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Urban Drivestyle UNI Moke Classic Review

Urban Drivestyle Unimoke Classic Electric Bike Review

Urban Drivestyle Unimoke Classic Bafang Hub Drive

Urban Drivestyle Unimoke Classic Long Banana Seat

Urban Drivestyle Unimoke Classic Cockpit View

Urban Drivestyle Unimoke Classic Display Controls

Urban Drivestyle Unimoke Classic Front Suspension

Urban Drivestyle Unimoke Classic Integrated Headlight

Urban Drivestyle Unimoke Classic Shimano Tourney System

Urban Drivestyle Unimoke Classic Torque Sensor

Urban Drivestyle Unimoke Classic 48v Battery System

Urban Drivestyle Unimoke Classic Stock White

A fun and engaging retro-styled and motorcycle-esque ebike made for adventure with fat-tires, suspension, cool styling aesthetics like motorcycle style handlebars and extra large front headlight, great utility with the extra long seat and adjustable area foot pegs to add passengers in a number of configurations
Powered by a Bafang 500-750 watt rear hub motor that is engaged via either torque based pedal assist or a thumb throttle on the right, also has a very respectable 48v 14ah high capacity battery, you can set the power and speed by level of assist you are in, the top speed I got was about 26mph, making this similar to a speed pedelec!
Mechanically, the UNI Moke is operated by a Shimano Tourney derailleur with 7 speeds, a 11-28 tooth cassette and a 52 tooth chain ring in the rear, a big win are the Tektro hydraulic disc brakes in the front and rear, the front, which takes the brunt force of physics when stopping, gets a larger 180mm disc brake rotor, while the rear has a 160mm disc brake rotor
The battery takes a little getting used to to remove as it is a multistep process, the keys have to stay in the battery when riding around, which could be potentially annoying, the bike is somewhat large and defiantly heavy at 80lbs, so do be aware when maneuvering it or hoping to load up the bike and take it somewhere

Make:

Urban Drivestyle

Model:

UNI Moke

Price:

$2,990

Body Position:

Forward, Upright

Suggested Use:

Cruising, Neighborhood, Urban

Electric Bike Class:

Speed Pedelec (Class 3)

Learn more about Ebike classes

Warranty:

3 Years Frame and Fork, 1 Year Electronics

Availability:

United States, Europe

Model Year:

2019

Total Weight:

80 lbs (36.28 kg)

Battery Weight:

9.4 lbs (4.26 kg)

Motor Weight:

8.5 lbs (3.85 kg)

Frame Material:

Steel

Geometry Measurements:

18.5" Virtual Seat Tube Length, 17" to 32" Virtual Reach, 33" Stand Over Height, 33" Minimum Saddle Height, 28" Width, 68" Length

Frame Types:

High-Step

Frame Colors:

Matte Black

Frame Fork Details:

Generic Spring Suspension, Low Travel, 28.8mm Steel Stanchion Diameter, Steel Lowers, 135mm Hub Spacing

Frame Rear Details:

170mm Hub Spacing, 11mm Threaded Axle with 10mm Flats and 18mm Nuts, Vertical Dropout

Attachment Points:

Front and Rear Fender Bosses, Proprietary Front and Rear Rack Provisions, 3 Positions of Footpeg Bosses

Gearing Details:

7 Speed 1x7 Shimano Tourney Rear Derailleur, 14-28 Tooth Cassette

Shifter Details:

Shimano Thumb Shifters on Right

Cranks:

Forged Aluminum Alloy Arms, 170mm Length, Square Taper Bottom Bracket Spindle, 52 Tooth Steel Chainrings with One Sided Metal Guard

Pedals:

Wellgo F268, Aluminum Alloy Folding Platform with Fixed Pins, Black/Silver

Headset:

Internal Cups, Straight 1-1/8"

Stem:

Fork-Handlebar Integrated, Steel, Adjustable Height and Backsweep

Handlebar:

Fork-Handlebar Integrated, Steel, 670mm Length

Brake Details:

