Well, get ready for this, because the Schwinn EC1 electric bicycle gives that same old feel of a classic Schwinn cruiser but adds a nice, firm electric boost to your ride. And it’s currently on sale for a killer price of just $898. It doesn’t make much sense to me for an electric bike – the focus on fast charging and a high power density chemistry on a bike that really doesn’t need much power is hard to understand. The only thing I can think is that they hoped it would become a delivery fleet bike or something – but a decent delivery rider would absolutely smoke this bike in any terrain.
As a result, Schwinns became increasingly dated in both styling and technology. By 1957, the Paramount series, once a premier racing bicycle, had atrophied from a lack of attention and modernization. Aside from some new frame lug designs, the designs, methods and tooling were the same as had been used in the 1930s. The Paramount continued as a limited production model, built in small numbers in a small apportioned area of the old Chicago assembly factory.
Now, with the Pedal Assist System, the force responsible for going forward is you pedaling. The motor still comes into play here and provides some assistance by giving an extra boost each time you pedal. Using PAS, the bike will not accelerate without use of the pedals like the throttle does. While not a new invention, electric bicycles have only recently become more of a household name.
It’s a bit jarring the first time or two, but that’s par for the course, and you’ll warm up to it quickly. Once the electric’s on, there are three modes of assistance to choose from on that left control panel — flat, downhill, and hill climbing. On flat riding roads, where we did most of our testing, the assistance creates an experience where, though you still need to pedal, you can definitely feel a substantial amount of help from the motor. We’re not saying it’s without effort, but it’s a greatly reduced effort. Uphill, however, we definitely expended a significantly higher amount of energy with our toothpick-like legs. The assistance is there, but it doesn’t enable you to truck up huge hills super fast — it’ll give you enough of a boost so that you’re not completely annihilated, but doesn’t do all the work by a longshot.
Whether you’re a Schwinn enthusiast or just love the look, you’re welcome to join us in celebrating a legacy of fun and adventure while you discover what makes each of these bikes a true classic. Rest assured, riding one of Schwinn’s e-bikes will quickly feel just as second nature as riding the traditional (or analog) bike you’re used to. In fact, we’re pretty schwinn electric bike sure you’ll end up preferring it to your old bicycle. In a nutshell, it’s a 24v, 4AH battery pack composed of reasonably exotic lithium titanate cells. They’re a Toshiba SCiB unit, and have, on paper, an insane cycle life. It’s not fast – you’ll cruise comfortably at 12-14mph, maybe a bit faster if you pedal, but this is a rather slow running bicycle.
Many other e-bike companies charge extra for those parts. But, another thing to consider is that the Shimano Nexus 8 with Roller Brake retails for around $250 alone – so if you want one, this one comes with a whole 700C based electric bike attached! Throw a better battery and a better controller on it, and I bet you can get a whole lot more than 250W out of the motor as well.
Speaking of the seat, it’s not the most comfortable I’ve ridden on, but that’s easy enough to replace with a third-party seat if you like. When you think about EVs, you probably (rightly) think of cars. But there’s another class of EV that might have slipped below your radar, but which has transformed my summer in very unexpected ways. Of course, if you read the headline, you know I’m talking about electric bikes, and I’ve had the opportunity to test out Schwinn’s Coston CE electric bike for the past three weeks (and an older model before that).
Before we get into the e-bike itself, I want to take a moment to talk about e-bike ownership and what it has meant for me. I mentioned the shunning of my trusty Trek bike in lieu of my e-bikes this summer, but the reason for that has been life-changing for me. I’ve been using an electric bike and a shoulder bag for most of my shopping “can you grab me XYZ from Target” runs. On the other hand, in the time I’ve had an e-bike, I have barely touched my poor Trek bike. E-biking is very powerful and addictive, and it has ruined traditional cycling for me, and I can’t decide if that’s a good thing.
W. Schwinn tasked a new team to plan future business strategy, consisting of marketing supervisor Ray Burch, general manager Bill Stoeffhaas, and design supervisor Al Fritz. Unbeknownst to me, the company has a line of electric bikes designed for entry-level cyclists. There are a lot of good ideas on this bike, but it still feels more like a bike designed by a committee that was told, “Build an electric bike so we can get some great press!
To charge the battery pack, you have to take it out of the bike. It comes out easily, but this is quite annoying, given that you charge the bike pretty much every time you ride it mongoose excursion (or, at least, you will be, with this small a pack). With the assist running on low or medium, the bike rolls smoothly and lightly, and the assist blends smoothly with pedaling.