Vvolt Slice Lite e-bike assessment: sensible city e-mobility Leave a comment

The Slice Lite is cleverly designed for optimum use as a utility e-bike for working errand. The photograph above exhibits that the entrance and rear wheels and tires are completely different sizes. The bigger 24-inch by 3-inch rear tire might help clean the e-bike’s trip, whereas the 20- inch by 3-inch entrance tire can decrease the middle of gravity while you use the non-compulsory, however extremely really helpful Cargo Field.

With out the Cargo Field, which provides 4.7 kilos, the Slice Lite weighs solely 52 kilos. Even with the mixed weight of practically 57 kilos, it’s nonetheless considerably lighter than most e-bikes.

The Slice Lite isn’t the only option for an train bike, long-distance touring, or exploring off-road areas. With its comparatively low-power motor and low-capacity battery, the Slice Lite isn’t a powerhouse — however it doesn’t must be. The burden, velocity, and vary combine will be the proper resolution for a lot of city dwellers.

As talked about above, the Slice Lite doesn’t depend on spectacular energy numbers to do its job. The 36-voltrear hub motor places out 350 watts of steady energy and 550 watts of peak energy. You’ll be able to configure the Slice Lite as a Class 1 bike with powered pedaling help just for larger vary or go away it in Class 2 mode to make use of the thumb throttle and pedaling to name on battery help. In both case, the highest velocity is 20 mph.

The Gates carbon drive belt connects to a single gear on the rear hub, so there’s no shifting wanted. The one-gear setup and the Gates belt imply decrease weight, much less upkeep, and for much longer sturdiness.

The e-bike has 5 ranges of powered pedal help that may be chosen on the colour show utilizing a handlebar-mounted management pad. Vvolt makes use of a mix of torque and cadence sensors, plus a velocity sensor, to answer rider pedaling drive and velocity.

In line with Vvolt, the semi-integrated battery mounted on the highest of the decrease body tube bar makes use of LG cells and is UL-listed. The 36V, 14Ah battery shops as much as 496 watt-hours of energy, which is about common for e-bikes. Due to the Slice Lite’s low weight, the 55-mile most vary ranking remains to be fairly respectable and never unreasonable should you follow pedal help stage 1 or 2. Recharging the battery with the included 2A output charger ought to take about seven hours from empty to full, or about two-thirds as lengthy should you cost to 80%, which is a good suggestion for longer total battery life.

As talked about above, the Gates carbon drive belt has a number of benefits, together with cleaner and quieter operation, no want for cleansing or adjusting, and for much longer life than metal chains. The Slice Lite additionally has Tektro hydraulic brakes with 180mm disc rotors, which have glorious stopping energy and don’t require loads of strain on the levers.

The e-bike has no entrance, rear, or seat put up suspension, and the 3-inch-wide tires have little sidewall flex. Whereas using, you’ll really feel vital bumps, rocks, and holes, however paved surfaces aren’t a problem.

The Slice Lite is properly outfitted with entrance and rear fenders, which helps maintain the bike and rider’s clothes clear when roads are moist or muddy. The handlebars and the seat are adjustable, and the Slice Lite is rated for riders starting from 4 ft, 9 inches to six ft, 4 inches in peak.

Altering the seat peak is a minor chore as a result of it’s a must to use an Allen wrench to loosen a nut beneath a rubber cowl on the built-in taillight beneath the seat. Adjusting the handlebar angle and peak is way simpler due to a flip-up clamp that locks and unlocks it.

The Slice Lite’s headlight and taillight are seen on the edges, entrance, and again of the e-bike. For those who add the non-compulsory Cargo Field, as seen within the accompanying images, you could take away the headlight from the body’s head tube and reinstall it in a cutout on the decrease fringe of the entrance of the field. Each tires have facet reflector strips, which provides to the e-bike’s facet visibility.

There isn’t a normal or non-compulsory brake gentle with the Slice Lite, which is unlucky. The bike additionally lacks a mirror, which can also be disappointing in an e-bike meant for avenue using. Vvolt sells an adjunct bar finish mirror that may work with the Slice Lite, and I’d positively advocate becoming the bike with a pair of mirrors.

By design, the Slice Lite is a straightforward option to seize for a trip or to run an errand. The ability supply with pedal help felt pure, and it was straightforward to succeed in and maintain the 20 mph most velocity whereas pedaling on flat roads.

The bike additionally feels peppy utilizing the thumb throttle, which is mounted on the handlebar to the left of the fitting brake lever. The Slice Lite wouldn’t maintain 20 mph utilizing the throttle solely, which is per the specs sheet, which states that the throttle was restricted to 80% of obtainable energy. It was shut, although, staying at 18 to 19 mph.

I didn’t anticipate the Slice Lite to make it up our pretty steep driveway, proven above, utilizing the throttle solely, however it did, though simply barely, and with nothing within the cargo field. I needed to contact down with my ft a number of instances to take care of steadiness, however there was enough torque to do the job. In different check runs, utilizing powered pedaling help, the bike went up the driveway slowly, however quick sufficient that I didn’t must put my ft down.

General, the Slice Lite was snug to trip, even over a few of our neighborhood’s broad velocity bumps, though I slowed down for them. Whereas there was no suspension, the trip was much less harsh than anticipated and by no means stunning.

The Slice Lite isn’t a speedy e-bike, however that’s not its goal. For those who’re in search of a simple-to-ride e-bike to get you from right here to there with out fuss and far quicker than strolling velocity, the Slice Lite does the job nicely.

Apart from bar finish mirrors, the opposite notable accent for the Slice Lite on the Vvolt web site is the Cargo Field, which holds as much as 40 kilos of cargo. You’ll be able to slide locking adjustable rails within the field ahead and again to carry contents so that they received’t bounce out whereas using. I used them to safe a pair of stadium seats within the photograph above, however you could possibly additionally use them with a single bag of groceries or some other partial load. As you may as well see above, the within backside of the field additionally has rails, so it’s not an awesome pet service.

The Vvolt Slice Lite e-bike is an effective selection for an on a regular basis transportation various, particularly should you trip on comparatively clean, flat roads in a city or metropolis space. The $2,049 listing value is a bit increased than I anticipated, particularly for the reason that Cargo Field that provides a lot to its versatility is a $199 choice. The Gates carbon drive belt and hydraulic brakes are huge pluses, and the Slice Lite’s 56.7-pound weight might be extraordinarily welcome if you have to carry it up or down stairs or raise it in tight areas.