The CityRider electric scooter from Fluidfreeride is a fast, fun, and attractive electric scooter. And the fact that it combines old-school charm with modern tech makes it one of the best budget electric scooters on the market.
CityRider electric scooter
The main selling point for the CityRider electric scooter is its bang-for-your-buck factor. At just $399 (current sale price), the CityRider offers better performance than other budget e-scooters, and at a better price as well.
The scooter has some interesting features I haven’t seen in many other electric scooters. The floorboard isn’t your standard aluminum or silicone base — it’s a wooden deck like a skateboard.
And as old-school as that is, the CityRider electric scooter is modern as well, as it’s one of the only electric scooters on the market to offer built-in turn signals. And definitely the only one in this price class.
CityRider electric scooter video review
Let’s check out the video review of the CityRider electric scooter below, then continue reading for the rest of my review.
CityRider electric scooter tech specs
- Motor: 300 W continuous rating (higher peak rating)
- Battery: 36 V 7.5 Ah (270 Wh)
- Top speed: 18 mph (30 km/h)
- Range: 10 mi (16 km) real world range
- Weight: 28.5 lb (12.9 kg)
- Load capacity: 220 lb (100 kg)
- Brakes: Mechanical rear drum brake and step brake
- Tires: 8.5 x 2-inch airless honeycomb tires
- Extras: LED headlight and taillight, turn signals, two speed modes, LED speedometer/battery meter, cruise control
Performance meets price
At its current sale price of $399, you can’t beat this performance. The acceleration isn’t eye-watering but it gets you up to 18 mph (30 km/h) fairly quickly, just not as quickly as those 1,000 W and higher e-scooters.
The handling is excellent, and I can lean nice and far into corners, which is always tons of fun on a small scooter like this.
The scooter weighs just 28 pounds and is easy to fold and lift, making it portable enough to carry on the subway or up a few flights of stairs.
And the built-in lighting on the scooter is fairly bright, though these are definitely “be seen” lights, not headlights designed to light up a pitch dark road. The scooter offers both front and rear LED lights with a tail light that flashes when you pull the brake lever.
But the really cool addition to the standard LED lights are the turn signals. At the rear of the frame and on either side of the main tail light is a second set of red LED lights that function as turn signals. They are controlled by buttons on the handlebars that are easy to reach while riding. To activate the turn signal, simply press the button on the corresponding handlebar. You can press it again to cancel the turn signal, but you don’t have to. The turn signal cancels itself after 10 seconds or so, meaning you don’t have to worry about driving around for miles with your turn signal blinking away.
The wooden deck adds an interesting and classic flair to the scooter that is missing from just about every other scooter on the market. It makes it feel almost like you’re riding a skateboard, and it kind of sounds like it, too. That’s probably my only complaint on the CityRider electric scooter, that it sometimes creaks due to the wooden deck. It feels perfectly stable and sound, but it’s natural wood, and you can hear it creak sometimes when you hit bumps rather hard.
Now, if you’re looking at that drum brake and thinking, “Drum brake… what gives?” then hold up. Drum brakes may be older technology, but they work. If you grab a handful of brake on the CityRider, then you can lock up the wheel instantly and do a full tail slide.
And drum brakes have some serious advantages in the rain — namely, that they continue to work well. Go through a puddle with disc brakes, and you’ll have diminished braking power until your rotors and pads dry off. So I’ll take a good drum brake any day, and this brake has all the stopping power you need.
Summary
To put it simply, the CityRider electric scooter is punching above its weight and price class.
For the $399 sale price, you’re getting a fast electric scooter with as much range as any other budget e-scooter (even if the others claim to get more with the same 270 Wh battery), plus you get other features like turn signals and that classy wooden deck.
This one seems like a no-brainer to me.
Oh and speaking of brains… please wear a helmet.
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