What is an EBike? | Everything You Must Know About Electric Bikes

Hey, everyone. I'm Dustin. I have just about 20 years of experience in e-bikes and bicycles. Today, I'm going to talk to you about what an electric bicycle is. Stick around.

All right, so today, I'm going to talk to you about what an electric bicycle is. But before I do, hit that subscribe button below. Stay in touch with us here at SixThreeZero and be the first to know about all the new content we're putting out on new products and of course, giveaways for bikes, e-bikes, and accessories, so hit subscribe.

All right, so what is an electric bicycle, also referred to as an e-bike or an electric bike? Now, electric bikes are taking over the country right now. You're seeing e-bikes everywhere. They're becoming more and more popular. We're in Southern California, specifically in San Clemente, and e-bikes are everywhere.

Now, what exactly is an electric bicycle? Well, it's just that. It's a bicycle with electric components on it. Typically, an electric bicycle would have a motor either in the rear hub or what's called the mid-drive or also could be in the front hub.

I'll go ahead and pull out one of our SixThreeZero e-bikes right here. Now, this is our SixThreeZero EVRY Journey electric bicycle, and you can look at it. Now, some electric bicycles that you see are going to be vastly different than a bicycle. Some are going to be designed in a way to make it look like a bicycle. We tend to like to design our electric bicycles to look like a bicycle, but also have the electrical elements on them. We think it's just a clean look. It's nice to ride because we can design it for comfort.

Now, there are other e-bikes out there that have more of a motorcycle feel and they're going to be more miniature. There are different wheel sizes, 12-inch, 16-inch, and 20-inch. The definition of what an electric bicycle is very broad in terms of how they look.

But typically speaking, what I just said is completely true. There's going to be a motor either in the front hub. This is called the mid-drive in your crank area or your rear hub. It's going to be one of those three places. In some instances, you actually may have motors in the front hub and the rear hub for extra power. You're going to rarely see that.

Now, in addition to that, on an electric bicycle, you're going to need a battery. The battery can be located in multiple places as well. We have it in the rear rack. Sometimes you'll find it behind the seat tube. Sometimes you'll find it on the frame here. Those are the two elements you're going to see on all e-bikes.

In addition to that, you're going to have a display. The display up here is going to tell you what level of pedal assist you're in. It's going to tell you how fast you're going. It's going to control the power, the on and off of the actual electric bicycle. Those are the three elements all electric bicycles are going to have. You're going to have a display up here. You're going to have a battery, and you're going to have a motor somewhere.

With the battery comes what's called a controller. This supplies the power to the battery to the display throughout the electric bicycle. All electric bicycles will be able to have power running to them in either the shape of pedal assist or throttle or both. Now actually, electric bicycles may or may not have a throttle option. All electric bicycles from SixThreeZero do have a throttle. In this case, a throttle can either be on the thumb here or it could be a twist shifter. You can utilize those and not pedal at all and the electric bicycle will go.

In that case, it's interesting because you can still use it as a bicycle. It's being called an electric bicycle, but it almost turns into a motorcycle because you won't need to do any pedaling at all if you have a throttle. Now, typically electric bicycles will all be standard with a pedal assist function. What that means is as you start to pedal, the motor will sense that, and that's when it will engage.

Then you'll have usually five levels of assistance on an electric bicycle, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Whatever level you put it in is how much output the motor will give you. Level one will be the least, level five will be the most, and depending on your motor size in pedal assist, you'll have top speeds usually up to 28 miles an hour. In throttle only, you'll have a top speed of up to 20 miles an hour, again, depending on the size of the motor.

Now, electric bicycles have tons of different battery sizes and tons of different motor sizes. I've got a lot of other videos on YouTube explaining all the different elements of batteries and motors and everything you need to know. You can check that out on our channel.

But the last thing I will say too is on an electric bicycle, you're going to have brakes. Typically, to make it classified as an electric bicycle, it has to be able to function as a bicycle. If you take those pedals off, it's no longer an electric bicycle, it's now a scooter, or sorry, like a moped or a scooter or even classified as a motorcycle.

These pedals are on there, keep it in the bike classification, and like on our electric bicycles from SixThreeZero, you can ride this as a normal bicycle. I can get on, I can leave the motor off, I can ride, I can pedal. The beauty of that also is if you run out of electricity in the battery, you can still ride this. It can still get you home.

In the case of a motorcycle or a scooter or something, if that battery dies, you're not going anywhere. You're pushing that thing home. That is one benefit of an e-bike versus a scooter or moped or something like that, especially with the electric.

I will say with electric products, we do give you an estimation of your battery life, but it isn't an exact science. Just like electric cars, they'll give you an estimation of the range you have left, but it's not an exact science. The rider weight, and the topography where you're riding, all of that can dictate how long the battery life will last.

But again, it's important if it doesn't have pedals, it's not classified as an electric bicycle. There are a lot of scooters out there right now that have motors as well. They're going to have their regulations and rules versus e-bikes.

You must check your state, your city, and wherever you live, to see what classifies a product as an e-bike. There are different classifications in California. Each classification can be used in different areas. National parks and forests have different regulations on the type of electric bicycles.

There's not only the element of something being classified as an electric bicycle but the classifications of an electric bicycle. Those are important to know based on where you're going to be riding. As an example, in California, you can't take an e-bike on the streets that can go 50 miles an hour. It's just not allowed. It's up to 20 miles an hour with the throttle and 28 in pedal assist.

I think it's to regulate and keep bicycles in line with the true spirit of being a bicycle while still giving people the ability to have the electric to expand the range and capabilities of their e-bike.

That pretty much sums up what an electric bicycle is. This is one example from SixThreeZero, the EVRY Journey. Now again, all you need is the pedals, battery motor, and display, and that's an electric bike. You're seeing a lot of new interpretations of how to design electric bicycles with different frames, configurations, and wheel sizes. Do your research, and find the e-bike that is right for you.

If you need help, navigate to sixthreezero.com. Take our proprietary body fit quiz. It takes a few minutes, you'll answer a few questions about your body and your life, and we'll find the perfect electric bicycle for you. We have a 30-day test ride on your e-bike policy. If you don't love it within 30 days, send it back, no questions asked.

In addition to that, before you purchase, join our Facebook pedalers group and download our app. You can talk to other SixThreeZero electric bicycle riders in advance of purchasing. Ask them questions, see how they like their bike, and see how many miles they're tracking on our app. In this example, the EVRY Journey e-bike or any of our e-bikes. It's real testimonials from real people before you purchase.

Also, after you get your bike, download the app, track your rides, and be a part of our pedaler's group. You can make new friends post photos and swap stories. It's tons of fun to be a part of. Also, if you want to get in touch with us, subscribe below or email us at team@sixthreezero.com or call us at 310-982-2877.

Thanks for sticking around and don't forget, it's your journey, your experience. Enjoy the ride.

DISCLAIMER: The 365-day return policy mentioned in the video above is no longer valid. Please refer to www.sixthreezero.com/pages/30-day-test-ride for the updated policy.