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Welcome to Flywheel, a weekly exploration of the owned and used micromobility. Each newsletter will highlight an observation of trends emerging in the industry and feature five of the most interesting used vehicles being sold in the secondary market.

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The observation of the week explores an updated ranking of the top 10 most popular ebike brands in the secondary market. This week’s featured vehicles are a cruiser/mountain bike hybrid, a mini utility bike, a performance escooter, a utility scrambler, and a premium gravel ebike.

Observation of the Week

Updated Ranking of the Top 10 Most Popular Ebike Brands in the Secondary Market

Over this past week, Flywheel passed the milestone of processing 20K used ebike listings. This represents ~$40M of ebikes that have cumulatively covered ~7.25M miles. As such, lets take a look at the updated ranking of the most popular used ebike brands in the secondary market:

As expected and previously reported, Rad Power and Specialized continue to dominate proceedings and are easily the two most recognizable ebike brands in the US. Some notable movements in the ranking since the end of 2022:

• Rad Power has overtaken Specialized as the most commonly listed ebike brand in the used market.

• Lectric has entered the top 10, displacing Soul Fast.

The Top 10 is dominated by more affordable D2C brands, but (perhaps more critically), the top 5 is largely dealer-network brands or D2C brands with a strong dealer partner network.

The average resale price of the top 10 brands is similar to the overall average (Top 10 average of $1,767.41 vs. Overall average of $1,839.05). Most significant outlier here is Specialized, whose average price resale price of $4,347.94 is more than $2,500 higher than the overall average. The remaining brands are within reasonable ranges of the overall average based on whether they’re a D2C (slightly lower than average) or a Dealer-Network brand (slightly higher than average).

The average mileage of the top 10 brands however is markedly lower than the overall mileage (Top 10 average of 297.67mi vs. Overall average of 341.26mi). Most significant outlier here is Trek, whose average mileage of 823.19mi is more than 2.4X the overall average. Rad Power and Specialized surprisingly have very similar average mileages at resale, despite Specialized ebikes costing significantly more, being made of significantly higher quality components, and having a significantly larger maintenance network.

The top 10 brands represent 23.8% of the secondary market. For context, the top 10 escooter brands only represent 17%. Market giants Rad Power and Specialized, which are neck and neck, each represent 4.3% and 4.2% of the secondary market respectively.

Breaking the top 10 most popular ebike brands in the secondary market by region:

A few interesting regional takeaways:

• SF - Bay Area isn’t as dominated by sports-focused brands as it was mid-last year and now consists of more D2C, commuting-focused ebikes.

• NYC Area is still largely dominated by more affordable D2C ebikes, which is in line with NYC’s market-level average resale price being much lower than that of other markets. It will be interesting to see how this evolves in the coming year as the new law requiring all ebikes sold in NYC to be UL 2849-certified starts to take effect given that UL-certified ebikes tend to be from more premium/expensive brands.

• Denver Area has the highest concentration of dealer-network ebikes, which I suspect may be related to the Denver ebike rebate requiring eligible OEMs to have a physical retail location in the Denver area.

• Miami has the highest concentration of D2C ebikes, and the average mileage of used ebikes in Miami is considerably lower than that of other major US regions. This suggests to me that the Miami market consists of more leisure riders that are newer to micromobility, and are starting off their ebike journeys with less expensive brands.

For more observations and resources on owned and used micromobility, check out rideflywheel.com/resources.

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Top 5 Vehicles of the Week

1. Electric Bike Company Model R | $2,600 | Santa Cruz

The Electric Bike Company Model R is an interesting class-2/3 hybrid of a cruiser and a mountain bike paired with a high performance powertrain. Featuring a 60Nm geared rear hub motor with 1250W peak power and a 672Wh battery pack with Samsung cells, the Model R’s powertrain has an immense amount of speed and hill climbing ability that is rarely found on a cruiser. Additionally, the Model R’s motorcycle-grade hydraulic brakes, custom 3” wide tires, and a front suspension fork help make it the ultimate ebike cruiser. One additional feature that I appreciate is that the Model R comes fully assembled when delivered. This is a small but super useful perk given how many riders struggle with properly putting together their ebike and how significant of a safety concern incorrectly assembled ebikes can be. A few reviewers have noted that the Model R may feel a bit bulky to use for daily commuting, but there’s very few cruisers on the market that are as comfortable or as capable as the Model R. This listing was bought in 2021 but is practically new and has only been ridden about 5 times. Listing can be found here.