Tektro HD-E350 Hydraulic Disc Brakes with 180mm Front and 160mm Rear Disc Rotors

Grips:

Locking Rubber with Slight Ergonomic Center

Saddle:

Long Deck-Length Vinyl Wrapped Pad, 31" Length, 5.75" Width, with Rear Facing Logo

Rims:

Aluminum Alloy, Double Walled, 80mm Outer Width, 36 Hole, Black

Spokes:

Stainless Steel, 13 Gauge Front 12 Gauge Rear, Silver with Nipples

Tire Brand:

Kenda K-1188 20" x 4.0" (98-406)

Wheel Sizes:

20 in (50.8cm)

Tire Details:

5 to 30 PSI, 0.4 to 2.1 BAR

Tube Details:

Schrader Valve

Accessories:

7" Wide Integrated Retro Motorcycle LED Headlight, Integrated Rear Light, Flick Bell on Right, Rear Mount Kickstand (40mm Mount), Optional Rear Cargo Rack, Optional Foot Pegs, Optional Extended Seat with Tall or Short Tail, Optional Fenders, Optional Surfboard Rack, Optional Front Rack (Uses Headlight Mount), See Urban Drivestyle Website for Pricing Details

Other:

Locking Mostly Removable Seat-tube Mounted Battery Pack, D-Power 1.4lb 2 Amp Charger, 330lb Max Load (Not Tested by EBR)

Motor Brand:

Bafang

Motor Type:

Rear-Mounted Geared Hub

Learn more about Ebike motors

Motor Nominal Output:

500 watts

Motor Peak Output:

750 watts

Motor Torque:

80 Newton meters

Battery Brand:

Samsung

Battery Voltage:

48 volts

Battery Amp Hours:

14.5 ah

Battery Watt Hours:

696 wh

Battery Chemistry:

Lithium-ion

Charge Time:

7.25 hours

Estimated Min Range:

18 miles (29 km)

Estimated Max Range:

40 miles (64 km)

Display Type:

Bafang DP C01, Fixed, LCD Display, Buttons: -, Power, +, Walk Assist: Hold -, Lights: Hold +

Readouts:

Pedal Assist Level (1-9), Clock, Speed, Odometer, Timer, Trip Hold + and - for Settings

Display Accessories:

Half-Grip Trigger Throttle on Right

Drive Mode:

Torque Sensing Pedal Assist, Trigger Throttle (Bafang Bottom Bracket Sensor)

Top Speed:

28 mph (45 kph)(User Adjustable)

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Make or Model

Model Year

Body Position

Suggested Use

Frame Type

Drive Mode

Availability

Price Range

$0 (0 €)$18,000 (16,920 €)

Total Weight

0 lbs (0 kg)227 lbs (103 kg)

Top Speed

0 mph (0.0 km/hr)50 mph (80.5 km/hr)

Battery Watt Hrs

0 watt3,456 watt

Frame Size

0 in (0.00 cm)432 in (1,097.28 cm)

Motor Power

0 Newton meters250 Nm

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To run the forums, host the website, and travel, I charge a universal service fee for my reviews. This in-depth review was sponsored by Urban Drivestyle USA. My goal is to be transparent and unbiased with you, this video and writeup are not meant to be an endorsement of UNI MOKE. I welcome your corrections, additions, and feedback in the comments below and the Urban Drivestyle electric bike forums.

Pros:

