Lectric XPremium Review, 2024

The minimum pedal assistance (PAS) ride determines how far the bike can go with minimum constant engagement from the motor with the pedaling. We are used to riding e-bikes that max-out at 50 miles. Carrying two fully charged batteries, the XPremium really made us work overtime on this test ride.

Since the advent of e-bikes, over 100 years ago, short range distance has been an early issue for e-bikes, limiting their popularity while challenging battery manufacturers to develop greater innovation.

Adding a second 10.4 amp-hour battery to travel up to 100 miles, Lectric challenged our team to put the XPremium to the test. Eager to hop aboard and ride, we found our patience being really tested as we approached the ninth and tenth hour of the test ride – the batteries kept this bike going, and going, and going…

One hundred miles? Try 108 miles, that was our test result in the minimum PAS ride. The folks at Lectric weren’t bluffing when they said this dual-battery e-bike should travel at least 100 miles per charge, using the PAS 1 the whole time.

The XPremium gave us a good idea of what to expect when riding the maximum PAS test. It’s a good thing we didn’t have to call our spouses to tell them we’d be late coming home. The expected range, using PAS 5, was 50 miles, and that’s exactly how far this e-bike ran (with almost a half mile to spare). It’s refreshing to see battery technology make advances like this. Perhaps in a few years we’ll be writing about e-bikes that can go 200 miles. We’ll see.

One of the innovations that makes the Lectric’s dual-battery system more energy efficient lies with the battery isolator that drains both batteries simultaneously, allowing you to ride longer at higher voltage levels. When available energy declines in single batteries, their voltage level also decreases, making them use energy less efficiently. This is why single batteries run out of power quicker in their last 50 percent than in their first 50 percent. It’s probably safe to say we will see more e-bike manufacturers offer some kind of dual battery system, like Lectric’s XPremium, on more e-bikes.

Climbing hills is one of the tasks that some e-bikes are better at than others. There are e-bikes that have a lot of power to climb hills quickly, but will only take you 30 or 40 miles. Then there are e-bikes like the XPremium that can take you 100 miles, but aren’t as great at hill climbing. The Hell Hole Trail we use in our testing, with its 12 percent incline in one-third of a mile, is extreme compared to most hills e-bike riders face. But it’s great for seeing how e-bikes perform in extreme conditions. Not every e-bike makes it up this hill.

In the throttle-only portion of the hill climb test, the XPremium reached the top in two minutes ten seconds (2:10), with an average speed of 8.3 mph. This was slower than the other similarly sized folding e-bikes we tested, by an average difference of 35 seconds and 3.15 mph. But the big difference is the other folding ebikes will only take you 50 miles, at best. So, having twice the range as the other e-bikes is a reasonable trade-off.

If you aren’t familiar with mid-drive motors, then one thing you will learn is mid-drives are designed to work with your pedaling, not work independently from your pedaling, like rear hub and front wheel motors. In the range section I mentioned how the mid-drive motor is part of the reason why this bike can go 100 + miles. Well, here’s the tradeoff, the XPremium will take you farther than probably any other e-bike you have ridden thus far, but it won’t take you up that hill as fast as you might have expected.

Considering hill climbing can suck a lot of power out of any e-bike battery, having a mid-drive motor on the Lectric XPremium can actually be seen as a good thing. You might enjoy the rush of climbing a hill like the “Hell Hole,” using a 750-watt rear hub motor, but you will do it at the expense of using up more energy from the battery. Bottom line, most riders who chose the XPremium did so for its range, not for its hill climbing ability.

With all the previous talk about how this e-bike moves, now it’s time to talk about how it stops – crucial to your safety. Here at the Electric Bike Report, we run every e-bike through a brake test to see how well it performs. We test the bike’s stopping power – riding at 20 mph and then stopping – three times and then calculate an average compared to other e-bikes we’ve tested.

