Super Soco EV bikes

[ChocolateFrog]

Anyone got one? Or even test ridden one?

I'll soon have a new commute of 18ish miles each way and weighing up some different options.

These seem promising but the price screams chinese tat. The TC Max at £3800 new with a 5kw motor and 170Nm sounds like it could be decent fun on A and B roads. Pennies to run, no noise to annoy the neighbours. Would pay for itself in I would guess 3 or 4 years. No idea on future value but I'd guess anything above scrap value after 5 years of winter commuting would be a bonus.

It's pretty much the same price as something like a Gocycle GXi ebike, which I've also considered, although I'd think distance is a bit far for regular 36 mile round trip cycle commutes, maybe in the summer.

Or for a little more I could get a used K1300R.

[ChocolateFrog]

Not a bad looking thing IMO.

[LuS1fer]

There are plenty of YouTube test reviews which I watched when I was considering one though I got no further than that.

I was semi- tempted by the Honda From rip-off Artisan Evo 3 which looked to have a bit more street cred
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ARTISAN-EVO3-/254805980...

[sixor8]

£4249 according to their website. Electric range is always going to be less than petrol, but a 70 mile range seems a bit too low:

https://supersoco.co.uk/tc-max/

[JonChalk]

My OH is doing her CBT shortly (supposed to be today, but Tier 4-delayed).

She's seriously considering one of these for her 6 mile each way commute + there's a dealer only 7 miles away.

A number of YT reviews were very positive.

[ChocolateFrog]

LuS1fer said:

There are plenty of YouTube test reviews which I watched when I was considering one though I got no further than that.

I was semi- tempted by the Honda From rip-off Artisan Evo 3 which looked to have a bit more street cred
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ARTISAN-EVO3-/254805980...

I looked too, almost all foreign reviews.

The MCN review isn't that favourable. They measured it's top speed as 49mph, which is a bit disappointing and I would assume if you're close to that it would be marginal for my commute range wise.

[ChocolateFrog]

sixor8 said:

£4249 according to their website. Electric range is always going to be less than petrol, but a 70 mile range seems a bit too low:

https://supersoco.co.uk/tc-max/

There's a couple of dealers offering them new for a little over £3800 after the government handout.

[ChocolateFrog]

I'd pay £500 more for something with a similar range but say a 20hp motor, something on par with a Honda CRF250, that doesn't seem to exist, yet.

I guess they want to capture the CBT market as selling them is hard enough without requiring a full licence.

[JonChalk]

ChocolateFrog said:

LuS1fer said:

There are plenty of YouTube test reviews which I watched when I was considering one though I got no further than that.

I was semi- tempted by the Honda From rip-off Artisan Evo 3 which looked to have a bit more street cred
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ARTISAN-EVO3-/254805980...

I looked too, almost all foreign reviews.

The MCN review isn't that favourable. They measured it's top speed as 49mph, which is a bit disappointing and I would assume if you're close to that it would be marginal for my commute range wise.

As a counterpoint (and I'm not suggesting it will for you), my OH was sold after the Girl on a Bike YT channel reviewed it;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ha2Q7Bn7cjk

[ChocolateFrog]

JonChalk said:

ChocolateFrog said:

LuS1fer said:

There are plenty of YouTube test reviews which I watched when I was considering one though I got no further than that.

I was semi- tempted by the Honda From rip-off Artisan Evo 3 which looked to have a bit more street cred
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ARTISAN-EVO3-/254805980...

I looked too, almost all foreign reviews.

The MCN review isn't that favourable. They measured it's top speed as 49mph, which is a bit disappointing and I would assume if you're close to that it would be marginal for my commute range wise.

As a counterpoint (and I'm not suggesting it will for you), my OH was sold after the Girl on a Bike YT channel reviewed it;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ha2Q7Bn7cjk

Slightly different demographics I think

It's also unlikely your missus is 115kg with a bit of kit and rucksack, another point I'd have to 'weigh' up.

[Jag_NE]

Smaller ICE bikes are so cheap and economical I struggle to see the appeal of cheap e-bikes tbh.

OP - I wouldn’t worry about annoying your neighbours. Modern bikes with the OEM can aren’t noisy at idle.

[JonChalk]

ChocolateFrog said:

Slightly different demographics I think

It's also unlikely your missus is 115kg with a bit of kit and rucksack, another point I'd have to 'weigh' up.

No - almost exactly half that

[monthou]

I got as far as trying to find insurance for one of these last year. It was going to cost a lot more than my vfr.
Maybe that's changed now.

[ChocolateFrog]

Jag_NE said:

Smaller ICE bikes are so cheap and economical I struggle to see the appeal of cheap e-bikes tbh.

OP - I wouldn’t worry about annoying your neighbours. Modern bikes with the OEM can aren’t noisy at idle.

I can see the appeal of both.

Even the most economical ICE bike will use half a gallon a day at the mileages I'd be doing times that by 200 times a year and you're starting to see significant savings.

I think we're not far off the tipping point being reached where the EV bikes are quicker too, certainly in the 0-50mph arena.

Noise isnt that important to a commuter IMO, quieter the better for me, old before my time.

[ChocolateFrog]

monthou said:

I got as far as trying to find insurance for one of these last year. It was going to cost a lot more than my vfr.
Maybe that's changed now.

Was chatting to a Zero owner and he used MCE but they had to put it down as Suzuki Bergman

Not sure how that works.

[JonChalk]

ChocolateFrog said:

I can see the appeal of both.

Even the most economical ICE bike will use half a gallon a day at the mileages I'd be doing times that by 200 times a year and you're starting to see significant savings.

I think we're not far off the tipping point being reached where the EV bikes are quicker too, certainly in the 0-50mph arena.

Noise isnt that important to a commuter IMO, quieter the better for me, old before my time.

For my OH, it's the simplicity.

She's looking forward to doing CBT (& further training) on an ICE, but day-to-day wants the simplicity, quietness and ease of home charging from the EV.

[mellowman]

I remember enquiring about these at the 2019 NEC Bike Show.

You can derestrict them with a simple button combination.

They looked well built, stylish and good value, although prices have risen quite a bit since I saw them.

The limited range is the big drawback and they were keen to tell me the real world range is significantly less than the ideal world quoted one.

[Willow1212]

It is worth having a look at the Horwin CR6 too. I did my CBT earlier this year and got one for the same distance of commute. I haven’t ridden it as much has hoped due to working from home most of the year, but pleased with it so far.

[JonChalk]

Willow1212 said:

It is worth having a look at the Horwin CR6 too. I did my CBT earlier this year and got one for the same distance of commute. I haven’t ridden it as much has hoped due to working from home most of the year, but pleased with it so far.

Where did you get it from, please? Had a quick look at their website, but no official UK dealers that I could see.

[Willow1212]

JonChalk said:

Where did you get it from, please? Had a quick look at their website, but no official UK dealers that I could see.

I got it from Motobox in Kent.
There’s a list of UK dealers here:
https://artisanscooters.com/electric-dealers