A fun and peppy yet unusual motorcycle-esqe fat-tire bike (sometimes called a mini-bike or retro-bike) made for adventure with a capable and speedy system, front suspension, knobby tires, and unique frame for cargo or passengers
Although it is somewhat a bicycle it is set apart from it is conventional brethren, thanks to features like being seat post free, having an open frame, extra long banana seat, and large headlight that resembles a dirt bike
The tires are 20” tall by 4” wide with off-road tread, so this qualifies as a fat tire bike, it has a good feel and mechanical advantage given the smaller wheel size and has a low center of gravity, I love the thicker 12 gage spokes in the rear that add to stability and sturdiness too
Mechanically, it has a 7 speed Shimano Tourney system with a 14-28 tooth cassette in the rear and a 52 tooth chain ring up front, not the largest range available for climbing, but the electrical system and throttle do a great job compensating for that
The bike is comes in at about 80lbs and that weight includes the battery, motor, and everything on the bike ready to ride, overall, it is 68” from end to end, I would say this looks bigger and more intimidating that it actually is, when you sit on the bike, it feels more nimble that it seems
Stopping the bike is a set of Tektro hydraulic disc brakes in the front and rear, the front has a large 180mm disc brake rotor, while the rear gets a 160mm disc brake rotor, this setup is great, having the larger brake rotor in the front is ideal since the front wheel handles the brunt force of your stopping momentum
In addition to getting a stop-on-a-dime hydraulic disc brake setup, the brakes also feature motor inhibitors, motor inhibitors refers to a cut-off signal built into the brake lever that shuts off power to the electric motor during braking, this allows the rider to brake hard and fast without working about the motor still being powered which would increase braking resistance and drag
The bike also includes a kickstand in the rear, it is nice to have it back there since having it near the crank arm can produce ‘pedal lock’; an annoying occurrence that locks the pedals when you reverse a bike with the kickstand down, luckily, this bike eliminates that by having it positioned further back
The long style banana seat is great and comfortable, it is a gel covered vinyl, while it may be static and does not move, you do get some geometry adjustability in a sense because you can slide your body back and forth along the pad to change your pedaling or arm distance and reach, it is nice and wide at 5.75” and 31” long
Adjustability can also be made for the rider or even a passenger given the extra three point mountable foot pegs, one mounting spot is in the front, while the other two are in the rear, one down below at about the center of the wheel, and the other up higher than that which works great if you have a little passenger in the rear
The Unimoke uses an independent handlebar system, where they are not bound together so you can adjust one closer to you than another if you had a medical consideration or other reason to need adjustment on one versus the other
Features a front suspension, this works very well for what you might need whether on the road, a pot-hole, or gravel and grass, but I wouldn’t use it for serious off-roading, however it it is quite adequate despite it’s limited travel
Other than the display on the cockpit, you have a flick bell, locking flat grips (although I hesitate to call them flat, because they actually do have a slight ergonomic bulge to it), and trigger shifts with gear indicator windows on the right handlebar
I love the battery integrated lights here, they have them both in the front and the rear, I gotta call out his ultra-large headlight, this thing is super cool and has 4 bright LEDs inside, safety has always been a priority for myself and other cyclists, so it’s nice to see that more and more companies are including these on ebikes, and the aesthetics are cool too
Powered by a Bafang fat-tire specific hub-drive motor, this is rated for 500 watts nominal power and 750 watts peak power, pretty strong for this size of vehicle, can be electrically operated either with the thumb throttle on the left side, or through your pedaling via the torque based pedal assist sensing system
It is a lot of fund to ride, and I feel most people will use the throttle here, which is probably why the mechanical drivetrain has smaller gearing, I think this is meant to be used like a dirt-bike or scooter, and it really shines and seems happiest doing so, although, the torque based pedal assist is not bad either
The display is mounted center between the handlebars and keeps it somewhat protected, it has all the basic statistics, like battery infographic, speedometer, is backlight, can activate the lights, and has a deep settings menu that is accessible by holding the + and – button down for a few seconds at the same time
Operates with varying levels of throttle and pedal assist, 0-9, the different levels will limit the electrical motor output for both your pedaling and even the throttle, if you want full throttle power and top speed, put it in level 9 and watch the bike get up to about 26mph top speed, this things is in speed pedelec territory and it feels zippy with that smaller wheel diameter giving it a mechanical advantage
Makes use of a power high capacity battery system, this is rated at 48v 14ah, so it has the power and distance most people might want, it is mid mounted for weight distribution, and is removed by lifting up the seat, make sure to check out the video for removal instructions as they can take a bit to get used to
One of the hidden surprises of the bike was the utility of other passengers, I have a 3 year old daughter that quickly became obsessed with this little machine and I have to tell you, we had a blast with the UNI Moke, she loved to sit in the front with the foot pegs up there and she would grab the handlebars as if she was controlling the bike, meanwhile, as a father, I felt she was protected as she was able to sit closely in front of me with my arms around to keep her safe, of course, you can fit other passengers in the rear too, this could be a fun option for you if you are considering the bike

