Check out their website and give them a ring, I hope this helps because I don’t think Schwinn sells batteries for t his ebike anymore. 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! ” than a group that actually understood electric bikes, or even had a real mission for this bike.
Use the power button on the handlebar controller to activate the pedal assist. Use the “+” and “–“ buttons to select your level of pedal assist. We recommend starting on the lowest level of pedal assistance. There is a HUGE market gap right now, for quality ebikes that are priced between $1000 and $1500, and deliver the value needed for a would be e-bike candidate rider. Certain functionality has to be there, to get these ebikes more past the early adopter, or even past the early mainstream type of buyer. Those market ‘chasm’s’ have yet to be jumped here in the US, where bikes aren’t seen as transportation or for commuting practicality as they might be in Europe or Asia.
Schwinn was created in Chicago Illinois, USA in 1895 and eventually grew to become the dominant manufacturer of American bicycles through much of the 20th century. It is now part of the Pacific Cycle group, and has begun launching electric bicycles such as the Schwinn Monroe 250, it’s most affordable model. Three things that stood out to me when testing this bike were how lightweight, affordable, and smooth it was.
The tail light does glow somewhat, but it’s not very bright, and it goes out as soon as you stop moving. If you look closely, you can see the metal bar sticking through the wheel. Also, the schwinn dealers switchblade key is visible, inserted into the lock. An interesting feature I’ve not seen before is a wheel lock. The upper horseshoe-shaped thing is a keyed wheel lock that lets you run a metal bar through the spokes.
For running slowly on flat terrain, the brakes are just fine. The rear brake, if a bit springy, will get you stopped, and the front chimes in quickly to bring you down in a hurry if you need to. The wheel lock is a Basta Defender, if you’re curious (apparently now, the AXA Defender). It’s a good blend of “comfortable while sitting on it at the store” without being horrendous to actually ride. It’s, obviously, 3D – I really hate those 2D seats, so this is a good one.
The Schwinn 130 Upright Bike is the only other option with a user interface that we like as much as the IC4. While the IC4 is a smart bike with connected features, you can use it as a stand-alone bike for manual workouts without the need to connect to a device. In manual mode, you can start pedaling and adjust the resistance however you like.
I’d like to see an ebike have a powered tail light so I don’t have to remember to test the batteries. I’m assuming with the design it’s tough to power anything on the back without a rack. Then cruising city streets the higher pedal assist and gears help you get up to the 20mph pedal assist limit. It’s easy to switch through the 7 gears with the twist or grip shift. It moves easily and quickly move through the gears. I had to adjust my derailleur a bit on the first ride out so all the gears hit just right but once it was adjusted it was smooth.