IZIP E3 Vibe+ Review

The original IZIP E3 Vibe has been completely remodeled for 2016 and is now called the Vibe Plus. The suspension fork is gone but the bike weighs nearly 10 pounds less and has a more streamlined battery pack. You get a more powerful and more efficient mid drive motor and a larger battery capacity but the price has risen a bit to compensate. With three frame sizes to choose from, the Vibe+ can be the most compact and easiest to mount electric bicycle in the IZIP family. For this review I was on the extra small frame… and it worked quite well once I raised the seat post a bit :)

This thing is easy to mount, relatively stable and at ~54 pounds it’s not super heavy considering the sturdy rear rack, oversized handle bars and comfort accessories. I spent a bunch of time riding in pedal assist level one because it’s the smoothest and slowest mode (topping out around 11 mph). This is an electric bike that would do well in neighborhoods or around town, perhaps running short errands and loading food or school supplies. While it only comes in one color scheme (metallic red with black accents) I noticed that the spokes, chain guard, saddle and grips all tied in. The electronic wires are also black but seamlessly pass through the downtube so you don’t notice them as much. It’s a good looking ebike but one that also feels sturdy, I love that the tire tubes come with Slime installed to help resist flats and appreciate the front and rear quick release skewers that come in handy if you do have to perform maintenance or transport the bike.

This ebike uses more basic components but not quite bottom of the line… You get Tektro linear pull brakes, a seven speed Shimano Altus derailleur, a decent kickstand and a nice chain guard to keep your pants or dress clean. The rear-mounted battery doubles as a cargo rack and fender but positions the weight of the battery high and towards the rear compromising frame stiffness and handling to a limited extent. Frankly, it works fine for basic city riding. My favorite parts about this model are the powerful motor, easy to read display panel and optional boost button (which costs $50 extra) that turns this into a Class 2 electric bike offering throttle on demand.

Once you’ve charged the battery (on or off the frame!) and mounted it, you press the power button towards the left side of the pack then press another power button near the display console to get the systems all booted up. It’s more involved than I’d like but once it’s online the button pad makes changing modes or screen readouts very easy. You can arrow up or down between four levels of assist with increasing speed and power as you get up to four (topping out at 20 mph). The motor responds mostly to pedal cadence verses torque and I prefer this for more relaxed riding because my knees get sensitive if I push too hard. There’s no shift-sensing feature on this drive system so keep that in mind but given the gentler pedaling for around-town use that shouldn’t be a huge issue here :)

Pros:

• One of the smallest and easiest to mount electric bikes I’ve tested, the single-tube low-step frame offers a 16.5″ stand over height and the seat can go down to ~28″ off ground level
• The rear rack is setup with a “cage” that protects the battery but can also work with a trunk bag or side mounted panniers, it uses standard gauge tubing that should be compatible with the widest range of accessories including clip-on panniers
• I love that you can purchase the “boost button” and turn this into a Class 2 electric bike for $50 and that it’s pre-wired with 6 volt leads for adding lights
• The rear rack functions as a fender to keep your back dry and there are mounting points on the front fork for adding a 26″ fender
• The tire tubes come with Slime inside designed to plug holes and stop leaks, you could bring along a mini-pump in a bag or mount one like this to the bottle cage bosses along the downtube
• Available in three frame sizes including the extra small 13″ which would be perfect for petite riders, it’s nice that it also goes large for taller people who just want to save money and prefer step-thru
• The drive unit relies mostly on cadence sensing so you don’t have to push especially hard in order to make the motor go, this is good for people with sensitive knees or when riding with a heavier load but may drain the battery a bit faster than torque sensing
• Extra attention to detail with the plastic sticker slap guard on the right chain stay, the aluminum chain guide to keep the chain on track and black painted spokes that match the tires and black highlights of the frame, I also like that most of the wires and cables are internally routed through the frame so it looks nicer
• The electronic systems all “talk to each other” using CAN bus (Controller Area Network) which makes diagnosing issues and updating firmware much easier for shops, that’s a unique feature for a more affordable ebike like the Vibe Plus

Cons:

• The battery pack has to be switched on before the display panel can be activated, it’s an extra step that takes time and can be easy to forget… also, the button pad on/off has to be held for three or four seconds and once the display begins booting up there’s an eight second countdown to wait through
• There is a “zero” assist level that completely shuts off the motor but leaves the display active like a cycle computer (or to power integrated lights) but it’s kind of hidden, once the display is on and you’re in assist level 1 just hold the power button on the button pad for a couple of seconds and it will go to zero, another tip is to hold the plus button for a few seconds to activate the lights and display backlighting and to hold the box icon to switch from mph to km/h
• The display backlighting only has two options (on or auto) so you can’t switch it off completely if you want to ride without light which could be annoying for some people
• Because the Vibe+ uses a single-tube frame and the battery is mounted on a rear rack, there is some frame flex (especially if you stand up and pedal hard)
• Without a suspension fork the bike can feel a little stiff and jarring at higher speed, the tires are medium in size which adds some bounce and comfort and the saddle is oversized but you might consider getting a suspension seat post to reduce bumps while riding (you’ll need a 27.2 mm to 29.8 mm seat post shim like this in order to make it work)

Resources:

• Official Site: https://izipelectric.com/electric-bikes/leisure#desc-bottom
• More Pictures: https://goo.gl/photos/3gmcrHhZrEzSszfE8