We are fans of hydraulic disc brakes because they tend to be more responsive and stop you faster than mechanical brakes. So, we were happy to see the Lectric XPremium come equipped with Zoom hydraulic brakes. Since this e-bike has 20-inch wheels, it has the standard size 160mm brake rotors.

Among a field of folding/utility e-bikes that averaged a stopping distance of 23 feet 4 inches, the Lectric XPremium did slightly better, with an average stopping distance of 23 feet 3 inches. Whether I was riding on pavement or dirt trails, the XPremium’s braking power was consistent. This was important when I hit tight spots and had to brake quickly. You can’t under-appreciate reliable brakes, and I rode with greater confidence knowing I could rely on the XPremium to stop me when needed.

Considering this e-bike can carry up to 330 lbs, you need to remember that the heavier the bike is, with rider included, the longer it will take for the brakes to bring the bike to a complete stop. Our test results here are based on our 220 lb rider, on a closed course, so your results will vary.

Looking back at the 175 miles we rode the Lectric XPremium, I have to say the bike’s stable handling stands out most. The custom-made fork, with 80mm travel and one-sided oil damper, rolling on 20” x 4” fat tires, really made this possible. When off-roading, I had to stiffen the forks to handle my 190 lb frame. I can see having a lot of fun riding the XPremium around the campground, or on local dirt roads.

Many folding e-bikes, by the nature of their folding design, don’t rank as high in riding stability. But Lectra added to this by building a solid frame, and I could feel it by the way the bike felt rolling down the road, whether dirt or pavement. Lectric has been building their folding frames for over four years, so it’s nice to see such a reliable frame design.

The Shimano Tourney 7-speed trigger/push button shifter was easy to acclimate to and worked very well during all my rides. I liked the ergonomics of the grips, especially when I started hitting bumpy sections on the off-road portion. The pedal crank size worked well with my pedaling, although I had to stop pedaling when making turns because of the frame’s low ground clearance. This may be an e-bike you can ride off-road, but it’s not an off-road bike in its overall design.

Sitting on the XPremium and reaching for the handlebar, the 21-inch reach seems long. The main reason is Lectric e-bikes usually have a longer wheelbase to accommodate the folding design, and in this case dual batteries. I had to loosen the seat rail and slide the seat forward for me to fit better to the bike. That was all I could do since there is no way to adjust the stem to bring the handlebar closer.

When judging seat comfort, I am more picky than most people. Normally, I find most saddles uncomfortable at around the fifth or sixth mile. I rode 10 miles on the XPremium’s seat before my rear got sore. If you’re like me then you might want to pick up a padded seat cover or a more cushy saddle. The best takeaway from the seat comfort involved the seat tube’s suspension. I noticed how it absorbed some of the bumps in the road, making it a great feature on the XPremium.

It’s not often that you find a folding e-bike that can carry up to 330 lbs and travel up to 100 miles on a single charge, and that’s what makes the Lectric XPremium so special. Lectric has become one of the leaders in the e-bike industry because they use their innovation to meet rider needs while producing quality e-bikes at an affordable price.

Utilizing a 500-watt mid-drive motor makes perfect sense in that it relies on the rider’s pedaling in order to go further. Combining two batteries to work in unison, they have found a more efficient way to use battery power to make this e-bike travel farther. No doubt we will see other e-bike makers use this approach with their future models.

Besides offering an optional color LCD display, we really hope to see Lectric replace the alloy rear cassette with a stronger steel cassette. Mid-drive motors generate more torque than rear hub motors, causing the chain to yank and wear down the cogs quicker. Going with a stronger cassette will alleviate this, as well as helping chains last a little longer.

But all-in-all, when you look at how much the Lectric XPremium offers, you’re getting a lot of great features with an e-bike that’s made by a leading manufacturer who offers a 1-year warranty and industry renown customer service. This e-bike will likely be a big hit, especially with riders who need to carry more and travel farther.

Thank you for reading this article. Please click the link below to find out more about this e-bike’s pricing and availability. If you have any questions, then please post your question below, and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

‘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 Lectric XPremium.