2. Benno Remi Demi | $2,900 | SF - Bay Area

The Benno Remi Demi is a premium, compact class-3 cargo bike designed by swiss bicycle designer Benno Baenziger. Benno’s vehicles are designed with what they call a philosophy of “etility,” which represents the combination of utility and electric powertrains. The Remi Demi is a mini utility cargo bike, boasting a payload capacity typically found on a longtail cargo bike on a vehicle that is shorter than many commuter ebikes. Its powertrain features a 65Nm Bosch Performance Sport mid-drive motor and 400Wh Bosch PowerPack battery pack. The vehicle’s small wheels and fat tires significantly improve its maneuverability, and its step-through frame with a wide saddle and upright seating position make it immediately optimized for utility-oriented daily riders. The Remi Demmi is also extremely modular, and can be configured to be a cargo workhorse for everyone from delivery drivers to parents replacing their minivans. The compact cargo bike sector is highly popular with urban riders, with bikes like RadPower’s RadRunner or Tern’s mini longtail cargo bikes providing the perfect balance of cargo utility and a compact form factor. The Remi Demmi stands out due to its premium componentry and ultra-configurable frame design. This listing is in like-new condition and only has a mileage of 260mi. Listing can be found here.

3. Apollo Phantom V2 | $1,600 | SF - Bay Area

The Apollo Phantom V2 is a premium high-performance escooter and, as RiderGuide calls it, arguably “the most complete, ready-for-anything package, right out of the box.” Its powertrain is a dual motor system with two 1.2KW hub motors and a 1.2KWh battery pack, giving it a top speed of 41mph, a hill-climbing grade of 10%, and a 300lb payload capacity. The Phantom V2 also comes with four-spring front and rear suspension (vs. the two-spring systems typical of scooters that have suspension), regenerative braking combined with either disc ($1,799) or hydraulic ($1,949) brakes, and 10” by 3.25” fat-tires (larger than those of most escooters). As a package, the Phantom V2 has one of the most stable and planted rides of any escooter. It’s also rich with features like a beautiful display, a three-lock claw-shaped folding hinge, and ultra bright functional lighting (i.e. brake lights, turn signals). Even the escooter’s touch points are designed for a premium UX. One additional notable feature is that most of the vehicle’s electronics are located in the display, so maintenance can be as simple as shipping the faulty display to Apollo and swapping it with a new one. Apollo then repairs these faulty displays and recycles them into their maintenance spare parts supply. In a sea of escooters that look virtually identical and are largely undifferentiated, the Phantom V2 stands out as one that is clearly a clean-sheet design optimized for high performance riding. This listing has been ridden for 550mi and was only bought 14 months ago. Listing can be found here.

4. Ariel Rider X-Class | $1,600 | Seattle

The Ariel Rider X-Class is a class-2/3 scrambler that offers utility and fun at an middle-tier price point. Its powertrain features a 110Nm Bafang rear hub motor and a 936Wh removable battery pack. Out of the box, the X-Class is limited to class-2 speeds. But, it can be unlocked to a 36mph max speed off-road mode. The X-Class is extremely comfortable and sporty to ride. Its 20” by 4” fat tires and hydraulic brakes are combined with moped-strength front and rear suspension, and its seat and handle bar geometry make for an agile, motorcycle-esque rider positioning. There’s even rear foot pegs and an optional extra long seat to carry a second passenger. Particularly for a vehicle selling for ~$2K, the X-Class delivers both high utility and an extremely enjoyable ride. It’s a great commuter that affords you the speed required to keep up with traffic on streets without bike lanes, and it has adequate mounting points for racks and other cargo accessories. For those looking for an even lower price-point, Ariel Rider also sells a $1,599 X-Class with a smaller battery. This listing has a mileage of 1300mi and was used as a commuter for about a year. Listing can be found here.

5. CANYON Grail:ON CF 8 eTap | $5,250 | Denver

The CANYON Grail:ON CF 8 eTap is a premium class-3 gravel bike. It has a unique double handle bar design (drop bar), which combines with the vehicle’s ultra-lightweight carbon fiber frame (37.3lbs) to give riders the positioning and feel of a racing bike. The Grail:ON CF 8’s powertrain features an 85Nm Bosch Performance Line Speed mid-drive motor and a 500Wh Bosch PowerTube battery pack, and it also comes with a series of off-roading components like more puncture resistant tires, larger brakes, etc. While CANYON is a German D2C brand, it is still extremely easy to maintain since its Bosch powertrain allows it to be serviced at most bike shops. The Grail:ON CF 8 is an extremely fun and comfortable bike to ride, but its high standover height, relatively flat top tube, lack of suspension, and shorter range (due to higher performance/power motor) makes it better suited for a sport rider than an everyday commuter. This listing is sold by Bicycle Colorado, a biking non-profit that sells donated bicycles and uses the proceeds to support their advocacy efforts. It has a mileage of less than 20mi and has only been ridden on pavement. Listing can be found here.

That’s it for this edition. Thanks again for joining, see you next week!

- Puneeth Meruva

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