GW(!) of potential wind capacity is stuck in grid connection queues.
Slow electrification. Europe’s economy isn’t electrifying fast enough to drive demand for more renewable energy.
Brussels-based trade association WindEurope CEO Giles Dickson summed it up: “The EU must urgently tackle all three problems. More wind means cheaper power, which means increased competitiveness.”
Permitting: Germany sets the standard
Permitting remains a massive roadblock, despite new EU rules aimed at streamlining the process. In fact, the situation worsened in 2024 in many countries. The bright spot? Germany. By embracing the EU’s permitting rules — with measures like binding deadlines and treating wind energy as a public interest priority — Germany approved a record 15 GW of new onshore wind in 2024. That’s seven times more than five years ago.
If other governments follow Germany’s lead, Europe could unlock the full potential of wind energy and bolster energy security.
Grid connections: a growing crisis
Access to the electricity grid is now the biggest obstacle to deploying wind energy. And it’s not just about long queues — Europe’s grid infrastructure isn’t expanding fast enough to keep up with demand. A glaring example is Germany’s 900-megawatt (MW) Borkum Riffgrund 3 offshore wind farm. The turbines are ready to go, but the grid connection won’t be in place until 2026.
This issue isn’t isolated. Governments need to accelerate grid expansion if they’re serious about meeting renewable energy targets.
Electrification: falling behind
Wind energy’s growth is also tied to how quickly Europe electrifies its economy. Right now, electricity accounts for just 23% of the EU’s total energy consumption. That needs to jump to 61% by 2050 to align with climate goals. However, electrification efforts in key sectors like transportation, heating, and industry are moving too slowly.
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has tasked Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen with crafting an Electrification Action Plan. That can’t come soon enough.
More wind farms awarded, but challenges persist
On a positive note, governments across Europe awarded a record 37 GW of new wind capacity (29 GW in the EU) in 2024. But without faster permitting, better grid connections, and increased electrification, these awards won’t translate into the clean energy-producing wind farms Europe desperately needs.
Investments and corporate interest
Investments in wind energy totaled €31 billion in 2024, financing 19 GW of new capacity. While onshore wind investments remained strong at €24 billion, offshore wind funding saw a dip. Final investment decisions for offshore projects remain challenging due to slow permitting and grid delays.
Corporate consumers continue to show strong interest in wind energy. Half of all electricity contracted under Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) in 2024 was wind. Dedicated wind PPAs were 4 GW out of a total of 12 GW of renewable PPAs.
Read more: Renewables could meet almost half of global electricity demand by 2030 – IEA
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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 the official unveiling of the new Tesla Model Y, Mazda 6e, Aptera solar car production-intent, 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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The Chinese EV leader is launching a new flagship electric sedan. BYD’s new Han L EV leaked in China on Friday, revealing a potential Tesla Model S Plaid challenger.
What we know about the BYD Han L EV so far
We knew it was coming soon after BYD teased the Han L on social media a few days ago. Now, we are learning more about what to expect.
BYD’s new electric sedan appeared in China’s latest Ministry of Industry and Information Tech (MIIT) filing, a catalog of new vehicles that will soon be sold.
The filing revealed four versions, including two EV and two PHEV models. The Han L EV will be available in single- and dual-motor configurations. With a peak power of 580 kW (777 hp), the single-motor model packs more power than expected.
BYD’s dual-motor Han L gains an additional 230 kW (308 hp) front-mounted motor. As CnEVPost pointed out, the vehicle’s back has a “2.7S” badge, which suggests a 0 to 100 km/h (0 to 62 mph) sprint time of just 2.7 seconds.
To put that into perspective, the Tesla Model S Plaid can accelerate from 0 to 100 km in 2.1 seconds. In China, the Model S Plaid starts at RBM 814,900, or over $110,000. Speaking of Tesla, the EV leader just unveiled its highly anticipated Model Y “Juniper” refresh in China on Thursday. It starts at RMB 263,500 ($36,000).
BYD already sells the Han EV in China, starting at around RMB 200,000. However, the single front motor, with a peak power of 180 kW, is much less potent than the “L” model. The Han EV can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 7.9 seconds.
At 5,050 mm long, 1,960 mm wide, and 1,505 mm tall with a wheelbase of 2,970 mm, BYD’s new Han L is roughly the size of the Model Y (4,970 mm long, 1,964 mm wide, 1,445 mm tall, wheelbase of 2,960 mm).
Other than that it will use a lithium iron phosphate (LFP) pack from BYD’s FinDreams unit, no other battery specs were revealed. Check back soon for the full rundown.
Source: CnEVPost, China MIIT
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