Beginner's Guide To Electric Scooters
Buying your first electric scooter can be a daunting process with so many different models on the market, each with different specifications and price points. Our beginner’s guide to electric scooters looks to give you some information on what determines a scooter’s range, how powerful they are, how fast they can go and how scooter weight and user weight affect your scooter’s performance. This should help you make an informed decision on which e-scooter suits your needs best and how much to spend.
Range
Range refers to the distance an electric scooter can achieve on a fully charged battery before running out of power. There are many factors that will determine the range of your e-scooter; battery capacity, motor size, terrain, scooter weight, user weight and driving modes. The range often advertised by manufacturers isn’t always reflective of real world use, as they calculate range from tests in optimal conditions using light riders and low speeds. To take account for this we advise deducting a third of the range noted by manufacturers to allow for the factors outlined above.
Battery
The battery is the most expensive component of an electric scooter and larger battery capacity will lead to greater range, all things being equal. For example the Segway Ninebot Max G30P has a 15.3ah Li battery and has an advertised range of 65km, twice the range of a Xiaomi M365 with a 7.8ah Li battery. Over the course of time your battery’s capacity will diminish due to use and the majority of batteries will last between 300-500 charging cycles.
The Xiaomi M365 (which has a 7.8ah Li battery and with a 250W front wheel motor) lends itself well to short distances with a real range of approximately 20km. The Segway Ninebot Max range and Xiaomi M365 Pro have larger batteries increasing range per charge. Charging times on these models are 6 hours or under and can be ideally charged overnight.
Motor Power
Electric scooters have brushless direct current motors built into the hub of the wheel. More powerful scooters have twin motors, while an average range scooter such as the Segway Ninebot ES2 has a single motor in the front wheel. Motor power governs the power and acceleration generated from the scooter. The more motor power you have, the quicker you can accelerate from a standstill, and the steeper an incline you can climb. For hilly terrain an electric scooter with a rear wheel motor and higher wattage output can deliver greater performance than the entry level models. The Segway Ninebot Max G30P for example has a 350W rear wheel motor and is capable of climbing 20% inclines.
Scooter Weight
Electric scooters at the higher range tier (45km+) tend to weigh in excess of 14kg. They can be cumbersome to carry and walk with at the same time so keep that in mind if you will be climbing stairs and up steps.
User Weight
You can find the maximum rider weight an electric scooter can take in the specifications for each product. With many electric scooters the user weight is capped at 100kg and any further weight above the recommended loading can lead to faults with the e-scooter. As noted previously the weight of your scooter and the weight of the user, can affect the range and performance of your ride.
Top Speed
Speed can vary on different models of electric scooters and can even be restricted in certain countries under their respective regulations. Certain off-road e-scooters can drive at blistering speeds of up to 70kmph while others that are manufactured have their speed restricted at 25-30kmph. This range of speed should be sufficient for the majority of users. Many manufacturers have apps for their electric scooters which can allow a person to restrict the speed even further should they be concerned. People often attempt to increase the speed of their scooter by flashing firmware onto their scooters. While this may increase the speed beyond the manufacturer’s prescribed setting, it inevitably burns out the motor/motherboard connections and can lead to costly repairs as the warranty is voided by the alterations.
Warranty
It’s important to know up front when you purchase an electric scooter what is included in the warranty and how the seller intends to carry out repairs. If you buy direct from overseas you’ll have to communicate with the seller and send your electric scooter back for repair or they may choose to nominate a repair technician in your area. If it’s a reseller within your country, you should be reading through the warranty policy questioning what’s included and asking where they intend to carry out their repairs. At LOCO Scooters we provide an unrivalled warranty on all our electric scooters and carry out warranty repairs in our repair centre. We keep stock of spare parts on our advertised models which allows us to carry out repairs at quick turnaround times.
Final Note
Thanks for checking out our beginner’s guide to electric scooters and we hope you learned something new today. If you like our content, check out our instagram account where we share updates, photos and videos on all things electric scooters.
