If you’re in San Francisco you’re going to want more help than if you’re cruising around Austin. Watt hours (Wh) is the most important figure for comparison—it takes into account battery output and battery life to give you a better sense of available power. Motors are also rated based on their power, measured in Watts. More important, there is no industry standard for measuring Watts (is it continuous or peak and if peak, for how long?). So in general, a motor’s Watt rating isn’t a reliable indication of power.
The 110mm-travel suspension fork improves control on bumpy terrain and the 7-speed Shimano drivetrain helps both uphill and down. Hydraulic disc brakes offer terrific power even on steep downhills and Chaoyang 26 x 4-in. Tires provide the necessary cushion and traction for exploring the backcountry.
That adds a nice nighttime glow to the bike to give you better side visibility – an area where most bikes are lacking. The standard batteries that come on our Marshall, Coston CE and Coston DX bikes are good for up to 45 miles of riding. But Schwinn knows many riders want to go farther, so we developed higher capacity batteries that are super easy to install (you’ll only need a screwdriver).
Mid-drive motors located in the center pedal crank shaft tend to be more expensive but offer better overall balance and smoother shifting. Every e-bike here uses a hub motor rather than a mid-drive motor. Hub motors (the original industry standard and more affordable of the two) can be located on either the front or, more commonly, the rear wheel.
But this doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be riding around on a rattling tin can. These bikes cost less, but our testing and research show them to be very reliable for everyday commuting and riding. To make these reviews as helpful as possible, we focused on lower-priced options from brands like Aventon, Rad Power mongoose excursion Bikes, and others that you can purchase directly online. In addition to bikes for everyday riding, we included folding e-bikes and even a fat-tire e-bike. By modern terms, it’s a tiny system – only about 100WH (watt-hours) of capacity. Also, by some of it’s competition at the time, it was a tiny system.
A second look is invaluable as a rider, where we’d often even be grateful for a first look from drivers. The Schwinn Coston CE falls in the middle of its e-bike model line, offering a slight upgrade over the Schwinn Marshall but without some of the features found on the higher-end Coston DC. In general, if purchased on the Schwinn website, your new bike will be shipped within hours of being ordered and should arrive within 7-10 days. Please know that we have free shipping for all orders over $49, that we have a live chat option available Monday through Friday, and Schwinn has a limited lifetime warranty on all our bikes. Take on greater adventures with our e-bikes, which stay true to the superior quality that’s made Schwinn famous for 128 years.