The Biria Electric City Bike was a limited run model produced around 2013. You may be familiar with their 2012 Easy Boarding electric bicycle which offered a stronger battery, seat post shock and shorter frame that was designed to be easier to mount. The company has been focused on non-electric bikes and offers unique frame designs for city riding and comfortable cruising. This review is meant to introduce the company, describe the bike (which is still available at some independent dealers and may be found used) and set the stage for the possibility of future models.
The Electric City Bike is all about value. At under $1,500 it fits into the “affordable” category here but is one of the more feature rich offerings I’ve seen. From the suspension fork, fenders, rear rack, chain guard, comfort seat, adjustable stem and ergonomic grips to the removable battery design this is a pretty high quality bike! And, it offers both trigger throttle and pedal assist mode so you can relax and cruise around or pedal along (which you might have to do when climbing steeper hills).
Driving this classy bicycle is an efficient 250 watt geared hub motor located in the rear. It’s on par with the standard in Europe but rather small compared to many US ebikes. Still, the gears provide torque and allow the motor itself to be lighter weight and take up less space, providing room for the seven speed cassette (that includes one large ring to make climbing easier). It’s relatively quiet and includes a quick connect that makes removing the rear wheel for maintenance or changing flats easier.
Powering the bike is 24 volt 8 amp hour Lithium-ion battery pack located just behind the seat tube. The position is good, keeping weight low and more centered on the frame. The power and size offered are rather low but the pack itself is removable for easy charging at work or school if you use this to commute. Considering the limited run status of this electric bike, it’s kind of nice that the battery pack is so generic because you should be able to find replacements online when it eventually does wear out and you could always go through Electric Cyclery which carries them.
In closing, this is great value electric bike that’s popular with students due to the low price and high utility. It may have been a limited run, along with the 2012 Easy Boarding Electric but you can bet Biria will be back with a new design in the coming years. There are so many piecemeal ebikes on eBay and other websites that resemble this, and have a similar price, but I trust Biria and had a good experience with this model.
Unique deep-step frame allows riders to mount with less than a five inch leg lift and stand over the bike comfortably, the seat can be dropped very low as well. Utilizes a very high quality motor, battery and display from BionX, a well established company…...
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