Electric bicycles are all about putting a smile on your face while taking the pain out of cycling. I’ve seen macho men hop on their first electric bike and roll around giggling like a toddler. And what could be better than sharing that kind of fun with a passenger in an old-fashioned sidecar? Today’s entry in the Awesomely Weird Alibaba Electric Vehicle of the Week series is just that – an electric bicycle that takes a cue from old-school sidecar motorcycles.
And while this series often pokes a bit of good natured fun at some of the weirder Alibaba electric vehicles out there, this is one weird-mobile that I actually want to put in my garage!
For a reasonable $1,250 you get this vintage cruiser-style electric bike coupled with a sidecar.
The whole getup is powered by a Bafang rear hub motor. There’s a 250W version for those poor suckers in Europe that aren’t allowed to have fun, and there’s a 500W version packing twice the power for our American friends who thrive on excess.
The speed varies as well based on location, with a 25 km/h (15.5 mph) limit for anyone who writes dates with the day first, and a high speed 45 km/h (28 mph) thrill ride for those that have a gun in every room of the house plus another in the shower.
After you get past the power and speed variants for the European vs American models, the rest is nicely equitable.
Battery capacity options start at a measly 360Wh but can be upgraded to 720Wh. An LCD display comes standard on all models and the combined bike/sidecar situation supports a max load of up to 200 kg (440 lb).
But the real belle of the ball here of course is that sidecar itself!
There are multiple options that include features like a pullover shade for shielding little ones from the harsh afternoon sun, to a barebones basic model simply designed to keep the occupants hands and feet inside the vehicle for the duration of the ride.
And I don’t know about you, but the whole thing sure looks a lot safer than that coffin-on-wheels of a sidecar electric drift trike we saw a few months back.
You can also choose between a retro designed bike with normal tires or a retro-designed bike with fat tires, which the company conveniently refers to as “Harley Old” and “Harler Fat.”
With the number of Harley-Davidson knockoffs floating around, that seems pretty much par for the course.
Hold onto your wallet for a hot minute
If you’re sitting there all giddy, wallet in hand just waiting for me to give you the confirmation bias that you’re looking for to buy this thing, then keep sitting pretty for another hot minute.
While I’ve had great interactions with a lot of Alibaba sellers, this one doesn’t necessarily give me the same Beach Boys cool vibes.
The vendor kept blowing me off when I asked for more info on the bikes, and couldn’t even give me shipping info because “the logistics costs fluctuates day by day”. Alright, fine – just give me an estimate for today. Or yesterday. Or whatever, man. I’m trying to make you internet famous here.
So while I love just about everything about this awesome sidecar electric bicycle, I’m not saying you should plunk down your hard earned cash on a gamble with this vendor.
That being said, I’ve personally bought loads of stuff on Alibaba and her sister site AliExpress. I usually try to find a product where the vendor seems much more eager to help, and then I spend a lot of time communicating to make sure we’re all on the same page, paragraph and sentence.
If you want to go your own way and pick up one of these awesome electric trikes, definitely let me know how it goes! And if you happen to stumble upon your own awesomely weird electric vehicle while perusing Alibaba, drop me a link! It just may wind up in one of my weekly Awesomely Weird Alibaba Electric Vehicle of the Week articles. You can find my contact info in my author bio below.
Until we meet again next week, consider checking out some of my other awesomely weird Alibaba finds, such as a cheap little solar-powered electric family car, a dangerous-looking electric motorcycle with only one wheel, or an electric horseless carriage fit to take Cinderella to the ball!
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