KBO Oasis E-Bike Review, 2024

When KBO bikes told us the Oasis can travel 30 – 55 miles on a single charge, we were ready to test this bike and see. After fully charging the bike’s battery, we took it on our first range test, called the “Minimum PAS Range Test.” The goal here is to pedal the bike using the lowest PAS level that provides continual pedal assistance to the rider. Since PAS 1 and 2 were useless, we did this part in PAS 3.

You’ll recall from the Speed Test that PAS 3 is where this bike came to life. I was a little concerned about battery consumption because the Oasis’s top speed in PAS 3 is 1 – 2 mph faster than most bikes’ average PAS speed in the Range Test. But that was all for naught, as the 500W motor and 720Wh battery worked together to take me and this bike nearly 57 miles on a single charge. Not only was this a good result for a cruiser, but it was also a good result using a PAS level that was a little faster than average.

It’s safe to say that if we rode this test using PAS 2, the Oasis likely would have traveled more than 60 miles, but I would have had to do quite a bit more pedaling than the standard we set for this test.

In the second part of the Range Test, I rode this bike using PAS 5, for maximum motor power output, combined with my basic (i.e. non-exertive) pedaling. Another success story here, with the Oasis making it to 33.86 miles before the battery ran out of juice.

Remember how I said we are obligated to make sure KBO was on the mark with their claim that this bike should go at least 30 to 55 miles? I am happy to say they were right.

The good news on the throttle-only Hill Test was that the Oasis made it to the top. But it barely had enough power at one point and our tester, Justin, was surprised when the bike sputtered all the way to the top, in a very slow time of 2:54, and averaging a very slow speed of 6.2 mph. The Oasis has the distinction of being the slowest cruiser to conquer the Hell Hole Trail, using the throttle-only. Like my coach used to say, “a win is a win.”

The Oasis did better on the second Hill Test. With the help of Justin’s basic pedaling, and correct choice of gear, the Oasis took him to the top of Hell Hole in an okay time of 1:32, and a modest speed of 11.8 mph. The main lesson on this part? When you put some pedaling effort in, the Oasis is going to do more for you.

Cruisers aren’t known as hill crunchers, and this bike confirmed that. Folks who ride cruisers don’t regularly use their bike for hill climbing. But if you live in parts of the US that have a lot of hills, like San Francisco, Seattle, Portland and Denver, then this will matter to you. I can say, having ridden the hills in all four of those cities on a non-electric bike, that I think the Oasis can probably get you up the hills in those cities, as long as you pedal.

With so much of our prior focus being on the Oasis’ ability to power forward, it’s fitting now to talk about how well this bike stops. The Oasis’ brake system performed better than expected on our brake test, with an average stopping distance of 23’3”. For most e-bikes the average is 20’ – 22’, but for cruisers and commuter e-bikes, the Oasis landed close to the middle. That’s not bad considering these brakes are mechanical instead of hydraulic.

The Oasis uses brakes we haven’t seen before – Teboka MD 320 mechanical disc brake system. It uses 180mm rotors on the front, which is what we see on many other e-bikes, and 203mm rotors on the rear wheel. We were a little surprised by this because we don’t normally see an e-bike with different size rotors.

Taking a deeper look at this, there are a few reasons that support KBO’s choice. Using the bigger rotor means you don’t lose as much braking power because the larger 203mm rotor generates less heat than the 180mm rotor. Bigger rotors also stop better because their braking torque is closer to the outside part of the wheel. The physics around this are too advanced to explain here but it does support having the larger rotor on the rear. And since the hub motor is on the rear wheel, it generates additional heat that’s not present on the front brake rotor.

Hydraulic brakes tend to work better than mechanical brakes, so it stands to reason that using a larger rotor than normal makes these Teboka brakes work better. And looking at this further, with some subjectivity involved, another reason for the 203mm on the rear is that most riders use the rear brake more than the front brake.

There are a lot of articles out there that claim riders tend to use their rear brake more, but I can tell you in my years of working at a bike shop, many riders have told me they were taught to not use the front brake as much because of the risk of going over the handlebar.

Putting aside that last assumption, KBO’s choice on the rear rotor was a safer bet. The Teboka brakes are not well-known, so we don’t have experience with these brakes on other bikes. The fact that this bike stopped well on our test, and uses a larger-than-average rotor, gave us a little more confidence in using these unfamiliar brakes.

Our only other issue is that the brakes are still squeaking. Sometimes we get new bikes with squeaky brakes, which usually come from a coating on the brake pads that wears off after your first couple of rides. This may be an aberration. Sometimes glazing develops, in which case our mechanic will have to remove the pads, lightly sand them down, and then re-install. But if you’re not a bike mechanic, that means put up with the squeaks, or pay a bike mechanic to get rid of the squeak.

Next, we ask the question, how does this bike feel when riding it? As a cruiser, the Oasis gives an upright posture, arms comfortably extending forward and resting on the 700mm mustache-style handlebar. The effective top tube length of 26.3″ gives a reach of approximately 16”, which is normal for a cruiser. Whether you have short arms or long arms the handlebar height and reach can be changed using the adjustable stem.

For more comfort, I moved the stem up and back so my bake was straight, and my arms more relaxed, using a shorter reach. If you don’t have experience making this adjustment, we recommend you work with a skilled bike mechanic or trusted friend or family member who has experience doing this.

Also common with cruisers is the pedal positioning that’s a little more forward than on most other bikes. This helped me recline back a little more, although it slightly reduced the effectiveness of my pedaling. As long as I was using PAS 3, at the very least, I had no complaints with the pedaling.

The Oasis doesn’t have suspension, and I felt it whenever I rode on gravel or over potholes. The fat tires helped absorb some of the bumps but couldn’t replace having a suspension fork or suspension seat post.

At the end of the day, the Oasis has a mixed bag when determining it as a suitable entry-level cruiser. We think they did get some things right, like the bike’s look, feel and ride comfort. It looks and feels like a classic beach cruiser. I can attest to its comfort based on my non-stop 56-mile ride and 33-mile ride on the range test. We would still like to see them make corrections to the things we noted here, especially with the motor’s PAS speeds and pedal engagement.

The KBO Oasis has a look that should appeal to a lot of cruiser riders. In my riding experience on this bike, I noticed a few more heads than normal were turning to take a look at this bike. And I had no complaints about comfort – the Oasis was a comfortable riding cruiser. Considering this bike’s look, comfortable ride, ability to go 56 miles on a single charge, and it’s price, I can see how folks can like this bike.

The Oasis has some positives and with some small improvements, we think this could be a popular entry-level cruiser e-bike. KBO ships directly to consumers, so if you are interested in learning more, then please use our link above as a way of showing you value the information presented in our review.

Happy Riding! Make sure to let us know if you have any questions down in our comments section or if you think we left anything out in this review of the KBO Oasis.