Cons:

I am happy to report the battery is removable and can be done by most people without a many problems, however, I do have to say, it is a multistep process, make sure to watch the battery removal section of the video review to see what I am talking about, I do wish it was a little more simple, but then again, I am probably just used to all the other bikes we review and this could be considered a minor gripe
In addition to the battery taking some time to remove, another gripe about it would be that the keys have to stay in while you operate the bike, this can leave them to make noise and bang around, or even potentially scratch the frame or other parts of the bike depending on the key-chain you might use, the bike came with 3 keys, so it is safe to say, many people will leave them on the ring and let them fly around, so do be aware of that when you get this bike
In my testing, I was able to take it on some grass, dirt, hills, and gravel, I felt the suspension and tires did fantastically, however, sometimes fat-tire bikes give off the impression of being able to take it on hard-core trails or doing some technical downhill terrain, I would not advise this, the suspension especially seems shy on bigger bumps, so I would keep the adventure light-weight
As I mentioned, the long seat offers some adjustment in the sense that you can slide back and forth along it to adjust pedaling or reaching geometry, however, the almost 6” wide seat will probably have you not pedaling much, to be fair, I think it does better than I possibly imagined, but I would not take this on a long tour of pedal only power, it just doesn’t seem made for that kind of riding
I don’t know if this is so much a compliant as it is a question mark, but I noticed the bike came with folding pedals, sure, you can fold them in and save maybe an inch or two off the overall width, but I don’t really see the utility here since the bike is still somewhat large and heavy, sometimes when I see details like this, I wonder if there was actual reasoning behind it, or they glossed over the feature and just put whatever they could on, not the end of the world, but definetly curious to me
At 80lbs, the bike is heavy and may not be the best if you are looking for something to load on a bike rack (I doubt it would even work on any), it could be cumbersome to maneuver around a garage too, I didn’t have any immediate problems with it, but do be aware of the weight and size of it to make sure it fits your lifestyle properly

Useful Resources:

January 29, 2024 (11 months ago)

L

5 years ago

Do not waste your money there are much better cargo ebikes on the market! One of the worst purchase we’ve ever made. the Unimoke is not even a year old and we have already had the following issues:

The pedal assist does not work, we rely on the throttle.
The metal stand has broken off and we can’t find a replacement that fits.
The paint has peeled off the headlight.
The break pads don’t ware out evenly because of poor design.
We have already had to get the wheel spokes adjusted twice.
We have already had to upgrade the battery as the original one does not last at all!!! Barely 2 hours!

Zero support from Urbandrive style and absolutely no guarantee, and no bike shop will repair it as it isn’t standard. even bike shops specialized in ebike take one look at it and say nope! Plus, any time we have had to order something it look literal months to arrive we waited over 2 months for some pegs, ridiculous. Parts come straight from China!

Court

That’s such a bummer, thanks for sharing your experience so that others can hear an owner perspective. I’m sorry, L. Ride safe and I hope your next ebike experience is better :/

Prof J. Mark Bishop

2 years ago

I am suspicious of the negative review above as the Unimoke is built like a tank. I have had my mine for several years with nothing going wrong under heavy use and it’s one of the best purchases I have ever made; easily transports me, wife and child around town. My commute to work is down to under ten mins from 30in car and 40on public transport.

Cool, thanks for chining in with your own experiences and perspectives Prof J. Mark Bishop. Glad to hear that your Unimoke is working well for you!

Graham Konstandelos

4 years ago

Great bike, such fun to ride, the 250w model is ample for my commute and carrying extra items on the cargo basket I’m trying to find daily excuses to take mine out.

Glad to hear you’re enjoying it, Graham!