“Dude. Is that an ebike?” The decision got here from a person on the sidewalk with a pierced septum and a tattoo of a motorcycle chain. He wasn’t the one one who requested. The Ride1Up Roadster V3 would not appear to be an ebike, which is exactly why it drew discover from former bike store repairmen and fitness-obsessed schoolteachers.
Ride1Up’s metropolis commuter Roadster, launched a yr in the past and common sufficient it went out and in of inventory by means of a lot of 2025, is on the vanguard of a brand new era of neatly built-in ebikes that feel and appear like a motorcycle with out motor help. Just like the Aventon Soltera 3 we rated this yr as WIRED’s favourite commuter bike, the Roadster V3 is a light-weight ebike glorious for tooling across the metropolis, weighing about 40 kilos relying on the exact mannequin. Its proportional torque help could make it really feel rather a lot like an extra-peppy basic bike—albeit one whose 500-watt motor can crank as much as 28 miles an hour when set to function as a Class 3 ebike.
That is an ebike geared towards how I normally need to use an ebike: as a quick and versatile metropolis bike for kicking round my metropolis of Portland, Oregon. I’ve spent months, and lots of of miles, driving the nine-speed mannequin of the Roadster V3 to grocery shops and buddies’ homes—up steep ridges and throughout rivers, or simply down the road—and lifting it one-handed up my stairs and into my home. The Roadster rides like a bicycle that is simpler to pedal. That is how I need it to really feel.
At $1,395, Ride1Up’s roadster can be reasonably priced for a high-performance ebike with premium components and a throttle to assist launch up troublesome hills. The 20- to 40-mile vary is limiting for long-distance touring however greater than ample for many day by day commutes. A dearth of affiliated restore retailers is a fear for service, a typical downside with direct-to-consumer ebikes, as a result of most common bike retailers refuse to even repair a flat if they do not promote a selected model. However the Ride1Up additionally punches effectively above its value class in energy, options, and flexibility.
Belts and Chains
San Diego-based Ride1Up is a more moderen ebike firm, lower than a decade outdated. The corporate is constructing its fame largely by providing plenty of specialised and utility bikes at accessible costs. However as somebody who typically favors basic street bikes, I am going to admit a few of their different fashions have struck me as a bit chunky or over-engineered, geared to path riders and the kind of one that needs to cart a surfboard to the seaside.
Not so the Roadster. The Roadster V3 is enjoyable and lightweight and is straightforward to mistake for a basic bicycle even while you’re driving it. The cables run by means of the hole of the body. The battery, whereas detachable, can be built-in virtually imperceptibly into the chassis.
At its value, it provides a stunning quantity of customization. Three body sizes make the bike accessible to riders from 5’2″ to six’4″. At above 6 toes and 200 kilos myself, I opted for the most important body, which nonetheless weighs solely 40 kilos.
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