Almost every bit of bike testing I’ve done starts out the same way. After assembling the bike, I set the seatpost to its maximum possible height, take it on a short test ride, and try to figure out new and creative phrasing to describe the same old problem: The frame isn’t quite big enough to accommodate my legs. While I’m on the tall side at a bit over 6 feet (~190 cm), I’m definitely not abnormally large. Yet very few e-bike manufacturers seem to be interested in giving people my height a comfortable ride.
So imagine my surprise when, within two blocks of my first ride on the XPress 750, I had to pull off to the side of the street and lower the seat. This was especially notable given that the XPress is a budget bike (currently on sale for just under $1,000.00) that is only offered in a single frame size. So kudos to Lectric for giving me a comfortable and enjoyable ride, and doing so with a lot of features I wouldn’t expect at this price point.
That said, hitting that price necessitated some significant compromises. We’ll discuss those in detail so you can get a sense of whether any of them will get in the way of your riding enjoyment.
A bit more than you paid for
Lectric is not a household name, but the company says its XPress foldable bike is the bestselling model in the US, making it a major vendor in that market. It’s gotten there largely through affordability, with none of its models costing over $2,000.00. Within that limit, however, the company tries to remain responsive to its users’ needs, as its intro video for the latest version of the XPress makes clear.
The XPress model isn’t foldable, and it comes in both step-through and step-over frames; we tested the latter. It’s a pretty standard hybrid-style bike, not quite built for everything you’d use a hard-tail mountain bike for but more than robust enough for commuting or errand-running and a bit sportier than a dedicated commuter bike. It comes with a suspension fork for cushioning the ride a bit; this also includes a setting that locks it in place, which is nice for riders who spend their time on smooth pavement and find that the fork sags when they stand up on the pedals.